Lesson – 4: The Pedestrian

Multiple Choice Questions:

(i)a (ii) a (iii) c (iv) c (v) d (vi)c (vii) b (viii) b (ix) c (x) b (xi) a (xii) c (xiii) a
(xiv) a (xv) d
Extract 1
(i) Why was there complete silence on the city streets at 8 o’clock in the evening?
Who was the lone traveller, who entered into ‘that silence’? Why was he there at that
time?
There was complete silence because all the people were inside their homes, watching
different types of programmes on the television.
The lone traveller was Mr. Leonard Mead, a pedestrian.
He had been walking the city streets every night alone for the last ten years.

(ii) Who was Leonard Mead? What did he love dearly? For how long he had been
pursuing what he loved dearly?
Leonard Mead was a resident of an unnamed city in the middle of the 21st century in 2053
A.D and a writer by profession.
He loved to put his feet upon the buckling concrete walk, step over grassy seams and make
his way, through the silences with hands in his pockets.
He had been pursuing this lonely walk at night for the last 10 years.

(iii) What is meant by ‘it really made no difference’? What is suggested about
Leonard Mead by this sentence?
‘It really made no difference’ because Mead used to walk along the road which did not
have any traffic & he was all alone there.
It suggests that Mead had become so used to living all alone & taking the lonely walk at
night for the last 10 years that it did not bother him whether there was anyone else or not.

(iv) Why is he described as ‘alone in this world of A.D. 2053’?

He is described as ‘alone in this world of A.D. 2053’ because all the other people used to
remain indoors, glued to their television sets, and he was the only person who was outside.

(v) What is suggested by the phrases ‘final decision made’ and ‘path selected’? What
do these phrases tell about Leonard Mead?
Mead would stand upon the corner of an intersection and peer down long moonlit avenues
of sidewalk in four directions deciding which way to go.The phrases ‘final decision made’
and ‘path selected’ suggest that Mead had made his decision and had selected which way
he would walk that day.
It shows that Mead was at ease with himself, alone and walking in the direction he felt
like going. The above phrases indicate that Mead was a non- conformist, decisive and
individualistic man.

Extract 2
(i) Why does Mead make a deliberate attempt not to produce any sound while
walking?
Mead made a deliberate attempt not to produce any sound while walking by wearing
sneakers because he knew that he was defying the norms of the society by being on the
road when everybody else was indoors and so he wanted to protect himself from being
discovered or chased by dogs. The dogs would bark at him at intervals if he wore hard
heels. People on an entire street would be startled by the passing of a lone figure and might
click on lights and look outside.
(ii) Why does Leonard Mead start wearing sneakers instead of hard heels while
strolling at night?
Leonard Mead started wearing sneakers instead of hard heels while strolling at night to
prevent himself from being discovered by the authorities & punished for being a non-
conformist. The dogs would bark at him at intervals if he wore hard heels. People on an
entire street would be startled by the passing of a lone figure and might click on lights and
look outside.

(iii) What is suggested by Mead’s act of wearing sneakers?

It suggests that Mead was a non-conformist, decisive & an individualistic person who did
not want to follow the rules which everybody else was following in the society. He tries to
be secretive about his walking and try to protect himself from being discovered by wearing
sneakers, which made less noise.

(iv) Why is he described as a ‘lone figure’? Who would get startled by his walk at
night? Why?
He is described as a ‘lone figure’ as he was the only person on the deserted streets at night
when everybody else was in their homes watching television.
All the households/an entire street would get startled by his walk at night.
This was because he was the lone figure on the road in the early November evening and
dogs would bark if he wore hard heels.

(v) Explain briefly the characteristic traits of Leonard Mead as reflected in this
extract.
Leonard Mead was non-conformist, decisive, free and individualistic/ unique.
Refer WB – Pg: 146 & 147 – Characterization.

Extract 3
(i) What does Mead think about the ‘murmur of laughter’? What does it suggest
about his connection with other people?
Mead heard a murmur of laughter and got curious to know if it was coming from a house.
This was because he considered them as grey phantoms lacking emotions & being
consumed by technology.
It shows that he was cut off from the society & was not at all welcomed in the society
where he used to live.

(ii) Why does he stumble while walking? What does ‘cement was vanishing’ suggest?
Mead stumbles because there was a particularly uneven section of side walk. The cement
was vanishing because of the growth of plants & weeds that were growing up through the
concrete.
It suggests that the sidewalks were no longer maintained because there were no walkers to
keep them down & the nature was trying to reclaim the city.

