The Tale of Melon City Questions and Answers English NCERT Snapshots

Ans. The word just and placid means fair and mild. The king is described here as just and calm but his sense of justice is absurd. He is ready to hang any innocent person who fits noose. He loses his calmness even though he tries to calm and quiet.

Ans. The Tale of Melon City brings home the point that a non-interfering melon as a king is better than a foolish one. The king in the poem was too much dependent on others. For this, he had to pay a heavy price. In order to satisfy bent on justice, he agreed to be hanged. The point is that anything which is taken too far is self-defeating, even for a virtue justice may be turned out to be an evil in certain circumstances. The Poet’s satire is aimed at the human tendency to act on set lines, sometimes out of foolish pride and sometimes in tradition-bound ignorance.

Ans. When the king found the crowd restless, he concluded that the nation wanted a hanging. In order to satisfy his public, they said that they should respond thinking about who was guilty or not. A man he said must be hanged. The noose was set up high no man except the king himself could reach it. So the king agreed to be hanged by the royal decree.

Ans. The king wanted to show his victory and achievements to the citizens therefore decided to make an arch in the city. He proclaimed that this arch would triumphally span the major thoroughfare.

Ans. In this expression the king signifies the kingship which continues, the king as a person, may do but the kingship never dies. Whenever the king dies a new king ordained even before his funeral takes place. The throne is never left vacant. This the old tradition of Monarchy.

Ans. When the king rode down the thoroughfare to edify the spectators, his crown was lost under the arch as it was making too low. The king reacts angrily as he felt insulted. He decided to hang the chief of the builders.

Ans. The various persons involved in the construction of the arch tried to pass their blame on others. The chief of builders said it was the workmen’s fault, they said it was the mason’s fault and the mason said it was the architect’s fault. In the end, the blame goes to the placid king.

Ans. The ministers were in a dilemma that who will be their next king. They decided that whoever comes through the city gate he will be their king.

Ans. ‘A melon‘ was put on the throne because an idiot was the first to come through the city gate and he replied ‘A melon’ when the guards asked “who is the king?“.

Ans. The citizens have accepted melon as their king. They didn’t want the place of the king to be empty and in this way the kingship ever dies.