10.(a) The great night duly arrived, moonlit and cloudless. A platform had been constructed in a comfortable and conveniently placed tree, and thereon crouched Mrs. Packletide and her paid companion, Miss Mebbin. A goat, gifted with a particularly persistent bleat, such as even a partially deaf tiger might be reasonably expected to hear on a still night, was tethered at the correct distance. With an accurately sighted rifle and a thumbnail pack of patience cards the sportswoman awaited the coming of the quarry. (Mrs. Packletide's Tiger) (i) On what kind of night did the event take place ?
10.(a) The great night duly arrived, moonlit and cloudless. A platform had been constructed in a comfortable and conveniently placed tree, and thereon crouched Mrs. Packletide and her paid companion, Miss Mebbin. A goat, gifted with a particularly persistent bleat, such as even a partially deaf tiger might be reasonably expected to hear on a still night, was tethered at the correct distance. With an accurately sighted rifle and a thumbnail pack of patience cards the sportswoman awaited the coming of the quarry. (Mrs. Packletide's Tiger) (i) On what kind of night did the event take place ?
The event took place on a moonlit and cloudless (bright, clear) night - directly stated in the opening line of the extract.
Marking Scheme
- 11 mark: mentioning that it was a moonlit and cloudless night (either or both adjectives accepted).
- 2Accept paraphrases such as 'a bright, clear night with a visible moon and no clouds'.
- 3No mark for vague answers like 'a dark night' or 'a normal night' that contradict the text.
Hint
Look at the very first sentence of the extract — two adjectives describe the night.
Quick Oral Answer
It took place on a moonlit and cloudless night, a bright and clear night ideal for spotting the tiger.
Analysis & Explanation
A straight reference-to-context recall question from Saki's satirical story 'Mrs. Packletide's Tiger'.
Concept
- The answer is stated verbatim in the opening line: 'The great night duly arrived, moonlit and cloudless.'
- Context: Mrs. Packletide, driven by jealousy of her rival Loona Bimberton, has paid to shoot a tiger for social prestige; the clear, moonlit night gives good visibility from the tree platform.
Common mistakes
- Giving vague answers like 'a dark night' or 'a normal night', which contradict the text.
Real-world use
- Notice how Saki uses a bright, still setting to build atmosphere and set up the story's situational irony (the elaborately staged hunt ends in farce) - a transferable literary-analysis skill.
Common Mistakes
- 1Writing 'a dark night', which directly contradicts 'moonlit and cloudless' in the extract.
- 2Giving only 'a great night' by copying 'The great night' without stating the actual descriptive adjectives.
- 3Adding irrelevant plot detail about the goat or the rifle instead of answering the specific question about the night.
Previously Asked
Both, the poem 'The Frog And The Nightingale' and the story 'Mrs. Packtetide's Tiger, reflect themes of exploitation of others in pursuit of personal benefit. How... do each... manipulate situations to attain their personal desires and with what consequences?
Interesting Facts
'Mrs. Packletide's Tiger' was written by Saki, the pen name of Hector Hugh Munro (1870-1916), a master of the witty, satirical short story mocking Edwardian high society.
The clear moonlit setting is deliberate stagecraft by Saki: it makes the later anticlimax — the tiger dying of fright and the bullet hitting the goat — even more comically ironic.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why is the moonlit, cloudless night important to the story?
The bright, clear night gives the hunters good visibility from their tree platform to see the tiger lured by the tethered goat. Saki's carefully staged setting builds up expectation, which makes the eventual anticlimax — the tiger dying of a heart attack and the goat being shot — all the more ironic.
Can I just write 'a great night' as the answer?
No. 'The great night' only tells you it was the awaited night; the question asks what kind of night it was. You must name the descriptive adjectives — 'moonlit and cloudless' — to earn the mark.