Television by Roald Dahl: Question and Answers RTCs

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Question and Answers RTCs

Q1 Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.

They sit and stare and stare and sit

Until they're hypnotised by it,

Until they're absolutely drunk

With all that shocking ghastly junk.

i. Who are 'they'? Why does the poet use the verbs 'sit' and 'stare' twice in the first line?

The term 'they' is used by the poet to refer to those children who are always sitting and watching television.

The reason for repeating the words 'sit' and 'stare' is to emphasize the fact that their activity is limited to simply looking at the screen and nothing else. The poet wishes to drive home the message that watching television is a completely passive activity.

ii. What are 'they' being hypnotized by? How?

According to the poet, children are being hypnotized by television.

The children are hypnotised because the television offers them readymade images which they can simply just keep looking at. The poet believes that television only has junk in it and nothing of real value

iii. What other ill-effects of watching television does the poet highlight in the poem?

According to the poet, watching television kills children's imagination and makes them dull. They lose the ability to dream of fantastic things like fairylands. Further, it robs them of their ability to think and makes their brain rusty.

iv. According to the poem, is such behaviour limited to a few people? Justify your answer.

No, the poet believes that most children are affected with this problem.

He claims that he has observed an addiction to television in almost every house he has been to. He even claims, hyperbolically, that he found a dozen eyeballs on the floor once, highlighting that not only are the number of people watching television high but even the amount of time spent in front of the screen is excessive

v. What is the tone of the poet in these lines? Which expressions used for television throughout the poem convey this tone? 

The tone of the poet in these lines is that of annoyance.

The use of terms such as 'the idiotic thing', 'this monster' and 'ridiculous machine', and also the description of television as 'nauseating", "foul', 'unclean' and 'repulsive' underscore his tone.

Q 2. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.

All right!' you'll cry. "All right!' you'll say,

'But if we take the set away,

What shall we do to entertain

Our darling children? Please explain!"

i. Who are the speakers? Why do they want to keep the set?

The speakers in these lines are the parents of the children watching television.

They want to keep the set because it keeps their children entertained and occupied. Because of television, children do not climb window sills or fight with each other. Parents can easily finish household chores like cooking and cleaning dishes.

ii. What does the poet suggest they do instead?

The poet suggests that instead of using television as a to keep children occupied, parents should throw it away. He pleads with parents to install a bookshelf in the place of the television and fill it with a variety of books.

iii. How, according to the poet, is his suggestion better than keeping the set? The poet believes that having a bookshelf filled with different books will help develop a reading habit among children. This in turn will help children use their imagination and interact with stories rather than sit and simply stare at a screen. He believes that reading books will send the children on adventures, taking them to different places. It will also expose them to a wide range of characters, both real and imaginary. Thus, reading will hone children's sense of wonder, and they will not be limited by the readymade visuals on a TV.

iv. According to the poet, will the children like the change? How would they react to the change? Eventually, what will the children's attitude be? 

No, the poet understands that initially the children would dislike the idea of their television set being replaced by books.

They might give their parents dirty looks, and even get violent and kick, scream and sulk.

However, once they are bored, the poet believes that they will turn to the books and realize that the adventures and stories that they experience through these books are far superior to the mindless junk they wereseeing on screen. The children would eventually thank and love their parents even more for making them recognize the joys of reading a book.

v. Which figure of speech has been used in the first line of the stanza? Give two other instances of the same figure of speech from the poem. Explain its impact on the poem.

The poet has used repetition where the expression 'All right!" has been used twice in the same line.

Two other examples of repetition in the poem are:

Is never, NEVER, NEVER let Them near your television set

THEY USED... TO... READ! They'd READ and READ

The multiple instances of repetition in the poem help emphasise the poet's opinion about the dangers of watching television and the benefits of reading.

Q3. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.

We'll answer this by asking you,

"What used the darling ones to do?

"How used they keep themselves contented

Before this monster was invented?'

i. How, according to the poet, did the 'darlings' keep themselves "contented" in the past? 

