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ST. MARY’S HSS BHARANANGANAM, UNIT - V. ENLIGHTENING SOULS, THE HAPPINESS MACHINE BY Ray Douglas Bradbury, 1. What according to Auffman, is the novel invention?, Ans: The Happiness Machine., 2. What was the perplexing question forming in his mind?, Ans: The perplexing question forming in his mind was whether the machine should be, something he carries in his pocket or something that carries him in its pocket., 3. Leo Auffman was carrying a dictionary when he went to talk to his wife. What is, his intention behind it?, Ans: To pick out the synonyms of the word 'happiness'., 4. "Do you think whether I am happy by doing all these household works." What did, Lena mean by that? Do you think she is really happy?, Ans: Lena meant that she is not happy doing the household chores., 5. What made Lena freeze? What led to such a mishap?, Ans: Lena froze because the supper bread got burned in the oven while she was talking to Leo., , 6. Pick out the expressions which suggest Leo Auffman worked hard., Ans: 'Sounds of toil echoed rhythmically from the garage.' 'Those days were without food,, rest and sleep.', 7. How did Lena respond when she heard that the Happiness Machine was ready?, Ans: Lena could not believe that the happiness machine was ready and she said that man, cannot make such changes., 8. The garage grabbed the attention of even the birds and dogs. Why were they, attracted to it?, Ans: They were attracted by the different kinds of hummings in varied frequencies from, the happiness machine., 9. What made Lena think that the machine was worthless? How should the happiness, machine be according to Lena?, Ans: According to Lena the happiness machine should be able to help her in the, household chores or else it is worthless., 1

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10. Who was the first to test the machine? What was the effect of it?, Ans: Saul. Saul started weeping after testing the happiness machine., 11. Why was Lena ready to try the machine?, Ans: Lena was ready to try the happiness machine because she wanted to spare the, children from nightmares., 12. How did the machine behave when the button was pressed?, Ans: There was a click and the machine shivered and growled like a wild dog., 13.'Blue Danube' stands for, Ans: 'Blue Danube' is a song., 14. “Only she thinks she is dancing!” What did Leo Auffman mean by this?, Ans: Leo meant that actually Lena is not dancing but she has a feeling that she is dancing., 15. How did Paris make Lena sad?, Ans: Paris made her sad because in reality she knew that she could never be in Paris., 16. What all things did the machine do to make Lena happy?, Ans: The machine made the sunset lasts forever, the air fragrant and the temperature fine., 17. Why couldn't Lena enjoy the sunset which lasted long?, Ans: Lena could not enjoy the sunset for long because thoughts about children waiting for, lunch, dishes to be washed and beds to be made distracted her., 18. In the words of Lena, what was the mistake Leo Auffman made in the making of, the Happiness Machine?, Ans: Leo Auffman made the quick things go slow and brought far away things come close., 19. How could Leo Auffman escape from the burning machine?, Ans: The boys dragged him out when someone broke the door open., 20. What changed the house into total disarray?, Ans: Leo Auffman's work on the happiness machine and its explosion changed the house, into a total disarray., 21. Did Leo Auffman realise his mistake in his attempt to make others happy with a, machine?, Ans: Yes. He realised that real happiness does not come from a machine but from the, simple things that make up a home., , 2

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22. According to Leo Auffman, what is the real Happiness Machine? What made him, realise that?, Ans: The sight of his children playing, the voice of someone singing and the aroma of the, baking bread at home made him realize that the real happiness machine is his own home., Let’s revisit and reflect, Leo Auffman, , Lena Auffman, , L am trying to get away to solve all your Could the machine make old men young, complaints., , or make me happy?, , That‟s not how it‟s built!, , Can the machine get all things done for, the house, the kitchen and the children?, , Press the button and you will see!, , OK. You test your damn thing with me, and spare my children. Don‟t give them, nightmares., , She only thinks she is dancing!, , Oh! Ah! Look at that! Paris! Rome! The, Pyramids! Perfume!, , I still do not understand what‟s wrong Music! I am dancing., with the machine. Amazing!, Now we have gone through the different perspectives of Leo and Lena Huffman, towards happiness. Let’s discuss to what extent the story supports or refutes the, following statements., Real happiness comes from our relationships rather than from material things., Machines and devices do make our life easy, but they will not bring real happiness., Happiness can‟t be bought with money. In a home where the parents and the children, work hard at their respective duties and carry out their responsibilities, encourage,, love and make little sacrifices for one another, there will be real happiness. A house, is built of stones, bricks, steel, and wood and you may pack it with all sorts of, luxurious things, but it does not become a home unless love reigns there., , 3

