Chapter 7
The Invention of Vita-Wonk
Question:1 How did the author describe Mr Gessler’s shop and its atmosphere?
Answer: The shop had a certain quiet distinction. There was no sign upon it other than the name of Gessler Brothers; and in the window a few pairs of boots. One went in, not as into most shops, but restfully, as one enters a church, and sitting on the single wooden chair, waited.
Question:2 How did Mr Gessler respond when asked if making boots was difficult?
Answer: When the author shyly asked, "Isn't it awfully hard to do, Mr Gessler?" he smiled and said, "Id is an ardt!"
Question:3 What did the author notice about the longevity of Mr Gessler’s boots?
Answer: His boots lasted terribly, having something beyond the temporary, some essence of boot stitched into them.
Question:4 How did Mr Gessler treat the leather he used for making boots?
Answer: He would hold a piece of leather in his hand, remark, "What a beaudiful biece!" and study it with eyes fixed before asking when the author wanted the boots.
Question:5 What was Mr Gessler’s reaction when a pair of boots creaked?
Answer: He looked at the author without replying, said, "Id shouldn'd'ave greaked," and when told they got wet, he lowered his eyes and said, "Zend dem back, I will look at dem. Zome boods are bad from birdt. If I can do noding wid dem I take dem off your bill."
Question:6 How did Mr Gessler express his frustration with big firms?
Answer: He said, "Id gomes to dis-bresently I haf no work. Every year id gets less... Dose big virms 'ave no self-respect."
Question:7 How did the author feel about the boots he received after Mr Gessler’s warnings?
Answer: He ordered many pairs, and they lasted longer than ever. He admired their shape, fit, finish, and quality of leather.
Question:8 What happened when the author returned to London after some time?
Answer: He found that Mr Gessler had died. The shop was taken over by a young man with an English face.
Question:9 How did Mr Gessler live and manage his trade according to the observer?
Answer: He starved himself, never gave himself time to eat, let his fire go out, and spent everything on rent and leather. Yet he made the best boots in London.
Question:10 What lesson can we learn about Mr Gessler’s attitude towards his art?
Answer: He devoted his life to his art, taking pride and care in his work, valuing quality over profit, and showing dedication and patience that made him a true artist.
Question:11 How did Nishad and Maya first get to see Mr Nath?
Answer: Nishad’s marble rolled into Mr Nath’s room, and when he went to retrieve it, he saw Mr Nath.
Question:12 What did Nishad notice about Mr Nath’s appearance?
Answer: Mr Nath was very thin, with scars on his face, and looked lonely and perhaps starving.
Question:13 How did Maya and Nishad discuss whether Mr Nath was a criminal?
Answer: Maya suspected he was a crook and that he might have hidden wealth, while Nishad doubted it, noting that Mr Nath was polite and had no reason to be starving.
Question:14 What did Nishad find out from Ramesh about Mr Nath’s meals?
Answer: Ramesh said he took two meals for Mr Nath every morning and evening, two cups of tea, and that Mr Nath paid cash and tipped well.
Question:15 What was strange about Mr Nath’s Sundays according to Nishad?
Answer: Almost every Sunday, he had a visitor—a tall, fair, stout man with spectacles who talked a lot—while Mr Nath hardly spoke.
Question:16 What facts did Maya list to try and trap Mr Nath?
Answer: She listed nine facts, including his name, the tenants’ opinion of him, his mannerless behavior, no letters, living in Room 10 for over a year, not working, being feared, having one visitor on Sundays, and meals being delivered by Ramesh.
Question:17 How did Nishad react to Maya’s idea that Mr Nath was a crook?
Answer: Nishad argued that Mr Nath could not be such a bad man because he gave Ramesh generous tips and seemed ordinary, but Maya insisted on investigating.
Question:18 What motivated Nishad to learn more about Mr Nath despite Maya’s suspicions?
Answer: He wanted to know why Mr Nath was so thin, lonely, and friendless, and he liked him and wanted to try to be his friend.
Question:19 How did the children plan to sort out their investigation?
