Footprints Without Feet
Introduction
The chapter Footprints Without Feet tells the storey of Griffin, a bright scientist who created a miraculous potion capable of making a naked man invisible. He resolved to exact vengeance on his landlord, who disliked him. He set fire to his landlord’s house one day and consumed the whiskey he had uncovered. He became invisible when he drank this booze. He was able to see everyone but none of them were able to see him. This narrative is about how, rather than using that rare medicine for the greater good, Griffin abused it for his own selfish ends and caused havoc for others.
Summary of Footprints Without Feet
Footprints Without Feet is an excerpt from the well-known book “An Invisible man” by H.G. Wells, which was written in 1897. “Griffin” is a scientist who finds a way to make a person’s body go away. This is the storey of his adventures in the book. It is not easy for him to deal with a lot of things, but he always finds a way to get through them. It starts when two boys are surprised to see muddy footprints made by a pair of bare feet on the steps of a house in London. These are impressions of a great scientist, Griffin, who found a way to make a person’s body disappear. These are impressions of Griffin. In the end, he tries a lot of different things and eats some very rare drugs to become transparent. Our chapter and the novel show him as a person who does not follow the rules. His landlord wants to get rid of him because he is not invisible with him. In return, he sets fire to his house and disappears. Then, in the middle of winter, he decides to be a homeless rogue because it is too cold for him to go around without clothes. He goes into a big London store and picks out clothes to wear. He eats and drinks food and wine there. Then he sleeps well on a pile of quilts. As soon as he does not get up in time the next morning, the employees of the store start to chase him. He manages to get away by taking off his clothes. Thus, he is once again invisibility.
Next, he enters a theatre shop and uses its stock to cover himself. Besides that, he knocks down a shopkeeper and takes his money. Before he leaves London, he books two rooms at a local inn in the village of Iping. Everyone is surprised by him because of how he looks and how late he comes. His landlady tries to be friendly with him, but he avoids her and tells her that his main reason for coming to Iping was to be alone and not meet anyone. So, his landlady justifies his irritability because she thinks he is an eccentric person and mostly because he paid for the rent ahead of time. Soon, Griffin’s stolen money runs out, so he pretends to be waiting for a check to pay the rent. The clergyman and his wife are awakened by noises in the study a short time after this storey. A priest’s desk is open and his housekeeping money is gone when they sneak down to check on him. When Mrs and Mr Hall get up in the morning, they see that the door to the scientist’s house is open. They decide to look through his things.
She hears a sniff close to her ear. Then Griffin’s hat flies up and smacks her face. When the landlord and landlady are out of the room, a bedroom chair comes to life and pushes them out of the room and slams the door behind them. When Mrs. Hall sees her mother’s furniture rise up against her, she gets very upset. She thinks Griffin is to blame because he made some bad spirits come into her mother’s furniture. Witchcraft may be to blame for the furniture’s weird behaviour. The clergyman’s house was burglarized, and Griffin showed up with a lot of money.
Finally, the village constable is called, but Mrs. Hall starts talking to the scientist about how her furniture behaves in an odd way. When the scientist hears these questions, he gets very angry and takes off his disguises. In a split second, the people at the place are staring at a man who has lost his head and can not move. People who keep becoming less invisible are getting harder and harder for police to find. In the end, he is knocked down. Griffin shakes himself free by becoming invisible again.
Main Highlights and Attractions of The Chapter
Footprints Without Feet is a story of a scientist who discovers how to make himself invisible. He develops a unique concoction capable of rendering a man invisible. However, this great scientist abuses his magnificent discovery. He exploits it selfishly and causes harm to others.
The two youngsters noticed the fresh muddy footprints of a pair of bare feet but were unable to identify the man who left them.
The guys had been following a scientist who had created a marvellous elixir capable of rendering a man invisible.
Griffin was the scientist’s name, and he had conducted experiment after experiment to demonstrate that the human body could become invisible. Finally, he discovered the medication required for the purpose.
