ICSE Class 10 The Little Match Girl Workbook Solutions and Answers

Comprehension Passages

Passage 1

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.

Most terribly cold it was; it snowed, and was nearly quite dark, and evening- the last evening of the year. In this cold and darkness there went along the street a poor little girl, bareheaded, and with naked feet. When she left home she had slippers on, it is true; but what was the good of that? They were very large slippers, which her mother had hitherto worn; so large were they; and the poor little thing lost them as she scuffled away across the street, because of two carriages that rolled by dreadfully fast.

One slipper was nowhere to be found; the other had been laid hold of by an urchin, and off he ran with it; he thought it would do capitally for a cradle when he some day or other should have children himself. So the little maiden walked on with her tiny naked feet, that were quite red and blue from cold. She carried a quantity of matches in an old apron, and she held a bundle of them in her hand. Nobody had bought anything of her the whole livelong day; no one had given her a single farthing. She crept along trembling with cold and hunger-a very picture of sorrow, the poor little thing!

Question 1. Which day of the year was it in the story?
Answer: It was terribly cold. It snowed, and it was nearly quite dark. It was New Year's eve and the night was freezing cold.
In simple words: The story takes place on New Year's Eve, which was extremely cold and dark with snow falling.

🎯 Exam Tip: Note specific details like the weather and time of year as they often set the mood and context for the story.

Question 2. Describe the condition of the girl.
Answer: The little girl was bare headed and barefoot in the freezing cold as she had lost the slippers she had worn which belonged to her mother and were too large for her. Her feet were quite red and blue from cold.
In simple words: The girl was bareheaded and barefoot, shivering from the intense cold, and her feet were red and blue due to frostbite.

🎯 Exam Tip: Pay attention to descriptive adjectives and phrases used to portray characters' circumstances.

Question 3. What did the girl carry in her pocket?
Answer: The little girl carried a quantity of matches in an old apron, and she held a bundle of them in her hand.
In simple words: She carried many matches in an old apron and a bundle of them in her hand.

🎯 Exam Tip: Specific details about objects carried by characters can be important for plot development.

Question 4. Had she managed to sell any matches?
Answer: Nobody had bought anything of her the whole livelong day; no one had given her a single farthing.
In simple words: No, she hadn't sold any matches or received any money all day.

🎯 Exam Tip: Look for direct statements in the text that answer factual questions about events.

Question 5. Does the author give us a glimpse into the Victorian society?
Answer: Yes, we get a glimpse into the society in which parents were cruel enough to make their * small children work in the freezing cold. Begging was a menace and child abuse was common.
In simple words: Yes, the story reveals aspects of Victorian society where child labor, neglect, and begging were prevalent issues.

🎯 Exam Tip: Connect the story's events to broader societal themes or historical contexts if implied by the question.

Passage 2

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.

Lights were shining from every window, and there was a savoury smell of roast goose, for it was New-year's eve-yes, she remembered that. In a corner, between two houses, one of which projected beyond the other, she sank down and huddled herself together. She had drawn her little feet under her, but she could not keep off the cold; and

she dared not go home, for she had sold no matches, and could not take home even a penny of money. Her father would certainly beat her; besides, it was almost as cold at home as here, for they had only the roof to cover them, through which the wind howled, although the largest holes had been stopped up with straw and rags. Her little hands were almost frozen with the cold. Ah! perhaps a burning match might be some good, if she could draw it from the bundle and strike it against the wall, just to warm her fingers. She drew one out-"scratch!” how it sputtered as it burnt! It gave a warm, bright light, like a little candle, as she held her hand over it. It was really a wonderful light. It seemed to the little girl that she was sitting by a large iron stove, with polished brass feet and a brass ornament. How the fire burned! and seemed so beautifully warm that the child stretched out her feet as if to warm them, when, lo! the flame of the match went out, the stove vanished, and she had only the remains of the half-burnt match in her hand.

