Fiction : Chapter 5 Best Seller ENGLISH [Communicative] - Fiction : Chapter 5 Best Seller

‘Good-luck to you, Trevelyan,’ I said. ‘And may you get the petunias for your princess!’
(a) Who is Trevelyan in this line?
(b) What is the reference to petunia indicate in this line?
(c) Who is the princess being referred to here?

‘I find him waiting at the gate whenever I get back from a trip to hear any new story, I might have picked up on the road.’
(a) Who is ‘he’ in the line?
(b) What do we learn about the temperament of ‘him’ from his habit?
(c) What does ‘on the road’ mean?

‘He’s coming’, says she, ‘He’s going to tell you, this time, the story about the old African and the green watermelons.’
(a) Who is the speaker and to whom is she referring?
(b) What is the link with storytelling?
(c) What is the noun form of African?

For about nine seconds he had me rattled, and I came mighty near getting cold feet and trying to sell him some plate-glass.
(a) Who is the speaker?
(b) Why did he want to sell him plate-glass?
(c) What is the antonym of ‘rattled’?

I never thought of speaking to her, but I let the plate-glass business go to smash for a while.
(a) Who is the speaker?
(b) Why did he let his business go to smash?
(c) What does the expression ‘go to smash’ denote?

What was John Pescud's opinion about business?

Why did John go all the way to bring petunias for Miss Allyn?

What kind of appearance did Coketown have from the train station?

How do we know that the two men had become friends?

What did Pescud disclose about his family to the colonel?

The lesson ‘Best Seller’ brings out the power of storytelling as a tool of conviction. Comment.

The story ‘Best Seller’ brings out the fact that lasting relationships are not built on class or social differences. Comment.

Discuss the significance of the title, ‘Best-Seller’. What role does this play in the life of John Pescud ?