Hi Everyone!! This article will share A Shot in the Dark Questions & Answers.
In my previous posts, I have also shared the questions and answers of The Tea Trail, The Last Leaf and The Mother of Orphans so, you can check these posts as well.
A Shot in the Dark Questions & Answers
Word Galaxy
- Agreeable – pleasing
- Futile – pointless
- Awfully – very (informal)
- Acquaintance – a person one knows slightly rather than a close friend
- Obliged – to be grateful
- Elusive – difficult to find
- Rambler – a hiker
- Disarray – untidy
- Astuteness – cleverness
- Expounded – explained in detail
- Ruefully – sorrowfully
- Demi-lion – a symbol of the top half of a lion used on coats of arms
Question 1: What position does Philip Sletherby hope to get?
Answer: Philip Sletherby was eyeing for the country of Chalkshire where the position for the Government in the Parliament was vacant as the previous gentleman did not wish for re-election. So, the party managers were considering Sletherby as a potential successor for that position.
Question 2: Who is Philip Sletherby on his way to visit? Why?
Answer: Philip Sletherby is on his way to visit Mrs Saltpen-Jago because if she approves of him, she will support his ambition to become the MP for Chalkshire.
Question 3: Where is Bertie going?
Answer: Bertie is going from London to the countryside to go fishing for the weekend.
Question 4: How does Bertie know that Philip Sletherby is going to visit Bertie’s mother?
Answer: Philip Sletherby had chanced upon his club acquaintance and had chatted with him for a while through his carriage-window. During their little conversation, the fact that he was going to visit Mrs. Saltpen-Jago for the weekend became obvious as his friend had mentioned her name. And that is how Sletherby’s fellow passenger in the carriage, Berties got to know about the former’s visit to the latter’s mother.
A Shot in the Dark Questions & Answers
Question 5: What has Bertie forgotten and what does he want Philip Sletherby to do?
Answer: Bertie has forgotten his coin-purse/money. He wants Philip Sletherby to lend him some money.
Question 6: What are the six items Bertie has in his pockets?
Answer: The six items Bertie has in his pockets are: a sixpenny coin, a cigarette-case, a matchbox, a key, a silver pencil case, and a railway ticket.
Question 7: What are the two reasons why Philip Sletherby does not help Bertie?
Answer: Philip Sletherby though initially wished to lend Bertie the money but he did not do it ultimately. He was suspicious of Bertie’s behaviour. First of all, when he enquired of his crest, he became alert as he figured out a disparity. According to Bertie, it was a demi-lion holding a cross-crosslet in the paw while Mrs. Jago’s crest was running greyhound. This made him cautious and led him to pretend that he had never met Bertie’s mother. He expressed his wish to know if she resembled Bertie. To this, the latter replied that Mrs. Jago had dark brown hair while in reality she was a blonde, which Philip knew already.
These two reasons were evident enough to make Philip realize the man’s bluff. Thus, his instant realization about the man’s fake identity as well as falsehood about the purse stopped him from lending Bertie any money.
Question 8: Which part of the story shows us that it was written and set in the past?
Answer: The story was written and set in the past stems from the fact that Sletherby was not aware of the changes made in Mrs. Saltpen-Jago’s life.
Question 9: Which parts of the story show us that Philip Sletherby thinks highly of himself?
Answer: Philip Sletherby indeed thinks highly of himself. It was evident from the fact that he was mighty pleased with himself on Bertie’s episode and that he thought this incident of his clever trap would earn him an award at the dinner. He considered himself clever and a man of resource. The fact that he thought highly of himself became more evident when he started imagining telling his adventure to an inattentive audience at the dinner.
A Shot in the Dark Questions & Answers
Question 10: Who is the other man travelling to Brill Manor and what are the three things we know about him?
Answer: Claude People was the other man travelling to Brill Manor. The three things that we learn about him are – he is a lawyer; he is not someone who can notice if his companion went silent for some time and that he is pretty excited about the mechanism of the car.
Question 11: Read the line and answer the questions:
(a) What does the statement mean?
Answer: The statement means that the voice lacked warmth. The manner in which the words were spoken had a hint of indifference.
(b) Who is this describing?
Answer: Philip Sletherby’s voice is being described here.
(c) Why does he feel as he does?
Answer: On learning that the crest of Bertie had demi-lion holding a cross-crosslet in its paw while the crest of Mrs. Jago had running greybound, Sletherby felt that Bertie was lying about his identity. He felt that the man was a fraud. Hence, his voice grew cold and lacked warmth with growing suspicion.
Question 12: Read the line and answer the questions:
(a) Which word describes how this character is feeling?
i. smug
ii. irritated
iii. embarrassed
(b) How does he hope to profit from the trip?
Answer: He hopes to secure the nomination of Mrs. Saltpen-Jago so that he can become the MP for Chalkshire.
Question 13: Read the line and answer the questions:
(a) Whose perspective is being expressed here?
Answer: Philip Sletherby’s perspective is being expressed here.
(b) What is meant by ‘so-called’?
Answer: It means Sletherby does not believe that he is Mrs. Saltpen-Jago’s son.
(c) Why is Bertie ‘cursing furiously’?
Answer: Bertie is ‘cursing furiously’ because he thought he would be able to borrow money to fund his weekend trip but now he has been left stranded.
So, these were A Shot in the Dark Questions & Answers.