Speaking: Group Discussion

Speaking

H. Work in groups of four. Choose one of the situations given below. Discuss how the story would have been different if,

i. Pongo had pardoned the narrator after scolding him.

The narrator was not a thief. He was in the habit of stealing. One day, there was a banana boat in the docks he picked up the bananas. But the bananas were not his craze. He loved to eat oranges very much. When he came out from the docks with the oranges hidden in his pockets. Pongo, the policeman caught him. A lot of people were stealing from the docks. The narrator kept quiet and was frightened. Pongo found him very innocent. He did not want any action to be taken against him. He was a kind man. He advised the narrator very politely. Pongo pardoned the narrator. The narrator thanked the policeman and went home happily.

ii. Pongo had arrived on the scene before the last orange was eaten.

The narrator was caught red handed when he came out from the docks. There were seventeen oranges in his pockets. Pongo caught him for his theft and locked him in a cabin. It forced him to eat the seeds and the peels. The narrator had to eat them to destroy the evidence. He ate the oranges quickly. But only one orange was left. At that time, the policemen had come near the cabin. The narrator heard the sound of their arrival. They opened the cabin and found only one orange left on the table. Both of them decided to produce narrator before the court to get him punished, there by teaching a lesson to others.

iii. Pongo had forgotten to lock the door properly but the narrator only discovered it just before Pongo returned.

The narrator was a lover of oranges. He liked to eat oranges one after the other all day and everyday. He had put the oranges in his pockets and came out. Pongo, the policeman noticed his bulging pockets as his apron string was broken. The narrator was calm and he did not say anything. Pongo locked him in a cabin. The narrator was in the cabin. He looked at the walls. He was afraid that he would lose his job and be imprisoned. The policemen were returning to the cabin. Before their arrival, the narrator was surprised to notice the cabin unlocked. The narrator had enough chance to escape from the cabin. But the narrator did not attempt to go out. He remained in the cabin, till Pongo's arrival. They bowed before the narrator for his honesty and discipline. They released him at once. The narrator thanked them heartily and went back home peacefully.

Share your ideas with the rest of the class.