CBSE Class 12 English The Rattrap Worksheet Set D

Question. The ironmaster had mistaken identity of the rattrap peddler and thought him to be:
(A) an old regimental comrade.
(B) an old servant.
(C) an old employee.
(D) an old cousin of his wife.

Answer : A

Question. “Yes, that was a fine fellow you let into the house,” said her father. What light does the given line throw on the ironmaster as a father?
(A) The ironmaster was disapproving of Edla’s decision to let the peddler stay.
(B) The ironmaster blamed his daughter for harbouring a criminal at home.
(C) The ironmaster was being playful with Edla and supported her decisions.
(D) The ironmaster loved Edla but thought her to be too naïve and idealistic.

Answer : A

Question. What was the content of the package left for Edla by the peddler?
(A) A small rattrap with 30 kroner in it
(B) A small bangle
(C) A necklace
(D) A diamond ring

Answer : A

Question. Peddler signed himself as Captain von Stahle because:
(A) he didn’t want to hurt the iron master and his daughter.
(B) he forgot his name.
(C) he wanted to meet Edla’s expectations of him being an army man.
(D) he was the real Captain von Stahle.

Answer : C

Question. “Left to his own meditations”, one day the peddler fell into “a line of thought, which really seemed to him entertaining”. What does the peddler’s conception of the world as a rattrap, signify about him? 
(A) The peddler had a lot of time on his hands, with nothing much to do.
(B) The peddler was a reflective man whose wisdom did not depend on his status.
(C) The peddler was a lonely vagrant trying to make sense of his fortunes.
(D) The peddler was a rattrap seller, and his work deeply inspired him.

Answer : B

Question. How did the rattrap peddler spend most of his Christmas Eve?
(A) He laughed the whole day round.
(B) He sang Christmas Carols.
(C) He played games with Edla.
(D) He slept for long hours.

Answer : D

Question. Rattrap is a metaphor used for:
(A) humans and their life.
(B) thieves and robbers.
(C) attractions and distractions.
(D) human greed and distractions.

Answer : D

Question. When the peddler was about to leave, ironmaster’s daughter ____________.
(A) asked him to stay for that day only
(B) said that she wanted to go with him
(C) told him not to mind what her father had said
(D) asked him to leave after 2 days

Answer : A

Question. Though the reader does not meet Captain von Stahle in person, they encounter the captain symbolically. How? 
(A) The ironmaster misidentifies the peddler as his old friend, the Captain and invites him home.
(B) The reader realizes the peddler is actually Captain von Stahle when he signs off the letter.
(C) Edla attends to the peddler as respectfully, caringly and kindly, as she would have the Captain.
(D) The peddler accepts the error of his ways, and displays the qualities expected of a Captain.

Answer : D

Question. Imagine that the peddler from ‘The Rattrap’ turned his life around, and decided to write about his experience. Which of the following is likely to be the peddler’s book, from the popular books shown below?

(A) Option (i)
(B) Option (ii)
(C) Option (iii)
(D) Option (iv)

Answer : B

Extract Based MCQs :

Read the given passages and answer the questions that follow: 

“Since you have been so nice to me all day long, as if I was a captain, I want to be nice to you, in return, as if I was a real captain — for I do not want you to be embarrassed at this Christmas season by a thief; but you can give back the money to the old man on the roadside, who has the money pouch hanging on the window frame as a bait for poor wanderers.
The rattrap is a Christmas present from a rat who would have been caught in this world’s rattrap if he had not been raised to captain, because in that way he got power to clear himself.
“Written with friendship and high regard, Captain von Stahle.” 

Question. Which of the following CANNOT be attributed to the peddler, according to the above extract?
(A) Indebtedness
(B) Reform
(C) Self-pity
(D) Self-awareness

Answer : C

Question. The word ‘frame’ has been used to indicate a rigid structure that surrounds something such as a picture, door or windowpane. There are other meanings of ‘frame’ too.

Choose the option that DOES NOT list the meaning of ‘frame’.
(A) Option (1)
(B) Option (2)
(C) Option (3)
(D) Option (4)

Answer : D

Question. This communication includes:
(1) A promise
(2) Regret
(3) An apology
(4) Shame
(A) Only 4
(B) Only 1
(C) 1 & 3
(D) 2 & 4

Answer : C

Question. Why did the peddler gift a rattrap as a Christmas present?
(A) It was all the peddler had that he could give away, and represented his turn to honesty.
(B) It symbolized his successful escape from entrapment as he returned the stolen money.
(C) It served as a reminder for Edla to be wary of the dangerous temptations of the world.
(D) It was a practical and convenient present that the lady of the house could effectively use.

