How does edla demonstrate kindness and generosity

For self-temptation people like the peddler don't want to undeceive others about themselves. The touching of the bait always makes people realise that they are caught in the world rattrap now. It is their turn now, they must stop cherish it as their pastime of thinking about the known who get trapped and others who are circling around the trap. They must rise above the baits and shun evil doings like Captain von Stahle. Answer: The peddler knew that the ironmaster had mistaken him for his old regimental comrade.

Secondly, he had stolen money—thirty kronor—on him. So, he declined the invitation. Answer: Miss Edla Willmansson looked at the peddler quite compassionately.

She noticed that the man was afraid. She assured him that he would be allowed to leave just as freely as he came. She requested him to stay with them over Christmas Eve. Her friendly manner made the peddler feel confident in her and accept her invitation.

Even her kind looks, disclosure of her name and purpose of visit failed to calm him. From his fear, she thought that either he had stolen something or he had escaped from jail. Answer: The next morning, the stranger was cleaned and well-dressed. The valet had bathed him, cut his hair and shaved him. He was led to the dining room for breakfast. The ironmaster saw him in broad daylight. It was impossible to mistake him for an old acquaintance now.

Then the ironmaster realised his mistake and threatened to call the Sheriff. Ques: How did the peddler defend himself against not having revealed his true identity?

Answer: The peddler explained that he had not tried to pretend as his acquaintance. He was not at fault. All along he had maintained that he was a poor trader. He had pleaded and begged to be allowed to stay in the forge. No harm had been done by his stay. He was willing to put on his rags again and go away.

Ques: Why did Edla still entertain the peddler even after she knew the truth about him? Answer: Edla did not think it proper on their part to chase away a human being whom they had asked to come to their house and had promised him Christmas cheer.

Hence, she still entertained the peddler even after knowing the truth about him. Answer: As soon as Edla opened the package of the gift, the contents came into view. She found a small rattrap with three wrinkled ten kronor notes and a letter addressed to her. The peddler wanted to be nice in return as she had been so nice to him all day long.

He did not want her to be embarrassed at the Christmas season by a thief. Answer: The ironmaster has invited the peddler to his house mistaking him for Captain von Stahle. He was welcomed there and looked after as captain even after the reality became known. The peddler got a chance to redeem himself from dishonest ways by acting as an honourable Captain.

Ques: How does the peddler interpret the acts of kindness and hospitality shown by the crofter, the iron master and his daughter? Answer: The peddler interprets the acts of kindness and hospitality shown by the crofter, the iron master and his daughter differently.

He cheats the crofter as he provides his company in his loneliness and helps him pass time. He wants to get a couple of kronor from the iron master and is surprised at the contrasting style of behaviour of father and daughter. He is touched by the kindness, care and intervention of Edla on his behalf.

Ques: What are the instances in the story that show that the character of the ironmaster is different from that of his daughter in many ways? In uncertain light, he iron master mistakes the stranger as his old regiment comrade. What does this reaction reveal? Answer : The crofter had treated the peddler with hospitality, and had even reposed his trust in the poor peddler.

Still the peddler robbed him and was quite pleased with his smartness. However, the fear of getting caught haunted him. So, he avoided the public highway and turned into the woods. It as a big and confusing forest, and due to the approaching darkness, the peddler lost his way. He got exhausted moving around the same place, and was filled with despair. He began to feel that the forest was like a big rattrap and the thirty kronor he had stolen were like a bait set to tempt him.

His heart was filled with remorse and self-loathing for his act of weakness. However ,his thoughts are perhaps also a way of justifying his crime.

Question 8 : How does the peddler respond to the hospitality shown to him by the crofter? Answer : One dark evening when the peddler was walking along the road he knocked on the door of a cottage to seek shelter for the night.

To his surprise, he was welcomed by an old man, the crofter, who lived alone in the cottage. The lonely crofter was happy to find a man with whom he could talk to. He served the peddler supper, gave him tobacco and played a game of cards with him. The old crofter then went to the window and took down a leather pouch.

He showed three then kronor notes to the peddler and put them back. This provided a big bait for the peddler who was tempted to steal the notes.

The peddler unwillingly allowed himself to be tempted to touch the bait. He stole the money and thus committed a breach of trust. So he betrayed the confidence reposed in him by his host and realised that he was himself caught in a rattrap. How did Edla succeed? Answer : Unlike her father, Edla was a compassionate, sympathetic and understanding girl and because of these virtues she succeeded in reforming the peddler.

The ironmaster, on the other hand, is impulsive and whimsical. But Edla continued to be nice and hospitable to him and did not turn him out of their house on Christmas Eve. She treated the peddler like a real captain and he too behaved like one. To what extent was he influenced by her? He was so touched by the sincerity in her voice that he could not refuse her invitation.

She continues to treat him like a captain and the peddler quite spontaneously, starts behaving like a real captain. He leaves a rattrap as a Christmas gift for Edla and encloses a letter of thanks and a note of confession in it. He also leaves behind the stolen money to be restored to its rightful owner, the crofter, thus redeeming himself from his dishonest ways. How did the latter get tempted? He served the peddler with extreme hospitality and even played cards with him.

He also shared his confidence with the peddler by telling him that he had been a crofter at Ramsjo Ironworks during his days of prosperity and now his cow supported him. He also told him that last month he had received thirty kronors in payment for the cow milk he had sold. He even showed the peddler the leather pouch on the window where he had kept the thirty kronors thus tempting the peddler.

Then hanging the leather pouch back very carefully, he went away. Substantiate with evidence from the story. However, love and understanding can transform a person and bring out his essential human goodness. The peddler had been treated very cruelly by the world.

So even though the old crofter was kind and hospitable to him, he betrayed his trust and stole thirty kronors from him. Her human qualities helped in raising him to be gentleman.

He was easily able to overcome petty temptations. The peddler who always considered the whole world to be a rattrap finally felt released from this rattrap due to the sympathetic, kind and generous treatment of Edla that was able to bring out his basic human goodness. Question 13 : How are the attitudes of the ironmaster and his daughter different?

Support your answer from the text. Answer : The character of the ironmaster was very different from that of his daughter. He was an ambitious and arrogant man. When he saw the peddler, he mistook him for his old regimental comrade, and invited him for home, but this was more out of his sense of pride than out of Sympathy or generosity. When the ironmaster realised that he had been mistaken, he called the peddler dishonest and threatened to call the sheriff.

Later when he learnt that the peddler was a thief, he was worried about his own silverware. She treated him with respect and dignity even after knowing that he was not a captain. It was her generous attitude which finally changed the peddler, bringing out essential goodness of his nature. Do you agree with this statement? Why not? The fast-paced narrative in the third person, generous use of dialogue by the author and different characters belonging to different mindsets and locales make the story interesting and entertaining.

Besides, the author has managed to keep up the suspense till the end. The incident in the forge, with the ironmaster coming at midnight, hold our attention. While all the above events make the story interesting, there is also an element of philosophy in the story. One feels caught up like a rat in the entrappings of the world.

Some people fall into this trap never to come out of it again. The story teaches us that, as human beings, we are not above temptations. Question 15 : The story focuses on human loneliness and the need to bond with others. Answer : All the characters in the story suffer from loneliness and are dull souls. First of all, the tramp appears to lead a sad, monotonous existence, left to his own thinking.

He is always greeted by sour faces and cold words. Bereft of his wife and children, he lives all alone in a cottage by the roadside, and is rather happy to have visitors around.

He, with his daughter, are happy to play hosts for his friend.