Summary: Horsing Around
The speaker was studying in the Veterinary College in Scotland and he had just taken
a class in animal husbandry. When he saw the horse, he got excited because he
realised that it was real and not just a picture. He felt that he would be able to look
at the horse as an expert after all that he had learned that day.
Initially, the speaker looked at the horse critically. He looked at it to see if it had any
problems and not finding one, he stepped forward towards the animal and patted it
on its neck. The horse got very angry when the speaker touched it. It probably felt a
little frightened too especially since the speaker was a stranger. The horse moved
downwards and caught the speaker by his shoulder with its strong teeth. Following
this, the horse laid back its ears, rolled its eyes and pulled the speaker off the ground.
A crowd soon gathered at the place. They were intrigued to see a man hanging from
a horse’s mouth. The people were looking over each other’s shoulders while some
were trying to find out what was happening.
Soon the coalman arrived and demanded to know what happened. The crowd
happened to come up with several replies when the coalman arrived on the scene. It
is possible that the gathered crowd knew the coalman to be the rightful master of
the horse and believed that only he could save the man who was dangling from the
horse’s mouth. They also seemed to find the situation more humorous after the
arrival of the coalman.
The coalman was very angry. He turned to the horse and directed him to drop the
speaker. When he got no response, he poked the horse’s belly with his thumb. The
horse immediately dropped the speaker into the gutter.
The speaker lay there for some time until he could breathe more easily and also to
recover from all the embarrassing things that had happened to him. When he stood
up, he heard the coalman shouting at him and threatening him. He got scared and
also felt embarrassed and tried to escape from the scene as fast as he could.
The speaker narrates the entire incident in a humorous way. He himself was quite
amused by the sudden turn of events and thus he is not very serious. The tone of the
entire narrative is rather funny. When he describes the way in which he was
suspended in the air, he compares himself to a puppet. Later in the piece, he tells us
how he lay in the gutter for a while just to be able to breathe. Contrary to his
expectations/against what he had expected, the entire incident turns to his
disadvantage. He does not take himself too seriously and makes himself the figure of
fun in this incident.
UNIT 8 HORSING AROUND
Warm Up
Free Response
Embedded Questions 1
● The speaker is a seventeen-year old veterinary student.
● He is happy.
● Free Response
Embedded Questions 2
● It was probably scared and angry that a strange man had touched it.
● Some people were horrified and others found the situation funny. Some brave souls tried pulling
the speaker down.
● Suggested answer (Accept any logical answer). He probably felt embarrassed and a little frightened.
Embedded Questions 3
● …the speaker was messing about with a horse that did not belong to him.
● …the coalman had arrived and was in a temper.
Comprehension
A. 1. The speaker was studying in the Veterinary College.
2. He had just taken a class in animal husbandry.
3. When he saw the horse he got excited because he realised that it was real and not just a picture.
He felt that he would be able to look at the horse as an expert after all that he had learned that
day.
4. A crowd soon gathered at the place. They were intrigued to see a man hanging from a horse’s
mouth. The people were looking over each other’s shoulders while some were trying to find out
what was happening.
5. The coalman gets the horse to drop the speaker and thus he ends up falling in the gutter.
B. 1. a. The coalman turned to the horse and directed him to drop the speaker. When he got no
response he poked the horse’s belly with his thumb.
b. The coalman and his horse seem to have a good relationship—it is friendly but the horse still
obeys the coalman.
2. a. The speaker walks away rapidly because the coalman threatened him. He got scared that he
might end up in the police station and pushed his way through the crowd. He was also a little
embarrassed.
b. The speaker must have felt frightened and humiliated, especially having fancied himself an
expert with horses before.
C. 1. Initially, the speaker looked at the horse critically. He looked at it to see if it had any problems and
not finding one, he stepped forward towards the animal and patted it on its neck.
2. The horse got very angry when the speaker touched it. It probably felt a little frightened too
especially since the speaker was a stranger. The horse moved downwards and caught the speaker
by his shoulder with its strong teeth. Following this, the horse laid back its ears, rolled its eyes and
pulled the speaker off the ground.
3. The crowd happened to come up with several replies when the coalman arrived on the scene. It
is possible that the gathered crowd knew the coalman to be the rightful master of the horse and
believed that only he could save the man who was dangling from the horse’s mouth. They also
seemed to find the situation more humorous after the arrival of the coalman.
4. After the horse drops the speaker, he falls in the gutter. He lies there for some time to breathe
more easily and also to recover from all the embarrassing things that have happened to him. When
he stands up, he hears the coalman shouting at him and threatening him. He gets scared and also
feels embarrassed and tries to escape from the scene as fast as he can.
