The Happy Prince Questions and Answers

Summary Of The Happy Prince

This is an interesting story about the statue of a Happy Prince and a little Swallow. The Prince was a sublime statue situated on a tall column high over the city. The idol was plated with fine leaves of gold and he had two brilliant sapphires settled instead of eyes. He had likewise a precious ruby settled in his sword hilt and his heart was made of lead. Every one of these things made the Happy Prince captivating.

The Happy Prince

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The Happy Prince

One night a little swallow flew there over the city. He was worn out and needed some rest. He saw Happy Prince and choose to spend the night between his feet. As he was set up to rest a large drop of water fell on him. It was interested in light of the fact that there was no cloud in the sky. Sooner or later, another drop of water fell on him. The swallow was exasperated. He chose to escape from that point to search for somewhere else for relief. Simply then the third drop of water fell on him, he gazed upward and incredibly, he saw that these were the tears overflowing from the eyes of Happy Prince.

On seeing this, the heart of the swallow was filled with pity. He asked Happy Prince who he was and for what reason, he was crying. The Happy Prince replied the swallow that he lived in the palace when he was alive and had a human heart. There was no sorrow and distress around him and his courtiers called him Happy Prince. After his passing, he had been set up on the high column. His heart is comprised of lead yet it generally sobs when he sees the ugliness and hopelessness of his city. He told the swallow that at a distance in a little street, there is a little child of a seamstress who is feeling the fever. He is crying because his mother couldnโ€™t give him oranges to eat. He requested that the swallow giveaway his ruby to the poor lathe day when he was going to Egypt. He complied with the Happy Prince and after that, he flew and laid the ruby on the table of the poor woman.

Happy Prince then saw a writer. He was cold, moreover, he was starving. Happy Prince asked the swallow to give the writer one of the sapphires. The swallow had no wish to remove the sapphire from his eyes, but he was reluctantly obedient.

The Happy Prince then saw a match girl and her matches had fallen into the rubble. At his command, the swallow again unwillingly slaughtered the other sapphire from the Happy Princeโ€™s other eye and the prince was now blind completely. The swallow slipped the sapphire on the palm of the match girl. After that, the Happy Prince permitted the swallow to take off to Egypt but the swallow chose to remain with the Prince who had turned blind now.

The Happy Prince Summary

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Read Also : Short Summary of The Happy Prince

Questions Of The Happy Prince

Q.Why do the courtiers call the prince โ€˜the Happy Princeโ€™? Is he really happy? What does he see all around him?

Ans. The courtiers call the prince the โ€œHappy Princeโ€ because he lived in the palace where sorrow was not allowed to enter. He did not know what tears were and sorrow was not allowed to enter his palace. He was really happy because he was brought up in luxurious surroundings. For this reason, the courtiers called him The Happy Prince. When the prince died and his statue was set up in the city square. He could now see the reality of life from that height. He could see the misery of the poor and their pitiable condition. He could feel the pain his people were suffering from. All this left him no happier.

Q. Why does the Happy Prince send a ruby for the seamstress? What does the swallow do in the seamstressโ€™ house?

Ans. The prince wanted the swallow to pick out the ruby from his sword-hilt and take it to the poor seamstress because he saw the poor womanโ€™s son was seriously sick. He was crying on his bed. The boy was asking for oranges. But the woman could not afford. Therefore, the Happy Prince sent a ruby for her. The swallow put the ruby on a table and fanned the boyโ€™s forehead with its wings.

Q. For whom does the Prince send the sapphires and why?

Ans. The prince sends one sapphire for a playwright and the other to a poor match girl.
The Happy Prince saw a young playwright. He was leaning over a desk covered with papers. His hair was brown and crisp and his lips were red. He had large and dreamy eyes. He was trying to finish a play for the theatre. But he was feeling cold as there was no firewood, and hunger had made him faint. So, he could not finish the play.

The Happy Prince also saw a poor match girl. The match girl was weeping after she accidentally throws her matches into a drain. She was afraid that her parents would beat her.
The Happy Prince helped both the playwright and the poor girl by sending them the sapphires.

