Short Questions
1. Who was Saint Peter?
Answer: Saint Peter was an apostle of Christ who preached around the world.
2.What was the old lady doing when Saint Peter arrived?
Answer: She was making and baking cakes on the hearth.
3.Why did Saint Peter ask the old lady for a cake?
Answer: He was hungry and faint after fasting the whole day.
4.Into what did Saint Peter change the woman?
Answer: He changed her into a woodpecker.
5.What does the woodpecker do now?
Answer: The woodpecker lives in the trees and bores wood all day for food.
Long Questions
1.Describe the Northland as mentioned in the poem.
Answer: The Northland is a cold place where the days are short and the nights are very long in winter. People there use reindeer to pull sledges, and children wear furry clothes that make them look like bear cubs.
2.What lesson does the poet want to convey through this poem?
Answer: The poet wants to teach that selfishness and greed are bad qualities. We should be kind and generous, especially to those in need.
3.How did the old lady behave when Saint Peter asked for a cake?
Answer: The old lady made cakes of different sizes but always thought each was too big to give away. In the end, she refused to share even a small piece and kept them all for herself.
4.Why did Saint Peter punish the old lady?
Answer: Saint Peter punished her because she was greedy and selfish, even when he was starving. Her unkindness made him angry, so he decided to teach her a lesson.
5.What punishment did Saint Peter give to the lady?
Answer: He told her she was too selfish to live as a human and turned her into a bird that must work hard to find food by boring into trees all day.
6.How did the woman look after she was transformed into a woodpecker?
Answer: She had a scarlet cap on her head as before, but her clothes were burned black like coal in the flame.
7.What is the significance of the title ‘A Legend of the Northland’?
Answer: The poem is called a legend because it tells an old traditional story that carries a moral lesson and is passed down through generations.
8.How does the woodpecker get her food according to the poem?
Answer: The woodpecker gets her food by boring holes in hard, dry wood all day long.
9.Do you think this story is true? Which part is most important?
Answer: It is not a true story; it is a legend. The most important part is the moral lesson about generosity and the punishment of greed.
10.Write the story of ‘A Legend of the Northland’ in your own words.
Answer: Once, Saint Peter was traveling and felt hungry. He asked an old woman baking cakes for one, but she was too selfish to give him even a small one. Saint Peter became angry and turned her into a woodpecker, saying she must get her food by boring wood. Since then, the woodpecker lives in trees, working hard for her food.
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