Comprehension

I. Answer these questions in one or two words.

Q1. Who is the suitor in the story?
Answer: Pyotr Petrovich Milkin

Q2. Who asked for a stag party?
Answer: Milkin’s friend

Q3. How many daughters did Kondrashkin have?
Answer: Seven

Q4. What ‘hereditary vice’ did Pyotr refer to as an excuse to avoid getting married?
Answer: Drinking bouts

Q5. For which crime did Pyotr say that he was on trial?
Answer: Embezzlement

Q6. What ‘horrible secret’ did Pyotr contrive to get rid of the Kondrashkin family?
Answer: Runaway convict

Q7. Why did Pyotr meet his friend Dr Fituyev?
Answer: To get a certificate of insanity

II. Answer these questions in a few words each.

Q8. Why did Pyotr’s friends ask for a stag party?
Answer: Because they heard a rumor that he was getting married to Nastya Kondrashkina.

Q9. How did Kondrashkin counter Pyotr’s argument that his convictions and views were different from those of Nastya?
Answer: He said that no couple shares the exact same views, and that they would “rub off” over time, just like a new road becomes smoother with use.

Q10. Why did Pyotr say that he was unworthy of Nastya? How did Kondrashkin react to it?
Answer: He said he was unworthy and poor, but Kondrashkin dismissed this, calling him a “wonderful laddie” who had a salary.

Q11. How did Kondrashkin dismiss Pyotr’s claim that he was guilty of taking bribes?
Answer: Kondrashkin just laughed and asked, “who doesn’t?” implying that it was a common and trivial matter.

Q12. Why did Kondrashkin fear that Pyotr might be sent to Siberia?
Answer: He feared this because Pyotr confessed that he was on trial for embezzling a large sum of money, a crime that “smells of Siberia.”

Q13. Why did Kondrashkin call Pyotr dishonest?
Answer: He called him dishonest for spending the whole summer with his family, dining and going on walks with Nastya, and then suddenly announcing that he was leaving.

Q14. Why did Dr Fituyev refuse to give Pyotr the certificate he wanted?
Answer: The doctor refused because he said that anyone who doesn’t want to get married isn’t crazy; on the contrary, they are “very wise.”

III. Answer these questions briefly in your own words.

Q15. Why did Pyotr get so disturbed by the rumours about his marriage? What did he try to do to get rid of the disturbing situation?
Answer: Pyotr was disturbed because he felt the rumors would get him “hitched” against his will. To stop them, he decided to visit Kondrashkin to clarify his intentions and say goodbye.

Q16. Which crimes of Pyotr, according to Kondrashkin, might land him in Siberia? How did he react to Pyotr’s ‘confession’ of these crimes and why?
Answer: According to Kondrashkin, Pyotr’s crime of embezzlement might land him in Siberia. He was initially “dumbfounded” and admitted that Pyotr shouldn’t get married while on trial, but then he immediately pivoted, suggesting that Nastya could follow Pyotr to Siberia because “life’s better there.”

Q17. Why did Pyotr decide to adopt ‘Hamlet’s device’? Why did he fail in this venture?
Answer: Pyotr decided to adopt “Hamlet’s device,” which is pretending to be mad, to escape the unwanted marriage after all his other excuses failed. He failed because the doctor he went to for a certificate of insanity said that anyone who doesn’t want to get married is not crazy, but wise.

IV. Give suitable answers to these questions.

Q18. Describe the character of Kondrashkin in the light of his responses and reactions when Pyotr visits his place to say goodbye.
Answer: Kondrashkin is portrayed as an extremely determined and almost comically stubborn man. He is a father desperate to marry off his seven daughters and sees Pyotr as the perfect “catch.” When Pyotr tries to leave, Kondrashkin goes to great lengths to counter every single one of his excuses, brushing off claims of poverty, alcoholism, and even serious crimes like embezzlement and forgery. His single-minded focus on getting his daughter “fixed up” makes him seem blind to reason and morals, willing to marry her off to anyone, even a “runaway convict.”

Q19. Do you think that Pyotr was more self-centred than Kondrashkin as revealed in the conversation between the two?
Answer: While Pyotr is certainly self-centered in his desire to avoid the marriage and the comical extent to which he lies, Kondrashkin appears to be even more so. Pyotr’s actions are a reaction to a situation he finds himself in, whereas Kondrashkin’s entire motivation is self-serving—he wants to “get rid of” one of his seven daughters, not necessarily to ensure Nastya’s happiness. His refusal to believe any of Pyotr’s increasingly severe “flaws” shows that he only cares about achieving his goal, regardless of the truth or the person involved.

Q20. Who, do you think, has won the game? Justify your answer.
Answer: The story ends with a note of “comic uncertainty”, so it’s not entirely clear who wins. Pyotr has managed to avoid the immediate proposal, but he is forced to flee “ignominiously” without giving a proper reason. Kondrashkin, on the other hand, hasn’t succeeded in getting his daughter married, but his relentless pressure and refusal to accept defeat have forced Pyotr into a corner. Neither man achieves a clear victory, which is part of the story’s humorous and ironic ending.