The Surprise Party Class 7 English Answers Summary Meanings

‘Surprise Party’ is the first lesson in Class 7. The story is an extract from the novel ‘Hobbits’. Here are given answers, summary, meanings.

Video: The Surprise Party

Summary: The Surprise Party

‘The Surprise Party’ is the first chapter of the novel ‘The Hobbit’ with original title ‘An Unexpected Party’. The story starts with Bilbo hurrying towards the door after hearing the doorbell. He was expecting Gandalf but to his surprise a blue-bearded dwarf named Dwalin appears before him. Bilbo is flustered, but invites Dwalin inside for tea. A little later, he hears another knock on the door, and finds another dwarf, Balin—Dwalin’s brother. Again, he invites Balin to come in. In this manner, he lets a total of thirteen dwarves into his house: Dwalin, Balin, Fili, Kili, Dori, Ori, Oin, Gloin, Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, and Thorin who is a haughty dwarf. Gandalf arrives along with the last four dwarves. All thirteen dwarves ask for food and Bilbo is greatly annoyed yet he serves them with patience. Though the dwarves appear ill-mannered, yet they treat Bilbo’s house and belongings with great care. The dwarves’ boisterous singing and play along with the actual respect they pay to Bilbo’s home establishes them as not only fun-loving and disorderly but also as having a deep sense of honour and respect. The scene also portrays how to be both a good host and a good guest. The host trusts and is generous with his guests; the guests enjoy themselves but are also careful with the host and his home. The thirteen dwarves and the wizard nearly clean out Bilbo’s pantry before finally settling down to discuss their business.

The dwarves play music and sing of the dwarves of the past, who lived in a great hall beneath a mountain, where they mined gold and jewels. A dragon attacked the dwarves and drove them from their home, and now they must quest to reclaim their home and their treasure. As Bilbo hears this song, he’s momentarily filled with a desire to go on adventures, but this desire disappears soon after the music ends. 

Word Meanings- The Surprise Party

Textbook Exercise Solutions

Comprehension

A. Answer these questions in brief.

1. Who was Bilbo expecting? Which lines from the text suggest this?
2. Who was the first dwarf to visit Bilbo?
3. How did Bilbo react when the visitors started pouring in?
4. What conveys that Bilbo was not too happy with the visitors?
5. What indicates that the visitors were quite comfortable in Bilbo’s house?
6. What does ‘throng’ mean? Why didn’t Bilbo like the sound of this word?
7. Who did Gandalf finally arrive with?

Answers

1. Bilbo was expecting Gandalf. The lines from the text that suggest the same. They are ‘I am so sorry  to keep you waiting!’ He was going to say, when he saw that it was not Gandalf at the door.
2. The first dwarf to visit Bilbo was Dwalin.
3. Bilbo was was expecting only Gandalf and so many dwarfs started pouring in.
4. Some instances of Bibo’s happiness can be cites like – ‘What would you do if an uninvited dwarf came to visit without a word of explanation.’ ‘He sat in a corner trying to collect his wits.’ ‘The poor little hobbit sat down in the hall and put his head in his hands, and wondered what had happened, and what was going to happen, and whether they would all stay to supper.’
5. Bilbo’s visitors were quite comfortable. While he sat in a corner trying to collect his wits, the dwarves sat around drinking coffee and cakes. They were enjoying the party though they were uninvited guests there.
6. ‘Throng’ means a large group of people in one place especially around someone or something. Bilbo did not like the sound of it as he was not fond of having too many people in his place and most of the people who came were unexpected visitors.
7. Gandalf finally arrived with Thorin.

B. Answer these questions with reference to the context.

1. The poor little hobbit sat down in the hall and put his head in his hands, and wondered
   what had happened, and what was going to happen, and whether they would all stay
   to supper.
   a. Who was ‘the poor little hobbit’?
   b. Who does ‘they’ refer to here?
   c. Why did the hobbit put his head in his hands?
2. ‘Dwalin at your service!’ he said with a low bow.
   a. Who was Dwalin?
   b. Where was Dwalin when he said this?
   c. Who is he addressing here? How did the listener react?
3. ‘Of course!’ said Thorin. ‘And after. We shall not get through the business till late! But
   we must have some music first.’
   a. Who was Thorin?
   b. Why did he say ‘Of course’ here?
   c. What business was he talking about?

