THE RATTRAP BY SELMA LAGERLOF

COMPLETE SOLUTION OF THE RATTRAP

Q1. What is the name of the author of “The Rattrap”?

Ans:- Selma Lagerlof (1858-1940) is the author of “The Rattrap”

Q2. What is the Rattrap?

Ans:- A trap for mice which is made of tiny iron bars and wire.

Q3. What was the business of the Peddler?

Ans:- Selling  small rattraps by moving around in his own meditation.

Q4. Besides selling the Rattraps and begging what else did Peddler do?

Ans:- Besides selling the Rattraps and begging, the Peddler had to pretty thievery to keep his body and soul together.

Q5. Did the Peddler get profit from his business rattrap selling?

Ans:- no, the Peddler didn’t get profit from his business by rattrap selling.

Q6. How was the life of the Peddler?

Ans:- The life of Peddler was sorrowful and monotonous that appeared like a vagabond.

Q7. According to the Peddler, what is the mean by ‘Rattrap’?

Ans:- According to the Peddler, the whole world with its lands and seas, its cities and villages – was nothing but a big rattrap.

Q8. According to the Peddler, what is the mean by‘Bait’? what does it offer?

Ans:- in the view of the Peddler, ‘Bait’ means greed of human. It offers riches and joys, shelter and food, heat and clothing, exactly as the rattrap offers cheese and pork, and as soon as anyone let himself  be tempted to touch the bait, it closed in on him, and then everything comes to an end.

Q9. Towards whom the world had never been kind?

Ans:- The world had never been kind towards the Peddler.

Q10. What did the Peddler see beside the road?

Ans:- One dark evening when the Peddler trudging along the road, he saw a little gray cottage by the roadside.

Q11. Why did the Peddler knock at the door?

Ans:- The Peddler knocked on the door of the cottage to ask shelter for the night.

Q12. Did the crofter refuse the Peddler’s proposal?

Ans:- No, he didn’t.

Q13. How was behavior of the crofter about the Peddler?

Ans:- The crofter was a credulous and generous man, his behavious was quite honest and clear about the Peddler.

Q14. How was the life of the crofter?

Ans:- The crofter was an old man without wife and child, he lived alone in his cottage. He was a man of talkative behavior, his life was totally depend upon his cow which supported him by giving creamy milk.

Q14. How did the crofter provide his best hospitality to the Peddler?

Ans:- The crofter hosted the Peddler with his best manner by feeding him porridge and slice of tobacco. He also amused the Peddler playing ‘mjolis’ a game of cards until bedtime.

Q15. What did the crofter say to the Peddler about himself?

Ans:- The crofter said to the Peddler, once that in his days of prosperity he had worked at Ramsjo Ironworks but he could no longer able to do day labour and he left working.

Q16. How much kronor had the crofter earned last month by selling his cow’s milk?

Ans:- The crofter had earned thirty kronor last month by selling his cow’s milk.

 Q17. Why did the crofter show the thirty kronor to the Peddler?

Ans:- When the crofter mentioned about his thirty kronor that he received last month by selling his cow’s milk to the Peddler. The Peddler seemed incredulous at the crofter’s confidence. Hence, the crofter showed thirty kronor to the Peddler for keeping his confidence alive.

Q18. What did the Peddler do with the thirty kronor of the crofter?

Ans:- The Peddler plundered those thirty kronor from the leather pouch of the crofter smashing a pane and escaped away.

Q19. From where did the Peddler get the ideas of the world being a rattrap?

Ans:- The Peddler was a poor seller of rattrap. So, he had naturally been thinking about rattraps meanwhile suddenly an idea came into his mind that the whole world was nothing but a big rattrap.

Q20. Why was he amused by this idea?

Ans:- Indeed , the world had never been humble or kind to him. He always kept ill thought about the world and its people. So, the peddler was amused by the idea of the world being nothing but a big rattrap. It amused him much.

Q21. Did the Peddler expect the kind of hospitality that he received from the crofter?

Ans:- Not at all, the Peddler had never been expected about such a splendid hospitality  that he received from the crofter.

Q22. Why was the crofter so talkative and friendly with the Peddler?

Ans:- The crofter lived quite alone in his cottage, neither he had wife nor children. So, he was very happy to get someone with whom he could share his feelings. That’s why, the crofter appeared so talkative and friendly with the Peddler.

Q23. Where did the Peddler find himself trapped after stealing those thirty kronor of the crofter?

Ans:- The Peddler found himself trapped in a dense forest after stealing those thirty kronor of the crofter in the way of making himself secure from the caught.

Q24. Did the Peddler find the way to come out from the forest?

Ans:- No, he didn’t.

Q25. What did the Peddler recall when he found himself trapped in the forest?

Ans:- All at once the Peddler recalled his own thought about the world and rattrap when he found himself trapped in the forest, this whole world is nothing but a big rattrap.

 Q26. Where did the Peddler go to spend his night from the forest?

Ans:- The Peddler went ahead towards ‘The Ramsjo Ironworks’ from the forest to spend his night near forge.

Q27. Who was the honor of The Ramsjo Ironworks?

Ans:- The Iron-master was the honor of The Ramsjo Ironworks.

Q28. Why did the Iron-master invite the Peddler?

Ans:- When the Iron-master saw the Peddler in his first sight at the dim light near the furnace, he made a mistake to recognize the Peddler, and he thought, the tramp is his old comrade with whom the Iron-master was in army. So, the Iron-master invited the Peddler at his house.

