Study Materials of The Best Christmas Present in the World (Summary, Character Sketch and Word Meanings) Honeydew
Character Sketch
• Jim Macpherson: He was the leader of his English troop. Before
getting into war, he was a school
teacher in Dorset present in the west
part of England.
Personality: We found him brave and courageous as he was
leading his troop, kind and open hearted person as he shared his time and
happiness with enemy army also a loving and caring person due to his love and
affection towards his wife shown in the letter.
• Connie Macpherson: She is the wife of Jim Macpherson. After
her husband went to war she spent her whole life ina belief that she will see
him again. A fire broken in her house burnt her partially.
Personality: We found him a woman with extreme love for her
husband.
• Hans Wolf: He was the captain of German troop. He worked in
an orchestra in Dusseldorf before the war.
Personality: He was friendly as he first insisted make
friendship with English. He also had love for football and adventurous mind.
Terms and meanings from the Chapter:
Summary of the Chapter
• Bridport – A market town in Dorset, England, situated
approximately 1.5 miles inland from British channel.
• Junkshop: A shop selling miscellaneous second hand or old
out of use materials.
• Roll-top Desk: A desk with a flexible sliding cover
• Spotted it: found it
• Scorch marks: Burn Marks
• Clumsily mended: without skill repaired
• Veneer: A thin layer of plastic or decorative wood on
furniture of cheap wood
• Brute force: Violent force
• Tommy: Used to refer a common soldier in British army.
• Fritz: Popular german nickname
• No man’s land – A piece of land which falls in the
middle of the borders of two countries.
• Parapet – A low protective wall at the edge of the
trench.
• Marzipan: A sweet covering on a cake made from sugar, eggs
and almonds
• Thomas Hardy – Famous English Novelist
• Far From The Madding Crowd – Fourth novel of
Thomas Hardy
• Bathsheba – Bathsheba Everdene, beautiful young heroine
of Far From The Madding Crowd.
• Gabriel oak- a farmer, shepherd Gabriel oak is the
hero of Far From The Madding Crowd.
• Sergeant troy – Sergeant Francis Troy, the villain
of far from the Madding Crowd.
• Conservatory – A room having glass roof and walls
typically attached to a house on only one side.
• Wicker chair – A chair made of wicker and
is thus ventilated and useful under not or humid condition.Summary of the Chapter
The narrator of the story went to a junk shop and purchased
a roll-top desk which was in bad condition. The narrator started its repairing
on Christmas Eve and found a letter in its drawer. He read the letter. It was
from Jim Macpherson to his wife Connie as written on top. After reading the
letter, he found that Jim Macpherson was the leader of the England Army and he
described that England and German were engaged in a war but on the Christmas morning
a wonderful thing happened, first Germans wishes happy Christmas to English
soldiers and same response was given by English also. The leaders shared their
ideas and feelings with each other and celebrated Christmas by eating,
laughing, talking and drinking. After that they played football match in which Germans
won. In the night both troops sang carols and had a peaceful Christmas.
The author decided to gave this letter to Jim’s wife back.
He went to the address which was written on the letter envelope where he found
that an accidental fire caught in the house and she was in nursing home. He
rushed to nursing home where he found Jim’s wife. As she was grown too old in
the waiting of his husband he mistook the author by understanding him as Jim,
his husband when narrator met him. She declared him as best Christmas present
in the world.
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