An elegy on the death of a mad (notes) (1)

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1. An Elegy on the Death of a Mad Dog Grade – V

2. Summary of the Poem Stanza 1 The poet addresses to all the good people of every kind. He urges them to give their ears to his song. They must listen to it attentively what he says to them. Perhaps they will find it quite unusual and short. It can’t detain or hold them for a very long time . Stanza 2 T he poet highlights the character of his hero, as a very religious person. "A godly race he ran whenever he went to pray" here the poet emphasises man's deceptive outward appearance, hiding his real self during his stay in the church premises. He behaves in a religious manner and competes with other people to be religious, charitable and kind.

3. Stanza 3 The man was a kind and gentle heart. He used to make not only his friends comfortable but also did the same to his enemies. He was generous. Before dessire , he used to give clothes to the poor and helped the needy. Thus hiding his interior motives, highlighting his behaviour pattern. Stanza 4 There lived a dog in the town of Islington. There were many other dog too in the town. There were mongrels of mixed breed, young puppies, very agile whelp and the hunting dogs, hounds. Besides all these, there were many dogs of low breed and quality .

4. Stanza 5  At first, this man and the dog were friends. But then, there started bitterness between the two in their relationship. The dog on the other side can be taken as symbol of being poor and virtuous – morally good people who are not getting what they deserve ,thus to meet their private ends i.e. to take revenge, the dog bites the man. In this stanza, the poet personifies the dog with human quality of gaining private ends. Stanza 6 Around from all neighbouring streets, the neighbours came running. They were surprised at the turn of events. They swore that the dog had become mad. Only a mad dog could have bitten such a good man .

5.   Stanza 7 To every good Christian, the wound of the man appeared painful and sad. While they swore that the dog had gone mad, they also swore that the man will die in the end.  Stanza 8 Very soon a wonderful event came to light. That event proved that all those immoral men who predicted that the man who was bitten by the mad dog, would die, were liars. The man recovered from the bite and became healthy again. However, it was the dog and not the man, who died in the end. It proved that the man was more dangerous and poisonous even than the mad dog.

6. Q.1 a. The man was a good, religious man who went to pray in the church. Everybody thought that he had a heart of gold, and imagined that he helped others. b. The neighbours thought that the dog was mad. They felt that there was no other reason for the dog to bite a man who they considered a good and respectable member of the society. c. In the end the dog dies and the man survives. d. The underlying message of the poem is that the man was more poisonous than in the dog. The man’s public appearance was deceptive. He was said to be a religious and god fearing man. The dog hadn't, simply exposed the wicked man; it has exposed the whole community's belief in the so called good people of the society. Textual Answers (for Reference)

7. Q.2 a. There was a man from Islington who was kind and gentle. He was a religious man who prayed. The poet is ridiculing the man when he says that he clad the naked when he put on his clothes on himself. This is irony.. It shows that the man didn’t help the poor. b. The man was bit by a dog and the neighbours thought that the man would die of the dog bite, but the man recovered and the dog died.

8. WB Answers (for reference) Q. III An elegy is a type of poem which contains the speaker’s thoughts and feelings on sadness or tribute for a person, place or thing. The speaker is not the same as the poet. 1. What good is being said about the man in the poem? It was said that the man was kind, gentle, helpful, caring, god fearing and friendly. 2. Quote the lines that suggest there were different breeds of dogs. Both mongrel, puppy, whelp, and hound, And curs of low degree . 3. Complete the following lines. a) At first the dog and man were friends, but when a pique began the dog went mad and bit the man.

9. b) The wondering neighbours ran and swore that the dog had lost his wits to bite such a good man . c) The man recovered of the dog’s bite, but it was the dog that died . Q. IV Answer the following questions . What did the world think of the man from Islington? Ans - The world thought of him as a good man. He was a religious man who prayed. He had a kind and gentle heart and always comforted his friends and foes. He gave his used clothes to the poor. 2. What did the neighbours wonder about? Ans - The dog had gone become mad and had bitten the man. The neighbours ran wondering how a friendly dog could bite such a good man. 3. What did the people swear about? Ans - The people swore that the dog had become mad and the man would die.