Question 1. Where did the girl seek some shelter from the cold?
Answer: The girl in order to escape the freezing cold huddled in a corner, between two houses, one of which projected beyond the other. She had drawn her little feet under her, but she could not keep off the cold.
In simple words: She huddled in a corner between two houses to find some shelter from the cold.

🎯 Exam Tip: Identify precise locations mentioned in the text when asked about setting or actions.

Question 2. Why could the girl not go home?
Answer: The little girl did not dare to go home, for she had sold no matches, and could not take home even a penny of money. Her father would certainly beat her for earning no money.
In simple words: She couldn't go home because she hadn't sold any matches and feared her father would beat her for not earning money.

🎯 Exam Tip: Look for stated reasons and consequences of characters' actions or inactions.

Question 3. Describe her home.
Answer: Her house was in as poor a condition as her. It was almost as cold at home as on the street because they had only the roof to cover them. They lacked adequate woollens to keep them warm. There also the wind howled through the cracks, although the largest holes had been stopped up with straw and rags.
In simple words: Her home was poorly maintained, almost as cold as outside, with only a roof for shelter, inadequate clothing, and wind howling through patched cracks.

🎯 Exam Tip: Summarize details about settings by combining relevant descriptive phrases from the passage.

Question 4. How did she try to keep herself warm?
Answer: She thought of lighting her matches to keep herself warm .
In simple words: She decided to light one of her matches to warm her fingers.

🎯 Exam Tip: Focus on direct actions taken by characters to solve their problems.

Question 5. What did she imagine when she lighted the first match?
Answer: When she lighted the first match it seemed to give a warm, bright light, like a little candle. It was really a wonderful light. It seemed to the little girl that she was sitting by a large iron stove, with polished brass feet and a brass ornament. How the fire burned! and it seemed so beautifully warm that the child stretched out her feet as if to warm them.
In simple words: She imagined she was sitting by a large, warm iron stove with polished brass feet, feeling beautifully warm.

🎯 Exam Tip: Distinguish between reality and imagination within the narrative, especially in stories involving dreams or visions.

Passage 3

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.

She lighted another match, and then she found herself sitting under a beautiful Christmas-tree. It was larger and more beautifully decorated than the one which she had seen through the glass door at the rich merchant's. Thousands of tapers were burning upon the green branches, and colored pictures, like those she had seen in the show-windows, looked down upon it all. The little one stretched out her hand towards them, and the match went out.

The Christmas lights rose higher and higher, till they looked to her like the stars in the sky. Then she saw a star fall, leaving behind it a bright streak of fire. “Someone is dying,” thought the little girl, for her old grandmother, the only one who had ever loved her, and who was now dead, had told her that when a star falls, a soul was going up to God.

Question 1. What did she see when she lighted another match?
Answer: When the girl lighted another match she saw herself sitting under a beautiful Christmas-tree. It was larger and more beautifully decorated than the one which she had seen through the glass door at the rich merchant's.
In simple words: Upon lighting another match, she envisioned herself under a magnificent, beautifully decorated Christmas-tree.

🎯 Exam Tip: Pay attention to the sequence of events and how each match-light brings a new vision.

Question 2. Describe the Christmas tree.
Answer: The Christmas tree was beautifully decorated. There were thousands of tapers were burning upon the green branches, and coloured pictures, like those she had seen in the show-windows, looked down upon it all.
In simple words: The Christmas tree was grand, adorned with thousands of burning tapers and colorful pictures, far more beautiful than any she had seen.

🎯 Exam Tip: Extract specific details and imagery used to describe fantastical elements in the story.

Question 3. What happened when she stretched her hand to touch?
Answer: As soon as she stretched her hand to touch the match went out and the tree disappeared.
In simple words: When she reached out to touch the vision, the match went out and the Christmas-tree vanished.

🎯 Exam Tip: Note the immediate consequences of character actions within their visions.

