(i) What was Princess September’s reaction to the loss of her parrot?
(ii) What was her mother’s reaction to it?
(iii) What do the reactions indicate about the nature and temperament of each?
(i) Princess September was extremely shocked to find her parrot dead. She did not touch anything to eat. She went to bed without having supper.
(ii) The reaction of Princess September’s mother was quite indifferent. She called Princess September’s reaction as “stuff and nonsense.” She said that the child might better go to bed without supper. Thus she was neither happy nor sad.
(iii) The reactions show that the Princess was a sensitive and kind-hearted child. She loved birds truly and intensely. She burst into tears to see her parrot lying dead. However, her mother’s (or sisters’) reaction was entirely different. It rather seemed to be indifferent as they did not care to be bother about it. Her mother called it a nonsense to weep at a mere bird’s death. She seemed to be insensitive to it.