Word Meaning, Summary, Important Questions Of Chapter 3 The Midnight Visitor | Class 10

Hindi Meaning Of Difficult Words | Chapter 3 The Midnight Visitor

About The Poet | Chapter 3 The Midnight Visitor

INTRODUCTION

The lesson gives a hint that looks and appearance may be deceptive. Efficiency and presence of mind does not depend on looks. Ausable was not at all match up with a general perception of a secret agent we heard of or seen in movies or magazines. He did not try to overpower his competitor. On the contrary he sat on the chair, with no sign of fear or anxiety. He defeated his rival agent by his sharp intellect. He took advantage of knowing at the door and convinced his enemy to hide himself. Max was not suspicious of his intentions, and entrapped in Ausable’s plan.

Short Summary Of Chapter 2 The Thief
In English

SUMMARY

Ausable was a secret agent but he did not look like that. He was very fat but not much tall. Still he was much alert in his mind. Ausable had a room on the sixth floor in a French hotel. Fowler was a writer. Ausable told him that he would get an important report that night. Fowler visited Ausable he wanted to learn about the life of a secret agent. He was a young writer. Ausable could comprehend that Flower has different perception for secret agent as he had seen in magazines and movies. Fowler was surprised to see a secret agent, Ausable who was too fat to be a secret agent. Ausable told him that he was going to get an important paper for which many men have risked their lives. Fowler saw Max who threatened. Fowler with a pistol demanding the report. Ausable handled Max cleverly. He told Max that he would complain to the hotel authorities about the balcony which should be closed immediately.

Then, there was a loud knocking at the door. Ausable smiled and told that was the police. Max got nervous. His face was black with anger. He asked Ausable to send the police back. In the meantime he would go and wait in the balcony. Max jumped into the balcony which was supposed be under the window. This was how Ausable got rid of Max.

TITLE JUSTIFICATION

TITLE JUSTIFICATION

The story ‘The Midnight Visitor’ revolves around the sudden intrusion of Max. He came to take away important papers from Ausable. Both were assigned the same task. However Ausable was smarter and made a fool of Max. Fowler, a writer came to understand the thrilling experience of a secret agent. He witnessed a moment which was least expected from there.

THEME

THEME

In this story, Ausable is a detective. Fowler is a writer who wants to write a book on detectives. But after meeting Ausable, Fowler is very disappointed as Ausable is a very man and he does not match any details that Fowler has fat read in the books about the detectives. When they reach at Ausable’s room, Fowler gets thrilled to find another person named Max inside the room with a gun in his hand. Max looks like a fox. Max comes there to take report about the missiles from him. Ausable deceives Max and tells him about the nuisance caused by the balcony near his window. Then Ausable tells that last month also someone entered through the balcony in his room. Max believes him and when someone knocks at the door, Ausable says that it might be police. Max gets frightened and he tries to hide behind the window but he falls down and cries loudly. There is no police at the door, but he is a waiter who fetches two glasses and a bottle of wine. Thus Max has fallen down from a room on the sixth floor.

MESSAGE

MESSAGE

The lesson gives a strong message to be calm and composed in difficult times. Ausable wasn’t prepared for sudden intrusion and mal intentions of Max, but when he learnt the truth; he took advantage of the situation and immediately made up his mind to overpower Max. Fowler was surprised at the outcome and really had a thrilling experience where a secret agent saved documents facing life threats. The danger of life did not deter him. 

CHARACTER SKETCH

CHARACTER SKETCH

1. Ausable

Ausable is the central and interesting character in the story. He is unlike other secret agents. He is a very fat man with American accent although he has been living in Paris for twenty years. He speaks French and

German passably. As his profession demands, he has a sharp and witty mind. He handles Max intelligently and overpowers him. Max falls into a prey to Ausable’s made up story. He is so convincing that Fowler couldn’t understand his tactfulness. Moreover, he never loses his presence of mind.

2. Max

Max is a secret agent other than Ausable. He tries to take away important documents from Ausable. The document is crucial because it carries information concerning some new missiles. He intrudes into Ausable’s room with a pass key. He is saddened to learn when Ausable frames a fake story about a balcony. He is thin, tall crafty and gullible. He is carrying a gun in his hand. However, he is duped by Ausable. He is easily fooled and gives up to tricks of Ausable. Max grows panicked when he learns that police is waiting outside to keep a check on the safety of documents. Unknowingly he jumps from the window.

