The Thief’s Story
The Thief’s Story is part of NCERT Solutions for Class 10th English. Here we have given NCERT Solutions for Class 10 English Footprints Without Feet Chapter 2 The Thief’s Story.
| Board | CBSE |
| Textbook | NCERT |
| Class | Class 10th |
| Subject | English Footprints Without Feet |
| Chapter | Chapter |
| Chapter Name | The Thief’s Story |
| Category | NCERT Solution |
Questions And Answers
Q.1. What are Hari Singh’s reactions to the prospect of receiving an education? Do they change over time? (Hint: Compare, for example, the thought: “I knew that once I could write like an educated man there would be no limit to what I could achieve” with these later thoughts: “Whole sentences, I knew, could one day bring me more than a few hundred rupees. It was a simple matter to steal and sometimes just as simple to be caught. But to be a really big man, a clever and respected man, was something else.”) What makes him return to Anil?
Ans. Hari Singh feels that education can make him earn a lot of money in an honest way. His prospect of receiving an education does not change over time. He feels that he can earn much more if he gets an education. He returns to Anil because Anil trusts him, feeds him, and even teaches him, treats him well.
Q.2. Why does not Anil hand the thief over to the police? Do you think most people would have done so? In what ways is Anil different from such employers?
Ans. Anil did not hand over the thief to the police maybe because he knew that Hari Singh had realized his mistake. He was feeling guilty for what he had done and wanted to mend his ways. This was the reason why he had come back and put the money back to its place. Anil wanted to give him a chance to become a better person.
No, I don’t think that anybody in today’s world would have done so because to do so, a person needs to have a lot of compassion and patience which is missing in most of the people today. In today’s world, a thief is considered a criminal even if he realizes his mistake. It takes a lot of courage to trust someone who has broken your trust once. Although I feel that if a person realizes his mistake he must be given another chance to win back your trust.
Q.3. Who does ‘I’ refer to in this story?
Ans. In this story, “I” refers to the thief who introduces himself as Hari Singh.
Q.4. What is “a fairly successful hand” at?
Ans. He was a “fairly successful hand” at robbing and duping people of their money.
Q.5. What does he get from Anil in return for his work?
Ans. When he asks Anil that he wants to work for him, Anil clearly says that he will; not be able to pay him. They mutually decide that if the thief would be able to cook food for him, then Anil would feed him. But soon, Anil comes to know that he cannot cook. So Anil tells Hari, the thief that he would teach him to cook food, teach him to write his full sentences and name, and also to add numbers. Apart from this, Hari also used to steal one rupee from the grocery money every day.
Q.6. How does the thief think Anil will react to the theft?
Ans. The thief thought that on discovering that he had been robbed, Anil would definitely be sad but he would be sad because of the loss of money not because of the loss of trust.
Q.7. What does he say about the various reactions of people when they are robbed?
Ans. The thief says that according to his experience, upon being robbed the greedy man showed fear, the rich man showed anger and the poor man showed acceptance towards whatever had happened with him.
Q.8. Does Anil realize that he has been robbed?
Ans. Yes, probably Anil knew that he had been robbed because all the notes were wet and damp from last night. He still did not say anything to the thief and gave him 50 rupees and told him that from now on, Anil will be paying him money as salary every month.
Q.9.Do you think people like Hari Singh and Anil are found only in fiction, or are there such people in real life?
Ans: People like Hari Singh and Anil are found only in fiction. Though exceptions might be there, these people are rarely found. Anil was a kind and considerate person who was concerned, about Hari’s education and future. And Hari was a thief whose heart changes after realizing the importance of education for his future. People like these are imaginary in today’s world.
Q.10. Do you think it is a significant detail story that Anil is a struggling writer? Does this explain his behavior in any way?
Ans: Yes, it is a significant detail that Anil is a struggling writer. His lifestyle was simple and used to spend according to his pocket at all times. His struggle sometimes gave him a lot of income while at other times he used to worry about the next payment. Hari’s observation about the discontinuation in his work justifies his behave regarding money.
