WBBSE Solutions For Class 8 English Reading Skill Seen Lesson 8 The Happy Prince

Reading Skill Seen Lesson 8 The Happy Prince

Word meanings:

Part 1

pedestal (পেডেস্টাল্)– বেদি; stiffly (স্টিলি ) – শক্তভাবে; resembling (রিজেম্বলিং) — দেখতে একই রকম: tunic (টিউনিক্)—পোশাক ; hilt (হিল্ট) – তরবারির বাঁট; individually — (ইনডিভিজুয়ালি ) –আলাদা আলাদা ভাবে; glued (গ্লুড)—আঠা দিয়ে সাঁটা; audience’ (অডিয়্যান্স)— শ্রোতৃমণ্ডলী; admiringly (অ্যাডমায়ারিংলি ) – প্রশংসা করার ভঙ্গিতে ; sapphire (স্যাফায়ার্) – নীলকান্ত মণি (a bright blue jewel) ; ruby (রুবি) – চুনি; awe (অ)- শ্রদ্ধামিশ্রিত ভয় বা বিস্ময়; limp (লিপ্) – খুঁড়িয়ে চলা; muttering (মাটারিং) – বিড়বিড় বা গজগজ করতে করতে; dragging (ড্র্যাগিং)— টেনে নিয়ে যেতে যেতে; twittering (টুইটারিং)— কিচিরমিচির শব্দ; flap (ফ্ল্যাপ্) –ডানা ঝাপটানো ; perch (পার্চ)—উড়ে এসে বসা; jerk (জার্ক) – ঝাঁকুনি দেওয়া; puzzled (পাজড) – হতভম্ব হওয়া।

Part 2

tossing (টসিং)—এপাশ ওপাশ বা ছটফট করছে; Luxor (লাক্সর) – ইজিপ্টের একটি শহর; playwright (প্লেরাইট্) –নাট্যকার; overjoyed (ওভারজয়েড্ ) – অত্যন্ত খুশী।

Read And Learn Also WBBSE Class 8 English Reading Skills

Part 3

amazed (এ্যামেজ্ড)—বিস্মিত ; track (ট্র্যাক্)—অনুসরণ করা; miserable (মিসারেল) – দুর্দশাগ্রস্ত; darken (ডারকেন্)—অন্ধকার করা; unfed (আফেড) – অভুক্ত; pluck (প্লাক্) – তোলা; clustered (ক্লাস্টারড) – একজোট হওয়া; drooping (ড্রপিং) – ঝিমোচ্ছে; crumpled (ক্রম্‌পলড্) – দুমড়ে মুচড়ে যাওয়া অবস্থা; Mayor (মেয়র) — মহানাগরিক; councillors (কাউন্সিলরস ) – পরিষদবর্গ; angel (এঞ্জেল্)—দেবদূত।

Reading Skill Seen Lesson 8 The Happy Prince Examples

Read the following texts and do as directed.

Question 1. Student 1: So this is the famous statue of Happy Prince.

[They pause and gather admiringly around the statue of the Happy Prince]

Student 2: He is very well known in this land. Happy Prince lived in the wonderful palace of Sans- Souci. During the day, he played with his friends in the palace garden. By night, he sang and laughed. He had no idea about the people of this world who live outside his palace.

Student 1: You mean he never felt sad?

Student 2: Nothing sad ever entered the door of the prince’s palace. Everyone called him the Happy Prince and when he died, the town built this statue and named it the same.

Student 3: The Happy Prince is built with gold from head to foot. His eyes are two precious sapphires and there is a big red ruby on his sword hilt.

[Student I glances up at the Happy Prince with awe. They start walking. Student 2 speaks when they are close to the right-wing exit.]

Student 2: In this town, everyone loves the Happy Prince.

[They go out. A sad, tired-looking man immediately enters the stage from the right. He limps down with an unhappy expression. He stops before the statue of the Happy Prince and looks unhappily for three seconds. He starts limping towards the left wing exit, muttering loudly to himself.]

Man: At least, there’s one truly happy man in this town. That is something!

[The sad, tired man goes out through the left-wing exit. Immediately from the left wing emerges a young mother dragging her little boy by the hand. The boy is crying. The mother is trying to stop the boy from crying. They reach the statue of the Happy Prince. Mother speaks while walking.]

Young mother: I can’t understand why you keep crying! Why can’t you be happy? The Happy Prince never cries for new things.

1. Answer the questions below:

1. Whose statue was it?
2. Who was the Happy Prince?
3. What was the statue of the Happy Prince made of?
4. Why was his statue built?
5. What did the mother tell the child when he was crying?

