If I Were You Extract Based Questions

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If I Were You Extract Based Questions

By– Douglas James

Read the extracts and answer the questions that follow.

(I)

I’m glad you’re pleased to see me. I don’t think you’ll be pleased for long. Put those paws up!

1. Who is speaking these lines and to whom? Where is the conversation taking place?

to The intruder is speaking to Gerrard. The conversation is taking ill place in Gerrard’s lonely cottage situated in the wilds of Essex.

2. Why is the speaker’ so sure that ‘his listener’ won’t be pleased for long?

The speaker is sure that his listener’s (Gerrard’s) pleasure is going to disappear into thin air the moment he hears about the speaker’s wicked plan to kill and later on impersonate him to dodge the law.

3. What does ‘paws’ mean here?

‘Paws’ here stands for ‘hands’.

4. Why is the speaker asking the listener ‘to put those paws up’?

The intruder asks Gerrard to put his ‘paws up’ to threaten and intimidate him. He wants to make sure that Gerrard is unable to use his hands for defense.

(II)

Thanks a lot. You’ll soon stop being smart. I’ll make you crawl. I want to know a few things, see.

1. Who is the speaker? Why is he thanking the listener?

Gerard is thanking the speaker, as he had helped while Gerrard was struggling to find a word with his sentence. Gerard suggested the word ‘nonchalant.’

2. Why does the speaker think that the listener is trying to be smart?

The intruder feels that Gerrard is trying to be smart because instead of displaying any signs of fear, he helps the intruder complete his sentence when the former fails to find the right word -nonchalant’.

3. Why does the speaker expect the listener to soon stop being smart?

The speaker feels that Gerrard will be frightened out of his wits the moment he discloses his intention of killing him and will then forget all the witty retorts that he had been making till then.

4. What does the speaker mean by ‘I’ll make you crawl’?

The speaker feels that he is stronger than the listener and would bring him to his knees, forcing him to beg for mercy.

(III)

“At last a sympathetic audience!” (Textual)

1. Who speaks these words?

Gerrard, the protagonist of the play, speaks these words.

2. Why does he say it?

He says it because he wants to pretend that he does not feel threatened by the intruder’s presence. Actually, at a later stage, he intends to fool the intruder into believing that the former too is a criminal like him and is quite suave at such hostage games.

3. Is he sarcastic or serious?

He is certainly sarcastic because he believes his personal data was accessed and stolen by someone who was not sympathetic to him. Rather, the hacker wanted only to gather information without considering his context.

(IV)

I’m sorry. I thought you were telling me, not asking me. A question of inflexion; your voice is unfamiliar.

1. Who is the speaker and who does he speak to?

The speaker is Gerrard. He is speaking to the intruder.

2. What had the listener asked the speaker?

The listener had asked the speaker if he lived in the cottage all by himself.

3. What do these lines tell us about the speaker?

This sentence shows that the speaker is a very smart man who finds many ways to evade questions. His presence of mind and smartness are unparalleled.

4. What does ‘inflexion’ mean here? What logic does the speaker give for misinterpreting the inflexion of his voice?

‘Inflection’ here means ‘a tone of voice’. Gerrard says that since the intruder’s voice was unfamiliar, he couldn’t know whether he was asking a question or telling something.

(V)

That’s a lie. You’re not dealing with a fool. I’m as smart as you and smarter, and I know you run a car. Better be careful, wise guy!

1. Who is the speaker? Which ‘He’ is he talking about?

The intruder is the speaker here. He is talking about the ‘lie’ that Gerrard told him about not running a car.

2. Why did the speaker think he was smarter than the listener?

The intruder considered himself smarter because he thought that he had made a very clever plan to kill Gerrard and impersonate him to elude the police. Apart from it, he had gathered all the information about Gerrard before coming to his cottage.

3. Why did he warn the listener to be careful?

The intruder wanted to make it clear that Gerrard could not befool him by telling a lie because the intruder had already gathered information about him. So, he told Gerrard to be careful.

