Answer the following questions with reference to Ray Douglas Bradbury’s short story, ‘All Summer in a Day’
(i) Name the planet on which this story is set.
Venus
Describe everyday life on this planet.
(ii) Why was there so much excitement in the school room that morning?
The sun would shine that day for a brief 2 hours/ happened only once in 7 years/ they had waited for this day/ The sun was to appear that day and the children (all 9-year olds) were excited because they had no personal memory of seeing / experiencing the sun /they had only heard of it and were eager to experience it for themselves.
What set Margot apart from the other children?
Margot was different/ she would not play (did not run when they tagged her) with the other children / she refused to sing along with them/ sang only if song was about sun or summer.
Her biggest crime was that she had come to Venus only 5 years ago/ so she remembered experiencing the warmth of the sun / the other children picked on her because she was different / they had been on Venus all their lives.
(iii) Describe how the planet was transformed when the sun came out and shone briefly over it.
Why was Margot not able to witness this phenomenon?
Because Margot had been locked into the closet by the other children.
What emotion do you suppose the other children experienced when Margot emerged at the end of the story?
They must have felt guilt /shame/ regret/ remorse/ awareness of wrongdoing/ realization/ solemn/ at having deprived Margot of this marvellous experience - something that she had been yearning for/ could not meet each other’s’ glance.