The Happy Prince

Summary

1. The Happy prince was a statue. He was placed on a high column in the square of the city.

His body was covered with leaves of fine gold and sapphires in his eyes. A large and rare

ruby was set on the hilt of his sword.

2. Swallows had flown away to the warm and pleasant land of Egypt. But one small swallow

was left behind. He was late but he had made up his mind to fly and join his friends who

were waiting for him.

3. All day long he flew and arrived at the city. He decided to spend his night between the

feet of the Happy Prince.

4. Drops of water fell on him and realized that the Prince was weeping. The Prince said that

while he lived in the palace, he did know sorrow. After death, he was placed on a pedestal

and could see all the misery in the town.

5. The swallow became his messenger and gave the ruby to the poor seamstress with a sick

son, one sapphire to a playwright and one sapphire to the match girl and the gold leaves

on his body to the poor hungry children.

6. The Prince was blind. The swallow did not to leave this kind-hearted Prince though winter

was setting in and it was getting very cold.

7. One day the swallow died and the heart of the prince broke.

8. Next morning the mayor of the city gave the order to pull down the statue.

9. It was melted in a furnace. The heart of the happy prince did not melt.

10. God asked one of his angels to bring him two of the most precious things in the city. The

angel brought him the broken heart and the dead bird.

11. God said that he had chosen the right things. He said that the swallow and the prince

would ever live happily in paradise.

Character Sketch

The Happy Prince

The Happy Prince saw the misery of the poor people. His heart melted with pity for them.

Their sufferings brought tears in his eyes. He gave away his ruby, sapphires and all the gold

for the poor. He became blind. His body looked ugly. But he was happy at heart because he

had given away all he had to the poor. The Happy Prince came to know that real happiness

lay in the service of the poor. God blessed him and kept him in His city of gold.

The Swallow

The swallow also had a very kind heart. He saw tears in the prince’s eyes. His heart melted

with pity. He wanted to help the prince. Therefore, it gave up its idea of going to Egypt. He

stayed with the prince in cold nights. When the prince became blind, the swallow, decided to

live with him forever. He died one day. But even the death could not separate him from the

prince. He was taken to heaven along with the prince.

Comprehension Questions

1.Describe the statue of the Happy Prince.

The statue stood on a tall column and was covered with thin leaves of fine gold. It had two

bright sapphires for its eyes. There was a large red ruby on its sword-hilt.

2. What made the Happy Prince cry?

The Happy Prince could see all the misery and the ugliness of the city because he was place

at a great height. Though his heart was made of lead, he cried on seeing the sorrows of the

poor people.

3. To whom did the prince send his ruby and why?

The prince sent his ruby to a poor seamstress. Her son was ill. He was asking for oranges. But

his mother had no money. Her hands were coarse ,red and pricked by needles because she

was embroidering a gown for the Queen’s maid of honour.So the prince wanted to help her.

4. How did the prince and the swallow enable the playwright to finish his work ?

The playwright was feeling very cold and hungry. There was no fire in the grate. He could

not finish writing a play. The prince asked the swallow to take one of his sapphires to the

playwright so that the playwright could sell it to the jeweller and buy firewood from the

money and finish writing the play. Thus, they helped him to finish his work.

5. How did the prince help the match-girl? What was the result?

The prince sent the sapphire to the match-girl because her matches had fallen in the gutter

and were spoilt. Her father would be displeased with her if she did not take money home.

The prince sent her a sapphire and she was happy. She ran home laughing.

6. Why did the swallow decide not to leave the prince?

The prince had given the sapphires from his eyes to the poor. He was now completely blind.

Therefore, the swallow decided to stay with him.

7. When the prince was alive, he did not know what tears were. Why?
The prince lived in a palace. No sorrow was allowed to enter there. So, he did not know
what tears were. His courtiers called him –‘The Happy Prince’. He lived happy and died
happy.

8. What did the swallow see when he flew into the house of the seamstress and what did he
do?
When the swallow flew into the house of the seamstress, the boy was tossing
feverishly on his bed and the woman had fallen asleep. The swallow put the ruby on a
table near the woman. He fanned the boy with his wings. The boy now felt cool and
sank into a deep slumber.

9. What did the angel consider ‘the two most precious things in the city’?
He considered the lead heart and the dead swallow the two most precious things in the
city.

10. What made the playwright happy?
The playwright saw a sapphire lying near him on the table. He thought it had been sent
by some great admirer and he was beginning to feel appreciated. This made him
happy.

11. Describe the sufferings of the poor people in the city. How did the Happy Prince help
them?
The poor people in the city lived a miserable life. There was a poor seamstress. She had
nothing to give her son who was sick. So, the Happy Prince sent a ruby for her. There
was a playwright who had no firewood to keep himself warm. The prince sent him a
sapphire. There was a match-girl who had no shoes or stockings. Her matches had
fallen in the gutter. She was crying. The prince sent her his second sapphire. There
were hungry and homeless children. The prince sent them all the gold leaves he had on
his body.