4. What does the extract reveal about the intruder?

The extract reveals that the intruder is overconfident about his abilities as a criminal, and overestimates his ability to escape the law.

(VI)

I could tell you plenty. You think you’re smart, but I’m the top of the class around here. I’ve got brains and I use them. That’s how I’ve got where I have.

1. Who speaks these words to whom and in what context?

These words are spoken by the intruder to Gerrard. He utters these words when Gerrard asks him to tell him something about himself.

2. Why does the speaker say “I could tell you plenty”?

The intruder says so because he is over-confident and thinks that he is smart enough to execute his plan successfully. There is a ring of pride in his words and his ego makes him over-estimate himself.

3. What does he mean by ‘the top of the class around here’?

The intruder believes no one else is as smart as him. Gerrard, too, is no match for him.

4. How does the speaker use his brains? Where has he got to by using his brains?

The speaker uses his brains by planning and committing crimes without getting caught by the police. He had now got to a point where he intends to kill Gerrard and assume his identity to escape the law further.

(VII)

I’m not taking it for fun. I’ve been hunted long enough. I’m wanted for murder already, and they can’t hang me twice.

1. Who is the speaker? What is ‘it’ that he claims he is not taking for fun?

The speaker is the intruder. ‘It’ is the grave step to kill Gerrard that the intruder claims not to be taking for fun. It is his dire need to avoid being chased by the police.

2. Why has the speaker been hunted long enough?

The speaker has been hunted long enough because he had killed a cop when something went wrong with the job that he did in the town. It has been quite a while since then and he is still dodging the police.

3. Explain: ‘they can’t hang me twice.’

The intruder has already murdered a cop for which he is sure to get a death sentence. Now, if he commits another murder, he will not be sentenced more than once because a person can be put to death only once.

4. What light do these lines reflect on the speaker’s state of mind?

The lines reveal that the intruder does not have any conscience to prick him. He weighs the crime done by him not by its wickedness but by the punishment that he will be awarded by the court of justice.

(VIII)

I’ve got the freedom to gain. As for myself, I’m a poor hunted rat. As Vincent Charles Gerrard I’m free to go places and do things. I can eat well and sleep and without having to be ready to beat it at the sight of a cop.

1. Why does the intruder call himself ‘a poor hunted rat’?

The intruder is being chased by the police for having killed a cop. The apprehension of being arrested by the police keeps him on the run and he feels that his condition is as miserable as that of a rat being chased.

2. Why is he longing for freedom?

The intruder’s criminal acts have made his life a miserable dodging game. He has to be on the run always and he can neither sleep nor eat well. Therefore, he is longing for freedom.

3. Why does he have to run at the sight of a cop?

Having killed a cop, the intruder lives in constant fear of being nabbed by the police. So, he has to run at the sight of a cop in order to avoid being caught.

4. What will he gain as Vincent Charles Gerrard?

By impersonating himself as Vincent Charles Gerrard, the intruder will be able to dodge the police. This way he will be able to live in peace and without any fear of the cops.

(IX)

This is your big surprise. I said you wouldn’t kill me and I was right. Why do you think I am here today and gone tomorrow, never see tradespeople?

1. Who speaks these lines and to whom?

Gerrard speaks these lines to the intruder.

2. What was the big surprise given by the speaker?

Gerrard told that he too lived under the threat of being arrested as he too was involved in crime. The intruder was naturally surprised at this revelation since he was unaware of this aspect of his victim.

3. What was the speaker right about? Why was he right?

Gerrard, the speaker here, was right about the statement that he had made earlier that the intruder wouldn’t kill him. He was right because the intruder intended to kill an ordinary person and impersonate him to evade the police. But Gerrard turned out to be a criminal like him. So killing and impersonating a criminal would not serve the intruder’s purpose.

4. What impression did the speaker wish to give the listener by claiming to have an irregular schedule?

The speaker wished the listener to believe that his irregular schedule was a deliberate move to dodge the police so that he could evade arrest for the crimes that he claimed to have committed.

