THE RATTRAP

QUESTIONS FROM TEXTBOOK SOLVED

THINK AS YOU READ
Q1. From where did the peddler get the idea of the world being a rattrap?
Ans: The peddler had been thinking of his rattraps when suddenly he was struck by the
idea that the whole world was nothing but a big rattrap. It existed only to set baits for
people. It offered riches and joys, shelter and food, heat and clothing in the same
manner as the rattrap offered cheese and pork. As soon as someone let himself be
tempted to touch the bait, it closed in on him, and then everything came to an end.
Q2. Why was he amused by this idea?
Ans: His own life was sad and monotonous. He walked laboriously from place to place.
The world had never been kind to him. So, during his gloomy ploddings, this idea
became his favourite pastime. He was amused how people let themselves be caught in
the dangerous snare and how others were still circling around the bait.
Q3. Did the peddler expect the kind of hospitality that he received from the crofter?
Ans: The crofter served him porridge for supper and tobacco for his pipe. He also
played a game of cards with him till bed time. This hospitality was unexpected as people
usually made sour faces when the peddler asked for shelter.
4. Why was the crofter so talkative and friendly with the peddler?
Ans: The crofter’s circumstances and temperament made him so talkative and friendly
with the peddler. Since he had no wife or child, he was happy to get someone to talk to
in his loneliness. Secondly, he was quite generous with his confidences.
Q5. Why did he show the thirty kronor to the peddler?
Ans: The crofter had told the peddler that by supplying his cow’s milk to the creamery,
he had received thirty kronor in payment. The peddler seemed to doubt it. So, in order
to assure his guest of the truth he showed the thirty kronor to the peddler.
Q6. Did the peddler respect the confidence reposed in him by the crofter?
Ans: No, the peddler did not respect the confidence reposed in him by the crofter. At the
very first opportunity that he got, he smashed the window pane, took out the money and
hung the leather pouch back in its place. Then he went away.

THINK AS YOU READ

Q1. What made the peddler accept Edla Willmansson’s invitation?
Ans: Miss Edla Willmansson looked at the peddler quite compassionately. She noticed
that the man was afraid. She assured him that he would be allowed to leave just as
freely as he came. She requested him to stay with them over Christmas Eve. Her
friendly manner made the peddler feel confidence in her and accept her invitation.
Q2. What doubts did Edla have about the peddler?
Ans: As Edla lifted the peddler’s hat, he jumped up abruptly and seemed to be quite
frightened. Even her kind looks, disclosure of her name and purpose of visit failed to
calm him. From his fear, she thought that either he had stolen something or he had
escaped from jail.
Q3. When did the ironmaster realise his mistake?
Ans: Next morning, the stranger was cleaned and well-dressed. The valet had bathed
him, cut his hair and shaved him. He was led to the dining room for breakfast. The
ironmaster saw him in broad daylight. It was impossible to mistake him for an old
acquaintance now. Then the ironmaster realised his mistake and threatened to call the
Sheriff.
Q4. How did the peddler defend himself against not having revealed his true identity?
Ans: The peddler explained that he had not tried to pretend as his acquaintance. He was
not at fault. All along he had maintained that he was a poor trader. He had pleaded and
begged to be allowed to stay in the forge. No harm had been done by his stay. He was
willing to put on his rags again and go away.
Q5. Why did Edla still entertain the peddler even after she knew the truth about him?
Ans: Edla did not think it proper on their part to chase away a human being whom they
had asked to come to their house and had promised him Christmas cheer. She
understood the reality of the peddler’s life and wanted him to enjoy a day of peace with
them. Hence, she still entertained the peddler even after knowing the truth about him.