Answer : A

…it was a big and confusing forest which he had gotten into. He tried, to be sure, to walk in a definite direction, but the paths twisted back and forth so strangely! He walked and walked without coming to the end of the wood and finally he realised that he had only been walking around in the same part of the forest. All at once he recalled his thoughts about the world and the rattrap. Now his own turn had come. He had let himself be fooled by a bait and had been caught. The whole forest, with its trunks and branches, its thickets and fallen logs, closed in upon him like an impenetrable prison from which he could never escape.

Question. The consequence of ‘his own turn’ having come was that the peddler had :
(A) got irreversibly lost in the thick, warped forest.
(B) been fooled and imprisoned in a hopeless prison.
(C) been walking around the same part of the forest.
(D) walked the whole forest without finding the end.

Answer : A

Question. The above extract richly employs literary devices. Look at the table below. Choose the option that correctly matches the instances/ examples in Column A with the literary devices in Column B:

(A) 1 - (i) ; 2 – (ii) ; 3 – (iii) ; 4 – (iv)
(B) 1 – (iv) ; 2 – (i) ; 3 – (iii) ; 4 – (ii)
(C) 1 – (iii) ; 2 – (iv) ; 3 – (i) ; 4 – (ii)
(D) 1 – (ii) ; 2 – (iii) ; 3 – (iv) ; 4 – (i)

Answer : B

Question. How would you characterise the mood of the above extract?
(A) Mysterious, restful
(B) Ominous, despairing
(C) Thoughtful, whimsical
(D) Philosophical, anguished

Answer : B

Question. By what bait had the peddler been fooled?
(A) He had chosen to take the ‘safe’ forest route.
(B) He had decided to avoid the public highway.
(C) He had stolen money from the trusting crofter.
(D) He didn’t realize the power of his rattrap analogy.

Answer : D

No one can imagine how sad and monotonous life can appear to such a vagabond, who plods along the road, left to his own meditations. But one day this man had fallen into a line of thought, which really seemed to him entertaining.

Question. What kind of life was he leading?
OR
What kind of life did he lead?
(A) Happy and full of joy.
(B) Sad and monotonous.
(C) Nonchalant.
(D) Meditative.

Answer : B

Question. What was the thought that struck him one day?
OR
What was the thought that struck his mind?
(A) One should fear the fear itself.
(B) Indigo is a must for today’s world.
(C) The world is a rattrap.
(D) None of these

Answer : C

Question. Who is the vagabond here?
(A) Peddler
(B) Blacksmith
(C) Ironmaster
(D) Ironmaster’s daughter

Answer : A

Question. Pick up the word which has the same meaning as ‘to walk with difficulty’.
(A) Vagabond
(B) Plods
(C) Entertaining
(D) Monotonous

Answer : B

The world had, of course, never been very kind to him, so it gave him unwanted joy to think ill of it in this way. It became a cherished pastime of his, during many dreary plodding, to think of people he knew who had let themselves be caught in the dangerous snare and of others who were still circling around the bait.

Question. Which thought used to give him joy?
(A) To see people get trapped in the clutches of their memories.
(B) To see people get trapped in the emotions of their loved ones.
(C) To see people get trapped in the social and cultural rituals.
(D) To see people get trapped in the bait of joys.

Answer : D

Question. Find the word synonymous to ‘a trap for catching birds or mammals, typically one having a noose of wire or cord‘.
(A) Cherished
(B) Dreary
(C) Snare
(D) Bait

Answer : C

Question. Who is ‘he‘ in the above extract?
(A) The Ironmaster
(B) The Blacksmith
(C) The Peddler
(D) The Plodder

Answer : C

Question. How did the world treat him?
(A) Cheerfully
(B) Kindly
(C) Seriously
(D) Unkindly

Answer : D

The stranger must have seemed incredulous, for the old man got up and went to the window, took down a leather pouch which hung on a nail in the very window frame and picked out three wrinkled ten-kronor bills. These he held up before the eyes of his guest, nodding knowingly and then stuffed them back into the pouch.