Q. What does the swallow see when it flies over the city?
Ans. When the swallow flies over the city, it sees the rich enjoying in their houses while the baggers begging at their gates. The swallow even sees two little-wretched boys lying in each otherโ€™s arms to keep themselves warm. In this way, the swallow sees the stark contrast between prosperity and poverty.

The swallow was a nice bird. He wanted to go to Egypt with his friends. At first, when he rests between the feet of the Happy Prince, he had no feeling of helping others. His quality becomes obvious when we notice tears in his eyes on seeing the Happy Princeโ€™s heart aching. He discharges his duty with full loyalty and obedience. When he starts living with the Prince, he becomes more sympathetic towards others. He has a deep sense of service. He helps the seamstress by bringing her a ruby and fanned the sick boy with his wings. He helps the playwright and the match girl too. He rejected his idea to go to Egypt when the Happy Prince became blind. In the end, he died and fell down at his feet.

Q. Why did the swallow not leave the prince and go to Egypt?

Ans. The Happy Prince had become totally blind. The swallow was impressed with his charity and kindness. He had sacrificed everything for the good cause of helping the poor and downtrodden in their needs.
He sacrificed even the two sapphires of his eyes thereby making it hard for anybody to prove more generous than himself. These unusual traits of the Happy Prince had a deep impact o amarn the heart of swallow. The swallow loved the prince now much that he could not leave him in that state. He decided not to go to Egypt. He remained there till his last breath.

Q.Why is the statue of the Prince described as looking like a beggar and being no longer useful?
Ans. The statue of the prince had lost all that had made it great and resplendent. It had lost all it gold, sapphires and the ruby. It looked worn out like a beggar.

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The Happy Prince Questions and Answers

The Happy Prince

Q.What proclamation does the mayor make about the death of the birds?

Ans. The proclamation made by the Mayor was that no birds should be allowed to die in the city

Q.What impression do you gather of his personality form this?

Ans. From the Mayorโ€™s remarks, we gather that he was an irrational and censorious person. Instead of thinking about the disappearance of the prince assets and what has made the statue so shabby above how has the bird died, he makes proclamations without any rationale. He just looks at the external appearance of things instead of thinking about the essence of things.

Q. What were the two precious things the angel brought to God? In what way were they precious?

The two most precious things mentioned in the story are the leaden heart of the happy prince and the dead swallow. The happy prince had sacrificed these to serve the suffering humanity and help the poor. The swallow fulfilled the wishes of the happy prince. He sacrificed his self-interest in going to Egypt. He carried gold and jewels to the suffering people. He remained with the prince in the bad weather also. He died at the princeโ€™s feet. So, the angel was right when it took the leaden heart of the prince and the dead swallow to Heaven.

Q. What happened to the prince โ€™s heart? What feelings does the end of the story arouse in you?
Ans. The princeโ€™s heart broke into two halves when the bird fell dead at its feet. When the leaden heart was put into the furnace, it does not melt. So, it was thrown away. Therefore, the dead bird and the leaden heart met even after death. The end the story arouses in us deep sympathy for the two. The angels considered the leaden heart the most precious thing in the city. They took it to heaven.

SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS

Q. What made the statue so beautiful?
Ans. The statue was covered all over with the fine leaves of gold. Two bright sapphires were fixed in place of eyes, and the heart was made of lead. A large ruby was fixed in his sword hilt.

Q. Why did now the Happy Prince what the tears were?

Ans. When the Prince was alive, he lived in a palace. The prince lived happily and knew no sorrow. Even the courtiers called him the happy prince. So, he did not know what tears were.

Q. How did God reward the Happy Prince and the Swallow for their sacrifice?
Ans. God rewarded the happy prince and the swallow by giving them a place in heaven. The swallow will sing forever in the garden of paradise and the happy prince will live in the city of gold.

VALUE BASED LONG ANSWER TYPE OF QUESTIONS

Q. What obligations does the story teach us towards society?
Ans. Society is where the protection of all individuals is the primary concern. We find people in society who suffer from all manner of ills such as poverty, hunger, diseases and natural disasters. Students can play an active part in social protection. Students can take on tasks such as educating poor children and adults. The fundamentals of learning can be taught to those without education. Students can play a major role in promoting concepts like hygiene and sanitary treatment. The importance of cleanliness should be taught to people. Moral values can be conveyed in addition to this. Short stories based on honesty, the discipline of truth, and so on can be popularized. This allows students to be a great bridge between the haves and have-nots. Students can create a society without sorrow or misery.