3. Fowler

Fowler is a young and romantic writer who is looking for some excitement in the company of a secret agent like Ausable. Ausable is different than expected. He informs Ausable about the importance of documents he is carrying. When Fowler enters his room, he finds Max pointing out gun at them. Fowler’s looks at the window to which Ausable reveals about intrusion even before. Fowler is scared of intention of Max as he jumps at the sudden knocking at the door. He is involved and believed the made up story of Ausable. He is shocked and is stammering at the arrival of a waiter rather than police. He is still expecting Max from balcony and is in total shock about the fate of Max.

GLOSSARY

Musty-smelly:

Gloomy-sorrowful;

Let down- disappointed;

Setting-stand;

Accent- pronunciation;

Wheezily- with a wheezing sound;

Passably- reasonably:

Missiles- weapons;

Slender-slim;

Crafty-clever:

Manacing- terrifying:

 Authentic-genuine;

Wheezed- spoke breathing noisily and heavily:

Thrill-suspense;

Affect the course of history-change what happens;

Espionage-spying;

Sloopy-muddy:

Slipped- fallen;

Prosaic-flavorless;

Chuckled-laughed quietly;

 Envisioned-visualized;

White faced-pale from fear;

Shrilly- piercingly;

Deftly- dexterously;

Uncorked- unpacked;

Evilly-a bad manner;

Moodily- cheerlessly:

Passkey-a master key;

Grimly-gravely:

Explanatorily- explaining:

Block off-closed.

TYPE I: REFERENCE TO CONTEXT (VERY SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS)

TYPE II: SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS (30-40 WORDS EACH)

Answer the following questions:

1. Why was Fowler disappointed on meeting Ausable?

Ans. Fowler was a writer. When he had made an appointment with Ausable, he had hoped that a secret agent must be dealing in espionage and danger Fowler had imagined many adventures in the might Unfortunately, all that Fowler could meet was a fat man who looked least like a detective. The time that Fowler spent with Ausable was dull and boring until the entry of Max.

2. Why did Fowler visit Ausable? Why was he shocked?

Ans. Fowler was a writer and he had come to meet Ausable. His first authentic thrill of the day came when he saw a man in Ausable’s room pointing a pistol towards Ausable and him.

3. How was Ausable different from general perspective for detectives?

Ans. Secret agents are usually presented as well-built with a cigar and execute death-defying stunts. However, Ausable was an exception to this appearance of a secret agent. He confessed that Fowler must be disappointed after meeting him.

4. How successfully Ausable concocted a convincing story?

Ans. Ausable creates a detailed description of how his office was part a bigger apartment and how the next room had a direct connection with balcony. His statement that somebody else also broke into his office through that balcony earlier made it a convincing story. Ausable’s ability to think quickly and calmly in a situation of panic made it convincing.

5. ‘ White-faced, Fowler started after him. Why did Fowler’s face turn white?

Ans. Ausable made up a story of a balcony outside the room and as there was a knock at the door. He said that it would be the police. All these made Max desperate. He became restless and without seeing below, jumped out of the window. However, he was surprised to learn that it was just a waiter. Only then he realized that Ausable was very cool and composed even when he was framing a fake story.

6. “And as the light came on, Fowler had his first authentic thrill of the day”. Why was he thrilled?

Ans. He was thrilled because when Fowler entered Ausable’s room, they saw Max, another secret agent standing in the room with a pistol leveled at them. Ausable blinked a few time facing the danger as he could not expect Max to be there. Max was slender not tall, and with a face that suggested the look of a fox. Except for the gun, he did not look very dangerous, thus gave him his first authentic thrill. It happened unexpectedly to him.

7. Why had Fowler come to see Ausable?

Ans. Fowler was a young writer. He was full of inugination and he had wanted to meet Ausable, a renowned secret agent. Fowler wanted to know how Ausable tackled dangerous situation. He was disappointed when he saw Ausable, as he didn’t fit any description of a secret agent Fowler had ever read.

8. Describe Fowler’s reaction after entering Ausable’s hotel room.

Ans. Initially, Ausable got a shock to see Max in his room. But he remained calm. He sat on the chair and said that he was very angry with the hotel’s management. Max and Fowler listened to Ausable. Ausable tuned to the open window and said that he thought Mac had entered his room through the window.

9. What great qualities made Ausable a successful secret agent?

Ans. Ausable was a secret agent. He was a cool and active minded.

10. Why was Fowler disappointed in seeing Ausable?

Ans. Ausable did not look like a secret agent. He was fat and short. He was not like the other agents.

11. Why did Ausable frame the story of the balcony?

Ans. Ausable framed a story to get out of a dangerous situation. He knew the intentions of Max so he saved himself.

