If you're a student in Class 8 studying English, you may have come across the story "How the Camel Got His Hump" Class 8 Chapter 1 from it so happened textbook.

Introduction to the story of How the camel got his hump

"How the Camel Got His Hump" is a popular story from Rudyard Kipling's "Just So Stories" collection. It tells the tale of a lazy camel who refuses to do any work, until a genie gives him a hump to store water and energy for the long desert journeys. The story teaches a valuable lesson about the consequences of laziness and the importance of hard work. In Class 8, students study this story as part of their English curriculum and may need additional help with understanding and analyzing the text. That's where free NCERT PDF solutions come in handy.

How the camel got his hump class 8 Summary of the story.

"How the Camel Got His Hump" is a story about a lazy camel who refuses to do any work, until a genie gives him a hump to store water and energy for the long desert journeys. The story teaches a valuable lesson about the consequences of laziness and the importance of hard work. In Class 8, students study this story as part of their English curriculum and may need additional help with understanding and analyzing the text. Free NCERT PDF solutions are available to provide students with the necessary guidance and support to fully comprehend the story.

This fictional story explains how the camel got a hump on his back. The world had just begun, and the animals had started working for humans. An ox, a dog, a horse, and a camel worked for a man. Except for the camel, all three animals worked hard. The camel said "humph" for anything anyone asked him. His duties were divided and reallocated to the three animals by their master.

They complained to the Djinn, who was the person-in-charge of the desert. When the Djinn asked the camel, he replied the same "humph". The Djinn puffed up the camel's back with his magical powers, and it was called as the hump since then. The camel could store energy to work, for three days without eating. This was the punishment and the advantage given to the camel for not behaving properly.

How the camel got his hump question answer 

ITS SO HAPPENED CLASS 8 CHAPTER 1 NCERT SOLUTIONS 

Questions (Page No. 119)

(Comprehension Check - I)

Question 1. What tasks, do you think, were assigned to the dog and the ox?

Answer: Different tasks were assigned to different animals. The dog was assigned to fetch and carry sticks since he was carrying a stick in his mouth. The ox was assigned to plough the field as there was a yoke on his neck.

Question 2. Why did the camel live in the middle of the desert?

Answer: Of all the animals, the camel was the laziest animal as he did not want to work and help man. Hence, he lived in the middle of a howling desert because he did not want to work. He ate sticks, thorns and prickles and whenever anybody came to speak to him he just said “Humph!” and nothing more.

Question 3. What made the dog, the horse and the ox very angry?

Answer: The dog, the horse and the ox were very angry because man assigned them the work of the camel too as he laid lazy in the middle of the desert. This meant that the three of them would need to work double-time in order to make up for the camel’s laziness.

Question 4. How did the Djinn know the horse was complaining against the camel?

Answer: While the other animals were assigned the camel’s work due to his laziness, the horse complained against the camel to the Djinn who was in charge of All Deserts. He told him that the animal which stayed in the middle of the desert with a long neck and long legs had not done a stroke of work since the beginning of the week. Hearing this, the Djinn instantly understood that the horse was referring to the camel for his idleness, who was not helping them in work.

Questions (Page No. 5)

(Comprehension Check - II)

Question 1. The camel was looking at this own reflection in the pool. What does it suggest to you about the camel?

Answer: The camel was looking at this own reflection in the pool which indicated that he was proud of his looks and appearance especially his back. Perhaps he assumed that he was the most handsome looking animal and was admiring himself upon seeing his own reflection in the pool.

Question 2. The camel said, “Humph” repeatedly. How did it affect him?

Answer: The Djinn was trying hard to remind the camel about his work which the lazy animal avoided due to his idleness. The camel kept saying “Humph” again and again in a repetitive tone which annoyed the Djinn. In no time, the camel’s back puffed up into a huge hump for repeating the word “Humph” over again and not performing the tasks assigned to him.

Question 3. What, according to the Djinn, was the use of the “humph”?

Answer: According to the Djinn, the camel missed his daily work for three continuous days. Hence, he said that the camel would be able to perform his tasks for three days without eating. The hump on his back would help him to store food and use the energy derived from it without eating food and work for a longer period.

Question 4. “…he has never yet learnt to behave”. In the light of this, what is the writer’s opinion about the camel?

Answer: As per the writer, the camel is a very lazy animal which loves sitting idle and avoids doing work. All day he would spend eating sticks, thorns and prickles. However, after he got the hump, the Djinn asked him to go out of the desert and help the other three animals – horse, ox and dog and also behave like others while working. It was due to his laziness that he missed performing tasks of three days. The Djinn told him that his hump would help him to store food and use the energy derived from it without eating food. It would also help him to finish the pending work and that he would continue carrying the hump and living in the desert forever.

Questions (Page No. 119)

(Exercise)

Question 1. Discuss the following topics in groups.

Can this story be factually true?

Answer: No, it is not a factually true story. It is an imaginative tale.

Question 2. What, according to you, is the story about? Consider the following:

a.     How the world began.

b.    Why everyone should do his/her share of work seriously.

c.     How animals are important to humans.

d.    How the camel got his hump.

Answer:

d.    How the camel got his hump.

Question 3. What did you do over the weekend? Were you generally active or idle? Please check your back before starting to discuss or answer the question.

Answer: The last weekend I woke up at 8 A.M. and did some physical exercise in the morning. I helped my mother in doing the household chores. By evening I played badminton with my sister. Overall, I spent my weekend in an active manner. Yes, I have checked my back and there is no hump.

Question 4. There are broadly two categories of workers – those who prefer to do today what they can do tomorrow, and those who prefer to do tomorrow what they can do today. Where do you belong?

Answer: I belong to the first category of workers, i.e. those who prefer to do today what they can do tomorrow. This implies that I prefer doling my work promptly on time rather than unnecessarily piling it up for the future.

How the camel got his hump Extra Questions and answers related to the story. 

Here are some of the questions and answers related to the story "How the Camel Got His Hump" from Class 8 Chapter 1: 1. What was the camel doing before he got his hump? Answer: The camel was lazy and refused to work. 2. What did the Djinn do to the camel? Answer: The Djinn gave the camel a hump as punishment for his laziness. 3. How did the hump help the camel? Answer: The hump stored water and fat, which helped the camel survive in the harsh desert environment. 4. What is the moral of the story? Answer: The moral of the story is that hard work and diligence are important qualities to possess in order to succeed in life.

Explanation of the moral of the story.

The moral of "How the Camel Got His Hump" is that laziness and refusal to work can have negative consequences. The story teaches that hard work and diligence are important qualities to possess in order to succeed in life. The camel's laziness led to him being given a hump, which ultimately helped him survive in the harsh desert environment. This teaches the lesson that hard work may not always be easy, but it is necessary for survival and success.

Exercises to test comprehension and understanding.

To test your comprehension and understanding of the story "How the Camel Got His Hump" from Class 8 Chapter 1, here are some exercises you can try:

1. Write a short summary of the story in your own words.

2. What was the punishment given to the camel by the Djinn? Why was it given?

3. How did the hump help the camel survive in the desert?

4. What lesson can we learn from the story?

5. Imagine you are the camel. Write a diary entry describing your feelings before and after getting the hump.