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Activity 1.a), 1. Leo Huffman is with his wife. Wife is ironing the clothes. He asks his wife, whether she is happy or not., 2. Lena is busy in the kitchen preparing food for the family. Nobody is helping her., She looks tired and bored, and even slightly angry., 3. Leo is busy in the garage working on his Happiness Machine, It is almost finished., It is a huge one and looks taller than him., 4. Leo sees his son Saul crying in his bed at late night. He asks Saul if he had a, nightmare. He finds that the garage door is open. On checking, he finds the, Happiness Machine is hot. Saul had gone inside the machine., 5. Lena is inside the machine. Leon is instructing her how to operate the machine. He, looks very happy and confident. So is one of his sons standing beside him., 6. The Happiness Machine is on fire. The firemen are trying to put out the flames., Leo is angry and surprised as he tries to keep away from the flames., b) Worksheet, Title of the Scene, , Lena inside the Happiness Machine (Inside the garage), , Key Ideas, , Showing the sights sounds and smells inside the, happiness machine., , Appearance / Features of Lena (middle-aged, happy-looking) inside the Machine., the characters, , Leo (middle-aged, confident-looking) outside the, machine. Saul, the son of Lena and Leo, stands by Leo,, looking worried., , Setting and Background Leo has made the Happiness Machine. He wants to test, Information, , it. Lena volunteers to go inside the machine to spare the, children of any nightmare of being tested., 4

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Plot (Problems and, , Leo spends all his time perfecting his Happiness, , Solutions), , Machine. Lena is unhappy as she has to clean the dishes,, cook the meals and iron the clothes by herself. Finally,, the machine is ready. Lena volunteers to go inside the, machine to spare the children of any nightmare of being, tested., , Props you may need, , A large washing-machine-like box with the front door, with see-through glass., , Likely Conversation :, , Naomi: Is Mama alright, Papa?, Leo: All right! She is fine! Listen!, Lena (from inside) the machine: Oh, Ah, Look at that!, Paris! Rome! The Pyramids! Perfume! The Blue, Danube! Music! I‟m dancing!, Leo: Only she thinks she is dancing., Lena: Amazing!, Naomi: She is crying!, Leo: She can‟t be!, Saul: She is like a baby. (Leo opens the door of the, machine.), Lena: Please Lee! Let me finish!, , d) Leo: Why am I in bed so late?, Lena: Stay there or give you such a hit., Leo: What‟s this?, Lena: It used to be breakfast; then it could have been lunch; now it‟s dog‟s dinner., Leo: What is that? It can‟t be. Where is the Happiness Machine?, Lena: You haven‟t spoken to the children for 2 weeks. You haven‟t spoken to me for, months. You lost 10 pounds and I lost 15. Leave off that machine. You will never, find a cook big enough to go into it., e) Subtitle: Breakfast for dinner, 5

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Activity 2, Happiness – Love, Kindness, Ambition, Optimism, Friends, Sacrifices., Happiness is a state of mind. It is not something that can be bought with, money or can be got through material things alone. Machines and gadgets will, certainly add to our happiness, but the basic ingredients are love, optimism, ambition,, friends, kindness, and sacrifices. Love is the primary ingredient., Activity 3, b) What idea does this cartoon strip convey?, The cartoon strip shows how a man is so immersed in his mobile that he does, not even notice that birds come and lay eggs in his cap. The eggs are incubated and, hatched there. Small birds fly out and still, the man is busy with his mobile not, knowing what has happened in his cap., c) Based on the discussion on the cartoon, conduct a debate on the topic, „Mobile, phone – boon or bane.‟, Boon (Blessing):, , , Easy communication with people all over the world., , , , Can watch movies and other entertainment programs and listen to songs., , , , play games, , , , learn a lot of new things, , , , get the latest news, , , , take photos, , Bane (Curse):, , , expensive, , , , people get addicted to it, , , , accidents happen as people use mobile while walking or driving, 6

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, , loss of secrecy as people take photos even without your knowledge, , , , people lose their interest in reading, instead, they use the mobile for, information, , Language Activity, Activity 1, 1. Lena, 2. Leo, 3. Vague sounds, 4. Leo, 5. Lena, 6. Naomi, a), , A, , 1. Leo made a new machine, , B, 1. A new machine was made by Leo, , 2. Naomi was cutting paper doll 2. Paper doll dress was being cut by Naomi., dress., 3. Lena pulled the oven open., , 3. The oven was pulled open by Lena, , 4. Lena has ironed the clothes., , 4. The clothes have been ironed by Lena., , 5. Joseph is running his electric 5. His electric train is being run by Joseph., train., 6. Lena had pressed the button, , 6. The button had been pressed by Lena., , b) Active and passive voice., 1. Leo completed the work of the happiness machine., Ans: The work of the happiness machine was completed., 2. Lena checked the function of the happiness machine., Ans: The function of the happiness machine was checked by Lena., , 7

