2nd PUC English TOO DEAR NOTES | Question Answers
TOO DEAR
-Leo Tolstoy
I. Answer the following in a word or a phrase
or a sentence.
1. Mention any one of the neighboring kingdoms
of Monaco.
Ans: France or Italy.
2. What is the population of Monaco in ‘Too
Dear!’?
Ans: 7,000.
3. How many soldiers were there in the kingdom
of Monaco in ‘Too Dear!’?
Ans: 60 men.
4. Mention any one of the taxes paid by people
in Monaco.
Ans: Tax on wine or spirit or tobacco or poll
tax.
5. The special source of revenue for the king
of Monaco came from_______
a. Gaming House
b. Poll tax
c. Taxes on wine and spirit
Ans: a. Gaming House.
6. What did people play in the gaming houses
in Monaco?
Ans: Roulette.
7. Who remained with a monopoly of the dirty
business of gaming houses in Europe?
Ans: The king of Monaco.
8. Anyone who wants to gamble goes to
___________.
a. France
b. Monaco
c. Italy
Ans: b. Monaco
9. What was the initial punishment given to
the criminal by the council in ‘Too Dear’?
Ans: Death sentence.
10. Which kingdom demanded 16,000 francs for
the supply of guillotine and an executioner?
Ans: France.
11. How
much money did the Italian government demand for the supply of guillotine and
an executioner?
Ans: 12000 francs
12.
Which government was a republican and had no proper respect for king
of Monaco?
Ans: The French.
13. Who
according to the Council was a brother monarch in ‘Too Dear!’?
Ans: King of Italy.
14.
From where did the guard fetch the food to the criminal in Monaco?
Ans: From the Palace kitchen.
15. How
much did the king spend annually for keeping the criminal in prison?
Ans: 600 francs.
16. On
what condition did the criminal agree to go away from the prison?
Ans: On regular payment of pension 600 francs.
17. What was the sum fixed as pension for the
criminal?
Ans: One third of his annuity.
18. How
much did the criminal receive in advance while leaving the prison?
Ans: A bit of land.
19. What did the criminal buy after settling
across the frontier of Monaco?
Ans:
20. When the guard was dismissed, the criminal
in ‘Too Dear!’
a. was happy and tried to run away.
b. worried about the guard’s family.
c. did not show any sign of running away.
Ans: c. Did not show any sign of running away.
4-marks/ 6-marks questions and answers
1. Though gambling is a dirty business, why
did the king of Monaco resort to it?
OR
You
can’t earn stone palaces by honest labour. Justify this statement with
reference to ‘Too Dear!’.
Ans: Monaco was a tiny kingdom. It was located
on the borders of France and Italy. The population of Monaco was 7000. In this
toy kingdom, there was a real king. He had a palace, courtiers, generals, a
bishop and an army of 60 men. He received less revenue from taxes on tobacco,
wine and spirit and poll tax. It was very difficult for him to manage his
kingdom without proper revenue. The special source of revenue came from gaming
house. People played roulette there. It was only such gambling establishment in
Europe. They were banned in Europe as they were harmful. After losing
everything in gambling, people would commit suicide. So, they were banned in Europe.
But the king depended on the gambling house for revenue. He remained with a
monopoly of the business. So, everyone who wanted to gamble went to Monaco. The
king knew that it was a dirty business. He opinioned that to draw revenue from
drink and tobacco was also bad.
2. Why did the king of Monaco keep changing
his mind in dealing with the criminal?
OR
What made the king of Monaco alter his
decisions in dealing with the criminal in ‘Too Dear!’?
Ans: Once a murder was committed in the
peaceable toy kingdom. Such thing had not happened before. The criminal was
awarded death sentence for committing murder. But Monaco had neither a
guillotine nor an executioner. The committee enquired with France and Italy to
supply both. While France demanded 16000 francs, Italy demanded 12000 francs to
supply both. The king of Monaco felt it was too dear. He did not want to spend
so much money on the criminal. He feared riots if extra tax was collected for
the purpose. Even his soldiers refused to cut off the criminal’s head. They
said that they had not been taught how to cut a man’s head off. In order to
reduce the cost, the death sentence was changed into life imprisonment.
The criminal was kept in a prison. A guard was
appointed to watch over the criminal. He had to fetch criminal’s food from the
palace kitchen. After a year, the king noticed that 600 francs were spent on
the criminal. The young and healthy criminal could live for another fifty
years. So, the committee dismissed the guard thinking that the prisoner would
run away. But he refused to go away. At last, he was offered a pension. Thus,
the King of Monaco was a man without a decisive stand. Being worried about the
cost of the execution, he kept changing his mind in dealing with the criminal.
3. Why was the criminal reluctant to go out of
the prison?
OR
Why does the criminal in ‘Too Dear!’ refuse to
escape from the prison? Explain. Ans: The criminal was awarded death sentence
for committing murder. In order to reduce the cost, the death sentence was
changed into life imprisonment. The criminal was kept in a prison. After a
year, the king noticed that it was a costly arrangement. The committee held a
meeting and dismissed the guard. It expected the criminal to run away in the
absence of guard. But he refused to go away. When he was asked by the minister
of Justice why he had not run away, he said that he had nowhere to go. He could
not do anything as they had ruined his character. The people would turn their
backs on him. In addition, he had got out of the way of working. He was used to
be lazy and comfortable life in prison. He said that they had treated him
badly. He expressed his unhappiness for changing death sentence into life
imprisonment. He was upset for dismissing the guard because there was no one to
fetch his food from the palace kitchen. He concluded that they were free to do
whatever they liked but he would not go away.
4. How did the criminal lead his life after
going out from the prison?
OR
How did the criminal spend his life after he
was given a pension in ‘Too Dear!’?
Ans: The criminal was promised a pension of
600 francs. He received one third of his annuity in advance and left Monaco. He
emigrated and settled just across the frontier. It was not very far, only 15
minutes by rail. He purchased a bit of land and started market gardening. He
lived comfortably and well. He would always go to draw his pension on time.
After receiving it, he would go to gaming house. He would stake 2 or 3 francs.
Then he would return home. He lived happily and peacefully.
2nd PUC Political Science Notes
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