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Questions - Answers, , English, , Term - 2, , Class - 12th, (Krishna Singh), , (On the Face of it), Do you think Derry’s mother is protective of him? Justify your opinion with textual, evidence., Derry’s mother is given little characterization in the play, but she seems simultaneously, overprotective and not understanding of her son. She contributes to his isolation by keeping him, home because of his facial injury, and treats him with a sense of pity that robs him of dignity and, treating him like a perpetually helpless victim. In the play, Derry’s mother forbids him from returning, to Mr. Lamb’s house, but Derry leaves anyway, finally asserting himself in a positive way., Q1:, , Q2: Why did Derry go back to Mr. Lamb’s garden even after opposition?, Derry developed a new vision of life under Mr Lamb’s guidance. He became positive and looked, happy. Derry no longer cared about his face and looks. He was more concerned with himself, what, he thought and felt, what he wanted to see and find out and hear. He knew that if he did not go back, to Mr Lamb’s garden then, he would never go anywhere in that world again. He wanted the world., He no longer wanted to shun it or avoid the people., Q3: Why does Mr. Lamb leave the gate of his house always open?, Mr. Lamb always kept his gate open because he always wanted visitors to come to his house. Mr., Lamb resided alone in a big house and that is why he wanted a companion. He left the gates open, so that visitors might not turn away watching the gates closed., Q4: What is common between Derry and Mr. Lamb?, Both of them had their own disabilities, Mr. Lamb was a man who owned a tin leg and Derry was a, victim of acid attack. Both of them had physical deformities which made them stay away from, society. The callousness of society affected them adversely., Q5: “It ate my face up. It ate me up.” Who said these words? Why?, ‘It ate my face up. It ate me up’. These words are uttered by Derry. He said these words because his, face was eaten by acid. He had one side of his face disfigured with acid and didn’t like it. That was, the main reason why he always kept to himself and did not have any friends. He was withdrawn and, pessimistic., Q6: What kind of garden does Mr. Lamb have? Why does he like it?, Mr. Lamb is an old man with a tin leg. His real leg was blown off years ago during the war. He lives, all alone in his house. There is a garden near the house. It has ripe crab apples looking orange and, golden in colour. It is a place which welcomes different kinds of people and lets them do what they, want. Mr. Lamb wanted kids and all to visit him as he couldn’t move much., Q7: Who was Derry? What problems did he have?, Derry was a young boy who came to Mr. Lamb’s garden. One side of his face had been burnt by, acid. He was reserved and did not like to mix with people. He would always think that he was the, ugliest person on the earth., Q8: How do people console Derry when they look at his face?, People often asked him to look at those people who were in pain, are brave, never cry, never, complain and don’t feel sorry for themselves. They also asked him to think of those who were worse, off. He was better off than those people who were blind, born deaf, confined to a wheel chair, or are, crazy and dribble.

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Q9: How does Mr. Lamb react when Derry enters his garden?, Unlike Derry’s thought that Mr. Lamb would be angry at him if he saw him entering stealthily into the, garden, Mr. Lamb treated Derry very gently and welcomed him to his garden. In fact, he was happy, to get someone to talk to him in his loneliness. Like a father, he even gave Derry advice to be, careful while fetching apples as he might slip and get hurt physically, , Long Answer Type Questions, Q10: Mr. Lamb calls Derry his friend while Derry refuses his affirmation. Would you, consider their relationship with each other as friendship? Support your answer with, the reference to the instance(s) from the text., Derry was a small boy who had a burnt face due to acid. He was very withdrawn and defiant. He, used to run away from the world as he hated others staring at him. He thought people are afraid of, his infirmity. Similarly, Mr. Lamb too was a handicapped person. He had lost his one leg in a bomb, explosion during war years ago. He lived alone in this world., The two of them have infirmity and are rejected by the people. Both have a vacuum in their hearts, for not having company. Mr. Lamb is a man full of positive energy. When Derry met him, he found, himself drawn towards Mr. Lamb. Mr. Lamb happened to be the only one who gives him a new line, of thought about his physical infirmity. Thus, they both shared a bond that united the two of them., , Q11: The play ‘On The Face of It’ depicts the unusual behaviour of the people towards the, physically disabled, which makes them feel lonely. Comment., The lesson ‘On The Face of It’ aptly depicts the loneliness and sense of alienation experienced by, Derry and Mr. Lamb on account of a disability. The actual pain and inconvenience caused by the, disabilities is often much less than the sense of alienation felt by the disabled person. Derry suffered, from severe negative complexes because of his burnt face. He became a pessimistic loner who, indulged in self-pity and was always suspicious of the intention of others. His anger and frustration, made him withdrawn and an introvert. Mr. Lamb, on the other hand, was inwardly a loner who, craved for company and acceptance. Though outwardly he was always jovial, outgoing and, optimistic; he was an extremely sensitive person. Derry and Mr. Lamb’s physical disabilities caused, pain and suffering, not only to their body, but also to their mind and soul., Q12: Compare and contrast the characters of Mr. Lamb and Derry., Both Mr. Lamb and Derry suffer from problems. Mr. Lamb had a tin leg, whereas Derry had a burnt, face. But both of them differ in their attitude towards handling their problems. Mr. Lamb is very, positive in his outlook. He sees the beauty in everything, including weeds. He doesn’t let physical, handicap prevent him from living life to the fullest. He is very friendly, opened his doors to the world, as he thinks that the world and people are important. Moreover, he is strong and doesn’t let people’s, negative comments hurt him. Besides, being very practical, he knows one’s life is in one’s own, hands. He also shows understanding of Derry’s problems., On the contrary, Derry is scared of meeting people as he hates seeing their fear of him and facing, their rejection. He is too sensitive and people’s comment hurt him deeply. He becomes upset due to, his parents’ over protectiveness and mother’s repulsion for his burnt face. He is defiant and rude, and does not talk to people. He sees everything in a bad light and is pessimistic about everything., He not only hates himself but the world and remains away from all. He indulges in self-pity over his, face but he has inner deep desire to be accepted which he hides under an abrasive exterior., However, he changes at the end after listening to Mr. Lamb and becomes ready to face the world, and overcome obstacles to do so. Eventually he finds courage and strength to get what he wants.