THINK AS YOU READ

Q1. Why was Edla happy to see the gift left by the peddler?
Ans: As soon as Edla opened the package of the gift, the contents came into view. She
found a small rattrap with three wrinkled ten kronor notes and a letter addressed to
her. The peddler wanted to be nice in return as she had been so nice to him all day long.
He did not want her to be embarrased at the Christmas season by a thief.
Q2.Why did the peddler sign himself as Captain von Stahle?
Ans: The ironmaster has invited the peddler to his house mistaking him for Captain von
Stahle. He was welcomed there and looked after as captain even after the reality became
known. The peddler got a chance to redeem himself from dishonest ways by acting as an
honourable Captain.
UNDERSTANDING THE TEXT
Q1. How does the peddler interpret the acts of kindness and hospitality shown by the
crofter, the iron master and his daughter?
Ans: The peddler interprets the acts of kindness and hospitality shown by the crofter,
the iron master and his daughter differently. He cheats the crofter as he provides him
company in his loneliness and helps him pass time. He wants to get a couple of kronors
from the iron master and is surprised at the contrasting style of behaviour of father and
daughter. He is touched by the kindness, care and intervention of Edla on his behalf.
Q2. What are the instances in the story that show that the character of the ironmaster is
different from that of his daughter in many ways?
Ans: The ironmaster is impulsive* whereas his daughter is cool, logical, kind and
thoughtful. In uncertain light he (iron master) mistakes the stranger as his old regiment
comrade. He invites him home and takes care of his feeding, clothing etc. When he sees
him in broad day light he calls the man dishonest, demands an explanation and is ready
to call in the sheriff. His daughter is more observant. She notices the fear of the stranger
and thinks that either he is a thief or a run away prisoner. Inspite of that She is gentle,
kind and friendly to him. She treats him nicely even after knowing the mistake in
identity.
Q3. The story has many instances of unexpected reactions from the characters to others’
behaviour. Pick out instances of these surprises.
Ans: The peddler is surprised at the warm welcome, generous supper, cheerful company
and intimate confidences by the crofter. The ironmaster addresses the peddler as
Captain von Stahle. He is surprised when the ironmaster calls him “Nils Olof. The
ironmaster assumes his declining the invitation a result of embarrassment caused by his
miserable clothing. The peddler’s comparison of the world to a rattrap makes the
ironmaster laugh and he drops the idea of calling in the sheriff.
The peddler looks at Edla in boundless amazement when she tells him that the suit is a
Christmas present. She also invites him to spend next Christmas with them. She does all
this even after knowing the mistake about his identity.The crofter is robbed by his guest,
the rattrap peddler, in return of his hospitality.
Q4. What made the peddler finally change his ways?
Ans: Edla Willmansson treated the tramp in a friendly manner. She was nice and kind
to her. She interceded on his behalf when her father was about to turn him out. She still
entertained the peddler even after knowing the truth about him. She offered him the
suit as Christmas present and invited him to spend the next Christmas with them. Her
love and understanding aroused the essential goodness in the peddler and finally he
changed his ways.
Q5. How does the metaphor of the rattrap serve to highlight the human predicament?
Ans: The world entices a person through the various good things of life such as riches
and joy, shelter and food, heat and clothing. These were just like the baits in the rattrap.
Once someone is tempted by the bait, the world closed on him.The peddler was tempted
by thirty kronor of the crofter. It makes him hide himself. He walks through the wood.
He is afraid to go to the Manor house. He gets peace only after returning the bait
(money).
Q6. The peddler comes out as a person with a subtle sense of humour. How7 does this
serve in lightening the seriousness of the theme of the story and also endear him to us?
