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In this story, “The Thief Story”, written by the famous author Ruskin Bond, there is a thief by the name of Hari Singh. One day, he went to a wrestling match where he met Anil, a writer, and asked him for employment. They started living in the same house and Hari used to bring stuff from the money that Anil gave him. In one such incident, Hari became greedy and stole the money that Anil earned from his write-up. He ran away with the money only to realize later how wrong he was to betray Anil’s trust. Therefore, he came back to Anil’s place and returned the money to the same place. Since then he decided to walk on the path of righteousness and become a true gentleman.
Question 1:
Who does ‘I’ refer to in this story ?
Answer:
‘I’ in this story is Hari Singh, the thief.
Question 2:
What is he ‘a fairly successful hand’ at ?
Answer:
He is a fairly successful hand at stealing.
Question 3:
What does he get from Anil in return for his work ?
Answer:
He does not get any wages from Anil in return for his work. He gets only meals. He usually makes a profit of about a rupee a day in buying the day’s supplies.
Question 4:
How does the thief think Anil will react to the theft ?
Answer:
Anil is a trusting person. He had trusted the thief completely. But the thief had robbed him. Hari feels that the discovery of theft will make Anil a little sad. It will be not for the loss of money, but for the loss of trust.
Question 5:
What does he say about the different reactions of people when they are robbed ?
Answer:
The thief says that the different types of people show different reactions when they are robbed. The greedy ones show fear. The rich people show anger. And the poor ones accept their loss calmly.
Question 6:
Does Anil realise that he has been robbed ?
Answer:
Yes, Anil does realise that he has been robbed. When he sees his bundle of notes, he finds it wet. He knows that it was raining at night. And someone has taken out the bundle in the rain.
Question 7:
What are Hari Singh’s reactions to the prospect of receiving an education ? Do they change over time ? What makes him return to Anil ?
Answer:
Anil starts teaching Hari Singh. He tells him that he will teach him writing whole sentences and to add numbers. Hari Singh thinks he can become a big man if he becomes educated. Then there can be no end to his achievements. He can win respect also. But when he sees the bundle of notes, he forgets all about education. He steals the money and runs away with it. He goes to the railway station but misses the train. He walks to a park and sits down on a bench. He begins to repent for what he has done. He realises that he could learn to read and write if he continued living with Anil. These thoughts lead him to come back to Anil.
Question 8:
Why does Anil not hand the thief over to the police ? Do you think most people would have done so ? In what ways is Anil different from such employers ?
Answer:
Anil knows if he hands the thief over to the police, they will beat the thief. They will send him to prison. It will fill the thief ’s heart with bitterness. He will lose faith in goodness. He will become a hardened criminal. Most people are not so noble as Anil has been shown to be. They would have certainly handed the thief over to the police. But Anil is much different from them. He knows the thief ’s intentions from the very beginning. But he wants to transform him into a good human being. That is why he starts teaching him. He not only forgives him but also keeps him with him even after the thief ’s betrayal.