The Wise Parrot – Extra Notes for Class 5 English Chapter 4 (Santoor Book)
The Wise Parrot — Notes
Here are the Complete notes including Summary, New Words with Meanings, Theme, Moral, and Paragraph-wise Questions and Answers for Class 5 English Chapter 4 – “The Wise Parrot” (Santoor / NCERT eesa104.pdf)
Summary / What Happens
- A wealthy merchant owned a bright, talkative parrot which he kept in a golden cage.
- The parrot entertained the merchant with songs and stories, but deep inside it longed for freedom and the forest.
- When the merchant planned a long journey, he asked the parrot what it would like as a gift. The parrot asked for freedom rather than luxury.
- The merchant refused and instead asked the parrot to send greetings to its jungle friends.
- While travelling, the merchant met parrots in the forest and delivered the message. When one wild parrot dropped as if dead, the merchant returned home and told his pet.
- Hearing the story, the parrot in the cage also “fell” as if dead. The merchant placed it on the windowsill, and at the right moment the parrot revived and flew away to freedom.
Key / New Words with Meanings
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Merchant | A person who trades goods for profit |
| Cage | A structure (usually made of wire or bars) used to confine a bird or animal |
| Parrot | A colorful bird capable of mimicking sounds and speech |
| Greetings | Good wishes sent to someone |
| Freedom | The state of being able to act or move without restraint |
| Forest | A large area covered chiefly with trees and undergrowth |
| Revive | To come back to life, to restore consciousness |
| Trick | A cunning or deceitful act |
| Longed | Desired strongly |
| Silent | Quiet, making no sound |
The Wise Parrot – Paragraph-wise Questions and Answers
Here’s the paragraph-wise Question & Answer set for Class 5 English Chapter – “The Wise Parrot” (Santoor / NCERT eesa104.pdf)
Paragraph 1: The Merchant and His Parrot
In a quiet village, a rich merchant kept a bright and talkative parrot in a cage of gold. The parrot had a sharp mind and often entertained the merchant with stories and songs. However, deep inside, the bird longed for the open skies and green trees.
Summary:
A rich merchant had a beautiful parrot. He kept it in a golden cage and loved to hear it talk. The parrot sang sweetly but was sad because it was not free.
Questions and Answers
- Q: Who owned the parrot?
A: A rich merchant owned the parrot. - Q: Where did the merchant keep the parrot?
A: He kept the parrot in a golden cage. - Q: How did the parrot feel inside the cage?
A: The parrot felt sad and longed for freedom. - Q: What did the parrot do to please the merchant?
A: The parrot talked and sang to please the merchant. - Q: Why do you think the parrot was called “wise”?
A: Because it could think and act intelligently, not just speak.
Paragraph 2: The Merchant’s Journey
One day, the merchant decided to travel far away for business. He thought he would do something to please his pet. He walked up to the cage and said, “My beloved parrot, I am about to travel to a far-off land. What can I bring for you from there?”
The parrot replied, “Dear master, you look after my needs so well that I have tasted all the
tender fruits and chillies. But, I want to taste the joy of flying in the sky. If you really want me to be happy, please let me fly off into the sky.”
The merchant said, “You are very dear to me and I cannot bear to let you go away. Ask for
anything else.”
The bird sighed. “Since you cannot let me fly, when you see my friends in the jungle tell them that I send them greetings from my cage.”
Summary:
One day, the merchant decided to travel to another country for trade. Before leaving, he asked the parrot what gift he should bring for it.
Questions and Answers
- Q: Where was the merchant going?
A: He was going to another country for trade. - Q: What did the merchant ask the parrot before leaving?
A: He asked what gift the parrot wanted from his trip. - Q: What was the parrot’s reply?
A: The parrot asked the merchant to convey its greetings to other parrots in the forest. - Q: What does this show about the parrot’s character?
A: It shows that the parrot was thoughtful and wise. - Q: Did the parrot ask for any expensive gift?
A: No, it only wanted to send a message of love to its friends.
Paragraph 3: The Merchant Meets Forest Parrots
The merchant went off on his travels. One day in a forest, he saw a flight of parrots with the
same colour as his pet. He walked up to the tree and said, “O beautiful parrots, I have one of your relatives as a pet and I keep it in a cage of gold. It has sent greetings for you all.”
As the merchant finished speaking, one parrot dropped like a stone from the tree and fell
on the ground.
Summary:
In the forest, the merchant met a group of parrots. He delivered his pet parrot’s message to them. Hearing this, one wild parrot fell down as if dead.
Questions and Answers
- Q: What did the merchant tell the parrots in the forest?
A: He conveyed his pet parrot’s greetings to them. - Q: How did one of the forest parrots react?
A: It suddenly fell down, as if dead. - Q: What did the merchant think after seeing this?
A: He thought his message had hurt or shocked the forest parrot. - Q: What did the merchant do after that?
A: He sadly continued his journey. - Q: Why do you think the forest parrot pretended to die?
A: It wanted to send a secret message to the caged parrot about how to gain freedom.
Paragraph 4: The Merchant Returns Home
The merchant was distressed at this. He hurried away from there.
On returning home, he went up to his parrot’s cage and described all the wonders and the beauty he had seen on his journey, and how a flight of parrots had come to the forest he was visiting.
He then told his pet about the message he had conveyed, and, with great sorrow, described how one bird had been so shocked that it fell to the ground.
Summary:
After finishing his journey, the merchant returned home and told his parrot everything, including how a forest parrot had died after hearing the message.
Questions and Answers
- Q: What did the merchant tell his parrot when he returned?
A: He told about the forest parrot’s strange reaction to his message. - Q: How did the caged parrot react?
A: It became silent and soon fell down as if dead. - Q: What did the merchant do when he thought his parrot had died?
A: He took it out of the cage and placed it on the window ledge. - Q: What lesson did the parrot learn from the forest parrot?
A: It learned to pretend to die to escape from the cage. - Q: Why did the merchant feel sad?
A: He thought his beloved parrot had died.
Paragraph 5: The Parrot Wins Freedom
As soon as he finished talking, his own pet parrot fell from the perch to the floor of the cage.
The merchant couldn’t understand how his beloved pet died so suddenly. He reached into the cage and gently took the still warm body of the bird and placed it on the windowsill.
As soon as he stepped back, the bird stirred, stretched its beautiful green wings and flew off into the open sky saying, “My friend showed me how I could escape and now I can fly in the sky. Goodbye!”
Summary:
The moment the merchant placed the “dead” parrot near the window, it suddenly flew away joyfully to join its friends in the forest.
Questions and Answers
- Q: What happened when the parrot was taken out of the cage?
A: It suddenly opened its wings and flew away. - Q: Where did the parrot go?
A: It went back to the forest to live freely. - Q: How did the merchant feel after seeing this?
A: He was surprised at the parrot’s cleverness. - Q: What was the parrot’s trick?
A: It pretended to be dead so the merchant would free it. - Q: What message does the ending give us?
A: Freedom is precious and worth using one’s wisdom to achieve.
Moral of the Story
- Freedom is the greatest treasure of life.
- Wisdom and clever thinking can overcome any situation.
Central Idea / Theme
- The story conveys that true freedom is more valuable than luxury or riches.
- It highlights how intelligence, cunning, and patience can help one overcome constraints.
- It also shows that external beauty or treasures (like a golden cage) cannot replace internal peace and liberty.
Moral / Lessons
- Never trap someone’s spirit—even with kindness, if it means captivity.
- Wisdom and cleverness are stronger than force.
- Respecting someone’s desire for freedom is a sign of true love.
- External comfort is no substitute for inner joy.