Ans: The peddler has a subtle sense of humour, which is revealed during his interactions
with the ironmaster and his daughter after the truth about him becomes known. He is
neither afraid of being turned out in cold in rags nor of being sent to prison. He makes
the ironmaster laugh with his metaphor of the rattrap. His letter with the Christmas
present to Edla is a fine example of his capacity to make others laugh at him. Thus, he
lightens the seriousness of the theme of the story and also endears himself to us.
TALKING ABOUT THE TEXT
Discuss the following in groups of four. Each group can deal with one topic and present
the views of your group to the whole class.
Q1. The reader’s sympathy is with the peddler right from the beginning of the story.
Why is this so? Is the sympathy justified?
Ans: The peddler wins our sympathy for his way of life and how the world treats him. It
is an admitted fact that the underdog always runs away with sympathy, so does the
peddler with the rattraps. He begs the material like wire for his rattraps. His business
not being specially profitable, he resorts to begging and petty thievery to keep body and
soul together.
His life is sad and monotonous. He plods along the road lost in his own meditation. The
world has never been very kind to him and he feels happy in calling it a rattrap.
Whenever, he asks shelter for the night, he meets sour faces. He is an unwelcome,
unwanted and undesirable figure. The blacksmiths at forge glance at him only casually
and indifferently. The master blacksmith nods a haughty consent without honouring
him with a single word.
The old and lonely crofter finds him an enjoyable company. The ironmaster mistakes
him for an old regimental comrade. Only Edla Willmansson behaves with him in a kind,
friendly manner. Her nice treatment arouses the tramp’s goodness. He redeems himself
Hy returning the stolen money and wins our admiration. Thus, we see that the
sympathy is not only well earned but well justified too.
Q2. The story also focuses on human loneliness and the need to bond with others.
Ans: There are at least three characters in the story who suffer from loneliness and
express the need to bond with others. They represent three strata of the human society
as well. The peddler with the rattraps, the old crofter and the ironmaster all suffer from
loneliness. The peddler is called a tramp, a vagabond and stranger at various points of
the story. He moves wearily from one place to the other. He is lost in his own thoughts.
He seeks shelter for night and people look at him with sour faces. Even the blacksmiths
look haughtily at him and nod consent. The old crofter suffers from loneliness as he has
neither wife nor child with him. Hence, he feels happy when he gets the peddler to talk
to in his loneliness.
The ironmaster is also lonely in his manor house. His wife Elizabeth has died and his
sons are abroad. There is no one at home except his oldest daughter and himself. His
requests to Captain von Stehle to accompany him show his need for human bonding. He
admits frankly that they didn’t have any company for Christmas. The stranger turns
down the request not because he is against bonding with others but because he fears
being caught with stolen money.
Q3. Have you known/heard of an episode where a good deed or an act of kindness has
changed a person’s view of the world?
Ans: Yes, I know how the kindness of a Bishop transformed a hard-hearted beastly
convict into a man again with faith in God and human values. The story is presented in
the form of a famous play ‘The Bishop’s Candlesticks’
The Bishop provides food and shelter at midnight to a runaway convict who threatens
him with a knife. Long years of imprisonment and harsh treatment in the prisonship
has transformed the man into beast and he is devoid of all human feelings now. The
convict runs away with the Bishop’s silver candlesticks, but is caught by the police.
In order to save the convict from further punishment and torture, the Bishop tells the
police officer that the fellow is his friend and he had himself given him the candlesticks.
This kind act of the Bishop melts the hard heart of the convict. He sobs and weeps. He
promises to be a man again.