Q.What is the conclusion of โ€˜The Happy Prince?

The story concludes that goodness is everlasting and ever- rewarding. The Happy Prince was good for everyone. The widespread poverty and misery of people moved him. He gave his eyes, gold and jewellery to the needy. His heart was divided into two halves when the swallow died at his feet. The Gappy Princeโ€™s statue was not useful anymore. It was dull and useless. The heart of the statue did not melt in a furnace as goodness could never be destroyed. The prince and swallow were both recompensed by God and gave them a place in Heaven.

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Thus, good deeds are ever rewarding. In other words, good deeds always pay in oneโ€™s life. It is true that mortal life is meant to decay and death and good deeds make one immortal. In life, we get the utmost contentment and inner pleasure by doing some charitable act or by helping others. In the story โ€˜The Happy Princeโ€™, both the happy prince and the swallow were rewarded for their good deeds by God. They found a permanent place in heaven. The swallow will sing forever in the garden of paradise and the happy prince will live in the city of gold. Thus the story teaches us to live a meaningful life by helping those who are in need.

Q. Do you agree that happiness from making others happy is far greater and deeper than any other happiness?

There are fun, happiness and thrill in buying things for ourselves and enjoying life on your own but the happiness got from making others happy is far greater and deeper than any happiness. We can get them by doing things just for ourselves. There is a Chinese proverb, โ€œFragrance clings to the hand that gives rosesโ€. The fragrance of happiness clings to the heart that spread happiness to others. In the story, the Happy Prince could not see the misery of people. He lived a comfortable life inside the palace and never saw the misery and ugliness of the people around him but in the form of the statue when he witnessed the pathetic condition of the poor he sacrificed all to serve the suffering humanity and got everlasting happiness in heaven.

Q. The story presents a shocking contrast between external appearance and the essence of things. How?

This is a strange world. It presents a shocking contrast. Nothing succeeds like success here. So long you are powerful and strong you are respected and obeyed. In this dazzling world of wealth and riches, human feelings have no relevance. The statue of the Happy Prince was installed at the highest column in the most important square of the city. It was gilded all over with fine gold. His eyes had two bright sapphires and a large red ruby glowed on his sword hilt. He was a symbol of power, beauty and grandeur. The moment he lost his gold, sapphires and the grand ruby, he became very ordinary, ugly and useless. He was to be pulled down and melted in a furnace. The Mayor and the Town Counsellors were cruel and selfish.

Q. What is the moral lesson of โ€œThe Happy Princeโ€?
Ans. The moral lesson of โ€œThe Happy Princeโ€ is that the worst aspects of modern society can be overcome by righteousness Righteousness always plays an important in role bringing prosperity. The case might be of a person, a family, a country or a nation. Of course, wealth and power can provide luxury and comfort. But mental satisfaction and spiritual peace cannot be brought. Every spiritual and religious leader recommend that people take the right path and avoid the way of vice. It is possible to take care of the old, weak and downtrodden sections of society when you are virtuous. When you go the right way, the nation rises to great heights. Righteousness blesses a man with great satisfaction and happiness. In the story, the Happy Prince reached the highest level with his fellow swallows through righteousness.

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Check Your Progress

  1. What is the theme of The Happy Prince by Oscar Wilde?
  2. What is the moral of the Happy Prince?
  3. What is the conclusion of the Happy Prince?
  4. Who is swallow in Happy Prince?
  1. What is the moral of the Happy Prince?
  2. What is the genre of the Happy Prince?
  3. Why is the prince called happily was he really happy Why?
  4. What is the conflict of the story The Happy Prince?
  5. Why was the Happy Prince crying?
  6. What is the climax of the Happy Prince?
  7. Where was the statue of Happy Prince?
  8. How did the statue of the Happy Prince look?
  9. What is the theme of the story The Happy Prince?
  10. Why was the Happy Prince crying?
  11. What kind of life did the happy prince lead when he was alive
  12. Why was the Happy Prince crying?
  13. What are the precious things mentioned in the story The Happy Prince?
  14. Why is the prince called happy? Was he really happy? Why?

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