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Footprints Without Feet., Herbert George Wells (21 September 1866 – 13 August 1946) was an English writer. He, was prolific in many genres, writing dozens of novels, short stories, and works of social, commentary, satire, biography, and autobiography, and even two books on recreational, war games. He is now best remembered for his science fiction novels and is often called, the “father of science fiction”, along with Jules Verne and Hugo Gernsback., Summary of the Lesson., The story is about a scientist named Griffin. He had been discovering ways that could, make a man invisible and finally swallowed certain rare drugs that made him invisible., He was first noticed by two boys in the staircase of a house where they could just see his, footsteps and started following it. They follow it until the footsteps are fainter and cannot, be seen. First, as he is feeling cold he enters a mall for some warmth. After the stores shut, down, he decides to wear some warm clothes and eat something., He first unboxes a few clothes and wears them. Then from the kitchen of a restaurant, he, eats cold meat and some coffee. Later he goes to a grocery store and eats sweets and, drinks wine. He then falls asleep on a pile of quilts. He then wakes up in the morning when, some of the store assistants had seen him and started chasing him. He quickly threw away, all the clothes he was wearing and became invisible again. Then he started roaming, around again without any clothes in the cold winters of London., He then decides to steal clothes from a theatre company as he knew he would get, something there to cover his face as well. He then steals bandages for his face, dark, glasses, false nose and a hat for covering himself., He then hits the shopkeeper and steals all his money. Soon he realizes that London is too, crowded to live like this and decides that he would go to a remote village. He books two, rooms at an inn at the Iping village., He reaches there and it is strange for the people of Iping that a stranger with such a weird, appearance has come to stay at an inn during the winter season. Once his money is over,, he steals from people and also hits the landlord and his wife when they try to check his, room in his absence. Then the village constable is asked for help but before that Mrs. Hall,, the wife of the landlord asks him questions regarding who he is and what he did to her, furniture., This makes him really furious and he decides to show her who he really is. The people, then see a headless man and Mr. Jaffers, the constable also finds out that he would have, to arrest a man who does not have a head. They are unable to catch Griffin as he removes, all his clothes and becomes invisible. He even knocks out Jaffers as he tries to catch him., New words, 1. Muddy– covered in or full of mud. ( unclear ), 2. Imprints– impress or stamp (a mark or outline) on a surface., 3. Bare/naked – not clothed or covered., 4. Gazed – looked at steadily and intently, especially in admiration, surprise, or, thought. ( Looked/stared ), 5. Remarkable– worthy of attention; striking. ( amazing ), 6. Sight– the faculty or power of seeing. ( eye sight ), Page no 1
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7. Progressing– move forward or onward in space or time. ( developing ), 8. Fascinated– strongly attracted and interested. ( captivate), 9. Fainter– barely noticeable., weaker, dimmer., 10. Bewildered– perplexed and confused; very puzzled., 11. Wander– walk or move in a leisurely or aimless way., 12. Bitterly– in an angry, hurt, or resentful way., 13. Expense– the cost incurred in or required for something., 14. Panicked– feel or cause to feel panic., 15. Theatrical– relating to acting, actors, or the theatre.( acting ), 16. Shivering– shaking slightly and uncontrollably as a result of being cold,, frightened, or excited. ( trembling ), 17. Whiskers– a long projecting hair or bristle growing from the face or snout of, many mammals. ( sideburns, mustaches ), 18. Callously– in a way that shows an insensitive and cruel disregard for others., (cruelly ), 19. Inn– a pub, typically one in the country, in some cases providing accommodation., 20. Wagging– move or cause to move rapidly to and fro. ( wave to and pro ), 21. Solitude– the state or situation of being alone., 22. Eccentric– unconventional and slightly strange., 23. Curious– strange; unusual., 24. Clergyman– a male priest, minister, or religious leader, especially a Christian one.( priest ), , 25. Poker– a metal rod with a handle, used for prodding and stirring an open fire., 26. Grasped– seize and hold firmly., 27. Affair– an event or sequence of events of a specified kind or that has previously, been referred to., 28. Furious– extremely angry., 29. Peeped-look quickly and furtively at something, especially through a narrow opening., 30. Sniff– draw up air audibly through the nose to detect a smell, to stop it running,, or to express contempt., 31. Leapt- jump or spring a long way, to a great height, or with great force., 32. Terror– extreme fear., 33. Slam– shut (a door, window, or lid) forcefully and loudly., 34. Hysterics– a wildly emotional and exaggerated reaction, 35. Moaned– make a long, low sound expressing physical or mental suffering, 36. Witchcraft– the practice of magic, especially black magic; the use of spells., 37. Horrified– filled with terror; extremely shocked., 38. Prevented– keep (something) from happening., 39. Magistrate– a civil officer who administers the law, especially one who conducts, a court that deals with minor offences and holds preliminary hearings for more, serious ones., Read and Find Out. (Page 26), Q 1. How did the invisible man first become visible?, Answer: The invisible man (Griffin) first became visible after he slipped into a big, London store for keeping warm and overslept there while wearing some clothes taken, from the store. The clothes made him visible to the shop assistants when the shop, opened in the morning. To escape from them, he had to shed all his clothes to become, invisible again., Page no 2
