Back to: Andhra Pradesh Board Class 6th English Guide and Notes
Table of Contents
Introduction:
‘A Lesson For All’ is a short play that brings out a message with its plethora of characters. Set in the early hours of the morning in a city street, the short play brings out the issue of environmental degradation.
About the Author:
Information about the author is unknown.
Theme:
The theme of this play is nature. The animals, by narrating their tale of woe, shed light on the rampant destruction humans have inflicted on the environment, thus highlighting the importance and need for preserving nature.
Summary:
The Litter:
The play begins with Mr. Vamsi and Mrs. Rupa, clearly the residents of the said city street, complaining over the missing newspapers and milk that morning and them sharing a mutual shock over the state of their street- it was completely filled with garbage. With Mrs. Geetha’s daughter Kalyani hurting herself over a broken glass bottle, inhabitants of the city street get even more agitated and immediately have her tended for by Dr. Swathi. With the milkman, the bus driver and the newspaper boy professing their inability to perform their routine duties, the people decide that it’s time to call their Mayor.
The Animals:
The Mayor was annoyed to find the state of the city street and demanded to know who had been responsible for this. Various animals of the forest immediately present themselves, claiming that they had been responsible for littering the city street. When asked how could they dare to do such a thing and what rights did they have, the animals shot back that the humans did not have the right to violate their habitat either but did it anyway.
Each animal pointed out how humans have contributed to the degradation of forests and water bodies, how unlike their Kalyani, the animals did not have a doctor to tend to the injuries they suffer. They highlighted how they had nowhere to live and in retaliation, had ventured to return the waste without the toxins and poisons back to humans themselves.
Conclusion:
The people realize their error. Taking the help of the animals, they sorted the litter to be processed and recycled. In addition, the Mayor promises to not degrade their habitat again, thus pointing out the importance of conserving the environment for a better tomorrow.