Question 4. How did the Christmas lights appear when the match went out?
Answer: When the match went out the Christmas lights rose higher and higher, till they looked to her like the stars in the sky. Then she saw a star fall, leaving behind it a bright streak of fire.
In simple words: After the match went out, the Christmas lights transformed into stars, and she saw one falling with a fiery streak.

🎯 Exam Tip: Observe transformations or transitions in the girl's visions as the matches burn out.

Question 5. Why did the girl think that “Someone is dying" ?
Answer: The girl thought that “Someone is dying” because her old grandmother, the only one who had ever loved her, and who was now dead, had told her that when a star falls, a soul was going up to God.
In simple words: She believed a falling star signified a soul ascending to God, a belief taught to her by her deceased grandmother.

🎯 Exam Tip: Understand the cultural or personal beliefs that influence characters' interpretations of events.

Passage 4

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.

She again rubbed a match on the wall, and the light shone round her; in the brightness stood her old grandmother, clear and shining, yet mild and loving in her appearance. “Grandmother,” cried the little one, “O take me with you; I know you will go away when the match burns out; you will vanish like the warm stove, the roast goose, and the large, glorious Christmas-tree.” And she made haste to light the whole bundle of matches, for she wished to keep her grandmother there. And the

matches glowed with a light that was brighter than the noon-day, and her grandmother had never appeared so large or so beautiful. She took the little girl in her arms, and they both flew upwards in brightness and joy far above the earth, where there was neither cold nor hunger nor pain, for they were with God.

In the dawn of morning there lay the poor little one, with pale cheeks and smiling mouth, leaning against the wall; she had been frozen to death on the last evening of the year; and the New-year's sun rose and shone upon a little corpse! The child still sat, in the stiffness of death, holding the matches in her hand, one bundle of which was burnt. "She tried to warm herself," said some. No one imagined what beautiful things she had seen, nor into what glory she had entered with her grandmother, on New-year's day.

Question 1. What happened when she lighted another match?
Answer: When she lighted another match the light shone round her and in the brightness stood her old grandmother, clear and shining, yet mild and loving in her appearance.
In simple words: She saw her loving grandmother, clear and shining, appear in the light of the match.

🎯 Exam Tip: Note the emotional significance of the final vision and its contrast with previous ones.

Question 2. What did the girl say to her grandmother? Why?
Answer: The girl pleaded with her grandmother to take her along with her because she was the only one in the world who loved her.
In simple words: The girl begged her grandmother to take her away, as her grandmother was the only person who had ever shown her love.

🎯 Exam Tip: Analyze the dialogue for expressions of deep longing or emotional connection.

Question 3. Why did the girl make haste to light the whole bundle of matches?
Answer: The girl made haste to light the whole bundle of matches, for she wished to keep her grandmother there. And the matches glowed with a light that was brighter than the noon day, and her grandmother had never appeared so large or so beautiful. She took the little girl in her arms, and they both flew upwards in brightness and joy far above the earth, where there was neither cold nor hunger nor pain, for they were with God.
In simple words: She quickly lit all her matches to keep her grandmother's vision alive, fearing she would disappear like the other visions.

🎯 Exam Tip: Understand the motivation behind a character's urgent actions, especially when driven by fear or desire.

Question 4. What happened to the little girl? What did the people think?
Answer: The little girl died and the people saw that one bundle of matches was burnt. They said she had tried to warm herself.
In simple words: The little girl froze to death, and people thought she had simply tried to warm herself with the burnt matches.

🎯 Exam Tip: Compare the actual events with the characters' perceptions or interpretations in the story.

Question 5. Why was there a smile on the girl's lips? Did the people understand?
Answer: The girl had a smile on her face when she died because she was relinquishing a world of pain and suffering and was reunited with the person she loved the most, her grandmother and God.No one imagined what beautiful things she had seen, nor into what glory she had entered with her grandmother, on New-year's day. They had no idea about the beautiful pictures she had seen.
In simple words: She smiled because she was escaping a life of suffering and being reunited with her beloved grandmother and God; people did not understand her joy or the beautiful visions she experienced.