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Q 2. Why was he wandering the streets?, Answer: Though he was a brilliant scientist, he was a lawless person. His landlord, disliked him and wanted to evict Griffin. In revenge, he set fire to the house. To escape,, he removed his clothes, becoming invisible. Thus he became homeless and was, wandering the streets of London., Page 28, Q 1. Why does Mrs Hall find the scientist eccentric?, Answer: Mrs Hall found the scientist eccentric, because of his strange appearance and also, when she tried to be friendly with him, he, rebuffed her by saying that he has come there for solitude and did not wish to be, disturbed in his work., Q 2. What curious episode occurs in the study?, Answer: Very early one morning, a clergyman and his wife were awakened by noises, coming from their study. Then they heard the sound of coins being taken from the desk, there. However, when they entered the study, they did not find anybody there, which, was curious., Q 3. What other extraordinary things happen at the inn?, Answer: At the inn, Mrs Hall and her husband went into the scientist’s room on finding, its door open. However, he was not seen in the room, but Mrs Hall heard a sniff and the, hat on the bedpost leapt up and dashed into her face. Then the bedroom chair sprang, into the air and pushed them both out of the room. This made Mrs Hall think that her, furniture was haunted., (Page 31), Q 1. “Griffin was rather a lawless person.” Comment., Answer: Griffin was not bothered if he had harmed anybody in the fulfilment of what he, wanted. He set his landlord’s house on fire because the landlord tried to make him, leave. Then his robberies at shops and later in the village indicate that he was a lawless, person. When he encountered the landlady of the inn, he threw a chair at her and her, husband. Lawless persons like Griffin never think about the safety and well-being of, others. They are only concerned about themselves., Q 2. How would you assess Griffin as a scientist?, Answer: Griffin is a brilliant scientist, as he discovers how to make himself invisible. But, he seems to enjoy the feeling of power which he gets out of his invisibility. The power to, hurt anybody without getting noticed can give sadistic pleasure to some people. A true, scientist should make discoveries for the larger benefit of society, not just for his own, benefit., Talk About It (Page 31), Q 1. Would you like to become invisible? What advantages and disadvantages do you, foresee, if you did?, Answer: It can be an exciting idea for most people. Like two facets of a coin, invisibility, can have many advantages and disadvantages. For a child, invisibility may mean a, licence for all kinds of pranks without getting caught. Like a Hindi movie, invisibility can, help you beat all the villains black and blue and get rid of them. Once you become, Page no 3
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invisible, nobody would notice you. Within no time, the sadness of isolation will take, over the excitement of being invisible. You will have no friend. You will tend to behave, like the eccentric scientist in this story., Q 2. Are there forces around us that are invisible, for example, magnetism? Are there, aspects of matter that are ‘invisible1 or not visible to the naked eye? What would the, world be like if you could see such forces or such aspects of matter?, Answer: Magnetic forces and electrostatic forces are examples of invisible forces. The, atoms and molecules in a matter are so small that they are not visible to the naked eye., Similarly, heat energy is invisible. Similarly, sound is invisible to us. While the idea of, seeing invisible things can be very exciting, their visibility would create too many, problems. For example, if we are able to see all the sound around us, that would be too, irritating for us., Q 3. What makes glass or water transparent (what is the scientific explanation for this)?, Do you think it would be scientifically possible for a man to become invisible, or, transparent? (Keep in mind that writers of science fiction have often turned out to be, prophetic in their imagination), Answer: The fact that light can pass through glass or water makes them transparent., When light falls on an object, the reflected light from that object makes it visible to us. If, some device can be made which can prevent reflection of light from the human body, then the human body can be made invisible., Short Answer Type Questions (30-40 words & 2 marks each), Q 1.What did Griffin, the scientist, do to escape after setting the fire to the house of his, landlord ?, Answer: Griffin, the scientist removed his clothes, became invisible and got away, without being seen. He became homeless wanderer without clothes, without money and, quite invisible., Q 2.What did Griffin decide to try the second time ? What did he hope to find ?, Answer: Griffin decided to try the stock of theatrical company. He hoped to find clothes, that would hide the empty space above his shoulders., Q 3. Give a character sketch of Griffin the invisible scientist ?, Answer: The invisible scientist was a brilliant scientist who misused his scientific, discovery and became a lawless person. He started enjoying harming people. When his, landlord fried to catch him, in revenge, Griffin set fire to the house., Q 4. How did Griffin enjoy himself inside a big London store ?, Answer: Griffin slipped into a big London store to save himself from the unbearable, cold. He dranked and wore warm clothes. He found cold meat, coffee and sweets there., At last he slept on a pile of quilts., Q 5. What extraordinary things happened at the inn ?, Answer: The landlord and his wife found the scientists door open. The scientist was, missing. Suddenly, Mrs. Hall heard a sniff and saw the hat on the bedpost leapt up. The, chair in the room started moving automatically. These things made people furious., , Page no 4
