The Gumbie Cat By T. S. Eliot
Summary of The Gumbie Cat
The Old Gumbie Cat is the main character in this chapter. Her actual name is Jennyanydots. She is an industrious cat, but by the day you will never know it.
A Gumbie Cat sits and sleeps all day long and never gives any hint of what they are doing during the night.
Jennyanydots is very busy at night, taking care of the mice. At first, she starts showing them crafts to keep them engaged and stop them from bad behaviour. Such hobbies include tatting, crocheting, and music. She doesn’t give any hint of the work of this previous night during the day, as she finds the sunny spots in the house and lounges around.
The next night, Jennyanydots prepares more nourishing meals for the mice, because she is sure that the noise they create is to blame for their present food. She is really busy getting them brown mouse cake
Questions and Answers
Multiple Choice
1.) Based on the poem, explain how the cat is different at night from how she is during the day. Support your answer with important details from the poem.
2.) Based on the poem, what is the cat’s work?
A. to sleep away hours in the sun.
B. to create an organized household.
C. to surprise the humans in the house.
D. to make friends with other creatures.
Ans. B) to create an organized household.
3.) In lines 7-14, how does the cat attempt to improve the manners of the mice?
A. by keeping them busy.
B. by chasing them around.
C. by giving them a lecture.
D. by teaching them to cook.
Ans. A) by keeping them busy.
4.) What is the meaning of the word disorderly in the following lines? So she’s formed, from that lot of disorderly
louts, A troop of well-disciplined helpful boy-scouts,
A. happy
B. organized
C. uncontrolled
D. well-behaved
Ans. C) uncontrolled
5.) What do lines 1-6 suggest about the cat during the day?
A. She is lazy.
B. She is angry.
C. She is lonely.
D. She is annoyed.
Ans.A) She is lazy.
6.) In the poem, which word BEST describes the speaker’s attitude toward the cat?
A. amused
B. hopeful
C. resentful
D. confused
Ans. A) amused
Questions and Answers
Q. 1. How is the coat of the Gumbie Cat?
Ans. The Gumbie Cat’s coat is of the tabby kind, with tiger stripes and leopard spots on it.
Q. 2. When does the Gumbie Cat begin her work?
Ans. The Gumbie Cat starts her work in the evening when all the activity of the day is ended.
Q. 3. Why is the Gumbie Cat concerned about mice? What does she do with them?
Ans. The Gumbie Cat is concerned about the mice for the simple reason as their behaviour is not good and their manners are not nice. She lines them up on the matting teaches them music, crocheting and tatting.
Q. 4. Where does the Gumbie Cat like to sit?
Ans. The Gumbie Cat likes to sit on the windowsill.
Q. 5. Does the Gumbie Cat have any purpose in life?
Ans. The Gumbie Cat has a purpose in life as she thinks about the employment of cockroaches in order to prevent them from spoiling the food. She keeps mice busy to avoid destruction.
Language Work:
A. Pick out the rhyming words in the poem:
Ans. Mat = Cat, Done = Begun, Creep = Asleep,
Mice = Nice, Matting = Tatting, Trying = Frying,
Peas = Cheese, Employment = Destroyment
B. What are the things you like to do?
- I like to help poor and needy people.
- I like to draw pictures.
- I like to honour elders.
- I like to go to picnic spots.
- I like to read.
C. What are the things you like to don’t like?
- I don’t like hurting others.
- I don’t like watching TV for a long time.
- I don’t like dishonour elders.
- I don’t like cutting trees.
- I don’t like sitting idle at home.
D. Write a short paragraph on your hobby.
Ans. Most people have a habit of sitting idle at their homes in their leisure time. I don’t like sitting idle at my home. Therefore, I have chosen a hobby of feeding different birds. In my leisure time, I look for the birds and feed by spreading grains on a ply or tin sheet. I very much enjoy this moment. This kind of work has made me kind and helpful. I like my hobby and advise others to be habitual of doing this work.
Grammar Work:
E. Make Adverbs:
Ans.
Deep………………..Deeply
Nice………………..Nicely
Careful……………..Carefully
Silent………………..Silently
Hard………………….Hardly
Disorder……………Disorderly
Neat………………….Neatly
Soft…………………..Softly
F. Pick out the adverbs from the poem:
Ans. Hardly, Deeply, Disorderly, Even, That, Well, Ever
G. Write down the qualities of a good student:
Ans.
1. A good student is always neatly dressed.
2. A good student likes cleanliness.
3. A good student comes to school daily.
4. A good student does his homework well.
5. A good student is always honest.
6. A good student helps the needy and the poor.
7. A good student honours the elders.
8. A good student is kind to all his schoolmates.
9. A good student keeps his surroundings clean.
10. A good student avoids bad habits
