A most forgiving Ape 

GLOSSARY

 

• Defamed---- to harm somebody by saying or writing bad or false things

• Disfigured---- to spoil the appearance of someone

• Stereotyped-----old, hackneyed (not original)

• Subtle------ not very noticeable

• Endeavour----- to try hard

• Divulge------- to tell something which is secret

• Precisely------ exactly

• Ferocious------ violent

• Belligerent------ acting violently towards other

• Shadow boxing----- fighting with one’s own shadow

• Hostile---- not friendly

• Savage---- wild, not civilized

• Extracted---- to draw out

• Myth---an old unbelievable story

 

OBJECTIVE TYPE QUESTIONS

 

1. Who is the author of the essay ‘A Most Forgiving Ape’?

ANS Alan Moorhead.

 

2 Name the American naturalist who failed to discover anything about the life span, death, pattern of family groups and intelligence of the gorilla.

ANS Carl Akeley.

 

3 How is the humanness of the gorilla evident?

ANS It loves as human beings.

 

4. What is the height of a full grown male gorilla?

ANS Six feet.

 

5. How much does a gorilla weigh?

ANS Six hundred pounds.

 

6. Apart from the gorilla, name the other animal having an artistic bent.

ANS Young Chimpanzee.

 

7. Why is gorilla said to be a most forgiving ape?

ANS It is the most forgiving ape because it lives at peace with all other animals.

 

8. What does a gorilla do in a difficulty?

ANS It charges.

 

9. In the opinion of the writer, when a gorilla charges what should we do?

ANS We should stand firm and look him in the eye.

 

SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

 

1. Do you think gorillas are violent, dangerous animals? Which traits (habits) give the impression that they are?

ANS- Gorillas are a gentle, kindly creature who lives at peace with all other animals. But in the face of danger, they stand erect, make a frightening look and utter a terrifying roar. They show anger by shaking trees and drumming on their chest. In a difficulty they charge.

 

2. The male gorilla is highly protective towards his family. How does he indicate this in his behavior and habits?

ANS- According to some observers, the gorilla makes love in the same that human does. A male gorilla helps a female to climb up a steep rock-step. His love for the female and the family is quite human. The family members eat together and sleep making their beds. When they are in danger the male makes a frightening show giving a chance to his family to get away. He rises to his feet and utters a terrifying roar. He shows his anger by shaking trees and drumming on his chest. In case of need, he does not hesitate to attack even. This is the way he tries to protect his family.

 

3 Why is the gorilla referred to as ‘a most forgiving ape’? What is the expression of the author uses to suggest that the apparent savagery and belligerence of the gorilla is only a deception?

ANS- Gorilla is a gentle, kindly and a most forgiving ape who lives at peace with all the other animals. In the opinion of the author, gorilla’s reputation for savagery and belligerence is nothing but a myth. When gorilla charges, we should stand still and look him in the eye. This would make him turn aside and make him slip away. Thus, the author uses the expression ‘shadow boxing’.

 

4. Why do local tribesmen kill the gorillas in spite of it being illegal?

ANS- The tribesmen kill the gorillas if the gorillas spoil their crops or loot the honey from the wild beehives which the tribesmen have placed in the trees. Then the spearmen track them to their lairs and kill them with spears. According to the author, nine gorillas were butchered in this way by the tribal spearmen.

AUTHOR- ALAN MOOREHEAD

 

Born in 1910 in Victoria, Australia

 

A war correspondent and author of popular histories

 

Worked in various newspapers before writing books

 

His books include African Trilogy and The Rage of The Vultures

 

Winner of the 1956 Royal Society of Literature Award for Gallipoli

 

ABOUT THE TITLE

 

 The word “forgiving” brings out precisely the basic nature of gorillas

 Gorillas are calm and naïve by nature

The myths about gorillas being ferocious and brutal is not entirely true

Gorillas live peacefully in their habitat

Gorillas are fascinating creatures that attract the attention of scientists and explorers

 The purpose of this essay is to warn the world that the gorilla which is the most forgiving ape is facing danger of extinction due to ignorance of their significance to the earth.

SUMMARY

 

“A Most Forgiving Ape” has been extracted from one of Moorhead’s creations “No Room in the Ark” written in 1959. This chapter is the account on his journey through the African game preserves. The essay is mainly a narration of how the author managed to closely observe the gorilla in its wild state in Central Africa.

 

The author begins with the issue of how the gorillas have been defamed and disfigured. Different earlier researchers, explorers, journals, adventures, films etc. had been nothing more than establishing the stereotyped image of the ape as a ferocious animal. These are simply the outcome of subtle observations over the gorillas.

 

Though Carl Akeley, the American Naturalist made an endeavor to divulge the truth about the gorillas, his hard luck caused the failure along with him and his crew’s death under the volcano. So it remained mystery. Sir Julian Huxley observed the intelligence level of gorilla describing the eighteen months old gorilla tracing the outline of his own shadow with his own fingers, the artistic initiative which is hardly found in other animals. Likewise, the male gorillas are physically strong and they provide security to their family. A male gorilla helps a female to climb up a steep rock-step. This “humanness” of the gorilla is quite interesting. A full grown male rises to six feet and weighs six hundred pounds. He is strong that he can remove the head of a man with his hands. But the female is much smaller and lighter. (REMAINING PART ON NEXT PAGE)

 

Miss J.H. Donisthorpe who recently made a study of gorilla in the Muhavura area, says that gorillas have a strong smell which she describes as a mixture of human sweat, manure and charred wood. They can see clearly, but they are probably deficient in both hearing and smelling. They appear to be talking to each other in high-pitched voices. When they are in danger the male makes a frightening show giving a chance to his family to get away. He shows anger by shaking trees and drumming on his chest. The author while giving the short account of Miss Donisthorpe exploration accuses her of giving false facts on gorillas, describing them as ‘violent and belligerent’ animal. This show is like a shadow boxing.

 

The word ‘forgiving’ brings out precisely the basic nature of gorilla. The gorilla is a gentle, kindly creature. He lives at peace with all other animals. We don’t know how many gorillas are there but their number is very small. Nowadays they can’t be legally killed, but the local tribesmen kills them when their crops or beehives are destroyed by the gorillas.

 

In this essay, the writer is trying to say that we must save our ancestors. We can feel the slight development of intelligence on them. So, we must stop local people and preserve gorillas in some safe areas.