Answer: Maya suggested they sort out all the facts systematically like expert detectives to trap the crook.
Question:20 What was the main difference in approach between Maya and Nishad regarding Mr Nath?
Answer: Maya suspected him and wanted to investigate with the mindset of catching a crook, while Nishad wanted to understand and befriend him.
Question:21 What problem did Mr Willy Wonka face with Wonka-Vite?
Answer: Wonka-Vite made people younger too much, sometimes causing them to disappear because their age became a negative number, like minus eighty-seven.
Question:22 What two questions did Mr Wonka ask himself before inventing the new potion?
Answer: (i) What is the oldest living thing in the world? (ii) What lives longer than anything else?
Question:23 How did Mr Wonka collect ingredients for his new invention?
Answer: He tracked down very old animals and collected tiny bits from them—like hair, eyebrow, jam from between toes, tail, whiskers, teeth, or knucklebones.
Question:24 Name some of the oldest living things Mr Wonka used.
Answer: Bristlecone pine over 4000 years old, 168-year-old farmer Petrovitch Russian Gregorovitch’s toenail clippings, 200-year-old tortoise’s egg, 36-year-old cat Crumpets’ whiskers, 207-year-old giant rat’s tail from Tibet, 97-year-old Grimalkin’s black teeth.
Question:25 What happened to the volunteer who swallowed four drops of Vita-Wonk?
Answer: He began wrinkling and shrivelling up, hair and teeth fell out, and he became an old fellow of seventy-five.
Question:26 How does Mr Wonka describe the process of invention?
Answer: He rolled up his sleeves, squeezed his brain searching for a new recipe, tracked down ancient things, boiled, bubbled, mixed, and tested until he produced the invention.
Question:27 What is the purpose of Vita-Wonk?
Answer: Vita-Wonk makes people old, old, older, oldest—opposite of Wonka-Vite which made people younger.
Question:28 Why does Mr Wonka take items from the oldest living things?
Answer: He believes that something from the oldest things in the world can help him create a potion that produces aging reliably.
Question:29 How does Mr Wonka explain minus ages?
Answer: If someone’s age becomes a negative number, like minus eighty-seven, it means they must wait that many years before returning to normal life.
Question:30 Which trees did Mr Wonka mention, and which lives the longest?
Answer: Douglas fir, oak, cedar, pine, and the Bristlecone pine, which lives over 4000 years on Wheeler Peak in Nevada, U.S.A.
Question:31 What problem arose with the cat in the poem?
Answer: The cat climbed too high in the tree and couldn’t come down without help.
Question:32 How did Dad react when he saw the cat stuck?
Answer: He confidently said, "Right, just leave it to me," claiming that climbing the tree would be child’s play.
Question:33 Describe Plan A attempted by Dad. What was its outcome?
Answer: He got out the ladder from the garden shed, but it slipped, and he landed in the flower bed.
Question:34 What happened during Plan B?
Answer: He swung himself up on a branch, but it broke, and he landed wallop back on the deck.
Question:35 How did Dad execute Plan C successfully?
Answer: He climbed the garden wall, leapt into the crook of the tree trunk, landed on the cat, saving it, while he himself remained stuck up the tree.
Question:36 How is the cat described after being rescued?
Answer: The cat sprang to the ground, pleased as Punch to be safe and sound, smiling and smug.
Question:37 Which phrases in the poem indicate Dad’s overconfidence?
Answer: "Fall? Child’s play," "Funny joke," "Rubbish!" and "Easy as winking to a climber like me!"
Question:38 What lesson can we learn from Dad’s attempt to rescue the cat?
Answer: Overconfidence can lead to repeated failure, but careful action—like Plan C—can succeed even after many mistakes.
Question:39 How does the poem create humor?
Answer: By showing Dad’s repeated failures, his boastful self-confidence, and the cat’s calm, happy reaction compared to Dad being stuck in the tree.
Question:40 How does the poem end?
Answer: The cat is safe on the ground, smiling and smug, while poor Dad is still stuck up the tree, showing a humorous contrast between success and failure.
Answer by Mrinmoee
