What had Jack been doing for nearly two years ?
Jack had a little daughter named Jo. He had made it a custom to tell her a story in the evenings and for Saturday naps. This custom had begun when Jo was two years old and now it was nearly two years old. Each story was out of Jack’s head and now his head felt empty.
Why did Jack feel his head empty ?
Jack had been telling stories to his little daughter every evening. Each story came out of his own head. He had been telling the stories for nearly two years. He found it difficult to think of a new story every time. That was why he felt his head empty.
What was the basic tale or plot of stories told by Jack ?
Every story had a small creature usually named Roger. He had some problem and went with it to the wise old owl. The owl would tell him to go to the wizard. The wizard solved the problem with some magic spell. However, he charged some pennies for it.
Why was the storytelling exercise futile on Saturdays ?
Jack would tell the story hoping that Jo would go to sleep after hearing the story. But Jo had become older now. She never fell asleep in the naps now. It made Jack feel that his storytelling rite had become futile.
What problem did Roger Skunk face when he went to play with his friends ? How did he solve it ?
Roger Skunk smelled very bad. Whenever he went out to play, all other little animals would run away from him. Roger Skunk would stand there all alone. Two little tears would fall from his eyes. He got rid of his bad smell through a wizard.
Why did Roger Skunk go to the owl ? What advice did he get ?
Roger Skunk smelled very bad. Whenever he went out to play, all other little animals would run away from him. He would then feel very sad and humiliated. In order to find a way out of his problem, he decided to go to the wise old owl. The owl advised Roger Skunk to go to the wizard.
What ‘new phase’ had come in Jo ?
Jo was no longer a passive listener of her father’s stories. She would ask questions if something was not clear to her. For example, at the mention of the wizard, she asked, “Are magic spells real ?” Again she asked, “Is God really in the sky and all around us ?” It was really a new phase in Jo’s life.
Why did Roger Skunk go in search of the wizard ?
Roger Skunk smelled so bad that none of the other creatures would play with him. They would all run away from him. Then the wise owl told Roger Skunk that the wizard could help him get rid of his bad smell. That was why Roger Skunk went in search of the wizard.
How was the Skunk’s story different from the other stories narrated by Jack ?
In the other stories, there used to be a creature usually named Roger. He went with his problems to the wise old owl. The owl would further send him to the wizard. The wizard would solve his problems with some magic spell. But in the Skunk’s story, the wizard was hit by the Skunk’s mother.
How did the wizard help Roger Skunk ?
The wizard asked Roger Skunk what he wanted to smell like. Roger said he wanted to smell like roses. The wizard took a magic wand and chanted a spell. All of a sudden, the whole inside of the wizard’s house was full of the smell of roses. Now Roger Skunk, too, had the smell of roses.
How did Roger Skunk’s mother get his old smell back ?
Roger Skunk’s mother at once took him back to the wizard. She hit the wizard right over the head for giving Skunk a pleasant smell. The wizard said, ‘‘O.K.’’ And Roger Skunk smelled very bad again.
What is the moral issue that the story, ‘Should Wizard Hit Mommy ?’, raises ?
When children grow up, they become very inquisitive. They begin to think logically and ask many questions. Sometimes they contradict their parents also. Should parents feel annoyed or should they satisfy the child’s curiosity in a logical manner ? This is the moral issue that has been raised in this story.
Why does Jo insist that her father should tell her the story with a different ending ?
Jo thought it wicked of Roger Skunk’s mommy to have hit the poor wizard. She wanted the wizard to hit her back but her father defended mommy’s action. He said that a mommy is always right. It was something which Jo couldn’t digest with reference to Roger Skunk’s story. That is why she insisted that her father should give the story a different ending.
How did Jo want the story to end and why ?
(Or)
What did Jo want the wizard to do when Mommy hit him ?
Roger Skunk’s mommy hits the wizard for no reason. The wizard had done nothing wrong. So Jo felt that the wizard should have hit that mommy back with his magic wand. This, according to her, would have been a logical conclusion of the story.
What part of the story did Jack himself enjoy the most and why ?
Roger Skunk’s mother takes him back to the wizard. She hits the wizard for giving Roger Skunk the smell of roses. She wants the wizard to give Roger Skunk back its original bad smell. It is this part of the story that Jack himself enjoys most. It is because he thinks that Mommy had the right to hit the wizard.