🎯 Exam Tip: Focus on the symbolic meaning of actions and expressions, and the contrast between inner experience and external observation.

Assignment

She again rubbed a match on the wall, and the light shone round her; in the brightness stood her old grandmother, clear and shining, yet mild and loving in her appearance. “Grandmother,” cried the little one, “O take me with you; I know you will go away when the match burns out; you will vanish like the warm stove, the roast goose, and the large, glorious Christmas-tree.” And she made haste to light the whole bundle of matches, for she wished to keep her grandmother there. And the matches glowed with a light that was brighter than the noon-day, and her grandmother had never appeared so large or so beautiful. She took the little girl in her arms, and they both flew upwards in brightness and joy far above the earth, where there was neither cold nor hunger nor pain, for they were with God.

In the dawn of morning there lay the poor little one, with pale cheeks and smiling mouth, leaning against the wall; she had been frozen to death on the last evening of the year; and the New-year's sun rose and shone upon a little corpse! The child still sat, in the stiffness of death, holding the matches in her hand, one bundle of which was burnt. "She tried to warm herself," said some. No one imagined what beautiful things she had seen, nor into what glory she had entered with her grandmother, on New-year's day.

The family situation of the little girl and her experiences daily show that parents of such poor children did not care if it was cold outside. They send their daughter out to sell matches anyway. The girl does not have the appropriate clothing to shelter herself from the winter cold. She is not capable of selling any matches and scared to return home because her father would beat her for her poor work. Instead of going back, the girl prefers to sit in the snow and imagine her grandmother's face, full of tenderness and love. The reminder of her grandmother's love helps her to keep warm and get through this painful moment, as passers-by remain oblivious to her suffering,

She is now dead in the cold winter, but with a smile on her face because she is with her grandmother and God. This can be seen as an allegory for Christian faith, in regards to the notion that good people go to heaven to enter heaven. This explains the fact that the little girl suffered during her lifetime which denotes a more significant sense of purpose to the girl's struggle and the tale's ending.

Question 1. The author shows death as a relief from a harsh life. Justify with reference to the story.
Answer: In the snowy streets of the city a pitiable young girl is selling matches on New Years Eve in a desperate attempt to appease her father's violent anger. Alone with her matches and their accompanying visions the girl passes on and is found later the next day, dead and with a smile playing across her face. The plot of The Little Match Girl by Hans Christian Anderson is meant to inspire a charity of tears for this young girl and her untimely death. However not in all instances should such a death be so unfortunate In the little match girls case death would not be the worst of all evils but an alleviation to mortals who are worn out with sufferings. Thus death can come as a relief to those whose toils and cares overcome the will to live and when a better life can only be satisfied by fate. Firstly, for some, peace and comfort can only be obtained in death. The little match girl seeks such comfort in the streets but obviously finds none in the bitter bleak night. Once she is quite numb with cold, she thinks that a little match would be a comfort. So light here represents the comfort of heat. For example when she does light the match it blazes into a clear warm flame, which transforms with a little help from her imagination into a warm friendly fire. When the match goes out the stove vanishes and she is left again to suffer the icy night. So peace and contentment cannot always be found in this life but the one after death. Therefore death need not be viewed as the ultimate evil as for many it can be a release into a better life.
In simple words: The story portrays death as a release for the Little Match Girl, offering her peace and an escape from her cold, hungry, and abusive life by reuniting her with her loving grandmother and God.

🎯 Exam Tip: When justifying an author's message, refer directly to specific events and the character's emotional state in the story.

