The Snake and the Mirror
- On one occasion, a homeopath doctor asked his students if they had ever seen a fully-grown cobra coiling itself around any of their limbs. The teacher was going to teach about snakes.
The teacher then proceeded to narrate his own experience. One night, he had returned to his room after eating his dinner in a restaurant. It was 10pm, and the summer night was hot and dark. He heard some familiar sound emanating from the ceiling and chose to ignore it. He assumed that rats who were aplenty in the room were creating mild noise. He lighted his kerosene lamp kept on the table.
- The small rented in the house was bereft of electricity. He had just started his medical practice that yielded very meagre income. He had just sixty rupees in his suitcase, along with some small quantities of clothes. He wore a black coat then.
- To relax, he took off his shirt and opened the windows. The room with a tiled roof had an open yard in the front. The roof rested on a few beams. Since there was no ceiling, the roof’s inside surface was visible. Rats played around on the beams all day. The young doctor just stepped out to feel some cool fresh air, but there was no wind. Disappointed, he returned to his room.
- He sat down on his chair and began to read the book ‘Materia Medica’. A mirror was fixed on the wall in front. Conscious about his youthful mind, he looked into the mirror to please himself about his appearance. He knew he was an eligible bachelor and yearned to look smart. He combed his hair with care. Just then, some sound from the top was heard.
- Lost in his desire to maximize his youthful charm, he looked into the mirror intently and decided to grow a thin moustache. When these thoughts had gripped his imagination, the sound from above repeated.
- The young doctor and walked to and fro inside the room. Soon, the dream of being betrothed swayed his mind to the world of romance. He wanted to marry a beautiful girl but wanted her to be fat enough not to be able to run. This could enable the young husband to run away to escape her wrath. He sat down on his chair. The sound from above had fallen silent by then. However, a shock awaited him. After a thud, the doctor felt a tight rubber-like band tightening around his left arm. He sat still, like a rock. He couldn’t decide how to react to the situation. Within seconds, a snake turned around from his back and kept itself just inches away from his face.
- I was stunned into silence. My body froze, so did my mind. My brain had no clue as to how I could come out of the crisis. Death due to snake bite was literally staring at my face.
- I took refuge in God, surrendering myself before Him. This thought came to me as I knew I was just inches away from a premature and painful end of my life. The snake’s grip of my arm was tightening. I felt the pain driving me towards desperation. My arm had lost its strength.
- As death appeared imminent, I thought I could still stave it off through medicines. Sadly, I didn’t have any medicine with me. I cursed myself for being so stupid. I became stoic and began to smile feebly. Quite inexplicably, the snake turned its head towards the mirror and saw its image in it. I wondered if it was admiring its own image and thinking of ways to enhance its beauty just as the way I had thought about myself earlier. Was it toying with the idea of growing a thin moustache or adopting some such means to look more beautiful?
- The young doctor felt somewhat relieved after the snake moved away from a frontal position to rest on his lap. He was curious to know if the snake was a male or a female. It remained a mystery as the snake slowly moved on to the table’s surface to position itself right in front of the mirror. Stress that had gripped the doctor began to web slowly. He could move his limbs that had remained still so far. Then he made his escape from the room to the front yard. From there, he ran away to safety with all his strength.
The students listening to the account felt both relieved and amused. Someone asked if his wife was fat.
11. The teacher faced a flurry of questions. To a question about his wife, the teacher said that she was slim and thin. Another student wanted to know if the snake chased him as he began to sprint away. The doctor replied that he ran to a friend’s house where he took a bath and put on a fresh pair of dresses. Next morning, accompanied by his friend a few more men, he returned to his room to evacuate it once and for all. But, as ill luck would have it, a thief had entered the room and decamped with all his belongings. To add insult to injury, the thief had left behind just a single item of his.
12. The doctor engaged in some cynical comments. He said that the thief left behind his somewhat soiled vest. A student wanted to know if he ran across the snake again later. The doctor laughed off the query and said that no more encounter happened again.
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Questions & Answers..
I. Discuss in pairs and answer each question below in a short paragraph (30–40 words).
1. “The sound was a familiar one.” What sound did the doctor hear?
Answer .. The doctor heard some usual sounds that he associated with rats running helter and skelter on the beams above. Such sounds were heard everyday. So, it was familiar to him.
