Folk-Tales of Bengal – The Man Who Wished To Be Perfect Additional Questions and Answers

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  • Long questions & answers

Long questions & answers

1. Is the title ‘the man who wished to be perfect’ appropriate? Give a reason for your answer. 1+4
Ans: Yes, the title is very good. The story is about a holy man who wanted to be perfect by offering the elder prince as a sacrifice to Goddess Kali. But the prince, guided by the skulls, cut off the holy man’s head instead. The Goddess blessed the prince with the perfection the holy man had wished for. So, the holy man remained “the man who wished to be perfect,” but the prince became perfect instead.

2. Why did the king offer one of his sons to the religious mendicant?
Ans: The king gave one of his sons to the religious mendicant because he trusted the mendicant’s words. The mendicant told him that if he truly loved God, he should prove it by giving up one of his twin sons. This made the king very sad, but he believed it would help his people and show his faith even though it was hard for him, the king agreed, putting his duty and belief in God above his own love as a father.

3. What does the fading tree planted by the elder prince symbolize in the story?
Ans: The fading tree planted by the elder prince is a powerful symbol in the story. It represents the prince’s life because he told his family that if the tree stayed green and healthy, he was safe; if it faded, he was in danger; and if it dried, he had died. When the tree began to fade, it alerted the younger prince and made him take action. The tree is a sign of life, danger, and hope, showing the elder prince’s wisdom and thoughtfulness.

4. Explain how the mendicant’s true intentions were revealed.
Ans: The mendicant’s true intentions were revealed through the actions of the younger prince and the talking skulls in the temple. The younger prince played another dice game with the Rakshasi and learned that the mendicant planned to kill the elder prince to gain magical powers. The younger prince reached the temple, he saw his brother tied and ready for sacrifice, who warned that the mendicant had killed others before. The prince exposed the truth and saved his brother, revealing the mendicant as a cruel and greedy man.

5. What moral values does the story teach the readers?
Ans: The story teaches many moral values such as bravery, loyalty, sacrifice, and truth. The elder prince shows courage by accepting his fate without question. The younger prince shows love and loyalty by rescuing his brother using courage and intelligence. The story also warns against blind faith, as the king trusted the mendicant too easily. It promotes wisdom, quick thinking, and the importance of family. The defeat of the evil mendicant shows that truth and goodness always win. Overall, the story encourages us to be brave, loyal, and wise in difficult situations.

6. How does the story blend fantasy and moral teachings effectively?
Ans: The story blends fantasy and moral teachings by using magical and mythical elements to teach life lessons. The characters include a religious mendicant, a Rakshasi, talking skulls, and a magical temple, all parts of fantasy. These elements are used to bring out themes like truth, sacrifice, family loyalty, and courage. The dice game, fading tree, and secret rituals add suspense and wonder, but behind these fantasy events lie real lessons about wisdom, love, and bravery; these make the story both entertaining and meaningful.

7. What did the elder prince do before leaving for the forest with the mendicant? What did he say to his parents and brother then? How did he ultimately bid goodbye to them?
Ans: The elder prince was ready to leave for the forest with the holy man. He planted a tree in the palace courtyard and told his parents and brother that the tree was his life. If the tree stayed green, it meant he was safe; if it began to fade, he was in trouble; and if it dried up, he was dead. He hugged and kissed his parents and brother lovingly and said goodbye.

8. How does the story reflect the bond of love and loyalty between the brothers?
Ans: The story shows the strong love and loyalty between the twin brothers; when the elder prince was chosen to go with the mendicant he agreed without protest, showing respect for his family and later the younger prince risked his life to save him by choosing the safe path, defeating the Rakshasi and finding out the mendicant’s bad plan. Then he stopped the sacrifice and saved his brother, showing that true brothers stand together in times of danger.

9. How did the younger prince save his elder brother from the clutchess of the Rakshasi?
Ans: The holy man said that the elder prince might have been caught by a Rakshasi, so the younger prince went to the north side of the forest. He shot an arrow at a stag that ran into a house. Inside, he met a very beautiful woman the Rakshasi in disguise. He played dice with her under the same rules as his brother but won all three games. In this way, he got back the hawk, the puppy, and finally his elder brother.

10. How did the mendicant who wished to be yo perfect play his role to both the princes? [WBCHSE XI Semester-ll approved Model Set Question-2024]
Ans: The holy man planned to sacrifice a prince to become perfect. He gave the queen a medicine that made her give birth to twin sons, but he wanted one of them as his share. He took the elder prince to his hut and told him not to go north. When the tree planted by the elder prince began to fade, the younger prince went to the forest to save him. The holy man was happy, thinking he would get one of them as his seventh victim. He told the younger prince that his brother might have been caught by a Rakshasi. The younger prince went north, met the Rakshasi, and saved his brother by winning in dice games.

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