Class 9 English Question Answers - A Dog Named Duke

Read the extracts and answer the questions that follow.

Ques 1. “About six weeks after the accident, the hospital put him in a wheelchair.”

(a) Who does ‘him’ refer to?

Ans: ‘Him’ refers to Chuck Hooper who has been admitted in the hospital after he met with an accident.

(b) How had ‘he’ met with an accident?

Ans: One day when Hooper was driving home from the office, a car came without warning and collided head on with his car.

(c) How did the accident affect Hooper?

Ans: Hooper had a subdural haemorrhage in the motor section of his brain which completely paralyzed his left side.

Ques 2. ‘Finally they decided to bring Duke home.’

(a) Who is ‘Duke’?
Ans: Duke is their pet dog who had been sent to a kennel after Hooper met with an accident.

(b) Where had Duke been sent?
 Ans: Duke had been sent to a kennel after Hooper met with an accident.

(c) Why was Duke being brought home?
 Ans: Duke was being brought home to give company to Hooper who was bedridden and was all alone at home after his wife left for work.

Ques 3. “On January 4, Hooper made a big move.”

(a) Who was Hooper ?
Ans: Hooper was working as a Zonal Sales Manager in a chemical company.

(b) What was the ‘big move’ he made ?
Ans: After he met with an accident, Hooper’s ‘big move’ was his first attempt to have walked 200 metres without the assistance of his dog.

(c) Who had been instrumental in helping Hooper to make this ‘big move’ ?
Ans: It was his dog ‘Duke’ who awakened Hooper’s will, which was lying dormant in his mind, to fight back and emerge victorious.

Ques 4. Several people jumped to lift the dog. “No please,” she said.

(a) Why did people want to lift the dog?
Ans: The dog had met with an accident. It was severally injured and had to be taken to the hospital.

(b) Why did Marcy say “No please”?
Ans: She said so because Marcy had a deep feeling of gratitude for the dog and she herself wanted to do every possible thing for it.

(c) What had happened to the dog ?
Ans: The dog had been hit by a vehicle in front of their home and was severally injured.

SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS

Ques 1. ‘‘It was like lighting a fuse.’’ Explain the context of the above statement.
Ans: One evening, Chuck’s good hand hooked into Duke's lead of the collar to hold him still. It was like ‘lighting a fuse’ because, on the spur of the moment, an idea struck the dog’s mind as to how to help Chuck move about and walk.

Ques 2. Why did Chuck feel more lonely at home?
Ans: When Chuck was in the hospital, getting treated for paralysis, there were other injured people too, and so he was not lonely there. But at home, each morning when his wife, Marcy, went out to work, he was left all alone with his thoughts.

Ques 3. How did Chuck Hooper happen to take his first step?

Ans: When Chuck’s good hand hooked into the leash of Duke’s collar, Duke moved u-shaped and walked ahead with bigger steps. Chuck struggled for balance and with his good hand he placed the leash in his left, paralyzed hand. With Marcy’s help, he moved his right leg out, causing the left foot to drag forward. Duke had helped him take his first step.

Ques 4. What was the reaction of the neighbours as they watched Chuck’s progress everyday?

Ans: The neighbours used to watch very keenly and curiously the daily struggle in front of Marcy’s house. On the sidewalk, they saw the dog pull his leash tightly and then stood and waited for Hooper to follow him. They watched every step of progress made by Hooper. When on June 1, Hooper and Duke made it to the intersection, this news spread quite far away.

Ques 5. What objectives were set up by Chuck Hooper in his pattern of progress?
Ans: When Chuck was making good progress, he and Duke started making two trips in a day. They lengthened their targets to one-drive-way at a time. Even Duke no longer waited at each step. One day, Chuck Hooper walked to his office without Duke and expressed his willingness to work for an hour in a day in the beginning.

Ques 6. What was the problem presented by Chuck in his company? 
Ans: When Chuck reached the office and asked for work, the staff was quite shocked. Chuck’s step presented a tough problem because nobody had the courage to tell him that in his condition, he wouldn’t be able to handle the job. 

They didn’t know what to do with a person who couldn’t move around and could only work for an hour a day.

Ques 7. What did the people wonder about Chuck Hooper after the death of Duke?
Ans: People had observed Duke helping Hooper walk. It was an amazing sight for them. Now when Duke died, and Hooper walked alone day after day, the people wondered how long he would keep up with the walk. 

They were curious to know how far he would walk, and whether he would be able to walk all alone in the absence of Duke. 

Ques 8. Discuss the significance of the promotion given by the company headquarters to honor Duke?
Ans: Hooper was appointed as the ‘Assistant National Sales Manager’. His promotion was more of a tribute to Duke as it was only due to the efforts made by Duke that Hooper was able to regain health, his job, and his confidence. 

This was no ordinary promotion but very significant as Duke’s efforts had changed an impossible thing into a possible one.

Ques 9. How did January 4, the day, become significant in the life of Hooper? [CBSE 2010 (Term 1)]
Ans: Hooper had been working as a Zonal Sales Manager in a chemical company. One day he met with an accident and was paralyzed. Being bedridden he had lost all hopes of his recovery. 

It was his dog ‘Duke’ who awakened his dormant will to fight back and emerge victorious. The dog was instrumental in helping him take more steps each day. So January 4 was a significant day in his life because he had walked 200 metres, without any assistance, to his office.

Ques 10. Which incident transformed Chuck Hooper from a favoured young man to an  unfortunate young man ? [CBSE 2010 (Term 1)]
Ans: Hooper was fortunate in every way. He was a tall, healthy and satisfied man working as a Zonal Sales Manager in a chemical company. 

Everyone liked him, but good luck did not last long and one unlucky day when he was driving home from the office, a car collided head-on with his car. He had a brain injury which paralyzed his left side. 

He became bedridden. In this way from a favoured young man, he was transformed into an unfortunate man.

Ques 11. Who do you think was responsible for Chuck’s progress in getting back on his feet? [CBSE 2010 (Term 1)]
 Ans: Hooper met with an accident and was paralyzed. He was bedridden, and when he had lost all hopes of his recovery. It was his dog, Duke, who was responsible for Chuck’s progress in getting him back to his feet. 

He helped Hooper to get over his handicap and proved that dogged determination, ability and perseverance in little measures, can achieve the impossible. Duke awakened what was lying dormant in Hooper’s mind—the will to fight back and emerge victorious.

Ques 12. What was the reaction of the staff when Chuck visited his district office? What did he say to the manager Gorden Doule ? [CBSE 2010 (Term 1)]
 Ans: When Chuck visited his district office, the staff was amazed by his visit. They were further surprised when he told his manager, Gorden Doule, that he wanted to continue work, initially for one hour. 

Chuck’s move presented a tough problem for them because, seeing Chuck’s courage and determination, nobody had the courage to tell him that he wouldn’t be able to handle his old job. Moreover, they didn’t know what to do with his demand to do a desk job just for one hour when his job as a salesman required him to move around all the time.