Question. Who was the ‘old man‘ in the given lines?
(A) The Peddler
(B) The Ironmaster
(C) The Blacksmith
(D) The Crofter

Answer : D

Question. Pick out the word which has the similar meaning as ‘unwilling or unable to believe something‘.
(A) Incredulous
(B) Wrinkled
(C) Kronor
(D) Stuffed

Answer : A

Question. Why did the old man show the stranger ten kronor bills?
(A) He thought that the bills were fake.
(B) He suspected that his guest did not believe him.
(C) He was furious with the return of his hard work.
(D) He wanted to show-off to the guest.

Answer : B

Question. What did the stranger do later?
(A) Stole the money.
(B) Replaced the fake money with the genuine money.
(C) Purchased a car with the money.
(D) Left the money where it was.

Answer : A

All at once, he recalled his thoughts about the world and the rattrap. Now his own turn had come. He had let himself be fooled by a bait and had been caught. The whole forest, with its trunks and branches, its thickets and fallen logs, closed in upon him like an impenetrable prison from which he could never escape.

Question. Why had his own turn come?
(A) He had lost money in the forest.
(B) He had lost way in the forest.
(C) He had lost his luggage in the forest.
(D) He had got the chance to earn fame and money.

Answer : B

Question. Who is ‘He‘ in the above lines?
(A) Crofter
(B) Peddler
(C) Ironmaster
(D) Blacksmith

Answer : B

Question. What did he recall?
(A) The world is full of fake people.
(B) No one helps others in the time of need.
(C) East or West, Home is the Best.
(D) The world is a big rattrap.

Answer : D

Question. How did he feel when he was trapped in the forest?
(A) Empowering cat
(B) Barking hound
(C) Helpless mouse
(D) Slow moving turtle

Answer : C

The blacksmiths glanced only casually and indifferently at the intruder. He looked the way people of his type usually did, with a long beard, dirty, ragged and with a bunch of rattraps dangling on his chest. He asked permission to stay and the master blacksmith nodded a haughty consent without honouring him with a single word.

Question. Where did he want to stay?
(A) Forge near the railway station.
(B) Forge near the furnace.
(C) Ship ready to sail off.
(D) Blacksmiths’ courtyard.

Answer : B

Question. Which word in the passage is the antonym of ‘disapproval‘?
(A) Indifferently
(B) Dangling
(C) Permission
(D) Haughty

Answer : C

Question. Who is the intruder here?
(A) Rattrap peddler
(B) Ironmaster
(C) Edla
(D) Crofter

Answer : A

Question. How was he looking?
(A) Shabby
(B) Ragged
(C) Long beard
(D) All of these

Answer : D

Naturally, the first thing he saw was the tall ragamuffin who had eased his way so close to the furnace that steam rose from his wet rags. The ironmaster did not follow the example of the blacksmiths, who had hardly deigned to look at the stranger. He walked close up to him, looked him over very carefully, then tore off his slouch hat to get a better view of his face.

Question. Who is tall ragamuffin?
(A) Rattrap Peddler
(B) Edla
(C) Ironmaster
(D) Crofter

Answer : A

Question. How was the attitude of ironmaster different from that of blacksmiths?
(A) He did not ignore the person lying near the furnace.
(B) He gave food to the person.
(C) He combed the hair of the person.
(D) None of these

Answer : A

Question. Who is ‘He‘ in the above lines?
(A) Rattrap peddler
(B) Crofter
(C) Ironmaster
(D) Blacksmith

Answer : C

Question. Which word in the passage means ‘to do something that one considers to be below one’s dignity‘?
(A) Ragamuffin
(B) Deigned
(C) Tore
(D) Slouch

Answer : B

Short Answer Type Questions :

Question. Why was the crofter so talkative and friendly with the peddler? 
OR
Why was the crofter so kind and generous to the peddler? 
Answer : The crofter was talkative and friendly with the peddler. He was more than happy when he saw him standing at his door because he led a lonely life. He had no family and he lived there alone. He felt elated to have some company and someone to share his things and to confide in. Being a generous host, he offered porridge and tobacco to his guest and played mjolis with him.

Question. Why did the ironmaster speak kindly to the peddler and invite him home?
Answer : The ironmaster spoke kindly to the peddler and invited him home because he thought that he was an old acquaintance of his. Due to the dim light and the peddler’s unkempt appearance, he mistook him for Nils Olof, someone he had known a long time back. He thought he could spend Christmas Eve with him. Moreover, he felt that his comrade had not been keeping well, after resigning, so he invited him to his home.

