Amin and the Ghul - AMABEL WILLIAMS-ELLIS

Summary: The story is about a clever and brave young man named Amin, who sets out from a Persian city in search of work, carrying only a raw egg and a lump of salt. One evening, while crossing a stony plain, he encounters a terrifying Ghul, a giant demon as tall as a tree. Despite having nothing to defend himself, Amin faces the Ghul boldly and uses his wit to challenge the demon. He tricks the Ghul into trying to crush an egg and a lump of salt, pretending they are stones, making the demon believe that Amin is incredibly strong.

The Ghul, intrigued and confused, invites Amin to his cave. While at the cave, Amin pretends to sleep and listens carefully for the Ghul’s snores. Seizing the opportunity, Amin hides a sack of rice in his bed so that when the Ghul strikes the bed, he believes he is hitting Amin. Using clever deception, Amin convinces the Ghul that even the blows of a huge stick felt like gentle taps, frightening the demon so much that he runs away.

When the Ghul returns with a fox, Amin cleverly shoots the fox to maintain his deception and claims he is commanding seven Ghul slaves, leaving the single Ghul helpless and terrified. Finally, the demon flees for good, and Amin is victorious. He discovers the treasures the Ghul had stolen over the years and becomes rich, all thanks to his courage, intelligence, and quick thinking.

The story highlights themes of cleverness, bravery, and resourcefulness, showing that intelligence and courage can triumph over brute strength.

Exercises

A. Questions

1. Why did Amin leave his home?

Answer: Amin left his home to go out into the world and look for work because he was very poor.

2. Where was Amin when he met the Ghul and why was it not possible for him to hide?

Answer: Amin met the Ghul on a stony plain at dusk. It was impossible to hide because the land was flat and open, with nowhere to conceal himself.

3. What did Amin say that annoyed the Ghul?

Answer: Amin told the Ghul that he looked small “for a Ghul,” which offended the demon, who was very proud of his size and strength.

4. What is a Ghul and what does one look like?

Answer: A Ghul is a dangerous, unpleasant demon. The one Amin met was extremely ugly and as tall as a tree, with huge arms thick like tree trunks.

5. What was the first trick that Amin played on the Ghul?

Answer: Amin pretended that a round white stone had liquid inside it. While the Ghul tried to crush the stone, Amin secretly swapped it with the egg and made it crack, fooling the Ghul into thinking he had enormous strength.

6. Where did the Ghul live?

Answer: The Ghul lived in a cave located high up in some cliffs.

7. Why was the Ghul frightened when Amin woke him up?

Answer: The Ghul was frightened because he believed he had beaten Amin seven times with a huge stick, yet Amin woke up unharmed and claimed the blows felt like gentle taps from an insect. This made the Ghul think Amin was impossibly strong.

B. Reference to context

Read these lines from the story, then answer the questions.

1. To make quite sure that he would hear no more of Amin, the Ghul did this seven times and then, well pleased, he went back to his own bed.

a. What did the Ghul do seven times?

Answer: Ghul hit Amin’s bedcovers with a huge walking stick—thinking he was striking Amin.

b. What was Amin doing at this time?

Answer: Amin was safely hiding, having placed a sack of rice under the blankets to fool the Ghul.

c. Why did the Ghul do this?

Answer: The Ghul wanted to kill Amin while he slept, because he feared Amin’s supposed strength.

2. Amin did not want to go with the Ghul, but he had to accept his invitation.

a. What did the Ghul invite Amin to do?

Answer: The Ghul invited Amin to come to his cave for supper and to continue their “strength tests” the next day.

b. Why do you think he did not want to go?

Answer: Amin knew the Ghul was dangerous and feared he might harm or kill him.

c. Where did Amin go and why would it be hard for him to leave?

Answer: Amin went to the Ghul’s cave in the high cliffs. It would be hard to leave because the cave was far away, deep inside the Ghul’s territory, and the Ghul was stronger and faster than him.