Answers

1. a. Bilbo Baggins.
   b. ‘They’ refer to dwarves here.
   c. The hobbit put his heads in his hands as he was not used to having so many people in his house. Moreover, the dwarfs were uninvited and unexpected.
2. a. Dwalin was the first dwarf to arrive at Bilbo’s house. He had a blue beard tucked into a golden belt.
   b. Dwalin was standing at the door of Bilbo’s house.
   c. He is addressing Bilbo Baggins here. The listener was not expecting Dwalin but Gandalf, so he was surprised at this unexpected visitor.
3. a. Thorin was an enormously important and a proud dwarf.
   b. Thorin said ‘of course’ in response to Bilbo’s question whether all the dwarves would stay for supper at his place.
   c. Thorin and the other dwarves wanted to get rid of the dragon that had been plundering the caves of the dwarves. They wanted to discuss the plan of action. Hence, Thorin called it as ‘business’ which had to be sorted.

C. Answer these questions.

1. In what manner did Dwalin enter Bilbo’s house?
2. Why did Bilbo invite Dwalin to stay for tea? What does it reveal about him?
3. What did Kili say after he entered the house?
4. What did the dwarves discuss as they sat at the table?
5. Why didn’t Bilbo want to understand what the dwarves talked about?
6. What did Gandalf order Bilbo to do once he arrived?
7. What effect did the dwarves’ song have on Bilbo? What is revealed about the
   dwarves in this song?
8. Why aren’t the dwarves in possession of their treasure? How does this make
   them feel?
9. How did Bilbo feel about all this unexpected company? Give examples from
   the text to support your answer.
10. Justify the title, ‘The Surprise Party’. Can you think of another title for
    this extract?

Answers

1. When Dwalin arrived at Bilbo’s place he was not invited and Bilbo was expecting Gandalf. But on his arrival, he pushed himself inside Bilbo’s house, just as if he had been expected.
2. When Dwalin pushed himself inside Bilbo’s house, he could not do much but invite Dwalin for tea. There was an awkward silence between the two and in order to overcome that, Bilbo decided to ask him for tea. It shows that he was polite in nature.
3. Kili entered and said, “Kili at your service!”
4. The dwarves sat sound the table and discussed about mines and gold, troubles with the goblins, and the threat of dragons and many other things which Bilbo Baggins did not understand.
5. Bilbo did not want to understand what the dwarves talked about as he was not fond of any adventure and the dwarves sounded too adventurous for him.
6. Gandalf arrived with Thorin in the end. Once he was at Bilbo Baggin’s place, he asked him to cook a few eggs and get the cold chicken.
7. As Bilbo heard the song, he felt the love of beautiful things made by hand. Then something woke up inside him and he wished to go and see the great mountains, and hear the pine-trees and explore the caves. The song represents the agony of the dwarves as they had their home, and wealth, stolen from them. The dwarves are without a home, and they must go on an adventurous quest to get it back and Bilbo should help them.
8. The dwarves aren’t in possession of their treasure as their caves have been plundered by Smaug, the dragon. This makes them feel sad but hopeful. The song sung by them is indicative that they want to fight back, defeat the dragon and get their lost treasure back.
9. Bilbo was not particularly happy about the unexpected company. Various instances in the chapter indicate the same.
   For instance:
   (i) ‘What would you do if an uninvited dwarf came to visit without a word of explanation.’
   (ii) ‘I don’t like the sound of that.’
   (iii) The poor little hobbit sat down in the hall and put his head in his hands…’
   (iv) ‘…he was getting very angry and red in the face.’
   (v) ‘I suppose you will all stay to supper?’ he said in a polite and unpressing tone.’
10. The title is justified as the party was not pre-planned and even the guests were uninvited and unexpected. Another title can be, ‘Naughty Unknown Guests.’

Vocabulary

A. Match the words in Column A with their synonyms in Column B

Answers

A. 1. c 2. a 3. e 4. f 5. d 6. b 

B. Match the words in Column A with their antonyms in Column B.

Answers

B. 1. b 2. a 3. e 4. f 5. d 6. c

Grammar

A. Underline the nouns in these sentences and state their kinds.

1. Major Das was a soldier.
2. My class is known for its discipline.
3. These artists are known for their creativity.
4. It is best to tell the truth.
5. My mother is a doctor.
6. Kaveri saw a fleet of cars approaching the hotel.
7. Sutlej was flooded during the rainy season.
8. I trust your judgement.
9. Rima felt a nagging sense of doom.
10. She visited London in the month of May, just before the summer holidays.

