NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English Chapter 16 - The Bond of Love

Answer:

1. An Orphaned Cub $\to$ Para 3 (Page 113-114)
2. Bruno’s Food-chart $\to$ Para 6 (Page 114)
3. An Accidental Case of Poisoning $\to$ Para 8 (Page 114)
4. Pain of Separation $\to$ Para 14 (Page 116)
5. Joy of Reunion $\to$ Para 16 (Page 116)
6. A Request to the Zoo $\to$ Para 18 (Page 117)
7. An Island in the Courtyard $\to$ Para 21 (Page 118)

Answer:

1. The author says these words.
2. ‘Him’ refers to the bear cub. ‘Her’ refers to the writer’s wife.
3. The writer had brought a baby bear as a gift for his wife.

Answer:

1. ‘He’ refers to the bear.
2. He was delighted to see the writer’s wife.

Answer:

1. The writer and his son.
2. They missed Baba, the bear.
3. The bear had become too big to keep at home. They had to take great care of him. So they felt relieved when the bear was sent to the Mysore zoo.

Answer:

The author had put some barium carbonate in his library. It was meant to kill the rats that had got into his library. One day, Bruno entered the library and ate some of it. His legs got paralysed. He could not stand on his feet. A vet had to be called in. Luckily, the vet came in time and Bruno was saved. On another occasion, he drank a lot of old engine oil. The author had kept it to use against termites. Luckily this time, there was no ill effect. Bruno remained as healthy as ever.

Answer:

Bruno was really very loving and playful. But he had grown very big in size. He had to be kept chained.
The tenant’s children were afraid of him. So it was decided to send him to a zoo.

Answer:

Bruno was brought back from the zoo. A special island was made for him in the writer’s compound.
A dry pit was built around it. A wooden box was placed on the island. Bruno could sleep in this box. Straw was placed inside the box to keep him warm.

Answer:

The writer had put some barium carbonate in his library. It was meant to kill the rats. Bruno ate some of it. He got paralysis. The writer at once took him to a vet. The vet gave the bear 10 c.c. of an antidote. It did not work. Now the doctor gave him another 10 c.c. After about forty minutes, the bear got up. He had a big feed.

Answer:

It shows that the bear was a very gentle animal. He was not wild at all. He was affectionate and friendly.
He loved both men and animals.

Answer:

The author’s wife remained very sad when Bruno was sent off to the zoo. She would keep weeping.
For the first few days, she would not eat anything. Bruno also remained sad in the zoo. He would shout angrily and refuse to eat. He grew very thin.

Answer:

The writer’s wife loved Bruno deeply. She felt very sad without him. So, she got Bruno back from the zoo. A special home was made for him. Bruno could sleep there in a box at night. Straw was placed inside the box to keep him warm. Some playthings were also kept there. Thus Bruno became very special.

Answer:

Animals are in many ways much better than men. Their love is totally pure and unselfish. They are the truest friends. That is why animals give pure pleasure to human beings. It is proved from the bond of love that the bear and the writer’s wife have for each other. When the bear is sent away to the zoo, both of them remain sad for each other. Both of them refuse to have food. And they feel happy when they meet each other at the zoo after three months. And when it is ‘closing time’ of the zoo, both of them cry bitterly. We can imagine their pleasure when she is with the bear. She keeps sitting for hours with the bear on her lap.

Answer:

Love can never be one-sided. It is always mutual. It can be between man and man, between man and animal and between animal and animal. The bond of love between the bear and the writer’s wife (in ‘The Bond of Love’) is also mutual. Both of them love each other dearly. When the bear is sent away to the zoo, both of them remain sad for each other. Both of them refuse to have food. But how happy they feel when they meet each other at the zoo after three months ! And when it is ‘closing time’ at the zoo, both of them cry bitterly. This mutual bond of love is clearly seen when the writer’s wife keeps sitting for hours on the island with the bear on her lap.

Answer:

Love is a feeling that is common both to men and animals. Animals feel as much pleasure in love as men feel. They feel the pangs of separation as acutely as men do. This becomes clear from the bond of love between the bear and the writer’s wife. When the bear is living at the writer’s house, he is very happy. He grows in his size and height. But when he is sent away to the zoo, he remains sad and refuses to eat. He becomes very thin. But when he sees the writer’s wife, he howls with joy. And when it is ‘closing time’, he cries as bitterly as the writer’s wife. All this shows that animals also feel the pleasure of love and the pain of separation.

Answer:

There are a number of instances to show that the mother is more attached to Bruno than the other members of the family. It is the mother who gives the bear the name of Bruno and then of Baba. It is she who is most unhappy when the bear is sent away to the Mysore zoo. She misses Baba more than anyone else. At the zoo, she doesn’t leave the bear’s cage for three hours. She feeds him with a number of things she has brought with her. And at the closing time, she weeps bitterly while her husband remains calm. She asks the curator if she can take her Baba back home. She pleads with the superintendent tearfully. She doesn’t rest till her Baba has been brought home. And then on the island, she spends many hours with the bear on her lap. All this shows how deeply the mother is attached to the bear.