How can we say that Jack is a dominant male ?
Like all elders, Jack also wants the youngsters to look upon their elders with respect. According to him, a younger should never think that his elder deserves to be hit or punished. He wants to impress upon the child that elders are always right. Thus he appears to be a dominant male.
We can’t approve of Jack’s attitude towards his wife. Comment.
Jack’s daughter Jo thinks that the wizard in the story should have hit the mommy back. But Jack does not like this idea. He wants to impress upon the child that elders are always right. He appears to be a dominant male. So we can’t approve of his attitude towards his wife.
What is your stance regarding the two endings to the Roger Skunk story ?
In my opinion, the ending suggested by Jo sounds logical. Roger Skunk’s mommy hits the wizard for no reason. It is but natural that the wizard should hit back. Why should he be afraid of Mommy ? He is a wizard after all.
Why is an adult’s perspective on life different from that of a child ?
An adult develops his own likes or dislikes. He sees the world through the coloured glasses of his eyes. But a child’s innocent heart will always say what is just and natural. That is why an adult’s perspective on life is different from that of a child.
Why did Jo think Roger Skunk was better off with the new smell ?
With his new smell, Roger Skunk could play together with other little animals in the woods. They no longer ran away from him. He smelled so good now. That was why Jo thought that Roger Skunk was better off with the new smell.
Why was Roger Skunk’s mommy angry with him ? What did she finally tell him ?
(Or)
Having got rid of his stink, what problem did Roger Skunk still face ?
(Or)
What is mother Skunk’s role in the story ?
Roger Skunk had got the smell of his body changed by a wizard. Now he smelled like roses. But his mommy wanted him to smell like skunks. So she was angry with him. She took him back to the wizard to have his old smell back.
What story did Jo want to hear the next day and why ? What was her father’s reaction to it ?
Jo wanted to hear the story next day, describing the wizard hitting Roger’s mommy back. But Jack does not want to tell a story in which a mommy is hit or insulted. He believes that parents can never be wrong.
How did the woodland creatures react to the skunk’s new smell ?
When Roger Skunk reached the woods with his new good smell, all the other animals who used to run away from him earlier due to his bad smell, now gathered around him. And they played a number of games together.
Why is Jo not happy with the ending of the story ?
Roger Skunk’s mommy hits the wizard for no reason. The wizard had done nothing wrong. So Jo felt that the wizard should have hit Skunk’s mommy back with his magic wand. This, according to her, would have been a logical conclusion of the story.
On seeing Roger Skunk again with a very bad smell, how did the little animals react first and then later on when he had lost it
The other little animals started playing with Roger Skunk when he lost his bad smell. But when they found him again with that very smell, they eventually became used to his smell. They accepted him the way he was and didn’t mind it.
At the end of the storytelling session, why does Jack consider himself ‘caught in an ugly middle position’ ?
(Or)
What makes Jack feel caught in an ugly middle position ?
Jack has told Jo a story in which Roger Skunk’s mommy hits the wizard for no reason. Jo thinks that the wizard should have hit that mommy’s back. She wants her father to tell a story in which the wizard hits that mommy. Jack feels himself caught in an ugly middle position. He does not want to tell a story in which a mother gets beaten or insulted. He wants to impress upon the child that elders are always right and ought to be loved and respected. Jack wants to give the child the impression that mothers are always right. It is the duty of children to love them and respect them. Good children never call into question whatever their parents say. So Jack insists that it was the wizard that was hit and not the mother.
How did Jo want the Roger Skunk story to end and why ?
(Or)
Why did Jo disapprove of Jack’s ending of the story of Roger Skunk ? How did she want it to end ?
Jo was an inquisitive child. She was full of questions. She wanted to know the reason of things. She would not accept what appeared illogical to her. Her father told her the story of Roger Skunk who smelled very bad. Other animals would avoid him because of his bad smell. Roger Skunk went to a wizard. He requested the wizard to make him smell like roses. The wizard used a spell and made Roger Skunk smell like roses. But when Roger Skunk went home, his mommy was very angry. She at once went to the wizard and hit him on the head for having made her child different from what he was. The gentle wizard made Roger Skunk smell very bad again. When the father had ended the story, Jo objected to the ending of the story. She wanted the wizard to hit Mommy because she had no reason to hit the wizard. This, according to her, was the logical ending, not the one that her father had narrated.