Answer:

1. It was the statue of Happy Prince.
2. He was a prince who lived in the palace Sans-Souci and was always happy. During the day he played with his friends and by night he sang and laughed.
3. The statue of the Happy Prince was made of gold.
4. Everyone called him Happy Prince because nothing sad ever entered his palace. So when he died, the people of the town built his statue and named it the same.
5. The mother told the child not to cry and then informed him that the Happy Prince never cried for new things.

2. Choose the correct answer from the alternatives given:

Question 1. The students gathered around the-

1. King,
2. The statue of the Happy Prince,
3. Prince.

Answer: 2. The statue of the Happy Prince

Question 2. When alive, Happy Prince knew no-

1. Sufferings,
2. Happiness,
3. Joy.

Answer: 1. Sufferings

Question 3. The eyes of the Happy Prince were of

1. Diamond,
2. Ruby,
3. Sapphires.

Answer: 3. Sapphires

3. Write ‘T’ for true and ‘F’ for false statements:

Question 1. The statue of the Happy Prince was built by the King.
Answer: False

Question 2. On his sword hilt, there was a red ruby.
Answer: True

Question 3. The Happy Prince was loved by everyone in the town.
Answer: True

4. Complete the sentences with information from the text.

Question 1. When alive the Happy Prince lived _____________
Answer: When alive the Happy Prince lived in the wonderful palace of Sans-Souci.

Question 2. When alive the Prince had no idea __________
Answer: When alive the Prince had no idea about the people of this world who lived outside his palace.

Question 3. The young mother could not understand ____________
Answer: The young mother could not understand why the child kept crying and why he could not be happy.

5. Fill in the blanks with words from the text. There are a few extra words.

List of words happy, idea, famous, outside, wonderful, understand, precious, never.

Question 1. His father was a _______ scientist.
Answer: Famous

Question 2. We had a ________ time last night.
Answer: Wonderful

Question 3. I have no _______ where he lives now.
Answer: Idea

Question 4. The crown was set with _________ jewels.
Answer: Precious

Question 5. I cannot ________ what he says.
Answer: Understand

Question 2. Swallow: It’s too cold here. All my friends have left for warm Egypt. I too must fly. But tonight I will rest in this unknown town. The shelter between the feet of this golden statue looks good enough.

[The Swallow perches on the pedestal-shaped box, holding a leg of the statue and resting his head against it. Swallow jerks and jumps up suddenly after five seconds]

Swallow: I thought this golden room was good shelter. But I’m getting wet in the rain.

[The Swallow sticks its neck out and looks upwards. He looks puzzled.]

Swallow: And yet, the sky is clear. It’s not raining.

[Swallow jumps up again as if a second drop of water had fallen. He now looks up at the statue and is amazed to see teardrops beneath its eyes.]

Swallow: Who are you? Why are you crying?

Status: I’m the Happy Prince. I spent my life in a palace. Now I am dead, and a statue. I stand in the middle of this town. I can see the poor people and all the ugly things in my land.

Swallow: I see you have a golden heart.

Statue: My feet are fixed here. I cannot move. Please help me, little Swallow.

[The stage is darkened. Only the Happy Prince’s voice is heard.]

Statue: There is a poor house in a little street. A woman is making a dress for a beautiful, young lady of the palace. The woman is poor and her son is suffering from a fever. Swallow, take the ruby from my sword hilt, and give it to her.

[The stage is lit again. The light is blue. Close to the right wing, there stands now an open cottage made of cardboard. There is a backdoor to the cottage for entry from the right wing. A curtain hangs in front of the cottage.]

Swallow: But all my friends have flown to Egypt. I cannot delay. It’s too cold here.

Statue: Swallow, little Swallow, please stay with me for one night.

1. Answer the questions below:

1. Where did the Swallow take shelter and why?
2. Why was Happy Prince crying?
3. Why does the Swallow think that the statue of the Happy Prince has a golden heart?
4. What help did the Happy Prince seek from the Swallow?

Answer:

1. The Swallow took shelter between the feet of the statue of the Happy Prince because he thought the place would be good enough and not too cold like outside.
2. Happy Prince was crying as he felt sad to see the poor people and all the ugly things in his land.
3. The Happy Prince felt sad and his eyes were full of tears when he saw the sufferings of the poor people and all the ugly things in his land about which he was not aware when alive. This made the Swallow think that the Happy Prince had a golden heart.
4. The Happy Prince sought Swallow’s help in taking a ruby from his sword hilt and giving it to a poor woman.