D. 1. The speaker narrates the entire incident in a humorous way. He himself was quite amused by the
sudden turn of events and thus he is not very serious. The tone of the entire narrative is rather
funny. When he describes the way in which he was suspended in the air, he compares himself
to a puppet. Later in the piece, he tells us how he lay in the gutter for a while just to be able to
breathe. Contrary to his expectations/against what he had expected, the entire incident turns to
his disadvantage. He does not take himself too seriously and makes himself the figure of fun in this
incident.
2. The information provided at the beginning of the piece builds up the context. This helps to
engage the readers in a more meaningful way, so that the plot can proceed more logically. We are
informed by the narrator that it was the same day on which his professor taught them about all
the terms related to a horse. The eagerness with which the speaker experiments turns out to be
very funny as his experiment fails. The speaker in the third paragraph admits that he pretended to
look like an expert to the passers – by. He is very proud of newly acquired knowledge and wants
people to know that he is well-informed. However, he fails miserably and this adds to the humour
of the story.
E. 1. We must be very cautious and slow when approaching an animal that does not know us. We also
always ask the owner for permission to touch the animal.
2. No, we should not touch animals if they don’t know us.
3. Yes, animals do feel uncomfortable with strangers, just as we do.
Grammar
finite verbs
write
begun
began
like
choose
forgets
break
non-finite verbs
liking
choosing
forgotten
broken
B. 2. main verb: go
3. main verb: is infinitive: making
4. main verb: helped infinitive: to clean
5. main verb: prefer infinitive: to eat
6. main verb: could infinitive: run over
Vocabulary
A. 1. incomplete 2. obscure 3. inexpert 4. interested 5. pride 6. captured
7. distinct/loud 8. slowly
B. 1. replied 2. requested 3. exclaimed 4. insisted 5. ordered 6. protested
Listening
Listening Text
Interviewer: Thank you for having us at your home, Mr Wight. It is a pleasure to be able to talk to
you.
Wight: Of course! Of course!
Interviewer: Would you autograph my book please? I just picked it up in the States.
Wight: Yes, yes!
Interviewer: I can hardly wait for your new book. The BBC show has also been running…
Wight: Is that still running?
Interviewer: Oh yes! (both laugh) So are you still practicing full time?
Wight: Well, not full time. I do have a new book to write. All my books were written in my
spare time, you know. I visit countless small family farms and each call is an adventure.
Where to? Two dogs have been fighting and I need to stitch one’s leg. Ah. Great! Now
that’s done! What’s next? (laughs)
Interviewer: Your love for the job is… you can really feel it in the books…
Wight: Yes, I suppose. It is my life, after all, that I am describing. My books are about people
as much as they about animals. They’re about relationships. And a slower, simpler
way of life.
Interviewer: I heard another vet has said that you have humanised your profession.
Wight: How kind! Oh I hope so.
Interviewer: Your books have touched the hearts of people all over the world. How does it feel, to
have that kind of reach?
Wight: I’ve never really understood it—the popularity I mean. But I’m glad people seem to
enjoy the books.
Interviewer: Oh, have no doubts on that! Well… Thank you for having us over today, Mr Wight. It’s
been a wonderful chat.
Wight: Thank you.
Answers
1. T 2. T 3. NT 4. NT 5. NT
Writing
Dear Renu,
I saw the strangest thing today. A horse had a lanky fellow dangling from its mouth. They were in
the middle of the street! He looked very scared but the horse held him tightly. Suddenly, a man
appeared from nowhere and shouted at the horse, he patted it and then gave a shriek, directing
it to drop the boy. He was furious L and rebuked the man for causing this mess. The hose then
dropped the man who fell straight into the gutter! The man was panting and the entire crowd was
babbling. There were some disinterested looks and others were engrossed. I tried to steal a glance
but could not. After a while, the man got up and scurried away while the owner of the horse kept
yelling after him J J.
I just had to tell you that! I think it was the craziest thing I have ever seen. Have you had any
interesting experiences lately?
Love,
Maha
Dictionary Work
1. subject – noun, matter. The students are excited because they have many optional subjects in this
semester.
2. uncaring – adjective, indifferent. She teased her younger brother and was uncaring towards him.
3. expert – adjective, proficient. It seems that Rita is an expert in playing the violin.
4. wriggle – verb, twist and turn with quick writhing movements. The little puppy managed to
wriggle free from the kennel.