Q4. The story is both entertaining and philosophical. Discuss.

Ans: The story entertains us by providing glimpses into human nature and how people
react to various situations. The actions of the peddler after stealing thirty kronor are
quite amusing. The reactions of the blacksmiths to the tramp’s request for shelter show
how casual and indifferent human beings can be.
The U-turn in the ironmaster’s attitude towards the stranger reveal how selfish and
ignorant human beings can be. Mistaking the vagabond for his old regimental comrade,
whom he thinks he has run across unexpectedly, he asks the stranger to accompany him
home and spend Christmas with them. When the stranger refuses to go with him, the
ironmaster sends his daughter. With her better persuasive power she makes him follow
her.
The ironmaster is annoyed on seeing the stranger in broad daylight. But instead of
realising his own mistake, he puts the blame on the man. He talks of handing him over
to the sheriff. The metaphor of the world being a rattrap saves the situation for the
tramp, but the ironmaster wants to turn him out. His daughter’s comments are quite
entertaining and philosophical. She wants the tramp to enjoy a day of peace. Secondly,
she does not want to chase away a person whom they had invited home and had
promised Christmas cheer.
LONG ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS
Q1. What is the theme of the story ‘The Rattrap’ ? How has this theme been developed?
Ans: The theme of the story is that most human beings are prone to fall into the trap of
material benefit. However, every human being has an essential goodness that can be
awakened through understanding and love. A human being has the tendency to redeem
himself from dishonest ways.
The theme is developed with the help of the metaphor of the rattrap. The peddler of
rattraps calls the world a big rattrap. The material benefits like riches and joys, shelter
and food, heat and clothing are temptations that that allure a person to fall into the
rattrap of the world exactly as the bait of cheese and pork attract a rat to fall into the
rattrap. Once someone takes the bait, the world closes in on him and then everything is
lost.
The peddler is tempted by the thirty kronors of the old crofter. He steals the money.
Now he is afraid of being caught and moves through the woods. It is the kind,
sympathetic, loving and generous treatment given by Edla Willmansson that helps him
get himself free from the rattrap of the world.
Q2. Give an account of the peddler’s meeting with the old crofter. How does the peddler
conduct himself? What light does this episode throw on human nature?
Ans: One dark evening the peddler reached a little gray cottage by the roadside. He
knocked on the door to ask shelter for the night. The owner, an old man without wife or
child, welcomed him. He was happy to get someone to talk to in his loneliness. He served
him hot porridge for supper and gave him tobacco for his pipe. Then he played cards
with him till bed time.
The host told the peddler that in his days of prosperity, he worked on land at Ramsjo
Ironworks. Now his cow supported him. He sold her milk at the creamery everyday. He
showed the peddler the thirty kronor notes he got as payment that month. Then he hung
the leather pouch on a nail in the window frame. Next morning the crofter went to milk
the cow, and the peddler went away. However, he returned after half an hour, broke the
window pane, took the money out of the leather pouch and hang it back on the nail.This
episode shows that in loneliness, human beings crave for company, for social bonding.
Secondly, temptations can overpower the greatest philosopher. The peddler who calls
the world a rattrap is himself tempted by thirty kronor.
Q3. How did the peddler feel after robbing the crofter? What course did he adopt and
how did he react to the new situation? What does his reaction highlight?
Ans: Having robbed his generous host, the peddler felt quite pleased with his smartness.
He did not feel any qualms of conscience that he had abused the confidence reposed in
him by the crofter. The selfish wretch thought only of his own safety. He realised the
danger of being caught by the police with the stolen thirty kronor on his person. Hence,
he decided to discontinue walking on the public highway and turn off the road, into the
woods.
During the first few hours the woods caused him no difficulty. Later on, it became worse
as it was a big and confusing forest. The paths twisted back and forth. He kept on
walking but did not come to the end of the wood. He realised that he had only been
walking around in the same part of the forest. The forest closed in upon him like an
impenetrate prison from which he could never escape.
The reaction of the peddler highlights the predicament of human nature. Temptations
lead to evil. The fruits of evil seem pleasant at first, but they deprive man of his
goodness and push him into the maze of the world which holds a vice-like grip on him.
Q4. (i) ‘The blacksmiths glanced only casually and indifferently at the intruder.’
(ii)“The ironmaster did not follow the example of the blacksmiths who had hardly
deigned to look at the stranger * What do these attitudes reveal? How does the forge-
episode help to develop the story? What is its implication?
Ans: The blacksmiths display the typical attitude of manual workers and labourers for
whom work is the first priority and parasites on human society are drags on the fruit of
their labour. The master blacksmith nods a haughty consent without honouring the
intruder with a single word. Evidently, he regards the tramp as insignificant.
The ironmaster, who is on his nightly round of inspection, behaves differently. He walks
closely up to him and looks him over carefully. Then he removes his slouch hat to get a
better view of his face. In the uncertain light of the furnace he mistakes the stranger for
his old regimental comrade and requests him to go home with him. When the stranger
declines the invitation, the ironmaster sends his daughter to persuade him to spend
Christmas Eve with them. Thus the forge episode helps to develop the story.
The episode highlights the difference in the reactions of various persons to the same set
of circumstances. This reveals the shades of human nature. It shows that even the
person with best discernment may commit an error of judgement.
Q5. Bring out the contrast in the ironmaster’s attitude and behaviour towards the
stranger before and after he realises his mistake.
Ans: The ironmaster is moved to see his old regimental comrade in a pitiable state. He
considers it a mistake on his part to have resigned from the regiment. He insists that his
old comrade will go home with him. As the stranger declines the invitation, he thinks
that the man feels embarrassed because of his miserable clothing. He explains that he
does not have such a fine home that he cannot show himself there. He requests the
stranger to provide company to him and his daughter for Christmas. When the stranger
refuses thrice, he sends his daughter, with a big fur coat to persuade him. Just before
breakfast on Christmas Eve, he thinks of feeding him well and providing him same
honourable piece of work.
His behaviour undergoes a U-turn when he looks at the well-groomed stranger and
realises his mistake. He expresses his displeasure with a wrinkled brow and demands an
explanation from the man. Though the peddler defends himself well saying he never
pretended to be someone else, the ironmaster calls him dishonest and threatens to hand
him over to the sheriff. When the metaphor of world being a rattrap softens him a bit,
he asks the peddler to quit at once.