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3. Leo did not care for their children., Ans: Their children were not cared for by Leo., 4. Lena looked after their children., Ans: Their children were looked after by Lena., 5. They could hear a muffled explosion., Ans: A muffled explosion could be heard by them., 6. The boys dragged him out., Ans: He was dragged out by the boys., 7. They called the fire force., Ans: The fire force was called by them., 8. Children were watching the firemen., Ans: The firemen were being watched by the children, Additional Questions, 1. Leo Auffman felt extremely happy when the happiness machine was finished., What could be his thoughts?, Oh at last it is finished. My dream has come true. I had been working on it, without food or sleep. But I hope it is a gift to humanity. Now people can be, extremely happy in it. They are surrounded with many problems everywhere,, frustration, depression, worries etc .Life has become complex. So I wish to put an end, to it and give them happiness. Now they can forget everything and enjoy life. I have, been telling about the happiness machine to my family, but no one has taken it, seriously. Let me ask me Lena to try this. She shall be definitely happy., 2 Prepare a news report about the Happiness Machine catching fire Happiness on Fire, New York: The much awaited dream fulfilment of Leo Auffman proved, unlucky when the happiness machine caught fire. He had been working hard for, 8

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making it. His wife Lena told reporters that he seldom got time to sleep or have food., Once Lena herself had entered the machine. She says it is a horrible experience. She, felt as if she were in Paris, dancing. But soon the thought of it being an illusion made, her cry aloud. The machine caught fire when Leo tried to check what was wrong with, it. The fire department came on time and no damages were caused by the explosion., Had it been a success, humanity would have been blessed with eternal happiness., Later Leo Auffman declared that he was not going to invent any new machine., Happiness, he says, is around us. We have to find it., 3. Lena Auffman entered the happiness machine and found herself in Paris. What, could be her thoughts?, Oh amazing! Is it a dream? I am in Paris, dancing! I see wonders of the world, and hear melodious songs. But is it real? No they are only an illusion. I could never, be in Paris. We haven‟t danced for years. The machine made me feel young. But I, know I am not. Besides how can I be happy if the sunset lasts long? My children may, be feeling hungry while I dance and enjoy. Will it make me happy? Never. Life, should never be away from realities. Happiness is within us. No machine can make us, happy. We have to seek and find it., 4 Imagine Lena describes her experience of entering the machine to her friend in a, letter. Prepare the likely letter., Dear Joana,, How are you? Hope everything is fine there. Here children are in a vacation, mood. As you know Leo is busy in his garage inventing new machines. Do you know,, he has made the Happiness machine. Can you imagine why it is called so? He says, one can be happy forgetting all tension after entering it. Leo has been spending, sleepless hours for making it. One day I entered the machine to try it. Oh it was a, wonderful experience. I felt as if I were in Paris, dancing, watching the great wonders, of the world. But soon the reality came out and I realized that it was mere illusion. I, was so sad. We can never find happiness with the help of a machine. It is within us,, around us. We have to seek and find it. I wish you were here. Really miss you a lot., 9

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Next time we shall spend the vacation in my house .Our children would love to play, together. See you soon., Yours lovingly, Lena, 5. Happiness can never be invented. No machine can help us to find it. Do you agree?, Prepare a write up., Modern man is depending on technology for making his life more comfortable, and easier. Scientists are after inventing medicines to avoid death and give eternal, life. In a world of problems and worries everyone hopes to escape to an illusory, world. But can happiness be invented or instilled by a machine? Definitely not. In, Ray Douglas‟ story The Happiness Machine, Leo Auffman tries to make a happiness, machine, which will give everybody ecstasy. He spends sleepless days and, nights ,paying no attention to his family or others .Finally when the machine is ready, his wife enters it. Though at first she feels as if she were in Paris dancing, soon the, reality of it being an illusion makes her the saddest. She realizes that if the sunset, lasts long it won‟t make us happy. She cries aloud thinking of the impossibility of, being young again .At last the happiness machine catches fire. It is then that Leo, notices his children playing around joyfully .Thus he realizes that real happiness, comes from relationships rather than material things. We see people trying to seek, happiness from mobile phones, while simple things around them stay neglected., Happiness is here, we have to derive it by giving our time. Even a smile can make us, happy., , 10