A Tragic Story Questions & Answers

Hi Everyone!! This article will share A Tragic Story Questions & Answers.

This poem is written by William Thackeray. In my previous posts, I have shared the questions and answers of Chaambali, Barter and Project Tiger so, you can check these posts as well.

A Tragic Story Questions & Answers

Word Galaxy

  • Sage – a very wise person
  • Pigtail – hair tied together into a bunch and twisted into plaits
  • Mused – thought carefully
  • Stout – strong and thick
  • Twirl – move round and round
  • Slack – without attention and energy
  • Tack – move in a zigzag way
  • Twist – turn the body quickly and change direction
  • Faithful – here, staying with

Question 1: Complete the sentences:

(a) The sage was sad because the pigtail was hanging down his back.
(b) He tried to change the position of the pigtail and have it hanging at his face.
(c) He spun round and round to change the position of the pigtail.
(d) To change the pigtail’s position, the sage twisted and turned in different directions.
(e) Even today the pigtail can be seen hanging behind him.

Question 2: A tragic story is a sad story. Is this poem a sad poem or is it a funny poem? Why do you think so?

Answer: No, it is not a sad poem. It is a funny one. This is because what the sage attempts to do is an impossible task.

Question 3: Write a few pairs of rhyming words from the poem.

Answer: Yore-wore, case-face and found-round.

Question 4: When did the sage live?

Answer: The sage lived in days of yore/olden days.

Question 5: What was the sage upset?

Answer: The sage’s pigtail hung behind him which made him upset.

Question 6: Why did the pigtail not move?

Answer: The pigtail of the sage was fixed bunch of hair which hung behind him and was impossible to move.

Question 7: How did the sage try to solve his problem?

Answer: The sage tried to bring his pigtail to the front by spinning around and turning right and left, up and down and in and out.

Question 8: Describe the movements the sage made in his struggle to move the pigtail.

Answer: To make the pigtail move, the sage turned round and round and then out and in. Then, he turned right and left. Finally, he twisted and twirled to move the pigtail.

Question 9: How is the sage in the poem different from sages you have heard or read about?

Answer: The sages that I have heard about are wise men. They are philosophers having direct knowledge of the Universal/Absolute. However, the sage described in this poem is a learned man but he lacks practical common sense. He kept trying to move his pigtail which was useless and practically not possible.

Question 10: Read and answer the questions:
But wondered much and sorrowed more
Because it hung behind him.

(a) What was the sage wondering about?

Answer: The sage was wondering about his pigtail.

(b) What did the word ‘it’ refer to here?

Answer: The word ‘it’ referred to the sage’s pigtail.

So, these were A Tragic Story Questions & Answers.

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