Q6. What impression do you form of Edla on reading the story ‘The Raitrap’ ?
Ans: Miss Edla Willmansson is the eldest daughter of the owner of the Ramsjo
Ironworks. She is not pretty, but modest and quite shy. She is quite obedient and visits
the forge at the behest of her father. She has a wonderful power of observation and
takes quick judgement. From the stranger’s frightened looks, she concludes that he is
either a thief or a runaway convict. She uses her skills of persuasion to make the
stranger agree to accompany her home. Her compassionate looks, friendly manner and
polite way of address help her. She tells her father that nothing about the man shows
that once he was an educated man.
She believes in the spirit of Christmas and intercedes on behalf of the stranger to per
suade her father to let him stay and be happy. She first makes a passionate plea and
then argues that they should not chase away a person they had invited themselves and
promised him Christmas cheer.
Her dejection on learning that the peddler with rattraps was a thief reflects her
sensitiveness. The gift of the captain makes her happy. It is her noble action that helps a
thief redeem himself. In short, she is an intelligent, affectionate and kind young girl.

Q7. Comment on the ending of the story ‘The Rattrap’.

Ans: The story ‘The Rattrap’ has a very beautiful ending. It helps us to realise that all is
not lost for human beings who are prone to fall into the trap of material benefits. It is
the protagonist of the story—the peddler with the rattraps—who coins the metaphor of
the rattrap, falls
himself in it on being tempted and ultimately redeems himself by renouncing the
temptation. His admission that he had been the thief, and the treatment he got as a
captain, show how love and understanding can transform even a depraved soul. The
story thus comes a full circle with the ending. All questions are answered and no loose
tags remain hanging.
The ending also pays tribute to the goodness of humanity here exhibited through Miss
Edla Willmansson. The happy ending also arouses our optimism and belief in the
essential goodness of man and other human virtues. Thus it serves to inspire the readers
to do noble acts.

Q8. Do you think the title of the story ‘The Rattrap’ is appropriate? Give reasons to
support your answer.
Ans: The story has an appropriate and suggestive title. It at once draws our attention to
the central theme—the whole world is a big rattrap. This metaphor helps us to
understand the human predicament. All the good things of the world are nothing but
baits to tempt a person to fall into the rattrap. Through the character of the peddler, the
writer drives home the idea that most human beings are prone to fall into the trap of
material benefits.
The story begins with rattraps and ends with a rattrap as a present for someone who
has helped a rat to get free from the rattrap. Even the middle of the story revolves
round the rattrap. The actions of the peddler after he steals thirty kronor of the old
crofter reveal the inner conflicts, tensions and lack of peace of a person who touches the
bait of temptation. Renunciation of the temptation helps in redemption. Thus, we
conclude that the title is apt and significant.