Q29. Who was Edla Willmansson ?

Ans:- Edla Willmansson was the oldest daughter of the Iron-master.

Q30. What did the Iron-master make mistake?

Ans:- The Iron-master made a mistake to recognize the Peddler. He thought, the Peddler is his old friend and that’s why he invited the Peddler at his home. But indeed, the Peddler was not friend of the Iron-master.

Q31. What did the Peddler think by getting the invitation of the Iron Master?

Ans:- When the Iron-master invited the Peddler at his house, the Peddler ignored his invitation and be alarmed. He thought of the thirty kronor. To go up to the manor house would be like throwing himself voluntarily into the lion’s den.

Q32. Which festival was about to be celebrated?

Ans:- The Christmas was about to be celebrated .

Q33. Did the Peddler get ready to go with Iron-master?

Ans:- No, the Peddler didn’t get ready to go with the Iron-master.

Q34. What did Edla Willmansson suspect about the Peddler having seen him?

Ans:- Edla looked at the Peddler compassionately, with her heavy eyes, and then she suspected that the man was scared. “Either the Peddler has stolen something or else he has escaped from jail.

Q35. How did the Peddler often use to sleep?

Ans:- The Peddler often used to sleep with one eye open.

Q36. Whom did Edla ask permission to bring home?

Ans:- Edla asked permission to the Peddler to come with her at her home.

Q37. Did the Peddler accept invitation of Edla?

Ans:- Of course, he did.

 Q38. Did the Iron-master ever come to know the truth about the Peddler?

Ans:- Yes, he did.

Q39. When did the Iron-master know the truth about the Peddler?

Ans:- When the Peddler was dressed in a good looking suit after cutting his thick hair, shaving and bathing. He came before the Iron-master in broad daylight and then the Iron-master came to know the truth about the Peddler that the Peddler isn’t his old regimental comrade.

Q40. Did Edla host the Peddler on the Christmas eve?

Ans:- Yes, she did so according to her promise to the Peddler.

Q41. What did Edla hear in the church about the Peddler?

Ans:- At the church, Edla heard that one of the old crofters of the ironworks had been robbed by a man who went around selling rattraps.

Q42. Did Edla’s love change ill thought of the Peddler?

Ans:- Obviously, Edla’s love and kind behavior changed Peddler’s ill thought about the world and its people.

Q43. What did Edla receive as a gift by the Peddler?

Ans:- A small rattrap had been received by Edla which was gifted by the Peddler.

Q44. Did the Peddler return those thirty kronor to the crofter?

Ans:- Yes, the Peddler returned those stolen thirty kronor to the crofter by the help of Edla.

Q45. Why did the Iron-master speak kindly to the Peddler and invite him home?

Ans:- In fact, the Iron-master made a mistake to recognize the Peddler and he thought, the Peddler is his old regimental comrade. So, the Iron-master kindly spoke to him.

Q46. Why was Edla happy to see the gift left by the Peddler?

Ans:- Edla was quite happy having seen that gift left by the Peddler because it was first and foremost when she was gifted by someone with a beautiful small rattrap. And there left three wrinkled ten kronor notes in it. The Peddler had admired Edla for reforming him too.

Q47. Why did the Peddler sign himself as Captain Von Stahle?

Ans:- The Peddler signed himself as Captain Von Stahle only because of Edla , she hosted the Peddler as like the real comrade of her father, she reformed the Peddler’s life. Edla addressed him as a Captain. She transformed the life and ill thinking of the Peddler about this world and made him out from his ill thinking. Because of Edla, he got power to cheer himself and that’s why he signed as “Captain Von Stahle”.

Q48. The summary of the Rattrap. 

Ans:- The Rattrap is a story about a rattrap seller who leads a very poor life as his earnings are very low. He has to resort to thievery and begging to make both ends meet. 

He is alone in this whole world and leads a miserable life. So he starts knitting up various kinds of thoughts. One of these thoughts is of supposing the whole world as a big rattrap. His views are that the world offers us various types of baits in the form of comforts of life. This in return traps us into the rattrap of the world and leads us to various types of miseries.

Every night, the peddler had to search for shelter as he has no home. One evening he was offered shelter by an old crofter. The next morning he stole the crofter’s money which he had earned by selling his cow’s milk. To safeguard himself, the peddler chose the path through the forest which was secluded, but soon found himself trapped in the forest as he wasn’t able to find the way out of the dense forest. Later on, he finds a way to a forge and takes shelter there. Something unusual happens. The ironmaster mistakes him as an old friend and invites him to his house. The poor peddler rejects the offer due to the fear of being caught. Soon he is invited by the ironmaster‘s daughter. The next morning he is somehow stopped by the ironmaster’s daughter for Christmas Eve even after being caught that he was a peddler and not Captain Stalhe.

The next day after Christmas, when the iron master and his daughter visit the church, they come to know that the man is a thief who had stolen money from the old crofter. The iron master and his daughter repent for sheltering a thief and wonder at what all things he would have stolen by that time. Here comes a twist as instead of stealing, the peddler gifts the ironmaster’s daughter a rattrap. She finds a letter of thanks and the stolen money inside the rattrap. The peddler thanks Edla for her kindness and requests her to return the stolen money to the crofter.  This story gives us the message that goodness in a human being can be awakened at any time with your own good deeds.