On the Face of It Summary Class 12 English

About the Writer

A famous novelist and writer named Susan Hill (also known by another name Elizabeth) was born on 5 February 1942. Susan was born in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England.

Born during World War II, she completed her early education at Scarborough Convent School and then Coventry Grammar School. Later, she went on to study English at King's College, London, receiving her Graduate Certificate in 1963 and becoming a Fellow in 1978.

Although her family moved to Coventry when she was only 16, many of her novels and short stories still feature descriptions of her seaside hometown. While studying at King's, she published her first novel titled "The Enclosure" in 1961. During her time there, she worked on and published several novels, books, poems, and even screenplay stories; many of her works received awards and recognition. "On the Face of It" is one such remarkable piece of art by Susan Hill.

Due to her excellent work, she has been appointed as a reviewer for many popular newspapers and magazines. Besides, she is a regular contributor to the famous weekly magazine "The Spectator", which features the best British journalists, writers, critics, and cartoonists.

Summary of One the Face of It

"On the face of it" is a play by Susan Hill that deals with themes like friendship, insecurity, and perspective.

Scene 1

The first scene starts in the garden, and the view is picturesque, with the singing birds and leaves ruffling on the trees. A young boy named Derek (Derry) enters the isolated garden of an old man, Mr. Lamb, thinking the garden is empty. At first, Derry is astonished after spotting Mr. Lamb in the garden but soon falls into the conversation. Derry feels uncomfortable and self-conscious while talking or being near anyone because of the burnt scar on one side of his face caused by acid. That's why he prefers to be alone, where no one can judge him.

Mr. Lamb was collecting crab apples to make jelly. Derry is about to leave feeling awkward when Mr. Lamb tells him that he or anyone is welcome in the garden, as "the gate is open". Mr. Lamb tries to make Derry feel comfortable by talking and answering his questions. We can observe that Mr. Lamb is an optimistic and cheerful personality. Derry starts opening up to him and admits that people either fear him or pity him due to his burnt face. As far as he is concerned, everyone pretends to be nice to him, including his mother, but they all find him ugly. He admits that he gets scared of himself whenever he looks in the mirror.

Later, when Mr. Lamb starts talking about preparing jelly from ripened fruits, Derry accuses him of changing the subject just like everyone else. Mr. Lamb explains to him how others' points of view shouldn't matter to him. He can only believe whatever he wants to believe about himself. He gives an example of the weeds and flowers surrounding the garden that humans perceive some plants as weeds and some as flowers, fruits, or herbs. However, life is all about "growing". Through this, he means that humans must keep going forward, keeping their heads up and facing whatever life throws at them. He also explains how the other kids call him Lemey-Lamb because of his tin legs. Mr. Lamb's leg was blown off during the war, so he uses the tin leg to walk. It doesn't trouble him, though.

Mr. Lamb further clarifies how it is pointless to get agitated over things that are out of their control. So, it is better to focus on things that add happiness to life, such as people who love and care about him. Derry retorts by stating that the people always try to console him by presenting worse scenarios than a burnt face, such as "being blinded" or "living on a wheelchair". Mr. Lamb continues by expressing that he shouldn't let others' words affect him. Once again, he gives an example of how different people have different outlooks toward others. For some, the sound made by bees is buzzing, and they get irritated by listening to it. However, for Mr. Lamb, it feels like they are singing, which is a direct representation of his positive attitude. Derry admits that he doesn't want people to be afraid of him, so it would be better if he stays away from them. Mr. Lamb tells him about the man who locked himself up in a room to protect himself from the dangers of the world but died due to a picture frame falling onto his head. He was trying to decipher that it does not matter if he stays away from people or locks himself in a room.

It is important to meet people and become friends with them. Humans are social creatures and might lose sense of themselves if they are isolated. It does not mean that you have to be completely dependent on others and listen to them all the time. But to experience life to the fullest, we all need companions. We can see that Mr. Lamb and Derry have different personalities. Derry like to spend time with him because he does not treat Derry like an ugly creature, and to some extent, he also feels isolated by others due to his disability.

To Mr. Lamb, everyone is his friend until they prove otherwise. According to him, it is better to be a friend than a stranger, and even though Derry chooses not to return to his garden, he longs to see him again. He does not believe that making friends is a complex process like Derry. The burnt face, age, and disabilities do not matter when it comes to making friends. Therefore, it is an absurd idea that people with similar disabilities should stick together because nobody else can understand their problems.

According to Mr. Lamb, Derry should be able to "take risks" in making friends. He shouldn't spend his life with the preconceived notion that everyone is going to be scared of him. Mr. Lamb tells him that he can come to the garden even when he is not there or if he finds anyone else there. Children might call him Lamey Lamb, but they still come to the garden to play because they are not afraid of him. Derry says that he can help him in plucking apples from the tree, but he has to take permission from his mother first, who lives three miles away from there. Mr. Lamb assumes that Derry will not return to his garden even if he wants to. Derry leaves, promising that he will return as he likes the garden and the house. Mr. Lamb goes to look after his bees.

Scene 2

In scene two, Derry's mother forbids him to go to Mr. Lamb's garden because she is afraid of whatever she has heard about him from others. Derry quarrels with his mother because he wants to go back and talk to Mr. Lamb. Now, he considers Mr. Lamb as a friend because he likes talking to him. Therefore, he does not listen to his mother and runs off toward Mr. Lamb's house.

Scene 3

In scene three, Mr. Lamb is trying to climb up the ladder to get some apples from the tree. However, the ladder breaks, and he falls off of it. He dies due to high altitude. At last, Derry finds him on the ground and realizes that he is already too late. Although he wins over his fear of socialization, he loses his first friend. He learns that he shouldn't hate others for what they think or say about him; otherwise, he will become bitter and will not be able to live happily.

The Conclusion

The main idea of this play is that a positive outlook on the things and people around you helps you to live a good life, and that's all matters. Mr. Lamb didn't believe that material things such as a big house and money were important. For him, experiences, stories, and long conversations with strangers like Derry were the reasons for his levity. In the end, he wasn't alone when he died.