(iii) Why has he not encountered another person on the road in ten years of his
solitary walks? What does it suggest?
He has not encountered another person on the road in ten years of his solitary walks due to
the impact of modern technology especially television as other citizens remained indoors
watching television.
It suggests that the other citizens were alienated & dehumanized because of their
conformity to a dystopian status quo.

(iv) How does this extract reveal the dormant potential of nature?
The dormant potential of nature is revealed in this extract when Mead stumbled over an
uneven section of the side walk. Here, the concrete had vanished & plants & weeds had
emerged from underground. This suggests that nature which was dormant in winter would
rejuvenate & also the dehumanized citizens would be free again.

(v) Explain briefly the theme of ‘Nonconformity’ as presented in the story.

Nonconformity is the most important characteristic trait of the protagonist, Mead. He
enjoyed his solitary walks at night unlike the other citizens who did not walk around for
pleasure but were inside their homes, watching television.
Mead did not own a television, which was considered as his biggest nonconformity for not
using modern technology. Mead was a writer by profession, which was considered as an
outdated profession/ as no profession in the age of technology-controlled life because no
one read magazines or books anymore, and even Mead had not written for many years.
Mead was unmarried, a defiance of the social system followed by everyone else.

Extract 4
(i) Where was Mead when he saw a lone car? What was the ‘lone car’ in actuality?
Mead turned back on a side street, circling around toward his home and was within a
block of his destination when he saw a lone car.
The ‘lone car’ was a robotic police car that represented the unrelenting, authoritative state
power used to enforce social conformity.

(ii) State two figures of speech used in the line given below:
He was within a block of destination when the lone car turned a corner quite
suddenly and flashed a fierce white cone of light upon him.

a) Personification – The car has been personified by being given the human quality of
flashing a fierce white cone of light upon Mead.
b) Alliteration – The sound of the consonant ‘f’ is repeated at the beginning of the words –
flashed, fierce. ‘l’ sound is repeated in lone and light. ‘w’ sound is repeated at the
beginning of the words was, within and when.

(iii) How did Mead react to the light flashed on him by the car?
When Mead saw a lone car at night, he stood entranced / mesmerised /filled with wonder
like a night moth, stunned by the illumination, and then drawn towards it, because a police
car was a rare sight.

(iv) What is suggested by Mead’s comparison with a moth?

Mead was as helpless as a moth. He was attracted to the light like a moth & could not
move away from it.

(v) How does this extract convey the feeling of fear and foreboding?
This extract conveys the feeling of fear and foreboding. It was a lone car that suddenly
flashed a fierce white cone of light upon Mead. Mead was quite startled & filled with
wonder & fear & felt as miserable and helpless as a night moth.

Extract 5
(i) Why did the voice from the police car speak in a metallic whisper? Why could not
Mead see the men in the car?
The robotic police car that Mead encounters in the street is a product of technology but has
been given human qualities like its metallic voice which interrogates Mead. It speaks to
him in an authoritative voice with an accusatory tone as it interrogates him since it is
highly unusual for anyone to be outdoors, walking alone at night. It ordered Mead to freeze
& raise his hands as if he were a criminal.
Mead could not see the men in the car as it was a robotic police car driven by technology.

(ii) Why was there only one car? What did it suggest about the people of the city?
There was only one car as the crime rate had reduced to such an extent that there was little
need for the police car to enforce law & order.
It suggests that the people of the city had become absolute conformists & docile, subject to
strict state control.
(iii) What was Mead’s profession? Why did the police car describe it as ‘No
profession’?
Mead was a writer by profession.
It was described as a ‘No profession’ because it was considered as an outdated profession
in the age of technology driven life. People no longer used to read books & magazines.

(iv) Explain briefly the simile in this extract.

Simile is used in the line – ‘The light held him fixed, like a museum specimen, needle
thrust through chest. Mead is viewed as something extraordinary by the society that is to
be stared at and examined as a museum specimen because he was quite different from
other citizens. ‘The needle thrust through chest’ suggests that Mead is like an insect to be
killed for research and experimentation.

(v) Why had not Mead written anything for years? Which characteristic trait of
Mead is revealed in this extract?
Mead had not written anything for years as there was no work for him as magazines &
books were not sold because people had stopped reading them.
Mead described his profession as that of being a writer. It shows that although he had not
written anything for years, he considered himself to be a writer. It shows that he was
unwilling to give up his identity in order to become a conformist.