The King’s Choice
Chapter 1.4 — Question & Answer Solutions
Guess the meaning of ‘fierce’ in this context.
Ans:‘Fierce’ means angry and aggressive.
Think and answer:
(a) Why must a king have a court?
Ans:A king must have a court to discuss his ideas and plans with his courtiers. He also needs advice from the wise men of the court on how to handle matters in his own kingdom and in other kingdoms.
(b) What qualities are necessary in the following? Why?
(i) King
Ans:A king should have the qualities of leadership, ability and kindness. He should be able to lead his country during times of war and conflict. He should be capable in matters of organisation, and kind-hearted and generous while dealing with his subjects.
(ii) Adviser
Ans:An adviser should be intelligent, knowledgeable and far-sighted. He should know what is good and bad for his king and country, and he should be able to foresee how his advice will affect the future of the kingdom.
(iii) Bodyguard
Ans:A bodyguard should have strength, courage and loyalty. He should be fit and strong to protect his king from harm. He should be courageous and face dangerous situations bravely, and he should always be loyal to his king.
(iv) Messenger
Ans:A messenger should show speed, punctuality and strength. He should be quick to deliver messages, punctual so that he begins his work without delay, and strong enough to travel wherever necessary.
What is the oath of loyalty?
Ans:An oath of loyalty is a formal promise made by someone to be loyal to somebody or something.
Write and read aloud the oath that each of the courtiers must have taken.
(a) The oath of loyalty taken by the fox:
Ans:I will be wise and clever, and I will always give advice that will benefit my king.
(b) The oath of loyalty taken by the leopard:
Ans:I will be watchful and swift, and I will always protect my king, even at the cost of my own life.
(c) The oath of loyalty taken by the vulture:
Ans:I will be quick and punctual, and I will always deliver and bring messages quickly.
Why was the vulture told to lead the way?
Ans:The fox and the leopard did not know the desert, but they did not want the vulture to seem wiser than them. So they said that since it was the vulture’s idea, he should lead the way.
Think and answer:
(a) Why had the lion never seen a camel?
Ans:The lion lived in the forest and the camel lived in the desert. The lion had never been to the desert, so he had never seen a camel.
(b) What advice did the fox and the leopard give? Was it based on good and sound thinking?
Ans:The fox and the leopard indirectly advised the lion to hunt for the camel and told the vulture to lead the way. No, their advice was not based on good and sound thinking.
Do you think the vulture was enjoying the search?
Ans:Yes, the vulture was enjoying the search.
Do you think the king’s decision to go back was right?
Ans:Yes, the king’s decision to go back was right.
Can you guess the plan that the fox had thought of?
Ans:The fox had planned to bring the camel to the lion and then have him killed. In this way, they would all be able to taste camel meat and eat their fill, and the lion would be happy with his adviser.
Why does the fox address the camel as ‘friend camel’?
Ans:The fox addresses the camel as ‘friend camel’ so that the camel thinks of him as a friend and follows him without becoming suspicious.
What qualities of the courtiers emerge in this part of the story?
Ans:The qualities that emerge are the cleverness of the fox, the cowardice of the leopard and the disloyalty of the vulture.
The fox, the leopard and the vulture have the same thought about the camel. Why is it so?
Ans:The fox, the leopard and the vulture were all very tired and hungry. They had travelled far into the desert just to find the camel and kill it. Besides, the vulture had said that its meat was very tasty. Now that they had brought the camel for the king’s dinner, it was time for all of them to feast.
Did you expect the lion to be kind to the camel? Do you think his decision was right?
Ans:No, I did not expect the lion to be kind to the camel. Yes, I think his decision was right, because the camel had saved his life.
Why did the courtiers have to obey the king?
Ans:The courtiers had to obey the king because they were afraid that he would otherwise kill them.
Were the courtiers being loyal to their king? Discuss.
Ans:No, the courtiers were not being loyal to their king. By getting the camel killed by the lion, they would have forced the lion king to break his own promise of protecting the camel, thereby spoiling the king’s image.
What qualities of the camel are seen in his speech?
Ans:The qualities of the camel seen in his speech are his foolishness, his kind-heartedness and his spirit of self-sacrifice.
Think and answer:
(a) Why did the lion laugh to see the courtiers go?
Ans:The lion laughed to see the courtiers go because he had not actually meant to kill them. He had only wished to show them that he had seen through their plan, and he laughed at their foolishness and cowardice.
(b) Is ‘friend’ a position at a court? How is it different?
Ans:No, a friend is a position in one’s heart, not at the court. Positions at a court are very formal and must follow certain rules, but friendship is not like this. A friend can say and do whatever he or she wishes, informally. Also, a courtier works for money, whereas friendship is a selfless relationship that expects nothing in return.
Write a character sketch of each of the animals. Write about their actions and thoughts and the qualities that emerge through them. You may present the sketch in the form of a graphic.
Ans:| 🦁 Lion | The king of the forest, he was big, strong, very fierce, and yet kind-hearted. |
| 🦊 Fox | A wise and clever creature, he was the adviser of the lion king and took an oath of loyalty to him. |
| 🐆 Leopard | Watchful and swift on his feet, he served as the bodyguard of the lion king. |
| 🦅 Vulture | A bird who could fly high in the sky, he served as the messenger of the lion king. |
Using your imagination, write more sentences in the same pattern:
(a) But the more the lion had, the more he wanted.
Ans:The more she studied, the more confident she became.
(b) Whenever he took a walk, they followed him.
Ans:Whenever the cat entered the room, the dog chased it.
(c) To be king is good. But to be kind is better.
Ans:To be clever is good. But to be helpful is better.
Turn the story into a play as a group activity and present the scenes in the classroom.
Ans:Students must do this on their own, in a group, with the help of their teacher.
This story takes an unexpected turn when the lion decides to spare the camel’s life. Choose any fable or story that you like and rewrite it giving it an unexpected turn.
Ans:Students must do this on their own.
Talk about the good qualities of any one person you do not like. (You need not name the person.)
Ans:I do not like a boy in my class, but I know he has some good qualities. He is smart, helpful and kind. I have seen him helping the little children at our school cross the road. He is also generous and shares his things with others.
Common nouns can be countable or uncountable. Countable nouns name things that can be counted and have a singular form (one person or thing, e.g. boy, dog, tree) and a plural form (more than one, e.g. boys, dogs, trees). Uncountable nouns, such as bread, hair, water, milk and fun, cannot be counted, so we use measuring words instead — for example, ‘a slice of bread’, ‘strands of hair’, ‘two glasses of water’, ‘a cup of milk’.
(i) Find five countable nouns from the passage and write their singular and plural forms.
Ans:| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| Fox | Foxes |
| Vulture | Vultures |
| Bodyguard | Bodyguards |
| Paw | Paws |
| Forest | Forests |
(ii) List the units that we use to measure the following: water, milk, distance, weight.
Ans:| Item | Unit of Measurement |
|---|---|
| Water | Litres |
| Milk | Litres |
| Distance | Kilometres |
| Weight | Kilograms |