Poem- Mr.

Nobody by Unknown Author

Mr. Nobody
BY ANONYMOUS

I know a funny little man,

As quiet as a mouse,
Who does the mischief that is done
In everybodys house!
Theres no one ever sees his face,
And yet we all agree
That every plate we break was cracked
By Mr. Nobody.
Tis he who always tears out books,
Who leaves the door ajar,
He pulls the buttons from our shirts,
And scatters pins afar;
That squeaking door will always squeak,
For prithee, dont you see,
We leave the oiling to be done
By Mr. Nobody.
The finger marks upon the door
By none of us are made;
We never leave the blinds unclosed,
To let the curtains fade.
The ink we never spill; the boots
That lying round you see
Are not our boots,they all belong
To Mr. Nobody.

NOTES

Prepared by Ms. Iva Sivaraja

Poem- Mr. Nobody by Unknown Author

Prepared by Ms. Iva Sivaraja

Synopsis:
The persona talks about a funny little person who does a lot of mischievousness
in the house. When things go or are misplaced, the culprit is Mr. Nobody. Besides
that, most of the things used by Mr. Nobody are never put back to where they
should be. Any mess around the house is always done by no one excepts Mr.
Nobody.
Setting:
The poem is set in a house and the area around the house. The persona talks
about the situation in the house and things happening in it. Things get broken,
misplaced and thrown around by an unseen person. Besides that, he also messes
up the house and dirties the place.
Themes:
The main theme in this poem is family life which is full of mischievousness from
the children. it is normal for a family to have someone who does
mischievousness but will not admit it. In a family, we might take things done by
other people for granted. We should appreciate the work done by other people.
We should allocate work clearly and be responsible for our own actions. Another
theme is respect for every member of the family. Cultivate good habits for
everyone's sake and comfort.
Structure, Style and Language:

The poem does not have a definite rhyme and is consists of 4 stanzas.

The style of writing is simple and direct.

The language used is easy and the vocabularies used are easy to
understand.

Imagery:

movement- Mr. Nobody moves around quietly.

sight- cracked plates, door ajar, button-less shirt, pins all over the floor,
muddy footprints, finger marks, spilled ink and boots lying around.

sound- squeaking doors, plates breaking, pins dropping.

touch- oil that feels oily, kettle that boils would feel hot.

Metaphor:

The door ajar means that Mr. Nobody moves in and out like a thief unseen.

The squeaking door will always squeak as if it is a mouse.

Repetition:

Poem- Mr. Nobody by Unknown Author

Prepared by Ms. Iva Sivaraja

Repetition of the phrase 'By Mr. Nobody' at the end of every stanza to
show emphasis.

Simile:

As quiet as a mouse.

Moral Values:

We must work together to look after the family home.

We should have respect for other people's properties.

We must value and appreciate the things at home.

We must be willing to admit our mistakes and carelessness.

We must not be careless when using our own things or other

people's possessions.

Exercise 1: QUESTIONS:
1. What is Mr. Nobody compared to?
2. Where can Mr. Nobody be found?
3. In stanza 2, what are the four things Mr. Nobody does?
4. From stanza 2 and 3, what are the two things Mr. Nobody should have
done?
5. To whom do the boots that are lying around belong to?
6. What does Mr. Nobody leave on the door?
7. What is spilled by Mr. Nobody?
8. State two moral values that can be derived from this poem.

Poem- Mr. Nobody by Unknown Author

Prepared by Ms. Iva Sivaraja

Exercise 2
Fill the diagram with the appropriate answers.
Refer to page 12 Literature Component Workbook.
Poetic devices

Explanation

1.Imagery

2. Metaphor

Examples from the Poem

i)
ii)
iii)

A thing regarded as
representative or symbolic of
something else.

3. Repetition

i) The squeaking door will

always squeak as though it is a
mouse.

i)

4.

i) As quiet as a mouse
A figure of speech that
expresses a resemblance
between things of different
kinds.