Passage -1
i) It was New Year’s Eve and weather was bitterly cold. Snow was falling and darkness was gathering.
ii) The slipper the girl wore was of no use because they are out sized as they were of her mother. She was not having slipper of her own so she wore her mother’s slippers which were out sized for her. Also she lost those slippers when she was escaping from two carriages that were running very fast.
iii) The girl was dejected and poor in very sense because she was bare feet and was sent out on a cold night outside to sell matches, which was another form of begging at that time. No one bought matches from her so she was unable to earn a single penny. She was shivering and hungry.
iv)Girl was out in the cold to earn some money. The girl did not dare to go home as she was unable to earn a single penny. She was unable to earn because no one buyed her matches.Her father would surely beat her if she returned empty hand; moreover it was so cold at home because there was nothing but a roof above them.
v) The appropriation of the title of the story is judged by how well it reflects the content of the story. The title little match girl is quite apt as it revolves around a little girl who sells matches. She had not given a name as she represents one of The many poor children belonging to lower class in Victorian Era, who had to face hardship because of poverty.
Passage - 2
i) ‘The Little Match Girl’ or the protagonist of the story is refferred to ‘little maiden’ in the extract. She lost her slippers when she was escaping from two carriages that were running very fast. One could not be found and other was taken by a boy.
ii) The little girl is trying to sell matches to earn. It was another form of begging in the Victorian Era.
ii) The girl has been described as 'a very picture of sorrow' because every aspect of her has a sorrow to explain. Her Feet, selling matches, ruthless father, and no proper roof over the head and the chilly night on which she was forced to be out; explain her sorrowful condition making her a subject of pity.
iv) '....no one had given her a single penny all day. She crept along, shivering and hungry, the picture of misery, poor little thing!' These lines tell us that she was trembling with cold and suffering from hunger too. She could not think beyond the smell of roast goose in the street.
v) The story is meant to teach, especially the wealthy, to show empathy for those, who do not have the basic necessities OT life. It reminds them not to overlook the needs of the less fortunate, especially the innocent children. It coaxes them to be charitable and help the poor during the festivals and throughout the year, to alleviate their suffering.The purpose of this story is very meaningful because it is an issue that is not only limited to those times but relevant to today.
Passage 3
i) The girl huddled down in a heap in a corner formed by two houses, one of which projected further out into the street than the other. Her thin hands were almost numb with cold which she tried to warm up by lighting match sticks.
ii) The little girl's grandma had told her that whenever a star falls, a soul goes up to God .The little girl was trying to warm herself up by lighting the match stick and when she lit the first match stick she felt as if she were sitting in front of a large iron stove. She felt so because the light from the matchstick was so important for her at that time that it seemed like a large iron stove.
iii) The girl had an affection-less relation with her father. Her father was ruthless who sent her out to earn money in such cold. She was a victim of child abuse and was not fed and clothed properly.She was scared to go home for the fear of being beaten by her father. The warmth of love which she should have got from her father was substituted by her lighting matches.
v) The story is set on a New Year's Eve. It's cold and snowy outside with the wind making it colder. The sky is dark with clouds setting a gloomy and fearful atmosphere, hinting that something bad is likely to happen the setting hints us about the huge divide between the rich and the poor during the time. Had the setting been elsewhere the atmosphere could not be correlative.
Passage-4.
i) When the girl lit the first match it seemed as if she were Sitting in front of a great iron stove. The fire burnt so beautifully and gave out such lovely warmth which did not last long as the stove vanished as the matchstick extinguished leaving her with the burnt match in her hand.
ii) When the girl lit the second matchstick she saw a roast goose stuffed with apple and dried plums, which hopped down from the dish and came up to her, seeing the goose come to her symbolizes her hunger pangs.
iii) The little small and poor girl, who is suffering from cold and hunger and apathy of the people around her imagined about certain things which she desperately longed for and which made her feet better, including an iron stove, a huge Christmas tree and a table laden with delicious food. The girl imagines her deceased grandmother's face just because, she had faith and hope.
iv) The light from the matches symbolize the light of God and hope. They are symbolic of the warmth which the little girl is longing for
v) When the little girl lit the match stick for the third time she saw her old grandmother. She was delighted to see her and said her to take her along. She did not want her to vanish
As the rest of her visions had vanished so she lit up the entire bundle of matches to keep her grandmother in visibility.
Passage-5.
i) At the end the grandmother took the little Girl in her arms and flew up with her. She took her away from all sorrows. Now she will not be disturbed with cold. Hunger and fear they are with god now.
Nobody helped her in any way. The next morning. The little Girl’s dead body was found with the clutched between her fingers.
ii) We all prefer happy endings because it makes us feel good but sad endings always have a deeper impact and reach us things which stay with us for long. If l could change the ending of the story then I would like the girl to be saved at the end by some messiah who would intervene to help her and take her to a safer place.
iii) The little nameless girl is the main character of the story. She had rosy cheeks and long curly hair. She belonged to a poor household. She was sent out on a chilly winter night by her father to sell matches. She was a victim of child abuse and could not do anything to save herself. The visions she saw signify her longing but finally she find peace in her dead grandmother's arms. The little girl is not a simple character but a symbol of the prevalent conditions of the society. She arouses pity in our mind and forces us to look on our behavior and outlook which should be more somber towards the needy and especially the children.
iv) 'Rosy checks' and 'smiling lips' signify the girl who is now frozen to death on the last evening of the old year. Her ’smiling lips' indicate that she was happy to go with her grandmother and was happy with the beautiful visions she saw.
v) The little girl's grandmother was dead but was the only person, whom she remembered fondly. She has been described as the only one who loved the little girl.
It seems that the little girl used to hear stories from her grandmother as she remembered her grandmother's view about the stars falling from the sky. The memory of her grandmother's helped her keep warm while others ignored her.