Footprints ch05 Footprints without Feet

CBSE Test Paper 01
Footprints without Feet

What did Griffin do at the London store?
Why was Mrs. Hall convinced that Griffin was an ‘eccentric scientist’?
Why did Griffin take off his newly prepared clothes from London store?
What did the Halls see in the scientist's room?
What do you think about Griffin as a scientist?
Griffin was a brilliant scientist but not a good human being. Explain.
How did Griffin’s invisibility come to his help whenever he found himself in trouble? Give examples in support of your answer.
Mr. Jaffers was a true policeman. Explain.

CBSE Test Paper 01
Footprints without Feet

Solution

To become invisible Griffin had to take off his clothes. As it was the winter season, it was bitterly cold. So he could not live without clothes. He slipped into a London store. There he enjoyed cold meat and coffee, followed by sweets and wine taken from the grocery store. He, at last, slept on a pile of quilts.
Mrs. Hall was convinced that Griffin was an 'eccentric scientist' because of his uncommon appearance. When Mrs. Hall tried to become friendly with him, he told her that he did not like to mix up with others and he had come to Iping to satisfy his desire of enjoying solitude. He also told her that an accident had affected his face.
When Griffin was sleeping in the London store, he did not wake up in time. Next morning a few assistants of the store saw him. They chased him in order to catch him. He ran away and started to take off his new clothes to become invisible again and escape from there.
One day, the Halls got up early and were surprised to see that the door of the scientist's room was open. Normally, it remained shut and locked. The Halls felt like making the use of the opportunity as they could not see anyone inside. They went inside to investigate. They saw that the bedclothes were cold which showed that the scientist had been up for some time. His clothes and bandages were lying loose in the room. Suddenly, they heard a sniffing sound although there was no one in the room. The hat on the bedpost leapt onto Mrs. Hall's face and the bedroom chair became alive and sprung straight at her. The Halls got terrified and decided to leave the scientist's room.
As a scientist, Griffin was very brilliant because he had discovered a rare drug which could make human body invisible. He had conducted many experiments with the rare drug. But as a human being, he was not good. He did not use his invention for the welfare of society but troubled everyone. He became a lawless person as he robbed people and did as he pleased without caring about the consequences of his actions.
Griffin was a very brilliant scientist because he invented a rare drug to make the human body transparent like a sheet of glass and subsequently, he became invisible. He could become famous and popular amongst all if he would use his discovery for the welfare of society. But he did just the opposite. He misused his discovery. He used it to create trouble for others. Firstly, he set fire to his landlord's house as he did not like him and wanted to eject him. Then he slipped into a London store without permission and broke open boxes of clothes and fitted himself with all the clothing. Without caring for payment he enjoyed coffee, meat, and wine. After this, he robbed a shopkeeper in the theatrical company to get clothing to hide the empty space above his shoulders. He stabbed the shopkeeper from behind. Later on, he stole the housekeeping money from the clergyman’s desk. All these incidents show that Griffin was not a true scientist. He used his scientific discovery for his own selfish purposes and to eliminate those who hindered his path.
There is no doubt that Griffin was a brilliant scientist but a lawless person. He set fire to his landlord's house and became invisible when his landlord asked him to leave the house. To become invisible, he had to swallow a rare drug and take off his clothes. That way, he would become invisible with ease. The second time when the employees in the London Store chased him, he escaped easily by throwing off his newly found clothes. After this, he entered the shop of a theatrical company and robbed money and clothes from there with ease. At the end of the story, once again, he could save himself from the village constable by being invisible. Thus his invisibility always came to his help whenever he found himself in trouble. He was able to escape from the situations that he was stuck in due to his invisibility and his scientific bent of mind.
When Mrs.Hall suspected that the stranger, who was Griffin, the scientist, in reality, was a thief, she secretly sent for the village constable, Jaffers. She was suspicious because just before some time the stranger accepted that his money had finished and after committing theft in the clergyman's house, he provided Mrs. Hall with some ready cash. She strongly believed that this theft was done by the stranger. But she could not wait for the constable and confronted the stranger to ask about the room and what he had done with the furniture. Griffin, the eccentric scientist became furious and unruly after listening to her question and threw away his cap, bandages, spectacles, side-whiskers and false nose. This way he became a headless man. He wanted to become invisible so as to escape from Mr. Hall and Mrs. Hall. Subsequently, Jaffers, the village constable reached there and became very surprised to see that he had to arrest the man without a head. But he was a true policeman. He decided to do his duty and fought with the stranger. He was becoming more and more invisible by taking off his clothes and at last, he could not see him at all. Furthermore, Griffin knocked him unconscious. Jaffers was a committed policeman though he could not perform his duty.

Footprints ch05 Footprints without Feet - CBSE Test Papers