5. trickle – verb, run out in small quantity. Since there was a huge power cut in the city, the water
trickled down slowly.
6. faint – adjective, having very little effect on one’s senses/fading. As I left the house, I could hear a
faint sound of the child’s cry.
Spelling
1. advisory 2. burglary 3. sanctuary 4. anniversary 5. bribery 6. auditory
7. complimentary 8. temporary
HORSING AROUND
A. Answer in brief.
1. Why did the speaker consider himself lucky when he saw a horse?
Ans: The speaker had been a student for three days in the Veterinary College where his subject
was horses in the animal husbandry class. With the newly acquired knowledge of some horserelated terms, he felt lucky to find a horse on the streets as he thought he was already an expert
on horses and could show off in front of the public.
2. How did the horse react to the speaker’s examining gaze?
Ans: The speaker was examining the horse with his eyes looking for possible problems. The horse
didn’t seem to care. The large horse just ignored him and gazed down the street moving his hind
legs alternatively in a bored manner.
B. Answer in detail.
1. Why did the speaker pat the horse before leaving? What was the result of this action?
Ans: The speaker’s sole purpose was to show off that he knew something more about the
horses than a common man. Hence when the horse did not react to his approach, he was
disappointed and hated to leave the horse. So just before leaving he thought he should do
something to tell the horse that he ‘understood’ his problems, when actually there were no
problems as such. So the speaker stepped forward and patted the horse on the neck, which
didn’t go very well with the horse. On being touched by a stranger, the horse reacted quickly
like a striking snake, moved downwards towards the speaker and seized his shoulder in his
strong teeth pulled him up off his feet.
2. How did the passers-by react when they saw a man hanging from the horse’s mouth?
Ans: The speaker finally succeeded in attracting the attention of the passers-by but of course
not in the way he would have wanted to. The sight of a man hanging from a horse’s mouth
brought them to a sudden halt. Everyone was curious to know what was happening—some
getting a good view of the horse and the man and some struggling at the back to see what was
going on.
One of the spectators, an old lady cried aloud and wanted someone to help the narrator, some
even tried unsuccessfully to pull him out of the clutches of the horse.
C. Read the lines and answer the questions.
1. The words were still spinning in my head as I walked slowly down the street. This was what I had
come for.
a. What had the speaker come for?
b. How did the speaker feel at that moment?
c. What did the speaker see during his walk?
Ans: a. The speaker was a student in the Veterinary College for three days and had learnt about
horses. He felt elated having learnt some wonderful horse-related terms. So he says that
is what he had come for.
b. He was very happy and felt as if he already knew everything about horses.
c. He was whistling and proudly walking when he saw a horse on Newton Road.
2. With deep shame, I saw two pretty girls in the front row giggling helplessly.
a. Why did the speaker feel shameful?
b. Where was the speaker?
c. What did the speaker do? Did that help?
Ans: a. The speaker was a young boy and was embarrassed when two young girls were looking
at his pathetic state and giggling at him.
b. The speaker was precariously hanging from the horse’s mouth which was a funny
sight.
c. He tried to extricate himself from the horse’s clutches by thrashing about wildly. That
didn’t help him.
D. Answer in brief. (Think and answer)
1. What did the speaker want to prove to the passersby and the horse? How did that get him into
trouble?
Ans: The speaker being a young boy wanted to prove that he knew everything about horses
while he had been a student for only three days. As a fresh learner he was over enthusiastic and
got into trouble by foolishly disturbing the horse by patting on its back. The horse annoyed by
this intrusion caught him in its teeth and lifted him up.
2. Why do you think the coalman got irritated with the speaker? How was he of help?
Ans: The coalman apparently was the owner of the horse. When he saw the speaker he might
have thought he was disturbing the animal. It was only after a while he realised that the speaker
needed help and he tapped the horse and the animal let go off the speaker.
E. Answer in detail. (Think and answer)
Discuss how the last statement of the coalman would have embarrassed the speaker.
Free response. Suggested answer: The last remark by the coalman shouting at the speaker ‘not to
meddle with things that you know nothing about ‘ must have embarrassed the speaker a lot. He was
a young boy and over enthusiastic about experimenting what he had learnt about an animal just
for three days. He thought he would be looked up and people would admire him for his knowledge
of animals – in this case of a horse. Little did he realise he would be treated so badly both by the
horse and its owner. Instead of looking a hero, he became a laughing stock. To add to his shame,
he was giggled at by the young girls and finally, the coalman’s remark would have left him terribly
embarrassed.
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