12. Why did Max enter Ausable’s room? How did he do so?

Ans. Max entered Ausable’s room to steal some report of new missile. He entered his room by using a pass key.

13. How do you know that Ausable was an intelligent secret agent?

Ans. Ausable was intelligent secret agent, as he could easily fabricate stories before his enemies and killed them without using weapons.

14. What was the most astonishing quality of Ausable?

Ans. When Max pointed a gun at Ausable, he remained calm and cool, and forced Max to believe him. He showed great presence of mind in a situation of danger and surprise.

15. Who actually had knocked at the door of Ausable’s room? Why did he come there?

Ans. The waiter had knocked at the door of Ausable’s room. He had brought the drinks which Ausable had ordered.

16. How does Ausable manage to make Max believe that there is a balcony attached to his room?

Ans. Ausable creates a detailed description of how his office was part of a bigger apartment and how the next door room had a direct connection with the balcony. His statement that somebody else had also broken into his office through that balcony made it a convincing story.

TYPE III: LONG ANSWER QUESTIONS (100-120 WORDS EACH)

Answer the following questions:

1. What great qualities made Ausable a successful secret agent?

Ans. Ausable is different from other secret agents in more than one way. He had a small room in the musty corridor of a gloomy French hotel. It was on the sixth and top floor and it was scarcely the setting for a romantic adventure. He was extremely fat. In spite of living in Paris for over twenty years, he spoke French and German with difficulty and had an American accent. Instead of getting messages passed secretly to him by beautiful girls, he t only a routine telephone call making an appointment. In these ways, he was different from the conventional notion of a secret agent.

He dealt with Max by inventing some false stories and convincing Max to act on them, so that he could get rid of Max permanently.

2. Why did Ausable feel that Fowler had been ‘bored”?

Ans. Ausable knew the fact that Fowler might have a different perspective for secret agent. The detectives are presented as smart, surrounded by back eyed beauties. They must get secret messages, taking risk of their lives. Whereas, Ausable’s appearance is just opposite to the general perspective. He lived in gloomy French hotel which is scarcely in accordance to the romantic adventure. His accent was American was dumpily dressed. He received a telephone call for appointment. Thus Ausable was breaking the illusion of a glamorous and adventurous as presented on the movies.

Yet he assured him that he did everything that was expected from a secret agent.

3. What was the reaction of Ausable when he found Max in his room? What was the motive of Max?

Ans. When Ausable entered the room with Fowler, he found Max standing there. He came with a small automatic pistol in his hand. Fowler was shocked to see the encroacher, whereas Ausable remained calm and composed. He told Max that he was shocked to see him there as he was expecting Max to be in Berlin.

Max declared his intentions and assured that he came to take secret report regarding missiles. Ausable was unmoved and concocted a false story about the balcony and altruisms in his room. He presented the story with so much of conviction that Max fell a prey to it and was trapped.

4. What information did Ausable give about the imaginary balcony? Why did he do so?

Ans. Ausable was a clever agent. Once, when he entered his room, he found Max was in his room. He framed a story about the balcony which did not exist. After sometime there was a knock at the door and Ausable said that he had called the police to have an extra protection. Max took the whole story as a gospel of truth. He reached to window sill and jumped down the balcony which never existed.

5. Ausable was a clever secret agent. Do you agree with the statement? Justify your answer.

Ans. Ausable was a smart, intelligent, cool and sharp mind person but he was very fat and short. He spoke with an American accent but he could speak German and French. He was quick witted and had a great presence of mind, as he was able to frame a fake story – A police story and the balcony story to befool Max The story was so convincing that Max believed that the balcony actually existed and he jumped out of it Thus, Ausable showed that he was quit dangerous for other agents.

6. What fake story was made by Ausable in the hotel room? What made it a convincing story?

Ans. Ausable was a clever secret agent. One day he was visited by a writer that was eager to learn about his life. When he entered his room, he found Max in his room who aimed at him with a pistol. Ausable didn’t lose his courage as he was a quick witted man. He fabricated a story about a balcony which extended under his room window. Just then there was a knocking at the door and Ausable said that he had called the police to have extra protection as they were having an important paper with them. Max took the whole story as a gospel of truth. He retraced his steps, reached the window- sill and jumped down the balcony which never existed.

QUESTIONS FOR PRACTICE

1. How did Max get into Ausable’s room?
2. Why did the writer visit the secret agent?
3. How fishy is the story of the balcony?
4. Describe the role played by the imaginary balcony in getting rid of Max.
5. Ausable proved himself to be a real secret agent’. Justify.

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