2. What did he think it was? How many times did he hear it?
Ans .. He assumed it was related to the rats who ran here and there on the beams almost the whole day. He was not the least bothered, since he had got used to it. He heard it twice.
3. When and why did the sounds stop?
Ans .. The sound stopped after the cobra entered the scene. The rats must have run away in fear to escape the predator. They must have scampered to their hideouts.
II. This story about a frightening incident is narrated in a humorous way. What makes it humorous? (Think of the contrasts it presents between dreams and reality. Some of them are listed below.)
1. (i) The kind of person the doctor is (money, possessions)
(ii) The kind of person he wants to be (appearance, ambition) taken with: attracted by
2. (i) The person he wants to marry
(ii) The person he actually marries
3. (i) His thoughts when he looks into the mirror
(ii) His thoughts when the snake is coiled around his arm
Write short paragraphs on each of these to get your answer.
Answer .. The young doctor lived a frugal life because he had just started his profession. He had a paltry amount of Rs.60 in his carry bag and he managed with the bare minimum of clothing. As a young bachelor often immersed in romantic dreams, he tried to look his best by combing his hair and planning to have a thin moustache. He was a comical character who wanted to marry a fat lady. The idea was silly. He intended to escape being browbeaten by his wife if he did any minor mistake. Such ideas point to his naive nature. Looking at the mirror triggered romantic thoughts in him. He felt he was a handsome man. He was gripped with unimaginable fear when the snake coiled around his arm.
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Thinking about Language
I. Here are some sentences from the text. Say which of them tell you, that the author:
(a) was afraid of the snake,
Ans .. 1. I was turned to stone. 2. I was no mere image cut in granite.
(b) was proud of his appearance,
Ans .. 6. I looked into the mirror and smiled. It was an attractive smile. 10. Was it trying to make an important decision about growing a moustache or using eye shadow and mascara or wearing a vermilion spot on its forehead?
(c) had a sense of humour,
Ans ..9. The fellow had such a sense of cleanliness…! The rascal could have taken it and used it after washing it with soap and water.
(d) was no longer afraid of the snake.
Ans .. 7. I was suddenly a man of flesh and blood.
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II. Expressions used to show fear
Can you find the expressions in the story that tell you that the author was frightened? Read the story and complete the following sentences.
1. I was turned to stone.
2. I sat there holding my breath.
3. In the light of the lamp I sat there like a stone image in the flesh.
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III. In the sentences given below some words and expressions are italicised. They are variously mean that one
• is very frightened.
• is too scared to move.
• is frightened by something that happens suddenly.
• makes another feel frightened.
Match the meanings with the words/expressions in italics, and write the appropriate meaning next to the sentence. The first one has been done for you.
1. I knew a man was following me, I was scared out of my wits. (very frightened)
2. I got a fright when I realised how close I was to the cliff edge. (is too scared to move)
3. He nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw the bull coming towards him. (is frightened by something that happens suddenly)
4. You really gave me a fright when you crept up behind me like that. (makes another feel frightened)
5. Wait until I tell his story — it will make your hair stand on end. (makes another feel frightened)
6. Paralysed with fear, the boy faced his abductors. (is too scared to move)
7. The boy hid behind the door, not moving a muscle. (is too scared to move)
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IV. Reported questions
Report these questions using if/whether or why/when/where/how/which/what. Remember the italicised verbs change into the past tense.
1. Meena asked her friend, “Do you think your teacher will come today?”
Ans .. Meenakshi asked her friend if she thought the teacher would come that day.
2. David asked his colleague, “Where will you go this summer?”
Ans .. David asked his colleague where he would go that summer.
3. He asked the little boy, “Why are you studying English?”
Ans .. He asked the little boy why he was studying English.
4. She asked me, “When are we going to leave?”
Ans .. She asked me when we were going to leave.
5. Pran asked me, “Have you finished reading the newspaper?”
Ans .. Pran asked me if I had finished reading the newspaper.
6. Seema asked her, “How long have you lived here?”
Ans .. Seema asked her how long had she lived there.
7. Sheila asked the children, “Are you ready to do the work?”
Ans .. Sheila asked the children if they were ready to do the work.
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