(X)

“I said it with bullets and got away”. (Textual, Modified)

1. Who says this?

Gerrard, the protagonist of the play “If I Were You”, says this

2. What does it mean?

Gerrard, by these words, means that he committed a murder with a gun.

3. Is it the truth? What is the speaker’s reason for saying this?

No, it is not the truth. The speaker has concocted a story to befool the intruder. He shows himself to be a murderer wanted by police so that the intruder should give up his plan of killing him and taking up his identity.

PASSAGES FOR COMPREHENSION

PASSAGE 1

Gerrard: Nonchalant’ is your word, I think.

Intruder: Thanks a lot. You’ll soon stop being smart. I’ll make you crawl. I want to know a few things, see.

Gerrard: Anything you like. I know all the answers. But before we begin I should like to change my position; you may be comfortable, but I am not.

Intruder: Sit down there, and no funny business. (Motions to a chair, and seats himself on the divan by the bag.) Now then, we’ll have a nice little talk about yourself!

Gerrard: At last a sympathetic audience! I’ll tell you the story of my life. How as a child I was stolen by the gipsies, and why at the age of thirty-two, I find myself in my lonely Essex cottage, how…

Questions :
(i) What threat does the intruder give to Gerrard?
(ii) Why was Gerrard in an uncomfortable position?
(iii) Did Gerrard give correct answers to the intruder?
(iv) Was the intruder really a sympathetic audience?
(v) Find a word in the passage which means ‘humorous’.

Answers :
(i) The intruder threatened that he would make Gerrard crawl.
(ii) He was standing with his hands up.
(iii) No, he gave him the wrong answers.
(iv) No, he was not really a sympathetic audience.
(v) Funny.

PASSAGE 2

Intruder: Keep it to yourself, and just answer my questions. You live here alone? Well, do you?

Gerrard: I’m sorry. I thought you were telling me, not asking me. A question of inflexion; your voice is unfamiliar.

Intruder : (with emphasis) Do you live here alone?

Gerrard: And ill don’t answer?

Intruder: You’ve got enough sense not to want to get hurt.

Gerrard: I think the good sense is shown more in the ability to avoid pain than in the mere desire to do so. What do you think? Mr—er—

Intruder: Never mind my name. I like yours better, Mr Gerrard. What are your Christian names?

Gerard: Vincent Charles.

Questions :

(i)    From which chapter have these lines been taken?
(ii)   Why was the intruder’s voice unfamiliar to Gerard?
(iii)   What did the intruder want Gerrard to keep to himself?
(iv)   What was Gerrard’s full name?
(v)   Find a word in the passage which means ‘stress’.

Answers :

(i)   These lines have been taken from the play ‘If I Were You’.
(ii)   His voice was unfamiliar to Gerrard as he had never met him before.
(iii)   He wanted Gerrard to keep his life history to himself.
(iv) His full name was Vincent Charles Gerrard.
(v) Emphasis.

PASSAGE 3

Intruder: Do you run a car?

Gerard: No.

Intruder: That’s a lie. You’re not dealing with a fool. I’m as smart as you and smarter, and I know you run a car. Better be careful, wise guy!

Gerard: Are you American, or is that merely a clever imitation?

Intruder: Listen, this gun’s no toy. I can hurl you without killing you, and still get my answers.

Gerard: Of course, if you put it like that, I’ll be glad to assist you. I do possess a car, and it’s in the garage around the corner.

Intruder: That’s better. Do people often come out here?

Gerard: Very rarely. Surprisingly few people take the trouble to visit me. There are the baker and the greengrocer, of course; and then there’s the milkman — quite charming, but no one so interesting as yourself.

Questions :

(i)   Does Gerrard possess a car?
(ii)   Why did the intruder want to hurt, not kill Gerard?
(iii) Where is Gerrard’s car?
(iv) Why did the intruder want to know if people came to visit Gerrard or not?
(v)   Find a word from the passage which means ‘copy’.

