NCERT Solutions Class 8, English, Honeydew, Poem "Macavity: The Mystery Cat".
Working with Poem
1. Read the first stanza and think.
(i) Is Macavity a cat really?
Solution:
No, Macavity is not a cat really. Macavity is a cunning cat.
(ii) If not, who can Macavity be?
Solution:
If not a cat, he can be an expert thief or criminal or a mysterious creature.
2. Complete the following sentences.
(i) A master criminal is one who ______.
(ii) The Scotland Yard is baffled because _______.
(iii) ______because Macavity moves much faster than them.
Solution:
(i)A master criminal is one who can defy the law.
(ii)The Scotland Yard is baffled because whenever they reach the scene of crime, they cannot find Macavity.
(iii) Nobody can catch Macavity at the scene of crime because Macavity moves much faster than them.
3. "A cat, I am sure, could walk on a cloud without coming through". (Jules Verne)
Which law is Macavity breaking in the light of the comment above?
Solution:
In the light of the above comment, Macavity is breaking the law of gravity.
4. Read stanza 3, and then, describe Macavity in two or three sentences of your own.
Solution:
Macavity is a ginger cat who is very tall and thin with sunken eyes and brow deeply lined with thought. While its head is highly domed, its coat is dusty and whiskers are uncombed. It sways its head from side-to-side and it is always wide awake even when one thinks that it is half-asleep.
5. Say 'False' or 'True' for each of the following statements.
(i) Macavity is not an ordinary cat.
Solution: True
(ii) Macavity cannot do what a fakir can easily do.
Solution: False
(iii) Macavity has supernatural powers.
Solution: True
(iv) Macavity is well-dressed, smart and bright.
Solution: False
(v) Macavity is a spy, a trickster and a criminal, all rolled in one.
Solution: True
6. Having read the poem, try to guess whether the poet is fond of cats. If so, why does he call Macavity a fiend and monster?
Solution:
The poet admires the cat for his swift movement, expert criminality and the way he gives a slip to the police. But he is a law breaker at the same time, so the poet calls him a devil and giant.
7. Has the poet used exaggeration for special effect? Find a few examples of it and read those lines aloud.
Solution:
Yes, the poet has used exaggerations such as the cat's defiance of gravity and it being called a 'monster of depravity' and a 'fiend' in order to enhance the mystery surrounding the cat. Since the cat is shown to be super fast as nobody from the Scotland Yard to the flying squad can catch it on the scene of crime, these exaggerations have been used by Eliot to lay stress on this monstrous as well as surprising and mysterious nature of Macavity.
Examples:
(i) 'He's the bafflement of Scotland Yard, the Flying Squad's despair'.
(ii) 'He breaks the law of gravity'.
(iii) 'His powers of levitation would make a fakir stare.'
(iv) 'He's a fiend in feline shape, a monster of depravity.'