Question. What might be the significance of setting the story’s events during Christmas? Justify your opinion.
Answer : Christmas is a time of celebration and forgiveness. Also, Christmas is the time to amend one’s ways. The story is setup in the background of the Christmas as the ironmaster and his daughter show charity to the peddler. The predominant theme of the story is that of redemption through the gift of charity and peace. The rat trap seller is mistaken for an old friend of the ironmaster and taken home for Christmas festivities. There, even though his true identity of vagabond and petty thief is disclosed, he is given peaceful rest, plenteous good food, and the gift of a suit of clothes.
In response to being treated as an elevated person, he delves inward and acts like an elevated person. We aren’t told what he continues to do, but we are told that he now thanks the ironmaster’s daughter for her courteousness and generosity and gives her the money to return to the crofter, a tenant farmer, from whom he stole it after receiving the crofter’s hospitality of supper, conversation, a bed, and breakfast. This theme and these redemptive acts surely mark this as a Christmas story.

Question. What was the content of the letter written by the peddler to Edla? 
Answer : The peddler thanked Edla for all her kindness and for treating him as a captain, which raised him to the status of a captain. He thanked her for bringing about a change in him, reforming him, offering him true friendship and high regard. He also gifted a rattrap as a Christmas present to Edla from a rat who would have been caught in the world’s rattrap, if he had not been raised to the status of captain. He also requested her to return the crofter’s money that he had stolen.

Question. Despite his philosophical insights, the vagabond fails to resist temptations. What would you attribute this to? Explain with reference to any instance from the text. 
Answer : The metaphor of the rattrap highlights the theory of crime and punishment. Crimes, such as theft or giving in to temptation, are compared with a bait and the subsequent imprisonment in a trap. Moreover, inspite of knowing the fact, people fail to resist temptations owning to their smartness to befool others. However, the human predicament forms the basis of the story where the story of the rattrap serves to bring out a lesson in moral values. That’s why Edla’s kindness again reformed peddler’s ways.

Question. Explain the metaphor of the rattrap in the context of the story by Selma Lagerlof.
Answer : In the story, the peddler used rattraps, sold by him, as a metaphor for the world. According to him, the world was a big rattrap because it was full of temptations. Like a rattrap, it offered riches and joys, shelter and food, heat and clothing. When someone was tempted to touch them, it would close on him and everything came to an end.

Question. What hospitality did the peddler receive from the crofter? 
OR
At the crofter’s home, why did the peddler feel very happy?
OR
How was the peddler treated at the crofter’s cottage?
Answer : The crofter treated him kindly. He offered him shelter in his cottage, gave him porridge for supper. Then he cut a big slice from the tobacco roll which was sufficient for both of them and offered it to him. The crofter played Mjolis, a card game with him. He also confided in him and shared his secret with him.

Question. How did Edla persuade her father to let the peddler stay in their home till Christmas?
Answer : Edla pleaded with her father not to send the vagabond away because she wanted him to stay there for the Christmas celebration. She understood how hard it must have been for him to wander from place to place and being homeless, she wanted him to stay and enjoy at least one day of peace, comfort and solace. Moreover, it was Christmas Eve and Edla wanted to keep the spirit of the Christmas alive. She told her father that they had invited him as a guest for Christmas, so they must keep their promise and not turn him away.

Question. Do you think the story reinforces a stereotype that women are more trusting, forgiving and less practical than men? Comment with reference to Edla’s actions in the story.
Answer : The peddler met the ironmaster’s daughter for the first time at the forge. She had come to request him to come over their house as her father had mistaken him to be an old acquaintance, a captain. She was able to convince him and took him home. At home, when her father realized that they had made a mistake and he was not the captain, the daughter was very polite and kept him at home as it was Christmas. The rattrap seller was greatly influenced by the ironmaster’s daughter. In fact, it was because of her that he had turned over a new leaf and returned the money that he had stolen from an old man. It was the kind nature of the girl that changed him.

Question. Why was Edla happy to see the gift left by the peddler? 
Answer : The peddler had left a gift for Edla. This showed Edla that her care and kind gesture had transformed the peddler. Her trust was not broken by the peddler and her goodness had been paid off. This also saved Edla from her father’s criticism of trying to help a thief. Rather, she would have a high image of transforming a thief into a compassionate person.