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Q 6. Why did Mrs. Hall find the scientist eccentric ?, Answer: Mrs. Hall found the scientist eccentric because he arrived at the inn in winter,, which was an unusual time for any visitor to arrive there. His appearance was stranger., He did not like to speak to Mrs. Hall and wanted to be left alone and undisturbed, Q 7. What did the Halls see in the scientist’s room ?, Answer: One day the Halls got up early and were surprised to see that, the door of the, scientist’s room, was open. Normally, it remained shut and locked. The Halls felt like, making the use of the opportunity as they could not see anyone inside. They went inside, to investigate. They saw that the bed clothes were cold his clothes and bandages were, lying loose in the room. Suddenly, they heard a sniffing sound although there was no, one in the room. The Halls got terrified and decided to leave the scientist’s room., Long Answer Type Questions (100-120 words & 8 marks each), Q 1. What did Griffin finally do when people held him responsible for all the strange, occurrences ?, Answer: Griffin became furious when he saw people holding him responsible for all the, strange occurrences. He started taking off his bandages, whiskers, spectacles and even, false nose. The people around him got horrified as they were looking at a headless man., The space above his shoulders became empty. Then, he started to remove his clothes, and became absolutely invisible. The situation became funny when the constable was, struggling with someone whom no one could see at all. The man kept on throwing one, garment after another and finally no one could see him. He was invisible., Q 2. Describe Jaffer’s fight with Griffin at the village of Iping., Answer: Griffin entered the clergyman’s house with an intention to steal money. He, opened the desk and stole the money. When people came to know about the burglary,, they suspected the strange. They sent for the village constable. The scientist became, furious and threw off his bandages, whiskers, spectacles and false nose. Mr. Jaffers was, surprised that he had to arrest a headless man. He tried to get hold of the man who was, becoming more and more invisible. The constable was struggling with someone who, could not be seen at all. Some people tried to assist him but received blows. The, constable was knocked unconscious and Griffin escaped., Q 3. Name three extraordinary things that took place in the room where Griffin was, staying., Answer: Griffin was a scientist. He carried out an experiment which made human body, invisible. He tried it on himself and became invisible. Then he started doing things which, were, extraordinary. The first extraordinary thing that took place was that there was no, one in the room yet Mrs. Hall heard a sniff close to her ear. The hat that was kept on the, bedpost, went up and dashed into her face. After that, suddenly the chair rose up in the, air and pushed both Mrs. Hall and her husband out of the room., Q4. Why were the landlord and his wife surprised to see the scientist’s door wide open ?, What did they decide ?, Answer: One day the landlord and his wife found the scientist’s door wide open. The, scientist’s door usually, remained shut and locked. They became furious if anyone, entered his room. The couple got an opportunity to enquire the matter. So, they decided, to investigate. They went inside apd found that the bed clothes were cold and the clothes, Page no 5
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and bandages that he always wore were lying in the room. Suddenly, Mrs. Hall heard a, sniff close to her ear. After a moment, the hat in the room leapt up and dashed itself into, her face. They thought that the room was haunted by spirits so they decided to leave it., Q5.Griffin is a talented scientist but he misused his invention. The lesson we learn from, his example is that the misuse of a scientific discovery can play havoc with humanity., Explain., Answer-A true scientist works for the good of humanity. He wants to make man’s life, easier, more comfortable and enjoyable. He doesn’t misuse his discoveries for personal, gains or selfish ends. But Griffin, though a brilliant scientist, misuses his discovery. By his, experiments, he has been able to make his body transparent and invisible. He uses his, discovery to puzzle people enters store and shops unseen, robs people of their money or, things and escapes. He sets fire to the house of his landlord. He steals food, sweets, wine., It shows that the misuse of a scientific discovery can disturb the peace of society. Such a, scientist will use his invention for self-interest and for taking revenge upon the people, around him, he won’t honour the law and thus will become a lawless person., , Page no 6