He ingested the esoteric substance and morphed into total invisibility.
This bright scientist devolved into a self-centered and unruly individual. He abused his magnificent finding.
His landlord despised him and attempted to evict him from his home. Griffin set fire to his home in retaliation and then escaped using his invisibility.
The scientist had devolved into a homeless nomad. He walked around invisibly without clothes or money until he stepped in some mud and left footprints that the two boys saw and were perplexed by. The two youngsters were unsuccessful in their attempt to apprehend the scientist.
The scientist could not endure the bitter cold as he roamed around London in the dead of winter. He decided to enter a large supermarket in order to warm up.
When the store’s shutters were closed, Griffin was able to dress and feed himself comfortably. Finally, he slept on a mound of plush comforters.
When the assistants arrived the following morning, they noticed him and attempted to apprehend him, but he fled by undressing all of his newly donned garments. As a result, he was once again rendered invisible in the frigid air.
Now that he was severely suffering from the cold, he rushed to Drury Lane, the heart of the theatre business, and immediately found a suitable shop. He entered the establishment. He made use of everything was available inside. He had bandages across his brow, heavy spectacles, a false nose, extended iskers, and a large amount of hatred. Finally, in order to go, he timidly attacked the shopkeeper from behind and then robbed him of all his money.
Now he desired to flee the suffocating London. He took a train to the village of Iping, where he reserved two rooms at the local inn.
At the inn, everyone was taken aback to see a stranger of such unusual appearance. They were also perplexed because it was January and the inn was often deserted during the winter. Mrs Hall attempted to speak with him but Griffin expressed an unwillingness to speak and stated that he did not wish to be disturbed.
This morning, an odd occurrence occurred. A commotion in the study awoke the clergyman and his wife. When they entered the room, they discovered it was empty save for the housekeeping money they had kept in the desk.
They were utterly taken aback.
Mrs Hall saw the scientists door, which was normally secured, was wide open that morning. She entered the room suspiciously and saw it was empty. Clothes and bandages from the scientist were strewn over the room.
Mrs Hall suddenly felt a sniff near her ear. After a little moment, the hat on the bedpost sprang up and struck her in the face. The bedroom chair took on life of its own when it leaped into the air and attacked her. Her husband and she were afraid. They were pushed out of the room by the odd chair, which then closed the door behind them.
Mrs Hall passed out and believed the place was haunted by spirits and that the stranger was to blame for everything.
When word of the clergyman’s home robbery circulated, the scientist was widely accused.
Finally, the area’s constable was notified. Mr Jaffers was his name. He attempted to apprehend Griffin but was struck by strikes from the scientist that appeared to come from nowhere. Thus, the scientist exploited his invisibility once more as he knocked down the constable and escaped by stripping naked.
‘Footprints Without Feet‘ is the first chapter of clas10th. It is science fiction. Let’s therefore, see the definition of science fiction :
WHAT IS SCIENCE FICTION?
Important elements of science fiction
The story which contains at least three of the below-mentioned elements is considered to be a science
1. Setting – Time and Place
*Remote Past
*Future
*Time Travel
*Outer Space
*Inside The Earth
2. Characters
*Aliens or extraterrestrial beings
*Martians
*Mutants
*Homan Robots
*Superbeings
*Futuristic Beings
3. Plot
*Use of science and technology
- Contain unrealistic parts of science
*partially true partially untrue
*Use of ray guns, teleportation machines, and other extraordinary gadgets
*Catastrophes usually mundane
4. Examples
*The Invisible Man by H. G.Wells
*Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator by Roald Dahl
*The City of Ember a series by Jeanne Dupree
*Mrs. Friday and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. Of Brien
Note: Do you want to achieve high marks in the exam? You must read THIS POST
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Questions & Answers of Footprints Without Feet
1. How would you assess Griffin as a scientist?
Ans. Griffin was a brilliant scientist because after several experiments he was able to discover a wonderful drug that could make a human body invisible. But he misused the discovery. Instead of using his marvellous drug for the betterment of society, he used it for personal gains and advantage, and for hurting others. Thus, though he was a brilliant scientist he was not a true scientist in the real sense of the word. He was ignoble.