12. How did the swallow give comfort to the son of the seamstress?
The swallow came to the house of the seamstress. He found that her son was suffering
from fever. He took pity on him. He fanned the boy with his wings. The son felt
comfort and he fell asleep.

Long answer type questions.

1. Why did the Happy Prince send a ruby to the seamstress?
The Happy Prince was very kind. He saw the ugliness and misery of his city. He saw a
small house. In this house there lived a poor woman. She was a seamstress. Her face
was thin. She looked tired. Her hands were rough. There were needle marks on them.
She was embroidering flowers on a satin gown. Her son was ill. He wanted to eat
oranges. But the woman was very poor. She could not give him anything except the
river water. She could not stop working on the gown. The queen’s maid had to wear it
at the next court ball. The Happy Prince felt pity for the poor woman and his son. He
wanted to help them. So he sent a ruby to her.

2. Why did the Happy Prince keep requesting the swallow to stay for one more night
every time the swallow came to bid him goodbye?
The Happy Prince was on a tall column and from there he could see the miseries of
people. He wanted to help the poor. But he could not move. The Prince wanted to help
a poor seamstress. He sent a ruby to her through the swallow. The next day, the Prince
saw a playwright. He was trying to finish a play. But he was feeling very cold. He had
no firewood to keep himself warm. The Prince wanted to help him. He wanted to send
one of the sapphires of his eyes to the young man. The next day, the prince wanted to
help a poor match girl so he asked the swallow to take the second sapphire of his eyes
to her.
Then, the swallow decided to stay with the prince because the prince was blind.

3. Describe the sufferings of the poor people in the city. How did The Happy Prince help
them?
The poor people in the city were miserable. The Happy Prince saw their sorrows and
sufferings. There was a poor seamstress. She was sad and tired. Her son was ill. But she
had nothing to give him except the river water. In another house, there lived a poor
playwright. He had no wood to keep himself warm. There was a little match girl with
no shoes and stockings .She had lost her matches and had nothing to sell .The Prince
also saw the homeless children. They were hungry and were shivering with cold. The
Prince felt pity for them. He sent the ruby to the poor woman. He sent one sapphire
each to the young man and the match girl. He sent all the gold of his body to the
homeless children. They could buy bread and were happy. Thus, the Happy Prince
helped the poor people of his town.

4. What happened to the statue of the Prince and the swallow in the end?
The swallow and the Happy Prince became friends. The swallow loved the Prince for
his kindness. He decided not to go away. The Prince sent the ruby from the sword hilt, the sapphires of his eyes and gold leaves covering his body to the poor of the town.
Now he was blind and ugly. Then winter came. The little swallow felt very cold. But he
did not leave the Prince. One day, the swallow died. The lead heart of the Prince broke
in two. The next day, the mayor had the statue pulled down because it looked shabby.
It was melted in a furnace. But heart of lead did not melt. It was thrown into a heap.
The dead body of the swallow was also lying there.
When God sent his angel to bring the two most precious things from the city. The
angel brought him the heart of lead of the Prince and the dead body of the swallow.

Answers to Text book questions

1. Why do the courtiers call the prince ‘the Happy Prince’? Is he really happy? What does he
see all around him?
While the prince was alive he lived in his palace. No sorrow was allowed to enter. The
prince was always happy. He did not know what sorrow was. So the courtiers called
him the ‘Happy Prince’. But after his death, his statue was put on a high pedestal. Now
he could see the misery of poor people all around. It made him very sad.

2. Why does the Happy Prince send a ruby for the seamstress? What does the swallow do in
the seamstress’ house?
The Happy Prince sees that the poor woman’s son is ill. The boy is asking oranges. But
the poor woman has no money. So the Happy Prince sends a ruby for her. The swallow
puts the ruby on a table. He fans the boy’s forehead with his wings. The boy gets relief
and falls into deep sleep.

3. For whom does the prince send the sapphires and why?

The prince sends one sapphire for a playwright. He sends the other for a poor match-
girl. The playwright has no firewood to warm himself. The match girl’s matches have

fallen into a gutter. She is crying. The prince wants to help both of them. So he sends
his sapphires for them.

4. What does the swallow see when it flies over the city?
The swallow sees the rich making merry in their beautiful houses. Beggars are sitting at
their gates. In the dark lanes, there are poor children. They are hungry and their faces
are white. Two little boys are lying under a bridge. They are lying in each other’s arms
to keep themselves warm. A watchman drives them away from there.

5. Why did the swallow not leave the prince and go to Egypt?
The prince had given the two sapphires of his eyes for the poor. Now he was
completely blind. The swallow had a kind heart. He could not leave the prince in that
state.

6. What are the precious things mentioned in the story? Why are they precious?
The two precious things are the lead heart of the prince and the dead swallow. They
are precious because they have loving hearts. The prince gives everything he had to
the poor. The swallow sacrifices his life for the sake of the prince. There is no
selfishness in their love.

PRACTICE SHEET

Q1 Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.

(a) "I hope the town has made preparations."

i. Who said these words to whom and why?

