NCERT Solutions Class 10, English, First Flight, Prose, Chapter "The Hundred Dresses- I".
Oral Comprehension Check
1. Where in the classroom does Wanda sit and why?
Solution:
Wanda used to sit in the seat next to the last seat, in the last row, in Room Thirteen. She sat there because her feet were normally caked with dry mud and very dirty. So in order to avoid being laughed at by her classmates, she sat there to hide her dirty feet.
2. Where does Wanda live? What kind of a place do you think it is?
Solution:
Wanda lived at Boggins Heights. It seems that it was a place far away from the school and also, where there was a lot of dry mud, thereby indicating that it was not a very rich locality.
3. When and why do Peggy and Maddie notice Wanda’s absence?
Solution:
Wanda didn’t come to school on Monday and Tuesday but nobody noticed her absence as she did not have friends in the class. When Peggy and Maddie waited for Wanda to make fun of her after the school was off, they noticed that she was absent, otherwise nobody bothered about her there.
4. What do you think “to have fun with her” means?
Solution:
“To have fun with her ” means to laugh at her as it is human tendency to make fun of others imperfections which are mostly about the appearance. Here in the story, Wanda is a source of amusement or pleasure because of her shy nature and her hundred dresses.
Oral Comprehension Check
1. In what way was Wanda different from the other children?
Solution:
Wanda was different from other children. She did not have any friends. She came to school alone and went home alone. She always wore a faded blue dress that did not fit her properly. Unlike other children, she did not talk to anybody.
2. Did Wanda have a hundred dresses? Why do you think she said she did?
Solution:
No, she did not have a hundred dresses because she was poor and wore the same faded dress to school everyday. She had an inferiority complex. In order to hide the complex and impress the other girls, she always said that she had a hundred dresses.
3. Why is Maddie embarrassed by the questions Peggy asks Wanda? Is she also like Wanda, or is she different?
Solution:
Maddie is embarrassed by the questions Peggy asks Wanda because she is also poor and understands the mental condition of Wanda. She also wears dresses handed down by rich family. Though, she is an American but she has the same mind-set as Wanda and doesn’t want anyone to tease Wanda because of her dress or her name.
Oral Comprehension Check
1. Why didn’t Maddie ask Peggie to stop teasing Wanda? What was she afraid of?
Solution:
Maddie couldn't ask Peggie to stop teasing Wanda because Peggie was her best friend and she had faith in Peggie that she would never do anything wrong. She was afraid of being laughed at for her poor dresses.
2. Who did Maddie think would win the drawing contest? Why?
Solution:
Maddie thought that Peggy would win the drawing contest because Peggy drew better than anyone else. She could copy a picture in a magazine, or some film star’s face so well that one could tell who it was.
3. Who won the drawing contest? What had the winner drawn?
Solution:
Wanda won the drawing contest. The winner of drawing contest was appreciated by the judges and applauded by her fellow classmates.
Thinking about the Text
1. How is Wanda seen as different by the other girls? How do they treat her?
Solution:
Wanda is seen as different by the other girls. She is poor and lonely girl. The girls made fun of her poverty and teased her by commenting on her dress.
2. How does Wanda feel about the dresses game? Why does she say that she has a hundred dresses?
Solution:
Wanda did not show any feelings regarding the dresses game. It is most likely that she was deeply hurt. It could have been one of the reasons why her family left the place and moved to the city.
She was a girl who was very poor and came form a long distance which made her feet dirty. She wanted to draw attention of her friends. So, she felt very happy whenever she told her friend that she had hundred dresses without realising that they were making fun of her.
3. Why does Maddie stand by and not do anything? How is she different from Peggy? (Was Peggy’s friendship important to Maddie? Why? Which lines in the text tell you this?)
Solution:
Maddie always stood by and never did anything as she was afraid that if she did, she would be the next target of the children. She herself was poor and therefore, felt that if she spoke against the others, they would target her next. Unlike her, Peggy was a rich girl. This was also the reason why Maddie could think from Wanda’s point of view, but Peggy could not. Maddie was Peggy’s best friend. It seemed as if she was in awe of Peggy. She admired her quite a lot as she said that Peggy was the most liked girl in the room and that she drew better than anyone else. She did not have the courage to go against her. Some of the lines from the text which show that Peggy’s friendship was important to Maddie are as follows.
(i) Peggy, who had thought up this game, and Maddie, her inseparable friend, were always the last to leave.
(ii) She was Peggy’s best friend, and Peggy was the best-liked girl in the whole room.
(iii) Peggy could not possibly do anything that was really wrong, she thought.
(iv) Oh, Maddie was sure Peggy would win.
4. What does Miss Mason think of Wanda’s drawings? What do the children think of them? How do you know?
Solution:
Miss mason appreciated the paintings of Wanda. She was impressed at the creativity of the girl because she had painted hundred paintings which were in wide range of variety.
The children also admired the drawings. Everybody stopped and whistled or murmured admiringly. After Miss Mason had announced that Wanda was the winner, they burst into applause, and even the boys were glad to have a chance to stamp on the floor and whistle. Also, just as Peggy and Maddie entered the room, they stopped short and gasped. Later they recognized the designs as those which Wanda had described to them. And in the end, Peggy exclaimed, “…and I thought I could draw.” This shows that she also realized how good Wanda’s drawings were.
III. Look at this sentence. The italicised adverb expresses an opinion or point of view.
Obviously, the only dress Wanda had was the blue one she wore every day. (This was obvious to the speaker.)
Other such adverbs are apparently, evidently, surprisingly, possibly, hopefully, incredibly, luckily. Use these words appropriately in the blanks in the sentences below. (You may use a word more then once and more than one word may be appropriate for a given blank.)
1. ______, he finished his work on time.
2. ______, it will not rain on the day of the match.
3. ______, he had been stealing money from his employer.
4. Television is _____ to blame for the increase in violence in society.
5. The children will _______ learn from their mistakes.
6. I can’t ________ lend you that much money.
7. The thief had ______ been watching the house for many days.
8. The thief _______ escaped by bribing the jailor.
9. ________, no one had suggested this before.
10. The water was ________ hot.
Solution:
1. Surprisingly, he finished his work on time.
2. Hopefully, it will not rain on the day of the match.
3. Evidently, he had been stealing money from his employer.
4. Television is evidently to blame for the increase in violence in society.
5. The children will hopefully learn from their mistakes.
6. I can’t possibly lend you that much money.
7. The thief had apparently been watching the house for many days.
8. The thief possibly escaped by bribing the jailor.
9. Surprisingly, no one had suggested this before.
10. The water was incredibly hot.
