SEBA Class 9 English Lesson - 7: The Duck and Kangaroo Question and Answer
The Duck and Kangaroo
Answer the following questions :
1. What made the Duck wish that he could hop like the Kangaroo ?
Ans: Living life in the pond seemed too dull and boring to the Duck and so she wished that she too could hop around like the Kangaroo,discovering and visiting new places.
2. What did the Duck request the Kangaroo to do ? Why ?
Ans: The Duck requested the Kangaroo to allow him to ride on his back.The duck was frustrated at being restricted to a small, dirty pond and thought she could go see the world if the Kangaroo agreed to give her a ride.
3. Where did the Duck say he would go ?
Ans: The Duck wanted to see the world that existed beyond her pond. She told the Kangaroo that together they could go to the ‘Dee’ and the ‘Jelly Bo Lee’, and over all the land and also over the sea.
4. Did the Kangaroo accept the Duck’s request ? Why ?
Ans: Yes the Kangaroo accepted the Duck’s request. Because after reflecting on the request for some time, he thought it might bring him luck.
5. What was the only objection the Kangaroo had to the Duck riding on his back ? What did the Duck say to this ?
Ans: The only objection that the Kangaroo had to giving the Duck a ride on his back was that the Duck’s feet were wet and cold. The Kangaroo feared that having those cold feet on his back might result into him catching rheumatism.
The Duck replied that she had with her four pairs of worsted socks, that fitted her webbed feet neatly and so the Kangaroo had nothing to worry about. She also had a cloak to stay warm and would smoke a cigar daily to ward off the cold.
6. Where did the Kangaroo ask the Duck to sit ? Why ?
Ans: The Kangaroo asked the Duck to sit at the very end of his tail. This he said would help to maintain balance.
Reference to the context
1. “Good gracious! How you hop!
(a) Who is the speaker ?
Ans: The speaker is the Duck from the poem ‘The Duck and the Kangaroo’.
(b) Who is the speaker talking to ? Is the speaker being sarcastic or envious ?
Ans: The Duck is talking to the Kangaroo. The speaker is envious. The Duck was envious of the Kangaroo’s ability to hop around and travel far and wide.
2. “This requires some little reflection;Perhaps on the whole it might bring me luck,
And there seems but one objection,
(a) The word ‘reflection’ as given here means
(i) thought.
(ii) scattering of light.
(iii) image.
(iv) idea.
Ans: (i) thought.
(b) Who is the speaker ? What is the one objection the speaker had ?
Ans: The kangaroo is the speaker.The only objection that the Kangaroo had to carrying the Duck on his back was that the duck’s feet were unpleasantly wet and cold, which could cause him to got rheumatism.
(c) What might bring the speaker luck ?
Ans: Carrying the Duck on his back and travelling to places together might bring the Kangaroo luck.
