2.5 The Happy Prince
Complete textbook exercise solutions — Maharashtra State Board (Balbharati), Grade Eight English.
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Warming Up!
- (a) fable: a short story, typically with animals as characters, conveying a moral lesson.
- (b) anecdote: a short, amusing, or interesting story about a real incident or person.
- (c) fairytale: a children's story about magical and imaginary beings and lands.
- (d) parable: a simple story used to illustrate a moral or spiritual lesson, often found in religious texts.
- (e) tragedy: a story or play dealing with tragic events and having an unhappy ending, especially concerning the downfall of the main character.
- (f) humorous story: a story intended to be funny and make the reader laugh.
- (g) detective story: a story whose plot revolves around the investigation and solving of a crime.
- (h) myth: a traditional story concerning the early history of a people or explaining a natural or social phenomenon, often involving supernatural beings or events.
- To escape harsh, freezing winter climates and find warmer weather conditions for survival.
- To find abundant food sources and safe breeding grounds to lay eggs and raise their young, returning when seasons change back.
When changing from Direct to Indirect Speech, the following changes occur:
- The quotation marks (" ") and commas are removed.
- A conjunction (like 'that') is added to join the reporting verb and the reported speech.
- The reporting verb is changed according to the sentence (e.g., 'said' changes to 'told').
- Personal pronouns are changed to match the subject/object (e.g., 'I' becomes 'he', 'you' becomes 'him').
- The tense of the verb is changed to the past tense (e.g., 'shall' becomes 'would').
- Words showing time and place are changed (e.g., 'tomorrow' becomes 'the next day').
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English Workshop
- (a) The writer of the story is William Blake.
False. Correction: The writer of the story is Oscar Wilde. - (b) Everyone admired the statue of the Happy Prince.
True. - (c) The mother was working, when the Swallow brought the yellow jewel.
False. Correction: The mother was asleep, and the Swallow brought a red jewel. - (d) The two best things the servants brought to God were gold and jewel stones.
False. Correction: The two best things the servants brought to God were the broken lead heart and the dead bird.
| (a) weak | week | (b) their | there |
| (c) blew | blue | (d) sea | see |
| (e) read | red | (f) waste | waist |
| (g) know | no | (h) knot | not |
| (i) threw | through | (j) right | write |
(a) Where was the Happy Prince's statue located?
The Happy Prince's statue was located high above the city.
(b) Why did the swallow decide to stay under the statue of the Happy Prince at night?
The Swallow decided to stay under the statue because it was high up, offered plenty of fresh air, and provided him with a "golden bedroom" between the Prince's feet.
(c) Why was the Prince sad?
The Prince was sad because, from his high position, he could see all the misery, ugliness, and unhappiness of his city, which he was unaware of when he was alive.
(d) What was the first task given to the Swallow?
The first task given to the Swallow was to take the great red jewel from the Prince's waist to a poor woman whose little boy was very ill and crying for food.
(e) To whom did the Prince gift the two gemstones of his eyes?
The Prince gifted one of his eyes to a poor, cold, and hungry young writer trying to finish a story, and the other eye to a little girl selling eggs who had dropped her eggs and had no money to take home.
(f) What decision did the Swallow finally make? Was it a wise one? Comment.
The Swallow finally decided to stay with the blind Prince forever instead of flying to Egypt. Even though it cost him his life in the freezing winter, it was a spiritually wise and noble decision because it showed the highest form of love, sacrifice, and loyalty, which was ultimately rewarded by God.
(g) Why did the Swallow finally decide not to leave the Prince?
The Swallow decided not to leave because the Prince had given away both of his eyes to help the poor and had gone completely blind. The Swallow loved him very much and could not bear to leave his blind friend alone.
(h) What message do you get from this story?
The story gives the message that true beauty lies in love, compassion, and sacrifice for others, not in outward wealth. Furthermore, those who show charity towards their fellow beings are deeply loved and rewarded by God.
(Note: We have identified the verb forms based on the textbook instructions.)
- (1) I wish to go to Egypt. — Infinitive
- (2) They liked his written stories. — Past Participle
- (3) He is trying to finish a story. — Infinitive
- (4) Suffering is stranger than anything. — Gerund
- (5) The dying swallow fell at his feet. — Present Participle
- (6) He began to cry. — Infinitive
- (7) He watched the working seamen. — Present Participle
(a) 'Who are you?' asked the bird. 'I am the Happy Prince.'