Question. If the world is “nothing but a big rattrap” as the tramp stated in the story ‘The Rattrap’, who might the rattrap peddler be? Discuss. 
Answer : In the world that is “nothing but a big rattrap”, the rattrap peddler went from being someone who makes rattrap himself to someone caught in one. The peddler spent most of his life making rattraps and selling them for a few pennies. He even resorted to begging and thievery cause the world and its means of survival has been too cruel on him. Yet, even when the crofter showed him kindness, he could not help but give into his temptations of having more and ended up stealing his money. The peddler knew that the riches and joys, the desire for shelter and food were nothing more than the bait set in the rattrap. He, though with guilt, gives into his temptations and find himself caught in the vicious rattrap, that the world is.

Question. What do we learn about the crofter’s nature from the story, “The Rattrap“? 
Answer : The crofter was generous and happy when the peddler knocked at the door because he used to stay there alone. He was happy to have some company and someone to share his things and achievements with. He was happy to share his confidence of getting thirty kronors by selling the milk of his cow.

Question. How did the Crofter entertain the peddler? 
Answer : The crofter treated him kindly. He offered him shelter in his cottage, gave him porridge for supper. Then, he cut a big slice from the tobacco roll which was sufficient for both of them and offered it to him. The crofter played mjolis, a card game with him and shared his secret with him.

Question. Why was the peddler amused at the idea of the world being a rattrap? 
Answer : The peddler was amused at the idea of the world being a rattrap, as the world has never accepted him. Everyone had always been unkind to him. He was amused with the idea because he himself had never led a good life, and envied others who led a better life than him. He thought that others got entrapped whereas he was not lured by the temptations and was free from them. It gave him joy to think ill of the world in this way. 

Question. Why did the crofter show the thirty kronors to the peddler? 
Answer : The crofter had a cow which he was proud of because it gave him enough milk to support him. Since, he never had any guests and lived alone in his house, he was happy to share his confidence of getting thirty kronors by selling the milk of his cow. However, when he saw that the peddler was not convinced, he got up and took out the three ten-kronor bills and showed them to the peddler.

Long Answer Type Questions :

Question. Why did the Crofter repose confidence in the peddler? How did the peddler feel after betraying the
Answer : The peddler was ungrateful for the hospitality shown by the crofter. The crofter reposed confidence in the peddler because he was lonely and wanted someone with whom he could share his feeling. He welcomed the peddler in his house when he had asked for the shelter. He took good care of him. He immediately put the porridge pot on the fire and gave him supper; then, he carved off a big slice from his tobacco roll and gave it to him. Finally, he brought out an old pack of cards and played ‘mjolis’ with him until bedtime. Not only this, the old man was just as generous with his ‘confidence’ as with his porridge and tobacco. He told him at once that in his days of prosperity, his host had been a crofter at Ramsjo Ironworks and had worked on the land, and now he had thirty kronors, which he had earned by selling the milk of his cow.

Question. How did Edla bring about a change in the peddler?
Answer : The peddler met the ironmaster’s daughter for the first time at the forge. She had come to request him to come over their house as her father had mistaken him to be an old acquaintance, a captain. She was able to convince him and took him home. At home, when her father realized that they had made a mistake and he was not the captain, the daughter was very polite and kept him at home as it was Christmas.
The rattrap seller was greatly influenced by the ironmaster’s daughter. In fact, it was because of her that he had turned over a new leaf and returned the money that he had stolen from an old man. It was the kind nature of the girl that changed him.

Question. What made the peddler finally change his ways? 
Answer : The world had never been kind to the peddler. It made the peddler a petty thief. However, the Ironmaster’s daughter proved to be an angel in his life. When her father came to know that the peddler was not one of his regimental acquaintances, he ordered him to leave his house immediately. Now, his daughter came to his rescue. She said that it was none of the peddler’s mistake. As a result, her father gave in. She treated the peddler as if he were a real captain. Her kindness and sympathy completely transformed the peddler. While leaving the Ironmaster’s house, he left a small packet having a small rattrap, three wrinkled ten-kronor notes and a letter. In his letter he wrote, “Since you have been nice to me all day long, I want to be nice to you, in return. You can give the money to the old man on the roadside. The rattrap is a Christmas present from a rat who would have been caught in the world’s rattrap if he had not been raised to a captain.”