Answers :

(i) Yes, he possesses a car.
(ii) He wants to hurt him and get answers to his questions, before killing him.
(iii) It is in the garage around the corner.
(iv) He wanted to lead a solitary life.
(v) Imitation.

PASSAGE 4

Intruder: My speciality’s jewel robbery. Your car will do me a treat. It’s certainly a dandy bus.

Gerard: I’m afraid jewels are few and far between in the wilds of Essex.

Intruder: So are the cops. I can retire here nicely for a little while.

Gerard: You mean to live with me? A trifle sudden isn’t it; you’ve not been invited.

Intruder: You won’t be here long; so I didn’t trouble to ask.

Gerard: What do you mean?

Intruder: This is your big surprise. I’m going to kill you.

Gerard: A little harsh, isn’t it?

Intruder : (with heavy sarcasm) Yeah. I’ll be sorry to do it. I’ve taken a fancy to you, but it’s just got to be done. Why add murder to your other crimes? It’s a grave step you’re taking.

Questions :

(i) What is the name of the chapter from which these lines have been taken?
(ii) Why does the intruder think that he can live at Gerrard’s house for some time?
(iii) What is a big surprise for Gerrard, according to the intruder?
(iv) Why does Gerrard call the intruder’s step ‘grave’?
(v) Find a word from the passage which means ‘serious’.

Answers :
(i) These lines have been taken from the play ‘If I Were You’
(ii) He thinks so because that area is lonely and police do not often come there.
(iii) He tells Gerard that he is going to kill him.
(iv) He tells him that murder is a serious crime.
(v) Grave.

PASSAGE 5

Intruder: I’ve got the freedom to gain. As for myself, I’m a poor hunted rat. As Vincent Charles Gerrard I’m free to go places and do nothing. I can eat well and sleep and without having to be ready to beat it at the sight of a cop.

Gerrard: In most melodramas, the villain is foolish enough to delay his killing long enough to be frustrated. You are much luckier.

Intruder: I’m O.K. I’ve got a reason for everything. I’m going to be Vincent Charles Gerrard, see. I’ve got to know what he talks like. Now I know. That posh stuff comes easy. This is Mr V.C. Gerrard speaking. (Pantomime of phoning, in imitation cultured voice.) And that’s not all. (He stands up.) Get up a minute

(Gerrard stands.) Now take a look at me.

Questions

(i) What will the intruder gain as Gerrard?
(ii)   How does the intruder describe himself?
(iii) How is the villain in most melodramas?
(iv)   Why does the intruder imitate Gerard’s voice?
(v)     Find a word in the passage which means ‘sensational play’.

Answers :
(i) The intruder will gain freedom.
(ii) He describes himself as a poor hunted rat.
(iii) The villain in most melodramas is foolish.
(iv) He imitates Gerrard’s voice to show that he can talk like him.
(v) Melodrama.

PASSAGE 6

Gerrard: You’re not particularly decorative.

Intruder: No! Well, that goes for you, too. I’ve only got to wear specs and I’ll be enough like you to get away with it.

Gerard: What about your clothes? They’ll let you down if you’re not careful.

Intruder: That’ll be all right. Yours will fit me fine.

Gerrard: That is extremely interesting, but you seem to miss the point of my remark. I said you were luckier than most melodramatic villains. It was not a tribute to your intelligence. You won’t kill me for a very good reason.

Intruder: So that’s what you think.

Questions :

(i) What does Gerrard mean when he says that the intruder is not decorative?
(ii) Name the chapter from which these lines have been taken.
(iii) What has the intruder to do to look like Gerrard?
(iv) What does the intruder say about clothes?
(v) Find a word in the passage which means ‘a bad character’.

Answers :

(i) He means to say that the intruder’s personality is not attractive.
(ii) These lines have been taken from the play ‘If I Were You’.
(iii) He thinks that he has only to wear spectacles to look like Gerrard.
(iv) He says that Gerrard’s clothes will fit him.
(v) Villain.

