Chapter 9

The Bond of Love

Question 1:
Given in the box are some headings. Find the relevant paragraphs in the text to match the headings.

Headings and their matching paragraphs from the chapter “The Bond of Love”:

  1. An Orphaned Cub – The cub was found by the narrator in the sugarcane fields after its mother was killed.

  2. Bruno’s Food-chart – A detailed list of what Bruno liked to eat is given, including milk, rice, eggs, fruit, etc.

  3. An Accidental Case of Poisoning – Bruno mistakenly consumed poison meant for rats and later motor engine oil.

  4. Playful Baba – Bruno, also called Baba, was extremely playful and mischievous around the house.

  5. Pain of Separation – When Bruno was sent to the zoo, the narrator’s wife suffered deeply due to the separation.

  6. Joy of Reunion – The emotional moment when Bruno recognized and embraced the narrator’s wife at the zoo.

  7. A Request to the Zoo – The narrator’s wife wrote to the zoo authorities requesting Bruno’s return.

  8. An Island in the Courtyard – A special island was constructed in the courtyard for Bruno after his return.

Question 1.

“I got him for her by accident.”

Who says this?
— This line is spoken by the author.

Who do ‘him’ and ‘her’ refer to?
— ‘Him’ refers to the little sloth bear cub, and ‘her’ refers to the author’s wife.

What is the incident referred to here?
— The author found the bear cub when its mother was accidentally killed during a hunt. He brought the cub home and gifted it to his wife.

Question 2.

“He stood on his head in delight.”

Who does ‘he’ refer to?
— ‘He’ refers to the bear, Bruno (later called Baba).

Why was he delighted?
— He was overjoyed to see the narrator’s wife during her visit to the zoo after a long separation.

Question 3.

“We all missed him greatly: but in a sense we were relieved.”

Who does ‘we all’ stand for?
— ‘We all’ includes the author, his wife, and their son.

Who did they miss?
— They missed their pet bear, Bruno.

Why did they nevertheless feel relieved?
— Even though they missed him, they were somewhat relieved because Bruno had grown too big and was becoming difficult to manage safely at home.

Question 1.
On two occasions Bruno ate/drank something that should not be eaten/ drunk. What happened to him on these occasions?

Answer:
Bruno once ate Barium Carbonate meant to kill rats, which led to partial paralysis, making him unable to move properly. On another occasion, he drank a whole gallon of engine oil, but surprisingly, it caused him no harm at all.

Question 2.
Was Bruno a loving and playful pet? Why, then, did he have to be sent away?

Answer:
Bruno was a gentle and affectionate pet who enjoyed playing with the family and other animals. However, as he grew larger in size, it became difficult to manage him at home. Hence, he was sent to a zoo for everyone’s safety and comfort.

Question 3.
How was the problem of what to do with Bruno finally solved?

Answer:
Bruno became unhappy and weak at the zoo due to homesickness. Seeing his condition, the narrator’s wife decided to bring him back. With permission from the authorities and proper arrangements at home, Bruno was finally brought back and housed safely.

Question 1.

“I got him for her by accident.”

Who says this?
→ This line is spoken by the author.

Who do ‘him’ and ‘her’ refer to?
→ ‘Him’ refers to the baby sloth bear, and ‘her’ refers to the author's wife.

What is the incident referred to here?
→ The author is talking about how he unexpectedly caught the baby bear during a visit to the sugarcane fields after the mother bear was killed.

Question 2.

“He stood on his head in delight.”

Who does ‘he’ refer to?
→ ‘He’ refers to the pet bear, Bruno (also called Baba later).

Why was he delighted?
→ He was overjoyed on seeing the author's wife again after being away from her for a while at the zoo.

Question 3.

“We all missed him greatly: but in a sense we were relieved.”

Who does ‘we all’ stand for?
→ The phrase refers to the author, his wife, and other members of the family.

Who did they miss?
→ They missed their pet bear, Bruno (Baba).

Why did they nevertheless feel relieved?
→ Although they loved Bruno, they were somewhat relieved because taking care of a grown bear at home had become difficult.

Spellings with ‘ie’ or ‘ei’

Question 1.
Words from the lesson with ‘ie’ or ‘ei’:
→ field, ingredients, height, mischievous, friends, eighty-seven, relieved, piece.

Question 2.
Complete with ‘ie’ or ‘ei’:
→ believe, receive, weird, leisure, seize, weight, reign, feign, grief, pierce.

Rule check:
The common rule is "i before e except after c", but it doesn’t apply to all words.

  • It works for: believe, grief, pierce.

  • But it doesn’t apply to: receive, seize, weird, etc.

Question 3.
Words with silent letters (with silent letters underlined):
→ knowledge (k), honest (h), autumn (n), write (w), gnaw (g), lamb (b), could (l), wrist (w), whole (w), doubt (b)