Two's Company

Raymond Wilson (1925-1995) was a well-known author and editor. He has written five books, fifty essays and more than hundred and eighty five book reviews.

They said the house was haunted, but

he laughed at them and said, "Tut, tut!

I never heard such tittle-tattle

as ghosts that groan and chains that rattle;

And just to prove I'm in the right,

please leave me here to spend the night."

They winked absurdly, tried to smother

their ignorant laughter, nudged each other,

and left him just as dusk was falling

with a hunchback moon and screech owls calling.

Not that this troubled him one bit;

in fact, he was quite glad of it,

knowing it's every sane man's mission

to contradict all superstition.

But what is that? Outside it seemed

as if chains rattled, someone screamed!

Conte. come, merely nerves, he's certain

(but just the same, he draws the curtain).

The stroke of twelve-but there's no clock!

He shuts the door and turns the lock

(of course he knows that no-one's there,

but no harm's done by taking care!);

someone's outside-the silly joker,

(he may as well pick up the poker!)

That noise again! He checks the doors,

shutters the windows, makes a pause

to seek the safest place to hide-

(the cupboard's strong-he creeps inside).

'Not that there's anything to fear'

he tells himself, when at his ear

a voice breathes softly, 'How do you do!

I am the ghost. Pray who are you?

1.
Complete the sentences by choosing the correct options.
1. The narrator agreed to stay in the haunted house to prove that
  1. he was not scared of ghosts.
  2. he was courageous.
  3. the ghosts were friendly.
  4. he was not superstitious.
2. When the narrator agreed to spend the night in the haunted house, 'they' thought he was
  1. ignorant.
  2. compulsive.
  3. foolhardy.
  4. insane.
3. The rhyme scheme used by the poet in the poem is
  1. ababcdcd.
  2. aabbccdd.
  3. aabcaadd.
  4. abbccadd.
4. In the poem, the poetic device used in the line, 'they said the house was haunted' is a
  1. simile.
  2. personification.
  3. alliteration.
  4. metaphor.
2.
In the given lines, 'And just to prove I'm in the right, please leave me here to spend the night.'
Which place does the poet refer to as 'here'? What does the poet want to prove?
3.
In the poem, the poet has created certain pictures, which are called 'images'. The poet has made the use of 'visual imagery' like 'hunched back moon' and 'sound imagery' like 'someone screamed' to enhance the eeriness of the poem.
Identify at least two instances of 'visual imagery' and three instances of 'sound imagery' from the poem?
4.
The narrator seems to be unafraid of supernatural beings. Why does he then look for a place to hide?
5.
Some words from the poem are given in the box. Use these words to fill in the blanks.
groan, smother, rattle, mission, contradict, poker
1. After stirring the fire he returned the ____________________ back to its holder.
2. We could hear the ____________________ of the roof with every gust of wind.
3. The injured dog lay back with a ____________________ as it saw us approach.
4. Mona did not ____________________ her brother's statement. She preferred to keep quiet.
5. The police tried to ____________________ the flames with blankets.
6. In the dead of night the soldiers began their ____________________ to capture the enemy post.
6.
At the end of the poem, the narrator hides in the cupboard and consoles himself. Then a voice breathes softly at his ear.
Imagine yourself to be the narrator and write a paragraph stating your reaction when you hear the voice.