Answers

1. Major Das – proper; soldier – common
2. class- collective; discipline – uncountable
3. artist – common, countable; creativity – noun, uncountable
4. truth – uncountable
5. mother – common, countable; doctor –common, countable
6. Kaveri- proper; fleet – collective; hotel – common, countable
7. Sutlej- proper; season – countable
8. trust – uncountable; judgement – uncountable
9. Rima – proper; sense – countable
10. London – proper; month- common, countable; May – proper; summer- common, countable holidays

B. Now, underline the adjectives in these sentences. There may be more than one adjective in some sentences.

1. He was a fine fellow.
2. This is the place where I lost my expensive bag.
3. Some raindrops fell on my new dress.
4. I have twenty apples in this basket.
5. Bring a long pipe and a short stick.
6. A few days went by before I saw the frail dog again.
7. The farmer bought a kilo of rice and distributed it amongst the hungry men.
8. I do not use plastic bags.
9. Several bees thronged the room and caused a loud buzz.
10. Masha wore a beautiful, red hat to the pie-eating contest.

Answers

B. 1. fine fellow 2. my expensive 3. my new 4. twenty, this 5. long, short

6. a few days, frail 7. hungry 8. plastic 9. several, loud 10. beautiful, red

C. Put the adjectives in the correct order in these sentences.

1. Pinaki ate generous two slices of apple pie.
2. My ginger and grey tortoiseshell first fat cat is named Tabby.
3. Noor brought home a white adorable little pup.
4. We heard that the American new exciting band is in town.
5. That purple tiny pretty gem is my favourite.

Answers

1. Pinaki ate two, generous slices of apple pie.
2. My first, fat, ginger and grey, tortoiseshell cat is named Tabby.
3. Noor brought home an adorable, little white pup.
4. We heard that the exciting, new American band is in town.
5. That pretty, tiny, purple gem is my favourite.

D. Fill in these blanks using the comparative form of the adjectives in the brackets.

1. Tara is ………………………… than her sister Meera. (careful)
2. This painting is ………………………… than yours. (colourful)
3. This dish is ………………………… than the one I had yesterday. (tasty)
4. This book is ………………………… than the one I read last night. (interesting)
5. Happiness is ………………………… than wealth. (desirable)
6. My sister is ………………………… than me. (organised)

Answers

1. Tara is more careful than her sister Meera. (careful)
2. This painting is more colourful than yours. (colourful)
3. This dish is tastier than the one I had yesterday. (tasty)
4. This book is more interesting than the one I read last night. (interesting)
5. Happiness is more desirable than wealth.
6. My sister is more organised than me.

E. Make sentences in the superlative degree with these adjectives.

1. large 2. high 3. sweet 4. deep 5. long

Answers

1. large – This house is too large for two people.
2. high – This building is about 20 metres high.
3. sweet – You look sweet (attractive) in this photograph.
4. deep – The water is only a few centimetres deep here.
5. long – We have been living here for a long time.

Writing

Writing informal letter

A. Imagine you visited a friend who lives in Mawlynnong—the cleanest village in Asia. Write a letter to your aunt telling her about your visit. Remember to add details about where you went, what you did, what you thought while you were there and how you felt.
You may start like this:
Dear Aunt,
I hope you are well. I reached home last night after a weeklong holiday in …………

Ans. Here’s a sample of an informal letter to your aunt about your visit to Mawlynnong:

Dear Aunt,

I hope you are well. I reached home last night after a weeklong holiday in Mawlynnong, the cleanest village in Asia, and I must tell you, it was a remarkable experience!

The journey to Mawlynnong itself was an adventure. Nestled in the lush greenery of Meghalaya, the village is a sight to behold. Upon arrival, I was greeted by my friend and their warm-hearted family. They welcomed me into their home, which was as pristine as the village itself.

Each day was a new discovery. We walked through the well-kept lanes, where every house boasted beautifully manicured gardens. The locals take pride in their community, and it shows in every corner. I was particularly impressed by the living root bridges, an ingenious example of natural engineering and a testament to the villagers' harmony with nature.

The highlight of my trip was participating in the village's weekly cleanup. It was inspiring to see everyone, from the youngest to the oldest, come together for the common goal of maintaining the cleanliness of their home. It made me reflect on the collective effort required to preserve such beauty and how it fosters a strong sense of community.

As I sat by the crystal-clear river, watching the children play and the elders share stories, I felt a profound sense of peace. It was a stark contrast to the hustle and bustle of city life, and it made me appreciate the simpler joys.

Leaving Mawlynnong was bittersweet, but I carry with me the lessons of community and sustainability that I learned there. I can't wait to share more with you in person.

Sending you love and the fresh scent of Mawlynnong's blossoms,

[Ajeet (You can write your name)]