What is your stance regarding the two endings to the Roger Skunk story ?
One ending presents an adult’s point of view. According to this ending, Mommy goes to the wizard and hits him on the head with her umbrella. The gentle wizard says nothing and makes Roger Skunk smell very bad again. The second ending presents a four-year-old child’s point of view. Jo thinks that the wizard should have hit that mommy. She finds no reason why Mommy should have hit the wizard. But her father (Jack) does not want the child to form a negative opinion of a mommy. He wants her to form the idea that a mommy ought to be loved and respected by the child. So he insists that Mommy was right. But I think the child was right in her point of view. Roger Skunk had himself desired to make him smell like roses. So it was not the wizard’s fault at all. Mommy had no right to hit him. She deserved to be hit back by the wizard.
How does the story, ‘Should Wizard Hit Mommy ?’ bear testimony to the fact that the frustrations faced by adults and their personal experiences often intrude upon their interaction with their children ? Elaborate.
Adults have their own set of moral values. They can have their own prejudices. But children are free from any preconceived notions. They can’t accept that somebody to them is cruel or unjust. Adults can make compromises but children can’t. In this story, Jack tells his little daughter, Jo, a story in which Roger Skunk’s mommy hits the wizard for no reason. Jo thinks that the wizard should have hit Skunk’s mommy back. She wants her father to tell a story in which the wizard hits Skunk’s mommy. Jack feels himself caught in an ugly middle position. He does not want to tell a story in which a mother gets beaten or insulted. He wants to impress upon the child that elders are always right and ought to be loved and respected. Thus we see how this story bears testimony to the fact that the frustrations faced by adults and their personal experiences often intrude upon their interaction with their children.
What impression do you form of Jack as a father ?
Jack is a loving father. He loves his little daughter Jo and invents for her stories to tell in the evenings and for Saturday naps. His purpose is simply to amuse the child and not teach her any moral. But one day, he is caught in a peculiar situation. He tells Jo a story in which Roger Skunk’s mommy hits a wizard for no fault of his. Jo thinks that the wizard should have hit the mommy back. Now Jack doesn’t like the idea that a mommy should be hit. So he doesn’t agree with Jo’s idea that the wizard should have hit Roger Skunk’s mommy as a tit for tat. Poor Jack has no logic for his assertion but he cannot accept the opposite view also. Like all elders, he wants the youngsters to look upon their elders with respect. A youngster should never think that his elder deserves to be hit or punished. We don’t form any unfavourable opinion of Jack as a father; but as a storyteller, we find him caught on the wrong foot. He makes up a story the end of which he can’t justify. And a just ending is not acceptable to him. There is nothing wrong in him as a father, but he falters as a rationalist.
How did Jack end the Roger Skunk story ? How and why did Jo want to change the ending ?
According to the story told by Jack, Roger Skunk tells the wizard that he wants to smell like roses. The wizard uses his spell and makes Roger Skunk smell like roses. They play together lots of games. But when Roger Skunk goes back home, his mommy gets very angry. She does not like the way Roger Skunk smells now. Roger Skunk says that it was the wizard who had made him smell like that. Mommy at once takes Roger Skunk with her and goes to the wizard. Without saying a word, she hits the wizard on the head with her umbrella.
But Jo does not like this ending of the story. She feels that mommy had no right to hit the wizard. She says that the wizard should have hit her back. She finds no reason why mommy should have hit the wizard.
With respect to the events in the story, ‘Should Wizard Hit Mommy’, who would you support, Wizard or Mommy ? Justify your choice.
I would support Roger Skunk’s Mommy with respect to the events in this story. One should not bring any change in one’s individuality or compromise with one’s traits just to please others or to attain their companionship. Everybody is unique in themselves and they should not develop any inferiority or superiority complex due to this. One should make others accept one with one’s strengths and weaknesses. If it is not done so, one will have to make compromises and changes in oneself throughout one’s life, just to please others. The decision of Roger Skunk’s Mommy regarding his smell is absolutely right. He should make his friends accept him with his smell. He should not make any change in his individuality which is his identity. Roger Skunk’s Mommy doesn’t want her child suffer from any inferiority complex due to his smell. That is why she wants him to be accepted socially with his smell.