'Then why are you crying? I am wet with your tears.'
Answer: The bird asked the Prince who he was. The Prince replied that he was the Happy Prince. The bird then asked him why he was crying and added that he was wet with his tears.
(b) The Happy Prince looked very sad, and the little Swallow was sorry for him. 'It is very cold here,' he said 'but I will stay with you for one night. Tomorrow I will take the jewel.'
'Thank you, little bird,' said the prince.
Answer: The Happy Prince looked very sad, and the little Swallow was sorry for him. The bird said that it was very cold there, but he would stay with him for one night. He promised that he would take the jewel the next day. The prince thanked the little bird.
(c) 'Little bird, little bird,' said the prince, 'please will you stay with me for one more night?'
'My friends are waiting for me,' answered the bird.
Answer: The prince requested the little bird to stay with him for one more night. The bird answered that his friends were waiting for him.
(d) Under a bridge, two little boys were lying close together to keep warm. 'We are so hungry!' they said. 'You cannot lie there!' shouted a guard.
Answer: Under a bridge, two little boys were lying close together to keep warm. They said that they were very hungry. A guard shouted at them that they could not lie there.
(e) 'Goodbye, dear prince!' he said.
'I am glad that you are going to Egypt,' said the prince. 'You have stayed too long.' 'I am not going to Egypt,' said the Swallow. 'I am going to the House of God'
Answer: The Swallow bade the dear prince goodbye. The prince said that he was glad that he (the Swallow) was going to Egypt and added that he had stayed too long. The Swallow replied that he was not going to Egypt, but he was going to the House of God.
This is a group activity to be performed in the classroom. Discuss with your friends and enact the roles of the Prince, the Swallow, the Mayor, and others.
If I could change the ending, I would make it happier. After the Swallow decides to stay with the Prince in the freezing winter, the people of the city notice the incredible sacrifices the Prince has made. The Mayor, instead of tearing down the grey, ugly statue, realizes that the Prince gave up all his gold to save the poor. Inspired by this charity, the citizens come together and build a warm, heated glass shelter around the statue to protect the little bird from the harsh winter. The Swallow survives the snow and lives happily with his blind friend. From that day on, the people of the city stop being selfish and take care of the poor, making sure nobody goes hungry, and the Swallow sings songs of love and kindness to everyone.
- Name of the story: Cinderella
- Type of story: Fairy tale
- Setting (time and place): A kingdom far away, long ago.
- Important characters: Cinderella, the Wicked Stepmother, the Stepsisters, the Prince, the Fairy Godmother.
- Theme: Kindness and goodness are always rewarded in the end, no matter the hardships.
- Plot: A mistreated young girl receives magical help to attend a royal ball, where she falls in love with the prince, but she accidentally loses her glass slipper when running away.
- Conflict / Dilemma: Cinderella must return home before midnight when the magic wears off, but the prince desperately wants to know her true identity.
- Solution: The prince searches the entire kingdom, having every maiden try on the glass slipper to find his true love.
- End: The glass slipper perfectly fits Cinderella, she marries the prince, and they live happily ever after.
Word Play
- COLD to HEAT: COLD → HOLD → HELD → HEAD → HEAT
- MAN to APE: MAN → MAT → OAT → OPT → APT → APE
- CAT to DOG: CAT → COT → DOT → DOG
- TEA to POT: TEA → PEA → PET → POT
- (1) Theme School (Nouns): Teacher → Room → Map → Pen → Note
- (2) Verbs: Read → Draw → Write → Eat → Talk
- (3) Sports and games: Tennis → Snooker → Relay → Yoga → Archery
- She sells seashells by the seashore.
- I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream.
- Red lorry, yellow lorry.
- Betty Botter bought some butter.
- How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?
AT
CAT
CHAT
CHEAT
TO
TOP
STOP
STOOP
- Homophones (sound the same, different spellings/meanings): son / sun, see / sea, weak / week.
- Heteronyms (same spelling, different pronunciations/meanings): tear (crying) / tear (rip), bow (bend down) / bow (weapon).
- Homographs (same spelling, same sound, different meanings): bat (flying animal) / bat (cricket equipment), bank (side of a river) / bank (financial institution).