CBSE X - A TRIUMPH OF SURGERY - ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE - QUESTIONS

 A Triumph of Surgery

 

 

Answers to NCERT Questions

 

READ AND FIND OUT

1. Why is Mrs Pumphrey worried about Tricki?

 

2. What does she do to help him? Is she wise in this?

 

3. Who does ‘I’ refer to in this story?

 

4. Is the narrator as rich as Tricki’s mistress?

 

5. How does he treat the dog?

 

6. Why is he tempted to keep Tricki on as a permanent guest?

 

7. Why does Mrs Pumphrey think the dog’s recovery is “a triumph of surgery”?

 

 

THINK ABOUT IT

1. What kind of a person do you think the narrator, a veterinary surgeon, is? Would you say he is tactful as well as full of common sense?

 

2. Do you think Tricki was happy to go home? What do you think will happen now?

 

3. Do you think this is a real-life episode or mere fiction? Or is it a mixture of both?

 

 

TALK ABOUT IT

1. This episode describes the silly behaviour of a rich woman who is foolishly indulgent, perhaps because she is lonely. Do you think such people are merely silly, or can their actions cause harm to others?

 

2. Do you think there are also parents like Mrs Pumphrey?

 

3. What would you have done if you were:

i. a member of the staff in Mrs Pumphrey’s household

ii. a neighbour? What would your life have been like, in general?

 

4. What would you have done if you were in the narrator’s place?

 

 

Additional Questions

Short Answer Questions (30-40 words)

1. What makes you know that Mrs Pumphrey was a rich lady?

2. Why did Mrs Pumphrey take Tricki to the doctor?

3. How does Dr Herriot treat Tricki?

4. Why were the household dogs not interested in Tricki initially?

5. Why was Dr Herriot confident that Tricki will be in hospital soon?

6. Why was the entire staff of Mrs Pumphrey at work while Tricki was going to the hospital?

7. What was the cause of Tricki’s ailment?

8. Why did Dr Herriot ask Mrs Pumphrey to admit Tricki in a hospital?

9. Why did Mrs Pumphrey treat Tricki in a special way?

10. Why was Dr Herriot worried about Tricki?

11. Why was Tricki sent to the hospital?

12. What was Mrs Pumphrey ’s reaction when Tricki showed little enthusiasm for exertion?

13. What did she do to bring him back to normal health? Was she successful?

14. What was Mr Herriot’s strict advice? Did Mrs Pumphrey heed his advice? What excuses did she make?

15. Why did Mrs Pumphrey make a frantic call to Mr Herriot?

16. Describe the ‘parting scene’ between Tricki and Mrs Pumphrey’s household.

17. “I think I know a cure for you.” What was the ‘cure’?

18. The household dogs at the surgery rejected Tricki as an “uninteresting object”. Why?

19. How did he become an accepted member of the gang and start enjoying the company of the other dogs?

20. Describe the small dog Tricki.

21. What did Mrs Pumphrey think her dog suffer from? How did she try to help him?

22. What was the real disease that Tricki was suffering from?

23. What was Mrs Pumphrey’s reaction, when the doctor said that Tricki must be taken to the hospital for a fortnight?

24. How did the gang of the household dogs accept Tricki as their member?

25. How did Tricki treat his mistress when she went to collect him?

26. Why was Mr Herriot shocked at Tricki’s appearance?

 

 

Long Answer Questions (100-150 words)

1. Herriot enjoyed the lavish meal during Tricki’s stay but still, he felt compelled to inform Mrs Pumphrey about the recovery of Tricki. Why did he not keep Tricki for a longer time? Did he feel concerned for Mrs Pumphrey? Was it not in his attitude to break the trust others? Discuss.

 

2. The chapter shows the silly and negligent behaviour of rich people like Mrs Pumphrey who may harm their near and dear ones by their extra caring nature. Tricki’s declined health was the outcome of Mrs Pumphrey’s over-caring nature. Do you think such people’s actions can prove to be fatal for the health? What would you suggest to such people and why?

 

3. “He had never been known to refuse food; he would tackle a meal at any hour of the day or night”. Herriot believed that Tricki’s problem was his greed. Did he lack tolerance?

 

4. Herriot seems to be a duty-bound doctor who values other’s ’emotions’ than his personal interests. Elucidate the above statement.

 

5. How did Mrs Pumphrey keep her dog? How did she add to his problems?

 

6. How did Herriot save Tricki’s life?

 

7. Write a character sketch of Mrs Pumphrey.

 

8. Write a character sketch of Tricki.

 

 

Self-Assessment Test

Short Answer Questions

1. Why did Mrs Pumphrey call the doctor?

2. What was the main cause of Tricki’s ill-health?

3. How did Mrs Pumphrey deal with Tricki’s absence?

4. How was Tricki different from the other dogs in the surgery?

5. What was Tricki doing in the name of exercise?

 

Long Answer Questions

1. Tricki was more a member of Mrs Pumphrey’s family than a mere dog. Explain, giving example from the text.

2. Mrs Pumphrey says, “This is a triumph of surgery”. Why did she say so? Did she know what Tricki’s ailment was?

3. Compare and contrast Tricki in the beginning and in the end of the story ‘A Triumph of Surgery’.