The Secret Garden
by Frances H. Burnett (Roots)
Start Here
Look at these pictures and circle the tools which you would use in a garden. Do you know the names of all these tools?
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Comprehension
Read and answer
1. Match the following characters form the story with their qualities.
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a. Martha Sowerby |
Lonely and curious. [c] |
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b. Archibald Craven |
Rich and unhappy. [b] |
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c. Mary Lennox |
Patient, kind and practical. [a] |
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d. Ben Weatherstaff |
Surly, but kind. [d] |
2. Mark these sentences as True or False.
a. The story takes place on a dull and cold day.
= True.
b. Mr Craven locked the door to the secret garden and lost the key.
= False.
c. The secret garden has been shut for 10 years.
= True.
d. Ben Weatherstaff is a young gardener.
= False.
e. Mary makes friends with a red robin.
= False.
Reference to context
3. MARTHA (showing her the way downstairs) If you go round the way, you'll reach the gardens. (points to the gates and hesitates) One of the gardens is locked up. No one has been in it for ten years.
a. Why does Martha hesitates before telling Mary about the secret garden?
= Martha Sowerby is a good-natured maid of Archibald Craven. The secret garden was Mr Craven's wife's garden. He had shut it when his wife died. He won't let no one go inside. He locked the door and buried the key. That is why Martha hesitates before telling Mary about the secret garden. Mr Craven might get angry on her if he knows that Martha has told about this to Mary.
b. What happens after Mary gets to know about the secret garden?
= After Mary gets to know about the secret garden, she cannot help thinking about the garden which on one has been into for ten years. She keeps on thinking that if there are any flowers still alive in it. She also thinks that how a garden could be shut up for so many years. She continues to search the door of the secret garden all through the story. She even asks Ben about it. Lastly she decides to find out the secret garden of her own.
4. MARY (whispers) Will he always come when you call him?
NARRATOR The gardener nods. He begins to talk more warmly not that the bird is here.
a. Who is 'he' in Mary's line?
= In Mary's line, 'he' is a bright red breast robin bird.
b. What is the gardener's name in the story? How has he behaved towards Mary before this?
= The gardener's name in the story is Ben Weatherstaff.
He has behaved in a low, unfriendly way towards Mary before this. He talked to her in a harsh and rough voice.
c. What do the narrator's comments about the gardener say about his true nature?
= The narrator's comments about the gardener say that he bit of surly but kind. He treated Mary in an unfriendly way at the beginning of their conversation. Unless he is bit surly but kind. He says Mary about his friendship with the red breast robin.
Reflect and answer
5. What was the role of the narrator in the story? What impact did this style of writing have on you?
= The narrator initiated the storyline. And frequently he proceeds the storyline at the middle of the conversations. He clarifies the points of the story in a very clear way. This makes the story easy for the readers to understand.
I am very much impressed by this style of writing. This makes the text more attractive to read. I can easily understand the flow of incident in the story. The elaborate description of the narrator makes me more curious about the secret garden and about the forthcoming incidents of the story.
6. What do you think happens next in the story? Will Mary find a way into the secret garden? What might she find there?
= I think Mary keeps on searching for the gate of the secret garden.
She will find a locked door with ivy growing over it.
She might push the door. The rusted lock and hinges of the door might break and the door get opened. She might enter into the secret garden and find the old rose-trees tangled with wild creepers. She might find other favourite things of Mr Craven's wife.
7. "Mary goes down the path which leads to the great gardens. She looks around at the trees, and flower beds and a large pool with a grey fountain. But the flower beds are bare and the fountain is not playing." Think about how these lines make you feel. Which words contribute to this feeling?
= These lines make me feel gloom, isolated and lonely. Generally a garden is a cheerful place full of life. But here the gardens have flower beds which are bare. It has a large pool with a fountain. But the fountain is not playing.
The words 'grey fountain', 'flower beds are bare', and 'the fountain is not playing' contribute to this feeling.
About the Author :
Frances H. Burnett (1849-1924) was an American author. As a child, her family faced many financial difficulties. She started tasting success in her career at a time when most women didn't have one. It was only when her son demanded that she write something for little boys to read that she worked on her first major piece. After this, she went on to write two of her most famous stories - A Little Princess and The Secret Garden - inspired by her childhood and love for gardening.