Question. How does the story, ‘Rattrap’ highlight the importance of community over isolation? Support your rationale with textual evidence.
OR
‘The Rattrap’ focuses on human loneliness and the need to bond with others. Comment.
Answer : Man is a social animal. He cannot live alone. In every field of life, he needs the help of someone or the other. However, there are a few people who do not live to socialize with others. They stay away from their fellow beings. They shirk the company of their friends and become recluses. They are overpowered by negative feelings. The themes of human loneliness and the need to have someone to share one’s joys and sorrows with, runs throughout the story. To begin with, the reader’s attention is drawn to the peddler who is lonely and in his loneliness, he makes rattraps and is left to his own meditation. When he knocks at the cottage, the crofter welcomes him and entertains him. It is because the crofter is lonely. He wants someone to talk to. He finds in peddler a good companion and tells him a lot about himself and his cow, even though the peddler is a complete stranger to him. Then, we find that the ironmaster and his daughter are also lonely. They live in a big house and have nobody else for company. Therefore, they insisted that the peddler should spend the Christmas Eve with them.

Question. The peddler thinks that the whole world is a rattrap. This view of life is true only of himself and of no one else in the story. Comment. 
Answer : This view of life was true for the peddler because when he was offered food and shelter at the crofter’s house, which is like ‘bait’ for a rat, he took it, and stole the crofter’s money. He then tried to run away from being caught, but got lost in the forest as it was big and confusing. Thus, he considered the world as a big rattrap in which he had fallen and the crofter’s money was the bait.
Now his own turn had come as he had let himself be fooled by the bait and had been caught in the trap. He knew that ironmaster had mistaken him for someone else, yet he went with him. The peddler was thus deprived of shelter, and got easily trapped by the temptations.
The other characters in the story, the crofter, the ironmaster and his daughter have human values of love, compassion, and understanding of love, and for them, the world is not a rattrap.
They looked upon the world as a happy place to live and share the happiness with others. Thus, the Peddler’s view about the world as a rattrap is true for him only as he got caught into the traps for food, shelter, and money whereas, the others were not tempted.

Question. How did the crofter tempt the peddler to steal his money? How did it change the peddler’s life?
Answer : The crofter was a lonely man. He was more than happy when the peddler knocked at his door.
He shared his confidence with him and told him that he had thirty kronors in a leather pouch. The peddler stole thirty kronors from the crofter’s house, but he realized that he could dare not continue on the public highway, and must turn off the road into the woods. During the first few hours, this caused him no difficulty. Later in the day, it became worse, for it was a big and confusing forest which he had gotten into. He tried to be sure to walk in a definite direction, but the paths twisted back and forth so strangely that he walked on, without coming to the end of the forest and realised that he had been caught in a rattrap. He was no more a free person. He had to be cautious. n hearing the sound of the hammer, he moved towards it and reached an iron mill. The master’s daughter Edla took him home for Christmas Eve. She showed kindness and humane feelings towards him, which changed him, altogether. He returned the thirty kronors to Edla and became a reformed man as he had been risen to the status of a captain.

Question. How would you compare the peddler’s actions in relation to the crofter and Edla? Would you say kindness does not always beget kindness, and that the conditions for receiving kindness are important for it to truly transform people? Elaborate. Provide relevant textual details to support the analysis. 
Answer : The story revolves around the theory that life is one big rattrap. This implies that if one takes something wrongfully, the person will end up getting trapped in life as a consequence. The peddler felt that the whole world was a big rattrap that sets baits for people. The peddler earned his living by petty thievery.
The crofter had treated the peddler with hospitality, and had even reposed his trust in the poor vagabond. Still the peddler robbed him and was quite pleased with his smartness. However, the fear of getting caught haunted him. So, he avoided the public highway and turned into the woods. His reaction reveals that he was feeling guilty for having stolen the crofter’s money. His heart was filled with remorse and self-loathing for his act of weakness. However, his thoughts are perhaps also a way of justifying his crime.
Nevertheless, he turns over a new leaf when he receives compassion and trust from the ironmaster’s daughter. The protagonist believed till then in the dismal side of human nature.
Edla saw the peddler for the first time when she came to fetch him home. She noticed at once that the man was afraid. She guessed that he was either a thief or a runaway culprit. Despite this, she requested him to stay. She was spontaneous and friendly, and coaxed the peddler into spending the Christmas with them. He also accepted the fur coat, and wore it over his rags. Edla expressed her surprise about his miserable plight and noticed that there was nothing to show that he was an educated man. When in the church, she realized that he was a thief; she never once expressed her fear. Her trust and compassion helped in reforming the peddler. The peddler’s first “true” Christmas at the ironmaster’s house egged him to change his ways and honour people’s trust in him. The story validates the concept that compassion revolves around humankind and the consideration of others. The peddler makes amends by returning the money he had previously stolen from the old man who had sheltered him. The tale also throws light on the value of second chances, stating that everyone should get another chance in life.