Question 2. Anderson through the story a Little Match Girl gives an idea about the Victorian society of his times?
Answer: Andersen portrays in this tale not only a realistic and crude view of society in Victorian times, but also a deep criticism of social class differentiation. During those times, children were not regarded the same way people regard them nowadays. Instead, they were viewed as 'miniature adults' and were usually used for cheap labour. Andersen takes advantage of these strong social differences to leave a moral teaching at the end of his tale, this consists of the idea that children should be considered as creative people, able to transcend difficult situations through the power of imagination. The girl, suffering from the cold and the ignorance of the people around her and maybe as a result of these, is still capable of imagining certain things that would make her feel better about her situation- huge Christmas trees, a table full of Christmas food and her grandmother's loving face. Andersen describes the social stratification of Victorian times in just a few sentences. During this historical period, while the 'middle class' emerged and took over an important percentage of work places, the 'under class' grew resentful of both aristocracy and middle class, remaining unemployed and living in poverty. Although Andersen does not explain the girl's background, he denotes social differentiation by opposing the extremes. The reader understands that the girl and her family stand on the less fortunate side, and it also gives him/her an idea of their social impediments. Nevertheless, it can only be assumed that the story is set during Victorian times, mainly because Andersen lived during this period.
In simple words: Andersen critiques Victorian society by highlighting social class disparities, child labor, and the neglect of impoverished children, showing how they were forced to endure harsh realities.

🎯 Exam Tip: Analyze how the author uses character experiences to comment on broader societal issues of the time period.

Question 3. The Little Match Girl can be viewed as a work of opposites. Justify.
Answer: Little Match Girl can be viewed as a work of opposites can be analysed as a work of opposites. Andersen plays with the interaction between violence and love, poverty and wealth, struggle and redemption, life and death. These constant relationships are displayed in such a manner that keeps us entertained during the reading process, and we are later left with a moral learning. The author talks about segregation, religious faith and human relationships.Instead of getting love and care from her father, the girl only got blows for not selling matches. The girl sees only her old grandmother as the only loving relationship and views her, ‘bright and radiant, so mild, and with such an expression of love.'
In simple words: The story uses stark contrasts such as cold and warmth, poverty and wealth, life and death, and neglect versus love (from her grandmother) to highlight the girl's suffering and her eventual peaceful end.

🎯 Exam Tip: Identify and discuss contrasting elements or themes within the narrative to demonstrate a deeper understanding of the text.

Question 4. The story propagates the idea that dreams are necessary to remain happy, even if for a short while.
Answer: The little match girl didn't have any desire to go home since it was a cold attic where her violent father would hit her often. The wind that was blowing from all sides of that attic didn't leave any room for a happy family. She thought how to get warm so he decided to light up one match. After she lit up another match she dreamt. And in her dream saw a beautiful set table with a lot of food. The turkey on the table started moving and went towards her but she never came to the girl because the match burned out. She decided to light up another one and she saw a decorated Christmas tree and many candles around it. When she reached her hands to touch it the light went out. All of the candles started to rise towards the sky and one star fell down, leaving behind a mark. The girl thought that it meant somebody died and that it was their soul. In that moment she saw her grandma and in order to keep her near she lit up all of the matches. Her grandma took her with her to a place where hunger and coldness were gone. The next morning she was found frozen with a smile on her face. Everybody commented on her attempts to keep herself warm but nobody knew she waited for New Year with the prettiest pictures and dreams in her mind. Her dreams made her happy and she could no longer feel the cold or the harshness of the world around her. She was at peace.
In simple words: The girl's dreams, ignited by her matches, offered temporary happiness and an escape from her harsh reality, providing comfort and peace even if momentary.

🎯 Exam Tip: Focus on the role of imagination and dreams as a coping mechanism for characters facing severe hardship.

