Summary of Robin
Jim Corbett is renowned for his writing on hunting and wild life. His description of hunting comes alive to the readers. His stories and essays on wild life are highly delightful and readable. In the story ‘Robin’ he has narrated how he succeeded in killing a ferocious leopard with the help provided by his pet dog named ‘Robin’.
Robin was the smallest and thinnest of the litter. He was then called ‘Pincha’. The writer purchased him for fifteen rupees. He was named Robin in the memory of the writer’s old and loyal coolie who had saved the life of the writer’s four-year-old brother.
Since the writer was fond of hunting, he trained Robin in that art. Robin learnt all the tricks of the trade very fast and became an ever fast and ever alert loyal assistant to the writer. Robin displayed his courage and wisdom on several occasions. Once Robin chased a langur and safely went up a tree. This increased his confidence, but his overconfidence landed him in danger while following a leopard. He learnt out of this misadventure.
Once he accompanied the writer on hunting. The writer found a leopard and shot at it from a short distance. The leopard despite being injured disappeared in the forest. After some day it was seen again but the birds cry spoiled the chance of firing at it. It was Robin who discovered its whereabouts. The writer shot at its belly from a very close range. It disappeared again but Robin fell its presence. This time the writer made no mistake and shot it dead.
Objectives
1. Which type of story is ‘Robin’?
- Humorous
- Essay
- Adventurous
- Inspiring
2. The story ‘Robin’ is written by ……….
- John Corbett
- Jim Corbett
- Jim Lynd
- Robert Lynd
3. When trained to hunt, Robin first of all hunted a ……….
- Peafowl
- Pigeon
- Puppy
- Langur
4. The author of ‘Robin’ was also a successful and very experienced ……….
- Businessman
- Psychologist
- Hunter
- Poet
5. The central character of this story is ……….
- Jim Corbett
- Robin
- leopard
- Coolie
6. The seller of Robin told the author that it belonged to the race/breed of ……….
- Beagle
- Labrador
- Spaniel
- German shepherd
7. Robin was earlier named by his seller as ……….
- Coolie
- Pincha
- Spaniel
- None of the above
8. The author had purchased Robin for ……….
- Fifty rupees
- Fifteen rupees
- Sixty rupees
- One hundred rupees
9. A wonded animal is ……….
- more strong
- more weak
- more dangerous
- fast runner
10. Robin used to track a leopard’s or tiger’s ……….
- figure
- pugmarks
- smell
- None of these
11. The story ‘Robin’ is written by ……….
- J.C. Hill
- Jim Corbett
- A.G. Gardiner
- Robert Lynd
12. The writer picked up the pup, paying for it, in a ……….
- sunny day
- cold day
- cold morning
- hot evening
Answers:- 1. (C) 2. (B) 3. (A) 4. (C) 5. (B) 6. (C) 7. (B) 8. (B) 9. (C) 10. (B) 11. (B) 12. (C)
Subjectives
1. Give a character sketch of Robin.
Answer:- Robin was a very loyal dog of Jim Corbett. He was trained by the writer in hunting and learnt all the tricks of the trade very fast. He was alert, brave and intelligent. He had firm control over his nerves and always learnt out of his mistakes.
Robin always displayed the presence of mind and could smell the presence of wild animals. He assisted his master in finding and killing the leopard.
2. What is the merit of shooting on foot?
Answer:- Shooting on foot is considered the best and safest of hunting tricks. In that position, one can easily run to safety in case of a sudden attack by a wild animal. Running away in riding position is difficult. If one is on foot, he can shoot at the animal from any angle.
3. What lessons did Robin learn from his experience?
Answer:- Robin learnt two chief lessons out of his experience- (i) Never to chase langurs, because it is very dangerous. (ii) The alarm call of langurs always indicates the presence of some leopard in the vicinity.
4. Who was Robin? How was he named so?
Answer:- Robin was the name of the dog, bought by the writer. It was the writer himself who named it Robin in the memory of his old, loyal coolie who had saved his four-year-old brother.
5. What happened after Robin chased the langur down the hill side?
Answer:- The langur hide itself behind the tree but simply to be attacked by a leopard. Robin who was chasing, ran back for his life. It was the loud cry of the writer and the alarm calls of hundreds of langur that saved the life of Robin.