Class 9 English - RAJASTHAN
Supplementary: The Happy Prince
Supplementary: The Happy Prince by Oscar Wilde is a touching tale of a golden statue and a little swallow who work together to help the poor and suffering people of the city. For Class 9 Rajasthan Board (RBSE) students, this chapter is crucial as it tests reading comprehension, emotional understanding, and moral values. Board exams frequently feature questions on character sketches, central themes of sacrifice and love, and extract-based questions from this story.
Start Learning FreeKey Concepts
The Happy Prince
A magnificent statue covered in gold and jewels who weeps when he witnesses the poverty and misery of his city's people.
The Little Swallow
A migratory bird who delays his journey to Egypt to act as the Prince's messenger, carrying away the statue's precious stones and gold.
Selfless Sacrifice
The core theme showing how the Prince gives away all his beauty and the swallow gives up his life to bring comfort to the needy.
True Beauty
The story teaches that true beauty lies not in physical gold and jewels, but in a kind, helpful, and loving heart.
God's Chosen Things
At the end of the story, God chooses the dead swallow and the leaden heart of the Prince as the two most precious things in the city.
Important Formulas
Board Exam Info
In the Rajasthan (RBSE) Class 9 English board examinations, supplementary chapters carry around 6 to 8 marks. Students can expect short answer questions, long descriptive essay-type questions based on the theme or character sketches of the Happy Prince and the Swallow, and multiple-choice or reference-to-context questions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why was the statue called the Happy Prince?
The statue was called the Happy Prince because when he was alive, he lived in a palace where sorrow was not allowed to enter, and he only knew happiness.
Why did the swallow not go to Egypt?
The swallow stayed behind because he was moved by the sadness of the Happy Prince and agreed to help him by delivering his rubies, sapphires, and gold leaf to the poor.
What happened to the leaden heart and the dead swallow at the end?
When the statue lost its beauty, the Mayor and town councillors pulled it down to melt it. The leaden heart would not melt in the furnace, so they threw it away along with the dead swallow, where God's angel collected them as the two most precious things in the city.
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