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Q13: Derry and Mr. Lamb both are victims of physical impairment, but their attitudes, towards life are completely different. Elaborate., Derry is a fourteen year old boy whose main problem is his burnt face. One side of his face had, been burnt by acid. He suffers from a tremendous sense of inferiority complex. He is always, conscious of the fact that his face is “bad”, “terrible” and “the ugliest thing”. People are “afraid” of, him. He tries to escape people. He allows himself to be alienated from the world. On the other hand,, Mr. Lamb doesn’t allow his physical disability to come in his way. He accepts life as it comes. He, has a positive attitude towards life, things and people. He doesn’t find solace in escapism. Children, tease him by calling him “Lamey-Lamb” but he doesn’t mind it. One of his legs was blown off in the, war. But he is full of life and enjoys it to his best. He enjoys sitting in the sun, reading books and, growing weeds and flowers., Derry is withdrawn and defiant. He doesn’t trust people. He thinks that no one will ever love and kiss, him except his own mother. He can’t stand people staring at him or passing uncharitable remarks., He is touchy and hyper sensitive. Mr. Lamb is open-minded and open-hearted. All are welcome. He, loves everybody and everything. He teaches Derry how to handle people and things., , Q14: How is the Derry we meet at the beginning different from the Derry at the end?, Derry was a fourteen-year-old young boy who suffered from a sense of inferiority complex due to his, acid–burnt face. He never accepted himself like that and therefore, he was never able to reconcile, himself with his physical disability. But there was a positive change in him when he came into, association with Mr. Lamb. He was surprised to notice that Mr. Lamb, despite his physical, impairment, was an optimistic and cheerful man. He never felt miserable or pitiable. He played with, children and always kept the doors and windows of his house open so as to welcome everybody at, all times. This left a deep impression on Derry’s mind. He liked the way Mr. Lamb took his disability, and learnt how to deal with people and things that come in the path as hurdles. His attitude towards, life took a turning point and he became a different man who wanted to meet the world with open, arms like Mr. Lamb who gave him a direction and purpose of life., , Q15: Derry sneaked into Mr. Lamb’s garden and it became a turning point in his life., Comment., OR, Who was Mr. Lamb? How did he make Derry gain confidence and come out of his, shell?, Derry is a fourteen-year-old boy with a face burnt by acid. Mr. Lamb serves as an ideal for Derry., Mr. Lamb has a tin leg. But he never allows his disability to sour the joys of life. Derry, on the other, hand, makes himself quite pitiable and miserable. His hyper sensitivity is like an open wound. He, can’t stand people staring at him. Even cruel and uncharitable remarks upset him. He can’t keep his, ears shut. Nor does he possess a large and generous heart like that of Mr. Lamb, whom children, called ‘Lamey-Lamb’, but Mr. Lamb does not mind it. He plays with them and gives them jelly and, toffees. Derry, on the other hand, has developed a perverted mindset. The worst is that Derry, distrusts the world and its people. We find a change in Derry towards the end. Mr. Lamb’s ideas, leave their imprint on him. He is free from that complex now. He doesn’t care about his burnt face, and it no more seems important to him., Q16: What benefits did Derry reap from his association with Mr. Lamb?, Derry was a young boy who suffers from an inferiority complex due to his acid burnt face. He never, accepted himself like that and therefore, he was never able to reconcile himself with his physical, disability. But there was a positive change in him when he came into association with Mr. Lamb. He, was surprised to notice that Mr. Lamb, despite his physical impairment, was an optimistic and, cheerful man. He never felt miserable or pitiable. He played with children and always kept the doors

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and windows of his house open so as to welcome everybody at all times. This left a deep impression, on Derry’s mind. He liked the way Mr. Lamb took his disability and learnt how to deal with people, and things that come in the path as hurdles. His attitude towards life took a turning point and he, became a different man who wanted to meet the world with open arms like Mr. Lamb., Q17: Both Derry and Lamb are victims of physical impairment but much more painful for, them is the loneliness. Comment., Derry’s main problem is his burnt face. One side of his face had been burnt by acid. He suffers from, a tremendous sense of inferiority complex. He is always conscious of the fact that his face is “bad”,, “terrible” and “the ugliest thing”. People are “afraid” of him. He tries to escape from people. He, allows himself to be alienated from the world. On the other hand, Mr. Lamb doesn’t allow his, physical disability to come in his way. He accepts life as it comes. He has a positive attitude towards, life, things and people. He doesn’t find solace in escapism. Children tease him by calling him, “Lamey-Lamb” but he doesn’t mind it. One of his legs was blown off in the war. But he is full of life, and enjoys it to his best. He enjoys sitting in the sun, reading books and growing weeds and flowers., Derry is withdrawn and defiant. He doesn’t trust people. He thinks that no one will ever love and kiss, him except his own mother. He can’t stand people staring at him or passing uncharitable remarks., He is touchy and hyper sensitive. Mr. Lamb is open-minded and open-hearted. All are welcome. He, loves everybody and everything. He teaches Derry how to handle people and things