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The Black Spot - Notes

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692 views

The Black Spot - Notes

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Ranger
Copyright
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THE BLACK SPOT

- by RL Stevenson
I. New words:
1.distress 2. clambered 3. deformed 4. sneered 5.wrench
6.peculiar 7. accuracy 8. mortal 9. twitch 10. cutlass
11.deposition 12. apoplexy 13.nimbleness 14. vise 15. reeled

2. Word meanings:

1. Distress – extreme anxiety, sorrow or pain.

2. Wrench – a sudden violent twist or pull.

3. Twitch – give or cause to give a short, sudden jerking movement

4. Accuracy – the quality or state of being correct or precise.

5. Deformed – (of a person or part of the body) not having the normal or natural shape or form.

A1. Answer these questions.

1. Why did the narrator scarcely get time to think of the captain?
The narrator didn't have time to think about the captain because of the death of his father.
2. How would the captain spend his time after the stroke?
After the stroke the captain spent his time walking up and down stairs, putting his nose
outside to sniff the sea while breathing hard. His temper was more violent, and he drew his
sword alarmingly, keeping it bare on the table.
3. What did the blind beggar say he would do to the narrator if the
latter didn't take him to the captain?
The blind beggar said he would break the narrator's arm if he didn't take him to the captain.
4. What was drawn and written on the card? How did the captain react upon
reading the card?
The card had a big black spot drawn on it and on the other side was a message that said,
"Ten o'clock'. The captain reacted by swaying, and then falling face foremost to the floor. He
had been struck dead.
5. It was the second death I had known, and the sorrow of the first was still fresh in
my heart. Whose deaths is the narrator talking about? Why was the sorrow of
the first death still fresh in the narrator's heart?
The narrator is talking about the death of his father, which was the first death. The second
death is the death of the captain. The sorrow of the first death is still fresh for the narrator
because hardly any time has passed between the two deaths.

A2. Answer these questions with reference to the context.


1. He got downstairs next morning and had his meals as usual, though he ate little.
a. Who is the speaker?
The speaker is the narrator.
b. Who is 'he mentioned ' in the above sentence?
The 'he' mentioned in the sentence is the captain
c. Why did he eat little? What had happened to him?
He ate little because he had had a stroke.

2. I was standing at the door for a moment, full of sad thoughts about my father,
when I saw someone drawing slowly near along the road.
a. Why was the speaker full of sad thoughts about his father?
The speaker is full of sad thoughts about his father because the death of his father is very
recent
b. Where was the speaker when the above incident occurred?
The speaker was standing at the door of the Admiral Benbow, Black Hill Cove
c. Describe the person who was drawing slowly near along the road.
The person approaching was blind since he tapped before him with a stick and had covered
his eyes and nose with a green shade. He was hunched and wore a huge, hooded and torn
sea-cloak. The effect of the hood was to make him look deformed.

3. Lead me straight up to him, and when I'm in view, cry out, 'Here's a friend for you,
Bill.'
a. Who said these words and to whom?
These words were spoken by the beggar to the narrator
b. Who was 'Bill'?
'Bill' was the captain.
c. What would the speaker have done if he were not taken to Bill?
The speaker would have broken the narrator's arm if he were not taken to Bill.

A3. Think and answer.

1. Why do you think all colour went out of the captain's face the moment he saw
the blind beggar?
The colour went out of the captain's face when he saw the blind beggar because he knew who
he was and why he had come. His fears were proved correct when the beggar handed him the
card with the big black spot on it.

2. Why do you think the narrator burst into a flood of tears when the captain died?
The narrator burst into tears when the captain died because he had begun to feel pity for him
because of his stroke and also because it was the second death he had to deal with very soon
after the death of his father.

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