Summary of “Mrs. Adis” by Sheila Kaye-Smith
“Mrs. Adis” is a gripping short story set in the English countryside, exploring themes of morality, forgiveness, and maternal instincts.
The story begins on a stormy night when Peter, a poacher, arrives at Mrs. Adis’s cottage seeking refuge. He is on the run, believing he has shot and killed a policeman during a confrontation in the woods. Mrs. Adis, a widow, reluctantly lets him in, despite feeling uneasy about harboring a fugitive.
As Peter recounts the events of the night, a shocking truth emerges: the man he shot was not a policeman, but Mrs. Adis’s son, whom Peter did not recognize in the dark. Overwhelmed by this revelation, Mrs. Adis experiences a whirlwind of emotions—grief for her son and compassion for Peter, who was once her son’s close friend and is now devastated by his mistake.
Despite her heartbreak, Mrs. Adis does not betray Peter’s presence to the authorities when they come searching for him. She silently grapples with her loss and her choice, driven by a complex mix of maternal forgiveness and pity for Peter’s tragic error.
The story ends on an ambiguous note, leaving readers to reflect on Mrs. Adis’s extraordinary strength and moral dilemma. It highlights the complexities of human emotions and the challenge of navigating personal tragedy in the face of societal expectations.
Activities from the margin of the lesson Mrs. Adis
The writer describes Mrs. Adis as –
- a small woman
- Thin woman
- Brown hard face
- Hair like wrinkles
Mrs. Adis asks Peter crouch whether he has had a quarrel with the keepers. This shows that
- Peter Crouch is hot temper
- He gets into quarrel easily.
- Mr. Adis knew his nature.
List some characteristics of Mrs. Adis based on this incident.
Faithful , trustworthy, good , helpful , forgetful
Give reason :
Vilder guessed that Crouch has taken refuge at Mrs. Adis’ house because he was a friend of Mrs. Adis’s son Tom. Crouch didn’t know that he had shot Tom dead.
The row took place because the keepers scared Peter Crouch who fired the gun in darkness.
Mrs. Adis unlocked the door because she had forgiven Peter and wanted him to run away safely.
Guess the meaning: ‘wrung’ here means
Find the difference between: shivering and trembling
BRAINSTORMING of Mrs. Adis
(A1) (i) Discuss with your partner and describe the atmosphere in the woods when Peter Crouch was heading towards Mrs. Adis’s House. It was-
(a) a dark moonless night.
(b) a few stars in the sky
(c) windless , silent and clear night
(ii) Peter Crouch didn’t knock before entering Mrs. Adis’s house.
The reason was-
(a) Peter Crouch didn’t want to make noise.
(b) He wanted nobody to hear the noise of knocking
(c) He was in haste.
(iii) Go through the text again and find the reasons that forced Peter to shoot down a person.
(a) The keepers spotted him.
(b) He had fears of being caught.
(c) They were more in numbers.
(iv) Mrs. Adis didn’t hand over Peter Crouch to the keepers because-
(a) He was her son Tom’s friend.
(b) Tom would want her to stay by him.
(A2) The writer has used a phrase ‘Thudding Heart’ which means pounding, or beating of heart. Do you know ‘Thud’ is an onomatopoeic word which means a heavy sound made by an object falling to the ground. Discuss with your partner and make a list of Onomatopoeic words that you find in the text.
(a) crackling
(b) rustling
(c) bark
Activities other than the text
A1 Choose the correct alternative and rewrite the following statements.
1) Peter/ Mrs. Adis was stooping over the fire.
2) Peter knocked the door/walked straight in the cottage.
3) Peter thought he killed/ shot a man.
4) Mrs. Adis was a woman with a hard/soft face.
Ans : 1. Mrs. Adis was stooping over the fire. 2. Peter walked straight in the cottage. 3. Peter thought he shot a man. 4. Mrs. Adis was a woman with a soft face.
A2. Complete the statement: Peter was in trouble because …………
A3. The kettle boiled over and Mrs Adis mechanically put it at the side of the fire. Find the deeper meaning of this statement.
A4. Imagine a young man comes to you pleading to protect him from police. Write how you will react.
A5. Language Study.
1. He did not knock, but walked straight in. (Rewrite into simple sentence.)
Ans. Without knocking he walked straight in.
2. I shot a man. (Rewrite into passive voice.)
Ans. A man was shot by me.
A6. Vocabulary.
Across.
2. a line in the skin of face
3, overcrowded
4. too many to be counted
Down
1. reluctant to do something
Activity Set A
Que. 1 A) Read the extract and complete the activities given below: (12)
In north-east Sussex a great tongue of land runs into Kent. It is a land of woods – the old hammer tongue of land: a long woods of the Sussex iron industry and among the stretch of land brunching woods gleam the hammerponds. Owing to the thickness of the woods, the road that passes Mrs. wood Adis’s cottage is dark long before the fields beyond. as That night there was no twilight and no moon, only a few pricks of fire in the black sky above the trees. But what the darkness hid the silence revealed. In the absolute stillness of the night, windless and clear, every sound was distinct, intensified. The distant bark of a dog at Delmonden sounded close at hand, and Delmonden: name of a the man who walked on the road could hear the echo of his own footsteps following him like a knell.