Question. The peddler believed that the whole world is a rattrap. How did he himself get caught in the same?
Answer : The rattrap peddler came up with a theory that the whole world is a rattrap and that all the luxuries are merely baits. It gave him great pleasure to think of the world this way. One night, he took shelter in the house of an old and lonely crofter who was very generous. He gave the peddler a meal, talked to him and even showed him the thirty kronors, he had earned because of his cow. Tempted by the money, the peddler stole the money from the crofter and headed towards a forest. The dense forest was like a maze and he soon got lost, realising that the money was a bait and now he himself was trapped in a rattrap. The peddler soon found refuge at an iron mill, where he was mistaken by the ironmaster for an old friend. Even though, he refused to come to the ironmaster’s house, for fear of being caught, he was ultimately persuaded by Edla, the ironmaster’s daughter.
Once again, he regretted being caught, in a trap and wished he hadn’t stolen the money. By not trying to clear his identity, in hope of some more money, he was further trapped when his identity was uncovered the next day; he was still allowed to stay because of Edla’s intervention. Her kindness and faith in him ultimately allowed him to free himself from the trap in which he had been caught. Unlike the other characters in the story, the peddler is the only one who succumbed to loneliness and is far away from the human bonds of love and sympathy that made him a cynic and consider the world as a rat trap.

Question. How did the seller of rattraps realize that he himself was caught up in a rattrap after he left the crofter’s cottage? 
OR
Very soon after stealing the crofter’s money, how did the peddler realise that he was himself caught in a rattrap? 
Answer : After the peddler stole thirty kronors from the crofter’s house, he realized that he could not continue on the public highway, but must turn off the road into the woods. During the first few hours, this caused him no difficulty. Later in the day, it became worse, for it was a big and confusing forest which he had gotten into. He tried to be sure to walk in a definite direction, but the paths twisted back and forth so strangely. He walked on, without coming to the end of the wood and finally, he realized that he had only been walking around in the same part of the forest. All at once, he recalled his thoughts about the world and the rattrap. Now his own turn had come. He had let himself be fooled by a bait and had been caught. The whole forest, with its trunks and branches, its thickets and fallen logs, closed on him like an impenetrable prison from which he could never escape.

Very Short Answer

Q.1)        Why was the crofter so talkative and friendly with the crofter?

Q.2)        Who was peddler? What was the thought that took hold of his fancy?

Q.3)        Why did the crofter show the thirty kroner to the peddler?

Q.4)        What were the peddler’s feelings as night fell in the woods?

Q.5)        Describe the peddler?

Short Answer

Q.6)        What were the contents of the letter addressed to Miss Willmansson?

Q.7)        Why did the peddler have to keep to the woods after leaving the cottage? How did he feel?

Q.8)        Who did the ironmaster mistake the peddler to be? Why did the latter not reveal his identity? How did his true identity come to light?

Q.9)        What was Edla Willmansson’s assessment of the peddler? What rationale did her father give for the coarse ways of the peddler?

Q.10)       Answer the following questions:-

(1)          How did the peddler feel when he realized that he could not escape?

(2)          How is the wood compared to a rattrap? Why?

Long Answer

Q.11)      What are the instances in the story that show that the character of the ironmaster is different from that of his daughter in many ways?

Q.12)      The peddler’s instance speaks on a general level to the entire society, urging for a different outlook towards those maligned individuals who can be redeemed by compassion and understanding. The rehabilitation programmes at prisons follow the same value. In the light of the instance mentions above, how do you think society can help individuals, especially juvenile delinquents, from falling prey to petty crimes and bad habits?

Q.13)      The story has many instances of unexpected reactions from the characters to others’ behavior. Pick out the instances of these surprises.

Q.14)      The story ‘Rattrap’ describes the effect of generosity and kindness of the crofter and Edla Willmansson on the peddler. There are so many underprivileged in our society who could be benefited by little gifts that can be given by the people. The gifts can be anything from funds, time to                   contribute to providing them with education etc. Write an article in 100-150 words about the need to lend a helping hand to uplift the underprivileged of the society.

Q.15)      How does the metaphor of the rattrap serve to highlight the human predicament?