OR
Ans. As a scientist, Griffin seems to be appreciable. He is a brilliant scientist who is very determined about his experimental skill. He strives very much to make his experiment, of making a human body invisible, a success. Ultimately, when he is not able to get his desired results from his experiments, he ingests several unusual and rare drugs and makes his efforts a success by becoming invisible.
2. The two boys in London were surprised and fascinated. Why?
Ans. The two boys were surprised and fascinated because they witnessed fresh muddy footprints of someone who could not be seen. They wondered who was leaving the footprints and what was the man doing in the middle of London.
OR
Ans. The two boys got surprised on observing the fresh muddy imprints of a pair of bare feet on the steps of a house in the middle of London. They were fascinated when they saw some new footmarks appearing one after the other without the feet being visible at all.
3. What did he do inside the shop?
Ans. Inside the shop, he gave himself the pleasure of clothing and feeding without any regard to expense. He had been naked and hungry. Now, he put on shoes, an overcoat, and a wide-brimmed hat. Then he ate meat and had some sweats and wine. Finally, he sat down on a pile of quilts for warmth.
OR
Ans. Griffin slipped into a big London store and as soon as the shop was closed, he put on warm clothes, shoes, an overcoat and a wide-brimmed hat. Then he ate cold meat with coffee followed by sweets and wine. Finally, he settled down to sleep on a pile of quilts.
4. How did Griffin escape from the London Store?
Ans. When the assistants arrive the next morning, they saw Griffin there. On seeing them Griffin began to run out of the store. The attendants naturally chased him. Finally, he was able to escape only by throwing his clothes away as he became invisible once again.
OR
Ans. In the London store, Griffin took a rest on a pile of quilts after feeding himself at night. He was fast asleep and was not able to wake up before the store was opened by the assistants in the morning.
On seeing them, the scientist got into a panic and began to run. The assistants gave him a chase. He quickly took off his clothes and escaped out of the store invisibly.
5. Griffin entered the shop of a theatrical company. What did he do there?
Ans. Griffin entered the shop of a theatrical company by making his way, invisible, upstairs. Inside there, he dressed up himself fully. He put on bandages around his forehead, dark glasses, a false nose and a large hat. Subsequently, he cowardly attacked the shopkeeper from behind and looted all the money from him.
OR
Ans. After escaping from the London store, Griffin entered the shop of a theatrical company. He wore bandages around his forehead, put on dark glasses, false nose, big bushy side-whiskers and a large hat. Then he attacked the shopkeeper from behind and robbed him of all the money he had.
6. Why was the arrival of a stranger in the village in an unusual event? Give two reasons.
Ans. The arrival of a stranger was, in any case, an unusual event because of the following two reasons:
- It was mid-winter and no one usually visited the inn in that season to stay there.
- The stranger had an uncommon appearance due to the costumes that he had put on. Such an appearance made all the people there, gossip about him.
OR
Ans. The arrival of this stranger in the village inn was an unusual event because it was mid-winter and the atmosphere was very chilly and deserted. Moreover, Griffin had strangely disguised himself. So, his strange appearance and arrival surprised everyone.
7. How did the scientist look when he came to the inn?
Ans. When he came to the inn, the scientist looked queer and unnatural because of his uncommon appearance. His appearance was uncommon due to the costumes that he had put on for preventing himself from being invisible.
OR
Ans. The scientist looked very strange when he came to the inn. He had his forehead covered with bandages, big bushy side-whiskers, dark glasses and talked to everyone in an irritable manner. He preferred solitude and thus appeared to be an eccentric person to everyone at the inn.