Question 5. Anderson's story shows the young girl having visions. Through them Anderson gives didactic and moralistic lessons. Discuss.
Answer: This story is said to have taken place in a town around the early 20th Century. The story consists of a small girl no older than eleven, sent out to sell matches, which during that time was considered a form of begging. It is the dead of winter and she has little to keep her warm. Her ill-fitting shoes had been taken from her, and with the fear of going home only to be beaten for her unsuccessful sales, she curls up in the cold. As she is struggling to keep warm all she can contemplate is the thought of lighting one small match. Then, as she does so, she is filled with feelings of warmth and safety as she sits beneath a large iron stove. She continues to light matches and get extraordinary visions, each one better than before. During the early 20th century many people paid no mind to the poor “[since] begging was illegal during Andersen's time the poor would make matches and sell them on the street as a front for their actual begging Child abuse, was also common during this time. As the girl lights her first match, she sees a vision of a large warm iron stove. But soon the stove disappears. All that is left are the gray/black remains of a burnt-out match. “Like black, gray is used as a colour of mourning as well as a colour of formality”. This shows that before the little girl has reached her fate the signs of mourning are already presenting themselves. During the Second vision Hans Christian Anderson wrote of a magical New Years Eve Feast that any poor hungry child would be overjoyed to partake in, he said, “where the light fell on the wall, there the wall became transparent like a veil, so that she could see into the room. On the table was spread a snow-white tablecloth; upon it was a splendid porcelain service, and the roast goose was steaming famously with its stuffing of apple and dried plums. And what was still more capital to behold was, the goose hopped down from the dish, reeled about on the floor with knife and fork in its breast, till it came up to the poor little girl; when-the match went out and nothing but the thick, cold, damp wall was left behind.” It is a vision about Thanksgiving feast, a Christian belief that we must feed the hungry on such days. During this time the poor could only dream of partaking in such an extravagant meal. Salaries were small and for some, times were very hard. This vision addresses how hungry the small girl truly is, and if she doesn't freeze she shall surely starve. The Third Vision of the night, only to be seen after the striking of another match, is. a magnificent Christmas-tree. It is brightly light and beautifully decorated. It was the sort of tree only to be found in a very wealthy home. As the colors and lights rise, and the tree disappears, the stars become visible, and it seems as though the lights from the tree have become the stars. The little girl then sees a star fall and claims “Someone is just dead!” “For her old grandmother, the only person who had loved her, and who was now no more, had told her, that when a star falls, a soul ascends to God". A Creole superstition states: ‘Shooting-stars are souls escaping from purgatory: if you can make a good wish three times before the star disappears, the wish will be granted'. This is almost as if the three visions before were wishes, but it is also thought, that it is either the young girl's soul ascending into heaven, or yet the cause for the final vision. The small girl drew another match, and there her loving grandmother stood before her in the dark of the night, with no reservations, only kindness. The little girl knew that if the match were to run out her grandmother would disappear just like all her other wonderful visions, so in turn she struck the entire rest of the bundle on the wall. “Many near-death experiences around the world, regardless of religious belief, involve the visitation of dead loved-ones, usually family members and close friends" The little girl pleads with her grandmother to take her back to heaven so “she took the little maiden, on her arm, and both flew in brightness and in joy so high, so very high, and then above was neither cold, nor hunger, nor anxiety-they were with God”. Nearly 1,876 patients were treated in American hospitals for hypothermia in 2010/11.This hits close to home with The Little Match Girl, seeing as how she froze to death on an icy New Years Eve. The next morning the townspeople found the girl frozen in a corner, matches in hand, smile on her face, and all they can think of is how she must have tried to warm herself. Not one person stops and thinks of the beautiful splendour the girl saw. Hans Christian Anderson believed this was a happy ending in his book to relinquish the suffering of a little girl only to be joined with her one true relative and God. Anderson's story serves a good purpose “reminding people to be charitable and help the poor during the holidays, ..id hopefully year round, to keep young children from suffering with poverty and death.” This isn't much of a fairy tale, more so a“folk tale for adults. These tales were often told orally during the times when the peasants could not read. They passed them down through the generations, and the folk tales were eventually illustrated and sold as fairy tales for children. In conclusion, Anderson's short tale is not only a sad holiday story reminding us to give during the season, but a reality check.
In simple words: Through the girl's visions, Andersen imparts moral lessons about the harsh realities of poverty, child neglect, and the social indifference prevalent in his time, advocating for empathy and charity.

🎯 Exam Tip: Analyze the deeper meaning behind the visions and how they serve as a commentary on societal issues and human condition.