PASSAGE 7

Gerard: Apparently you haven’t the intelligence to ask why I am invested in this cloak of mystery.

Intruder : (preparing to shoot) As I said before, this conversation bores me.

Gerard: Don’t’ be a fool. If you shoot, you’ll hang for sure. If not as yourself, then as Vincent Charles Gerrard.

Intruder: What is this?

Gerard: This is your big surprise. I said you wouldn’t kill me and I was right. Why do you think I am here today and gone tomorrow, never see tradespeople? You say my habits would suit you. You are a crook. Do you think I am a Sunday-school teacher?

Questions :

(i) What is the name of the chapter from which these lines have been taken?
(ii) What has the intruder not asked Gerard?
(iii) What would happen, according to Gerrard, if the intruder killed him?
(iv) Why, according to him, has Gerrard, behaves in a mysterious way?
(v) Find a word in the passage which means the same as ‘a criminal’.

Answers :

(i) These lines have been taken from the play ‘If I Were You’.
(ii) The intruder has not asked Gerrard why he lives in mystery.
(iii) He would be hanged, if not as himself, then as Gerrard.
(iv) He behaves in a mysterious way to escape the police.
(v) A crook.

Passage-8

Gerard: For God’s sake clear that muddled head of yours and let’s go. Come with me in the car. I can use you. If you find it’s a frame, you’ve got me in the car, and you’ve still got your gun.

Intruder: Maybe you’re right.

Gerard: Then don’t waste time. (Goes and picks up but and bag.)

Intruder: Careful, boss, I’m watching you.

Gerard: I have got a man posted on the main road. He’ll ring up if he sees the police, but I don’t want to leave ………(telephone bell rings) Come on! They’re after us. Through here straight to the garage.

Intruder: How do I know that you are telling the truth?

Gerard: Oh, don’t be a fool. Look for yourself.

Questions :

(i) Name the chapter this passage has been taken from.
(ii) What could be the ‘frame’, according to Gerard?
(iii) Why, according to Gerrard, he has posted a man on the main road?
(iv) Why do they plan to go straight from the room?
(v) Find a word in the passage which means ‘confused’.

Answers :

(i) This passage has been taken from the play ‘If I Were You’.
(ii) He could deceive the intruder in order to save himself.
(iii) He has posted a man on the main road to inform him about the police.
(iv) They plan to go to the garage straight from the room.
(v) Muddled.

PASSAGES FOR PRACTICE

PASSAGE 9

Intruder: I could tell you plenty. You think you’re smart, but I’m the top of the class around here. I’ve got brains and I use them. That’s how I’ve got where I have.

Gerard: And where precisely have you got? It didn’t require a great brain to break into my little cottage.

Intruder: When you know why I’ve broken into your little cottage, you’ll be surprised, and it won’t be a pleasant surprise.

Gerrard: With you figuring so largely in it, that is understandable. By the way, what particular line of crime do you embrace, or aren’t you a specialist?

Questions :

(i) What could the intruder tell Gerrard in plenty?
(ii) Why has the intruder broken into Gerrard’s cottage?
(iii) What does the intruder think about himself?
(iv) Use ‘precisely’ in a sentence of your own.
(v) Find a word in the passage which means as ‘expert’.

PASSAGE 10

Gerard: Your idea is to elude the police by killing me and taking on my identity?

Intruder: Yes, I like the idea.

Gerard: But are you sure it’s going to help you?

Intruder: Now listen here. I’ve got this all planned. I did a job in town. Things went wrong and I killed a cop. Since then I’ve done nothing but the dodge.

Gerard: And this is where dodging has brought you?

Intruder: It brought me to Aylesbury. That’s where I saw you in the car. Two other people saw you and started to talk. I listened. It looks like you’re a bit queer kind of mystery man.

Questions :

(i) Name the play and its author.

(ii) What is the intruder’s idea?

(iii) Whom did the intruder kill in the town?

(iv) Where did the intnider see Gerrard?

(v) Find a word in the passage which means the same as ‘strange’