Every now and then he made an effort to go more quietly, but the roadside was a mass of thorns, and their crackling and rustling were nearly as loud as the thud of his feet on the road. Besides, they made him go slowly, and he had no time for that.
When he came to Mrs. Adis’s cottage he paused a moment. Only a small patch of grass lay between it and the road, and he looked in at the lighted, uncurtained window. He could see Mrs. Adis stooping over the fire, taking some pot or kettle off it. He hesitated and seemed to wonder. He was a big, heavy, working man, not successful, judging by the poverty his appearance. For a moment he made as if he would open the window, then he changed his mind and went to the door instead.
A1) Complete the following:
1)Mrs. Adis cottage is dark ……………………..
2) The dog’s bark thought distance, seemed,…………………..
1)Mrs. Adis cottage is dark long before the fields beyond.
2)The dog’s bark thought distance, seemed close at hand.
A2) Describe the atmosphere in the woods when Peter Crouch was heading towards Mrs. Adis’s house.
The atmosphere in the woods was dark, windless, and clear. The darkness hid everything, and the only light was a few pricks of fire in the black sky above the trees. The absolute stillness of the night intensified every sound, making it distinct.
A3) Why does the writer conclude that the man was not successful?
The writer concludes that the man was not successful judging by his appearance, which showed poverty.
A4) Do you judge a person by his outer appearance?
However, it is not fair to judge a person based on their outer appearance as it is not always an accurate reflection of their personality or circumstances.
A5) Vocabulary:
The sounds described in this extract are crackling, rustling, thud, and bark.
A6) Grammar:
When he came to Mrs. Adis’s cottage he paused a moment. (Clause: When he came to Mrs. Adis’s cottage)
Only a small patch of grass lay between it and the road. (Subject: Only a small patch of grass, Verb: lay)
1 B) 1 Do as directed/ Transformation of the sentences.
a) We have been in Sector 9, Jalgaon since 1990.
b) The information must be true. I do not know.
c) Listen, someone is singing a song.
Spot the error.
Electricity is cheap than coal.”
The error in the sentence is “cheap than.” The correct sentence is “Electricity is cheaper than coal.”
Dialogue: Seeking Help After a Grave Mistake
Me: Hey, you look really worried. What’s wrong? Is everything okay?
Friend/Sibling: Not really… I made a big mistake, and I don’t know what to do.
Me: Okay, take a deep breath. Tell me what happened.
Friend/Sibling: Well, I accidentally broke the college lab equipment while experimenting without permission. It was really expensive, and I’m afraid I’ll get into serious trouble. I don’t know how to fix this.
Me: Oh, that does sound serious. But hiding it won’t solve the problem. Have you told anyone about it?
Friend/Sibling: No, not yet. I’m scared they’ll punish me or even suspend me. That’s why I came to you. What should I do?
Me: I understand how you feel, but the first step is to take responsibility for your actions. Go to the teacher or the lab in-charge and explain what happened. Be honest and show that you regret your mistake.
Friend/Sibling: But what if they don’t forgive me?
Me: They might be upset at first, but they’ll respect your honesty. You could also offer to help pay for the damage or work on something to compensate for the loss. That will show that you’re serious about making things right.
Friend/Sibling: You’re right. I can’t keep running away from this. I’ll talk to the teacher tomorrow and explain everything. Thank you for guiding me.
Me: That’s the spirit! Mistakes happen, but it’s how you handle them that matters. Don’t worry; I’ll be here if you need more help.
Friend/Sibling: Thanks again. I feel a bit better now.
Vocabulary Test
Choose appropriate words from the given WORD BANK and complete the test.
( intensified, innumerable, ceased, stooping over, stuffy, shrug, wrinkles, knell,
snap, deserved, huddled down,
on the threshold, escape, hesitated, anxiety, straining, refuge, fetch, beseechingly, close at hand)
1. What word MOST NEARLY means: stroke?
2. What word MOST NEARLY means: very near?
3. What word MOST NEARLY means: appealingly?
4.What word MOST NEARLY means: bend over?
5.What word MOST NEARLY means: shrink oneself?
6.What word MOST NEARLY means: streching?
7.What word MOST NEARLY means: make a sharp sound?
8.What word MOST NEARLY means: sharpened?
9.What word MOST NEARLY means: get free of?
10.What word MOST NEARLY means: bring in?
11.What word MOST NEARLY means: nervousness?
12 What word MOST NEARLY means: small ridges in the skin?
13. What word MOST NEARLY means: competent ?
14. What word MOST NEARLY means: boundary?
15. What word MOST NEARLY means: to delay momentarily?
16. What word MOST NEARLY means: lacking in vitality?
17. What word MOST NEARLY means: too many?
18. What word MOST NEARLY means: shelter?
19. What word MOST NEARLY means: stopped
20. What word MOST NEARLY means: lift the shoulders?
Nice one as usual.
Very useful for students 👍