Before the television was invented, the 'darlings' or children used to regularly read books and go on imaginary adventures to keep themselves 'contented'. They would be surrounded by books of all kinds and would spend half their lives reading.

ii. Which famous children's authors has the poet referred to in the poem? Name any three stories by these authors mentioned in the poem.

In the poem, the poet reminisces about famous children's authors like Beatrix Potter, Rudyard Kipling and Kenneth Grahame.

Some of the stories mentioned by the poet include The Tale of Mr. Tod', 'How the Camel Got its Hump' and 'How the Monkey lost its Rump'.

iii. What were the benefits of reading these stories? 

Such stories, according to the poet, helped children use their minds by creating imaginary worlds and friends. They could go on many adventures and quests where they would fight several pirates and other-worldly creatures. By reading these stories, they could also travel to places they otherwise would never have visited.

iv. The poet has appealed to parents several times in the poem. List the poet's recommendations and pleas.

Right at the beginning of the poem, the poet shares his experience and strongly recommends that children be kept away from television. He goes on to say that the ideal situation would be to not have a television in the house at all. Later in the poem, he begs parents to throw their television set away and use the space for a bookshelf.

v. Do you agree with the poet's high praise of reading and his criticism of television? Why/Why not?

The poet is partly correct in stating that reading helps children develop their sense of wonder and imagination. It is not a passive activity like watching television. However, this does not mean that television always harms children and their sense of wonder. Watching television in moderation is not as harmful as the poet says. Television can be used in a positive manner by enhancing a child's knowledge of things that may not be clear through words or static pictures.

Q4. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.

And once they start-oh boy, oh boy! You watch the slowly growing joy That fills their hearts. They'll grow so keen They'll wonder what they'd ever seen In that ridiculous machine

i. What will they start? How will it give them joy?

Once the television set is thrown out children would eventually start picking up books from the bookshelf and reading them.

According to the poet, by doing this they will realize the power of reading. Reading books will introduce them to new joys like going on imaginary adventures and learning about new people and places.

ii. What assurance does the poet give to parents?

The poet assures parents that children will eventually stop rebelling after the television is thrown out of their homes. They will soon wonder why they liked television in the first place and will love their parents for replacing the television with books.

iii. Do you agree with the poet's assurance? Why/Why not?

 No, I do not entirely agree with the poet that the children will eventually never want to watch television.

The poet might be using hyperbole to get his point across in this poem as this may not be something that might occur in the real world. Even though children might enjoy reading, they may not always want to opt for that over television. Like adults, different children have different perspectives and interests. While some might completely forget television, others might still prefer animated visuals over the written word.

iv. What is the main theme of the poem according to you?

The main theme of the poem is essentially how children are being harmed by television. The poet has listed several disadvantages of watching television, such as how it fills children's minds with worthless things and how it robs them of their imagination. The theme comes out most strongly in the lines from the poem where Dahl has used all capital letters to spell out the dangers of watching television.

v. How has the poet given the poem a humorous touch?

The whole poem appears humorous primarily because of the use of exaggeration. For instance, the poet claims to have seen a dozen eyeballs on the floor of a house. Similarly, he has used expressions like 'absolutely drunk' to describe the impact of television on children. The use of all capital letters at several places also contributes to the exaggeration in the poem. As a result, even though the poem carries a serious message, it does not sound preachy.

Television by Roald Dahl :-

1. Question and Answers RTCs: http://novakidhs.blogspot.com/2022/03/television-by-roald-dahl-question-and.html

2. Context and Summary: http://novakidhs.blogspot.com/2022/03/television-by-roald-dahl-context-and.html

3. Themes, Setting, Form and Structure: http://novakidhs.blogspot.com/2022/03/television-key-themes-roald-dahl.html

4. Literary Devices and Literary Style (Figures of Speech): http://novakidhs.blogspot.com/2022/03/television-by-roald-dahl-figures-of.html