8. The landlord’s wife was convinced that Griffin was an eccentric scientist. What made her think of Griffin in these terms?
Ans. The landlord’s wife was convinced that Griffin was an eccentric scientist because of the reason that his arrival in the inn in winter was itself a strange occurrence. Besides this, his uncommon appearance also made him suspicious. Above all, despite Mrs Hall’s being friendly with him, he responded coldly. He uttered that he had no desire to talk with her and he didn’t wish to be disturbed in his work.
OR
Ans. Griffin had an uncommon and very strange appearance. Mrs Hall tried to be friendly with him but he avoided her and asked her not to disturb him. Besides this, his strange habits and irritable temper made her believe that he was an eccentric scientist.
9. What was the curious episode that took place in the clergyman’s desk?
Ans. The clergyman and his wife were awakened by the noises in the study very early in the morning. While creeping downstairs, they heard the chink of money being taken from the clergyman’s desk. They opened the room to find the robber but to their surprise, nobody was seen. They searched under the desk and behind the curtains, and even for the chimney. There was not a sign of anyone yet the housekeeping money was missing.
OR
Ans. Very early in the morning, the clergyman and his wife heard some noises which revealed that someone was stealing money from the clergyman’s desk in the study. On entering the room, they were surprised to see it empty and the money was missing from the desk.
10. The landlord and his wife were surprised to see the scientist’s door wide open. Why were they surprised? What three extraordinary things happened in the room?
Ans. The landlord and his wife were surprised to see the scientist’s door wide open because the scientist usually kept his door shut and locked and he would get furious if somebody opened his door.
The three extraordinary things that happened in the room were:
- The hat on the bed Post leap up and dashed at her face
- The bedroom chair rose up in the air and pushed Mrs Hall and her husband out of the room.
- The scientist mysteriously appeared from his empty bedroom.
OR
Ans. The landlord and his wife were surprised to see the scientist’s door wide open because it was shut and locked all the time and the scientist used to get furious if anyone entered his room, as he preferred solitude. On finding the door open, Mr and Mrs Hall entered the room and started to investigate it. All of a sudden, Mrs Hall heard a sniff close to her ear. After a while, Griffin’s hat jumped on its own and hit her in the face. Then the bedroom chair moved, jumped and pushed them out of the room.
11. Mrs Hall fell down the stairs in hysterics. Pick out an example of humour from what follows this incident.
Ans. Mrs Hall almost fell down the stairs in hysterics. The best example of humour from what follows this incident is when the bedroom chair rose up and pushed her and her husband out of the room. Mrs Hall uttered that her mother used to sit on that chair and to think now the same chair rose against her.
OR
Ans. Mrs Hall was terrified by the strange incident. She believed that Griffin had made her mother’s spirit enter the chair which attacked her and she felt quite disturbed on thinking that her mother’s spirit rose up against her. This is a humorous incident.
12. The scientist was furious. What did he do in anger? Why were the people in the bar horrified?
Ans. The scientist was furious. In anger, he threw off bandages, whiskers, spectacles and all other worn costumes over the shoulders. As the result, he became a headless man. The people in the bar were horrified because they found themselves staring at a headless man.
OR
Ans. Mrs Hall questioned Griffin and enquired about the incident that had happened in his room. He became furious. He shouted at her and told her that he would show her his real identity. Within just a minute, he threw off his bandages, whiskers, spectacles and false nose, due to which his head disappeared. All the people present in the bar were greatly horrified to see a headless man in front of them.
13. What happened to the constable?
Ans. The constable tried to arrest the scientist. He threw off his clothes one by one in order to become invisible. After some time he could not be seen at all. Then the constable was trying to get hold of the unseen scientist but he was getting back blows which seemed to come from nowhere. In the end, the constable was knocked down unconscious by the scientist.
