Question 1
Why does Horace Danby steal?
He steals to finance his passion for collecting rare books. He plans one burglary each year and considers himself careful, even though his conduct is criminal.
Chapter guide: central idea and structure
Horace Danby plans careful thefts to support his collection of rare books. At Shotover Grange, a woman pretending to be the owner persuades him to open a safe. He is later arrested because he leaves fingerprints and learns that a thief can also be deceived.
Key ideas
- Overconfidence can undermine careful planning.
- Criminals can be manipulated by others who exploit their assumptions.
- The story’s irony comes from a thief trusting a stranger.
Reading checklist
- Identify who is speaking and what changes.
- Support each interpretation with a detail from the text.
- Explain how the title, structure or ending develops the central idea.
Plot or image sequence
- Horace studies the house and plans a burglary.
- A woman presents herself as the owner and says she needs the jewels.
- Horace opens the safe without gloves and leaves fingerprints.
- The supposed owner is another thief; Horace is arrested.
Important vocabulary
- respectable — regarded as proper or socially acceptable
- burglar — a person who breaks into a building to steal
- eccentric — unusual in behaviour
Answer-writing tip: Begin with a direct response, support it with a relevant event or image, and finish by linking the detail to the question. Avoid retelling the entire text.
Activity for close reading
Build a cause-and-effect chain from Horace’s assumptions to his arrest. Mark the moment at which he could have stopped and reconsidered.
This is an original study activity based on the text; use the prescribed book for the full work and exact exercise wording.
Solved questions in CBSE/PYQ style
Newly written practice modeled on common extract, inference, theme and character question patterns; these are not copied past-paper questions.
Question 2
How is Horace deceived at Shotover Grange?
A woman claims to be the owner and says she has forgotten the safe combination. Horace trusts her story and opens the safe, not realising she is another thief.
Question 3
Why is the title appropriate?
The story asks whom Horace can trust and whether a thief’s own trust is misplaced. His confidence in the woman leads to his arrest.
Self-check
- Can I state the central idea in one or two sentences?
- Can I explain one important turning point, image or technique?
- Can I support my interpretation with evidence without copying long passages?
- Can I answer in the required word limit and keep the response focused?
Prepared as supplementary revision for CBSE Class X English Language and Literature 2026–27. Consult the current CBSE syllabus and your prescribed NCERT edition for assessment details.