Is there any film you have seen or novel you have read with a similar theme?

The story is a satire on the conceit of those in power. How does the author employ the literary device of dramatic irony in the story?

What makes Jack feel caught in an uglymiddle position?

Why is an adult’s perspective on life different from that of a child’s?

Apparent illogicality sometimes turns out to be a futuristic projection? Discuss.

Do you think that the third level was a medium of escape for Charley? Why?

Do you see an intersection of time and space in the story?

How would you describe the behaviour of the Maharaja’s minions towards him? Do you find them truly sincere towards him or are they driven by fear when they obey him? Do we find a similarity in today’s political order?

What is the moral issue that the story raises?

There are moments in life when we have to make hard choices between our roles as private individuals and as citizens with a sense of national loyalty. Discuss with reference to the story you have just read.

What is the author’s indirect comment on subjecting innocent animals to the willfulness of human beings?

Can you relate instances of game-hunting among the rich and the powerful in the present times that illustrate the callousness of human beings towards wildlife?

Do you see an intersection of time and space in the story?

What are Geoff Green’s reasons for including high school students in the Students on Ice expedition?

Would Charley ever go back to the ticket counter on the third level to buy tickets to Galesburg for himself and his wife?

Apparent illogicality sometimes turns out to be a futuristic projection? Discuss.

Philately helps keep the past alive. Discuss other ways in which this is done. What do you think of the human tendency to constantly move between the past, the present and the future?

How would you describe the behaviour of the Maharaja’s minions towards him? Do you find them truly sincere towards him or are they driven by fear when they obey him? Do we find a similarity in today’s political order?

Bama’s experience is that of a victim of the caste system. What kind of discrimination does Zitkala-Sa’s experience depict? What are their responses to their respective situations?

‘The modern world is full of insecurity, fear, war, worry and stress.’ What are the ways in which we attempt to overcome them?

‘The world’s geological history is trapped in Antarctica.’ How is the study of this region useful to us?