2. Write “T’ for true and ‘F’ for false statements.

Question 1. The Swallow mistook the teardrops for rain.
Answer: True

Question 2. The statue of the Happy Prince cannot see.
Answer: False

Question 3. Swallow’s friends had gone to Egypt.
Answer: True

Question 4. When the Swallow went to the woman’s house, he found her son was playing.
Answer: False

3. Complete the sentences with information from the text.

Question 1. Swallow decided that he too must fly as __________
Answer: Swallow decided that he too must fly as all his friends have left for warm Egypt.

Question 2. Swallow thought he was getting wet because ______________
Answer: Swallow thought he was getting wet because it was raining.

Question 3. The statue of the Happy Prince can see ____________
Answer: The statue of the Happy Prince can see the poor people and all the ugly things in his land.

Question 4. The poor woman was engaged in ____________
Answer: The poor woman was engaged in making a dress for a beautiful, young lady of the palace.

Question 5. The statue requested little Swallow to stay ____________
Answer: The statue requested little Swallow to stay with him for one night.

4. Match the words in A and with their opposite words in B.

Answer:

Question 3. Statue: I see a poor little girl in the town square. She has no shoes. Little Swallow, please give her the sapphire remaining in my other eye.

Swallow: Impossible! I can’t make you blind.

Statue: Please help me, little Swallow!

[The swallow plucks the other sapphire from the prince’s eye. He goes to the cardboard cottage and removes the curtain. A little girl is discovered weeping inside. The Swallow flaps its arms and goes in. He drops the sapphire into the girl’s hand.]

Girl: That’s so nice!

[She looks up amazed. The Swallow flies out. He pulls the curtain back, and flies to the Happy Prince. The stage light changes to blue.]

Swallow: You are blind now, so I must stay with you always. But it’s too cold here.

Statue: No, little Swallow, you must fly away to Egypt and the Sun.

Swallow: I am staying with you.

Statue: Little Swallow, if you stay fly over this land. Tell me what you see.

[The stage goes dark. A. Blue spotlight trucks the Swallow. He is making a flying motion flapping his arms. He runs around the stage in a circle, The stage goes dark again, stays dark for four seconds. A red spotlight falls on a bunch of beggars in front of the stage, their clothes torn, they look hungry and miserable. Running, the Swallow crosses the stage before them flapping its arms, right wing to left wing. Stage darkens again. The blue stage light comes on immediately. The Swallow faces the Happy Prince from the left.]

Swallow: I saw many unhappy and unfed people.

Statue: Take all the gold from my body and give it to the poor people.

[The Swallow makes a plucking motion with its mouth on the Happy Prince’s golden tunic. The stage darkens. The same beggars who appeared previously, are seen again clustered on stage. They are wearing good clothes, look better, they are eating and laughing. A single-red spotlight holds them on the dark stage. The stage darkens briefly, blue light comes on. The Swallow is discovered sitting on the pedestal-shaped box, leaning against the Happy Prince’s feet. He is looking unwell and dropping. The Happy Prince has given away all the gold on his body. He is wearing a grey tunic.]

Swallow: Goodbye, my prince.

Statue: Ah, good, you’re going to Egypt! I’m happy about that. Swallow I’m going to the house of the brother of Sleep. The cold has got me. I’m dying!

1. Answer the questions below:

1. To whom did the Swallow give the second sapphire?
2. How did the Happy Prince become blind?
3. How did the beggars look when the gold from the tunic of the Happy Prince was given to them?
4. How did the Swallow die?
5. What request did the Happy Prince make to Swallow when he said that he would stay with him?

Answer:

1. The Swallow gave the second sapphire to a poor little girl who had no shoes.
2. The happy prince gave away the two sapphires from his eyes to the playwright and the poor girl. Thus he became blind.
3. The beggars looked better wearing good clothes and eating and laughing merrily.
4. The Swallow died of cold.
5. The Happy Prince requested the little Swallow to fly over the land and tell him what he sees.

2. Choose the correct answers from the alternatives given:

Question 1. The poor little girl had no-

1. Shoes,
2. Dress,
3. Socks.

Answer: 1. Shoes

Question 2. The number of Precious stones the Happy Prince had with him was-

1. Four,
2. Three,
3. Two.

Answer: 2. Three

Question 3. The Swallow decided to stay with the Happy Prince always as-

1. It was too cold there,
2. The Happy Prince had become blind
3. The Happy Prince became sick.

Answer: 2. The Happy Prince had become blind

Question 4. The Swallow bade the Happy Prince goodbye before-

1. Going to Egypt
2. Going to the house of his brother,
3. Dying.

Answer: 3. Dying

3. Fill in the following chart with information from the text.

Answer:

4. Match the words in A and with their meanings in B.

Answer: