Who is Mr Lamb ?
Mr Lamb is an old man. He lost one of his legs in war. Now he has a tin leg in its place. He lives alone in a house that has a garden. No one ever comes to visit him. Kids call him Lamey-Lamb. But Mr Lamb does not mind it.
What peculiar things does Derry notice about the old man, Mr Lamb ?
Mr Lamb is an old man. Derry finds that he leaves his gate always open. Everybody is welcome in his garden. Also there are no blinds on the windows. All these strike Derry as peculiar things.
Why does Mr Lamb leave the gate of his house always open ?
Mr Lamb is a lonely person. He wants people to come to his garden and talk to him. That is why he leaves his gate always open. Everyone is welcome to come in.
What kind of garden does Mr Lamb have ? Why does he like it ?
Mr Lamb has a lovely garden. There are apple trees, flowers and herbs in it. There is a beehive behind the trees. He keeps the garden gate always open. He likes his garden very much because there he can sit in the sun, read books, climb the trees and pluck ripe apples. He likes the bees buzzing. He calls it all life.
How does Derry get into Mr Lamb’s garden ?
The garden gate was open. But Derry did not come through the gate. He did not want to be noticed by anyone that he was getting into the garden. So he climbed over the garden wall and came in.
How does Mr Lamb react when Derry enters his garden ?
Mr Lamb shows no fear or shock on seeing Derry’s burnt face. Unlike other people, he does not try to avoid him. Rather he welcomes him to his garden and talks lovingly with him. He fills him with confidence.
Why had Derry come into the garden ?
He thought it was an empty place and no one lived there. He came in just to see what kind of place it was. He had no mind to steal any apples.
Derry thought it was ‘an empty house’. How did Mr Lamb convince the boy that the house was really empty ?
Mr Lamb said that he was out in the garden at that time. He was not in the house. Thus the house was empty until he went back inside.
What did Mr Lamb say when Derry said that he wanted to go back ?
Mr Lamb said that there was no need for him to be afraid. Everybody was welcome in his garden. That was why the gate was always open. He himself liked to sit in the garden and wanted others to come there.
Why does Derry say people are afraid of him ?
Derry says that people look at his face and call it a terrible thing. They call it the ugliest thing they ever saw. That is why Derry says people are afraid of looking at him.
How does Mr Lamb try to change the topic about Derry’s face ?
He starts talking of the crab apples in his garden. He says that when it is cool in the evening, they will pull down those apples. He calls them a magic fruit. He says that they are best to be made into jelly. He asks Derry to give him a hand in it.
Why does Derry tell Mr Lamb that he is afraid of seeing himself in the mirror in the play, ‘On the Face of It’ ?
Derry has a burnt face. Acid had fallen on one side of his face and burnt it all away. Now he looked very ugly in his face. People always kept reminding him of his burnt face. Once a woman looked at him and said, ‘‘That is a face only a mother could love.’’ That is why Derry says that he is afraid of seeing himself in the mirror.
How does Mr Lamb try to convince Derry that the outer looks don’t make any difference ?
Mr Lamb said that there are flowers, trees, herbs and weeds. They are all growing living things. There is no difference between them. So was the case with Lamb and Derry. One is old, the other is young. One has a tin leg, the other has a burnt face. These outer differences had not any importance. Inwardly they were all one.
How does Mr Lamb try to remove the baseless fears of Derry ?
Mr Lamb tells Derry that he, like others, has two arms, two legs, two eyes and ears. He has a tongue and a brain. Thus he can do whatever he likes. And if he has a firm mind, he can even do better than others. Thus Lamb tries to remove the baseless fears of Derry.
What qualities of Mr Lamb attracted Derry to him ?
Derry found Mr Lamb very different from others. He didn’t show any shock on seeing Derry’s burnt face. He encouraged Derry to face the world bravely. All this attracted Derry towards Mr Lamb.
How did people try to console Derry about his burnt face ?
They would say to him : ‘‘Look at all those people who are in pain and brave and never cry. And think of all those people worse off than you. Think you might have been blinded, or born deaf or had to live in a wheelchair.’’
What does Mr Lamb want to say by the example of the bees ?
Mr Lamb says that some people hear bees and say, ‘‘Bees buzz.’’ But when he listens to them, he feels that they are humming which means singing. By this, Mr Lamb wants to say that it depends on us how we interpret what we hear.
What does Derry’s mother think of Mr Lamb ?
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Why does Derry’s mother not want him to go back to visit Mr Lamb ?
Derry’s mother thinks of Mr Lamb as a worthless person. She says that Mr Lamb’s all talk is nothing but nonsense. She does not want Derry to go back to him.
Derry says that he does not like being near people. What does Mr Lamb say to it ?
He says that Derry should lock himself up in a room and never leave it. He says that there was a man who did that. He was afraid of everything. He went into his room, locked the door, got into his bed and stayed there. A picture fell off the wall on his head and killed him.
Why does Mr Lamb not have any curtains at the windows of his house ?
He says that he is not fond of curtains. He does not want to shut things in and shut things out. He likes the natural light and natural darkness. He wants to hear the winds blowing outside. That is why he keeps his windows open.
What does Derry hear people talking downstairs at his house ?
They talk about him and say, ‘‘What will he ever do ? What is going to happen to him when we have gone ? However will he get on in this world ? With that on his face ?’’
How does Mr Lamb reassure Derry that he can do better than all the rest ?
Mr Lamb tells Derry that he has two arms, two legs and eyes and ears. He has a tongue and a brain. He can do whatever he wants, like all the rest. And if he has a firm mind, he can do better than all the rest.
What does Mr Lamb say when Derry says, ‘‘There are some people I hate.’’ ?
Mr Lamb says that hatred could do him more harm than any bottle of acid. Acid could only burn his face. But hatred could do a worse thing. It could burn him away inside.
How can you say that Mr Lamb lives a lonely life and no one ever comes to him in his garden ?
Derry goes away saying that he will come back. But after he has gone, Mr Lamb expresses signs of loneliness and disappointment. He says that no one ever comes back. They all say they will come back but never do. Mr Lamb is certain that Derry, too, will never come back.
Why did Derry refuse to believe what his mother said against Mr Lamb ?
Derry’s mother considered Mr Lamb a worthless person. She said that Mr Lamb’s all talk was nothing but nonsense. But Derry refused to believe her words against Mr Lamb because he had spent some hours with Mr Lamb and had known that he was not at all what people thought of him. He liked his encouraging, motivational and positive thinking.
What realisation comes to Derry about his face at the end of the play ?
Derry now feels that it does not matter what he looks like. He has got nothing to do with his face. He does not care about what is not important. The important thing for him is what he feels, sees, finds, hears and thinks.
What happens to Mr Lamb in the end ?
Mr Lamb puts a ladder against the branch of an apple tree. He tries to pluck apples. When he pulls the branch, his ladder falls back. He falls with the ladder and dies.
How does Mr Lamb keep himself busy when it is a bit cool ?
When it is a bit cool, Mr Lamb gets a ladder and a stick and busies himself by pulling down the crab apples in the garden. They are ripe for picking.
If you were to give a different ending to the story, ‘On the Face of It’, how would you end it ?
If I were to give a different ending to this story, I would have kept the character of Mr Lamb alive. Mr Lamb was a man with a positive attitude towards life and people. He had tried to change Derry’s perspective towards life and people. So he could prove a good companion as well as a guide for Derry.
What is common between Derry and Mr. Lamb ?
Derry and Mr Lamb both are victims of physical impairment. Mr Lamb had lost one of his legs in the war. No one ever cares to visit him. Derry’s state is not much different. His face is burnt. People look at his face with shock and fear. Derry and Mr Lamb both are experiencing painful loneliness and a sense of alienation.
When does Mr Lamb display signs of loneliness and disappointment ? What are the ways in which he tries to overcome these feelings ?
Derry goes away saying that he will come back after telling his people at home. Now Mr Lamb is left alone. Once again, he feels very lonely and disappointed. He feels that Derry, too, like all others, would never come back. He says to himself : “Everyone says, ‘I’ll come back.’ But they never do. None of them ever comes back.” These words show Mr Lamb’s feelings of loneliness and disappointment. But he tries to overcome these feelings by watching, listening and thinking. He has no curtains on his windows. He loves to see the natural light and darkness. He loves to hear the winds blowing. People say bees buzz, but when he listens to them, he feels they are humming. He finds no difference between flowers, trees, herbs and weeds. To him, they are all growing living things. It is by such positive thoughts that he tries to overcome his feelings of loneliness and disappointment.
How did Mr Lamb’s meeting with Derry become a turning point in Derry’s life ?
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How did Mr Lamb change Derry’s life ?
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Derry’s association with Mr Lamb brings about a welcome change in his life. Comment.
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What benefits did Derry reap from his association with Mr Lamb ?
Mr Lamb’s meeting with Derry proves a turning point in Derry’s life. Mr Lamb shows no shock or fear on seeing Derry’s burnt face. Rather, he talks to him in a loving manner. He welcomes him to his garden. He tells Derry never to think of his burnt face. He says that Derry has two arms, two legs, eyes, ears, tongue and a brain. And if he has a firm mind, he can do better than others. Such words of encouragement bring about a total and welcome change in Derry’s mind. Now he does not care a fig for what he looks like. He wants to live the way Mr Lamb has been living. He wants to see, hear and think in his own way. He doesn’t care about what others say.
How did Mr Lamb try to give courage and confidence to Derry ?
Mr Lamb gave courage and confidence to Derry by talking to him in a loving and winsome manner. He welcomed him to his garden. He offered to pluck apples and make jelly for him. He called him his friend and showed no shock or fear on seeing Derry’s burnt face. He told Derry never to think of his burnt face. He said that Derry had two arms, two legs, eyes, ears, tongue and a brain. And if he had a firm mind, he could do better than others. Such words of encouragement brought about a total change in Derry’s mind. Now he did not care a fig for what he looked like. He wanted to live the way Mr Lamb had been living. He wanted to see, hear and think in his own way. He did not care about what others said. Thus it was by the magic of love that Mr Lamb filled Derry’s heart with courage and confidence.
The lesson, ‘On the Face of It’, is an apt depiction of the loneliness and sense of alienation experienced by people on account of a disability. Explain.
‘On the Face of It’ is the story of an old man named Mr Lamb and a fourteen-year-old boy named Derry. Mr Lamb has lost one of his legs in war. Now he has a tin leg in its place. He lives alone in a house that has a big garden in the front. People have spread many stories about him and no one ever comes to visit him. Kids call him Lamey-Lamb. Derry’s state is no different. The one side of his face is all burnt. People look at him with a sense of shock and fear. Everyone makes him conscious of his face and it gives him much mental pain. He is sick of the world he is living in. When Derry and Mr Lamb meet each other, they have a long heart-to-heart talk. Derry is so impressed by Mr Lamb’s encouraging words that he decides to leave his home and start living with Mr Lamb. But when Derry goes away saying that he will come back, Mr Lamb says to himself, ‘‘Everyone says, ‘I’ll come back.’ But they never do. None of them ever comes back.’’ Thus this story aptly depicts the loneliness and sense of alienation experienced by people on account of some physical disability.
What is the bond that unites the two — the old Mr Lamb and Derry, the small boy ? How does the old man inspire the small boy ?
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Compare and contrast the characters of Mr Lamb and Derry.
Mr Lamb is an old man. He has lost one of his legs in war. Now he has a tin leg in its place. He lives alone in a house. People have spread many stories about him and no one ever comes to visit him. He feels very lonely. Kids call him Lamey-Lamb. Derry’s state is also not much different. He is a fourteen-year-old boy. The one side of his face is all burned. People look at him with a sense of shock and fear. Everyone makes him conscious of his face and it gives him much mental pain. This bond unites the two — the old Mr Lamb and Derry, the small boy.
The old man Mr Lamb inspires the small boy Derry by talking to him in a loving and winsome manner. He calls him his friend and shows no shock or fear on seeing Derry’s burnt face. He tells Derry never to think of his burnt face. He says that Derry has two arms, two legs, eyes, ears, tongue and a brain. And if he has a firm mind, he could do better than others. Such words of encouragement bring about a total change in Derry’s mind. Now he doesn’t care a fig for how he looks like or what others say about him.
Derry and Mr Lamb both are victims of physical impairment, but much more painful for them is the feeling of loneliness. Comment.
Both Derry and Mr Lamb are victims of physical impairment. Mr Lamb is an old man who has lost one of his legs in war. Now he has a tin leg in its place. He lives alone in a house that has a big garden in the front. People have spread many stories about him and no one ever cares to visit him. Kids call him Lamey Lamb and run away on seeing him. It is nothing strange that he feels very lonely and disappointed. Derry is a fourteen-year-old boy and his state is no different. The one side of his face is all burnt. People look at him with a sense of shock and fear. Naturally, he feels sick of the world he is living in. Thus we see that both for Derry and Mr Lamb, the feeling of loneliness is more painful than their physical impairment. The pain of physical impairment is almost a thing of the past, but the mental pain of loneliness preys upon them every moment of their life.
Derry sneaked into Mr Lamb’s garden and it became a turning point in his life. Comment.
Mr Lamb always kept his garden gate open, yet Derry did not enter through the open gate. He climbed over the garden wall since he did not want anyone to see his face that was all burnt up on one side. But when he meets Mr Lamb there, it becomes a turning point in his life. Mr Lamb shows no shock or fear on seeing Derry’s burnt face. Rather, he talks to him in a loving manner. He welcomes him to his garden. He tells Derry never to think of his burnt face. He says that Derry has two arms, two legs, eyes, ears, tongue and a brain. And if he has a firm mind, he can do better than others. Such words of encouragement bring about a total change in Derry’s mind. Now he does not care a fig for what he looks like. He wants to live the way Mr Lamb has been living. He wants to see, hear and think in his own way. He doesn’t care about what others say. He now sees the world though his own eyes, and not through the eyes of others.
Optimism in one’s attitude helps deal with all the challenges in life. Prove the statement by referring to the character of Mr. Lamb from the chapter, ‘On the Face of It’.
‘On the Face of It’ is the story of an old man named Mr Lamb. He has lost one of his legs in war. Now he has a tin leg in its place. He lives alone in a house that has a big garden in the front. People have spread many stories about him and no one ever comes to visit him. Kids call him Lamey-Lamb. But all these things do not affect him. He remains cheerful. He has no curtains on his windows. The gate of his garden remains open. All are welcome to come there. He loves to see natural light and darkness. He sees beauty everywhere. To the common people, bees ‘buzz’, but when Mr Lamb listens to them, he feels they are humming some tune. To him, flowers, trees, herbs, weeds, etc. are all living things. All these things show his optimism towards life. With such an attitude, he deals successfully with all the difficulties and the gloom in his life. We can clearly see that the light of optimism in a person’s heart can make every difficulty seem light to him/her.
“Things that matter. Things nobody else has ever said. Things I want to think about.” What are the ‘things’ that Derry is referring to ? How did Derry’s chance meeting with Mr Lamb prove meaningful for him ?
The one side of Derry’s face was burnt. People looked at his face and called it a terrible thing. They called it the ugliest thing they had ever seen. Derry was so sick of such reaction of people to his face that he was afraid of seeing himself in the mirror. He yearned for hearing the things which would give him encouragement, the things that nobody has ever said to him. And those things that is to say the positive words he got from Mr Lamb. He told Derry that like others he also had two arms, two legs, two eyes and two ears. He could do whatever he liked. And if he had a firm mind, he could even do better than others. He removed all the baseless fears of Derry. Now Derry wanted to see, hear and think in his own way. He no longer cared about what others said.
The play ‘On The Face of It’ depicts the unusual behaviour of the people towards the physically disabled which makes them feel lonely. Comment.
A disabled person is generally considered an object of pity. He is considered incapable of doing anything useful. People keep reminding him of his disability through their behaviour towards him. This gives the disabled person a deep mental pain. He feels himself alienated from society. ‘On the Face of It’ is the story of an old man named Mr Lamb and a fourteen-year-old boy named Derry. Mr Lamb has lost one of his legs in war. Now he has a tin leg in its place. He lives alone in a house that has a big garden in the front. People have spread many stories about him and no one ever comes to visit him. Kids call him Lamey-Lamb. Derry’s state is no different. The one side of his face is all burnt. People look at him with a sense of shock and fear. Everyone makes him conscious of his face and it gives him much mental pain. He is sick of the world he is living in. The unusual behaviour of the society towards physically disabled persons, fills their minds with inferiority complex and their hearts with frustration.
Mr. Lamb calls Derek his friend while Derek refuses his affirmation. Would you consider their relationship with each other as friendship ? Support your answer with reference to the instance(s) from the text.
Mr. Lamb shows no shock or fear on seeing Derry’s burnt face. Rather he talks to him in a loving manner. He welcomes him to his garden. He offers to pluck apples and make jelly for him. Mr. Lamb calls Derek his friend. Though Derek refuses his affirmation, yet he knows that it is only Mr. Lamb who treats him as a normal human being. He doesn’t fear or pity him due to his burnt face. Mr. Lamb speaks to him the words of encouragement and thus he develops in Derek the spirit to live happily. Mr. Lamb inspires Derek to have a firm mind so that he can do better than others. Mr. Lamb’s cordial behaviour and words of encouragement draw Derry towards him. Both of them are victims of physical impairment. And both of them are experiencing painful loneliness and a sense of alienation. So there could be good mutual understanding between the two. And their relationship with each other could develop into good friendship.