The above words were spoken by the little Swallow. The other swallows had

migrated to Egypt and he was left behind. He also decided to go there. So, all

day long he flew and by night he arrived in a city. He decided to take rest and so

expected that the town had preparations for give him shelter.

ii. Where does the Swallow find his shelter?

While searching for shelter, the Swallow, noticed the statue on a tall column and

decided to take shelter for the night between the feet of the statue of the Happy

Prince as it was a fine position with plenty of fresh air.

iii. Why does the Swallow say that he had a golden bedroom?

The Swallow said that he had a golden bedroom because he had taken shelter

between the feet of the statue of the Happy Prince; which was gold plated.

iv. What happened when the Swallow prepared to go to sleep?

When the Swallow prepared to go to sleep, a large drop of water fell on him

which was strange as there was not a peck of cloud in the sky. When another

drop of water fell, the swallow decided to leave the place. When the swallow

looked up, he saw the eyes of the happy prince were filled with tears. His face

was so beautiful in the moonlight that the little Swallow's heart filled with pity.

(b) Dear little swallow, you tell me of marvellous things, but more marvellous than

anything is the suffering men and of women."

i. Who said the above words and to whom?

The above words were spoken by the Happy Prince to the little Swallow.

ii. What task does the Prince give to the Swallow?

The Prince asks the Swallow to fly over his city and to report to him what he had

seen during his flight.

iii. What does the Swallow witness?

The Swallow witnessed in the great city that the rich where making merry in

their beautiful houses, while beggar were sitting at the gates. He saw the faces

of starving children on the street. Under the archway of a bridge two little poor

boys were very hungry and cold and were lying in one another's arm to keep

themselves warm.

iv. How does the Prince decide to help those needy people?

The Prince asked the Swallow to pluck the gold leaves from his body and

distribute them among the poor and the needy so that they would feel happy.

Q2 Answer the following questions in 30-40 words each.

(a) Why did the Happy Prince request the swallow to stay with him for the night?

The Happy prince saw the misery in the city from his position on the tall column.

He saw that the poor seamstress was very sad because her son was ill. She had

nothing to give him except the river water. The Happy Prince wanted to send her

a ruby. But he could not move. So he requested the swallow to stay with him for

the night and be his messenger.

(b) How did the Swallow feel when he returned from the house of the seamstress? Why?

The swallow felt quite warm, although the weather was cold. The prince told her

that it was because he had done a good deed.

(c) What did the swallow do when the snow and the frost came?

The poor swallow grew colder and colder when frost followed the snow. But he

did not leave the Prince. He picked up the crumbs outside the baker’s door when

the baker was not looking and tried to keep himself warm by flapping his wings.

But he knew that he was going to die.

(d) Why did the mayor and the town councillors decide to pull down the statue of the

Happy Prince?

The mayor and the town councillors decided to pull down the statue of the

Happy Prince because it looked shabby as it had lost the ruby from the sword,

sapphire from its eyes and gold from its body. It was no longer beautiful and no

longer useful.

Q3 Answer the following questions in 100-150 words each.

(a) Whom did the Prince give the sapphires from his eyes and why?

The Prince gives away the sapphires to the young student in a garret and the match-girl because of the following reasons. The young man in the town who

was an aspiring playwright was seen in a garret leaning over a desk covered with

papers. He was trying to finish a play for the director of the theatre but was

unable to do so because he was too cold to write and hunger had made him

faint. The prince felt pity for the young man and so he commanded the Swallow

to pluck out his sapphire eyes and give it to the young student to end his

miserable days. The second o sapphire was given to the match girl whose

matches fell in the gutter and were all spoiled. Her father would beat her if she

did not bring home some money by selling the matches and this brought tears in

her eyes. She had neither shoes nor stocking and her little head was bare; which

clearly showed that she was too poor to buy warm clothes. The prince moved by

her sorrow and suffering, ordered the little Swallow to pluck out his other eye

and hand it to her so that she would be able to get enough money for her

family.

(b) Why did the Swallow not leave the Prince and go to Egypt?

The little Swallow did not leave the happy prince and go to Egypt, because while

living with the Prince, the bird began to understand the feelings of human heart

and its functioning. She started to feel the pain and the sorrow which human

beings suffered. The sacrifice of the Prince made the little Swallow aware that he

too could play a part in helping the poor. He was moved by the plight of the

blind Prince and decided to stay with him. The swallow knew that he would not

be able to survive the winter, yet he made the supreme sacrifice for the sake of

his friend- The Happy Prince.

(c) Why does God consider the lead heart and the dead bird as the two most precious

things in the city?

God considered the lead heart of the Happy Prince and the dead Swallow as the

two most precious things in the city as the Happy Prince had served the poor

and the needy whole heartedly by providing them with the last resource of his

body to bring back a little happiness into their lives and the bird had remained

his faithful messenger. Although the Prince gave everything he had, without the

help of the bird he would not have been able to reach out. These two had

sacrificed their lives in serving the poor and the unprivileged; who are one of

God's creation without having any expectation.