OR
Ans. The constable was called to capture Griffin. The scientist was putting off his clothes one by one and ultimately became totally invisible. The brave constable still tried to get hold of the invisible scientist, but he was hit by him and he fell unconscious.
14. The scientist was a man of irritable temper. Give an example to prove this.
Ans. It is clear from the lesson that the scientist was a man of irritable temper. Here are some examples:
When Mrs tried to be friendly with him, he neglected her and said that he had no desire to talk.
When Mrs Hall wanted to know from him how he entered the locked room, the scientist lost his temper and became violent and warned her.
OR
Ans. The scientist was a man of irritable temper. It has been clearly shown in many incidents. One such incident is when Mrs Hall Interrogates him about the abnormal behaviour of her furniture; he loses his temper and discloses his identity. Moreover, he dislikes a friendly atmosphere and prefers loneliness which depicts that he was unsociable and a man irritable temper.
Extra Questions of Footprints Without Feet
Q. Do you think Griffin misused his discovery? How?
Ans. Griffin is sketched in our perception as a brilliant scientist for he discovered the formula of becoming invisible, but he was a lawless person as well. He misused his discovery in many ways.
Firstly, he slipped into the London store and gave himself the pleasure of clothing and feeding illegally.
Secondly, he went to the shop bearing the stock of a theatrical company and disguised himself with its stock. He also attacked the shopkeeper mercilessly and robbed him of his money. He stole money from the clergyman’s house and finally, he had an encounter with the constable, and finally, he escaped invisibly to further clarify his lawless nature.
Q. What is the moral of the story footprints without feet?
Ans. The story Footsteps Without Feet narrates the story of Griffin, a genius scientist, who discovered a wonderful drug which could turn a naked man invisible. The scientist became a lawless person by misusing the rare drug as he used it for selfish purposes. The lesson gives a message that the abuse of science and its wonderful discoveries will turn even a brilliant scientist like Griffin into a monster and a dangerous lawless person.
Q. What was the mystery behind the footprints?
Ans. The two curious boys followed fresh muddy imprints that appeared on the ground but they could not see the person who left the footprints which made it a mystery for them. The explanation of the mystery was that the two boys were actually following an invisible scientist who had recently discovered a wonderful drug having the ability to make a naked human body transparent and, thus, invisible by swallowing that rare drug.
Q. Why were the landlord and his wife surprised that morning?
Ans. The estate owner and his wife got up early that morning. They were shocked to see the door of the scientist’s room wide open because it normally remained closed and locked. He was not allowing anyone to enter his house. … The room was full of clothing and bandages that he always wore.
WRITING WORK:
Question: Write a short paragraph on the things you would like to do if you become invisible.
Answer: If I become invisible, my foremost attempt will be to help the poor, orphan and needy. Those who are dying of hunger, I will get them to feed. I would like to help those who suffer a lot in any respect. I would like to take care of orphans that they should not miss the basic amenities and requirements of life. I would like to rob those who rob the poor. I would like to use the ability to eliminate the anti-social elements of society. Those who are involved in robbery, rape, violence and corruption will be at my watch and I would not spare any one of them but will drag them to court for punishment. I believe we shall live but not at the cost of others rights but instead help others who are in pain of any sort. Helping others gives real peace, joy and satisfaction, Thus, if I own the ability to become invisible I will use it for the betterment and improvement of society.
Word Bank: These words are in addition to the words given in the glossary of the textbook.
Brilliant………. genius
Imprints… ..Marks or impressions
Descending….. Coming down
Eject……………. Throw out
Invisible……….. Unseen
Bewildered….. Confused or surprised
Fascinated……Very interested
Wanderer…….. travelling without purpose
Revenge ….. Sth to do in order to make sb suffer because he has made you suffer
Burglary…….The crime of entering a building illegally
Panicked…… Anxious or feeling fear
Inn……A pub, restaurant or hotel where people stay usually in nights
Moaned…….Screamed, shrieked, yelled
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