THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOTHES Once there was an emperor who was very vain, spending hour after hour peering at himself in the mirror. Whenever he got new clothes he would gather his ministers around him so that they could tell him how wonderful he looked. One day, two men who said they were master tailor came to see the emporer. They told him they could make him a suit of clothes so magnificient that everything else he owned would seem drab. The cloth would be so unusual that only those with the most refined taste would be able to see it. The emperor was  foolish enough to believe them and to pay whatever they asked. The "tailors" started work at once. Every day the emperor sent his ministers to check on their progress. Of course, they could  see perfectly well that the crafty pair were only pretending to weave the cloth and cut it and stitch it, but they didn't dare disclose the truth to the emperor. The ministers were afraid  to disagree with the emperor because that would be like confessing that they did not have good taste. They felt uneasy about lying, but they believe they had no choice. They told the emperor only what he wanted to hear-that his new clothes were the most exquisite they had ever seen. When the two scoundrels told the emperor that their work was complete, he was so excited that he announced that the next day would be a public holiday. He intended to walk through the streets of the town in his new clothes so that everyone could admire him. The next morning, the "tailors" carefully laid out the emperor's new clothes and began helping him dress. The ministers gathered around to watch, and there were loud exclamations of delight when the emperor,turning this and that, at last stood proudly before them dressed only in his underwear. Officers of the palace guard had been up since before dawn making sure that the townspeople turned out to applaud the emperor as he went by. The entire town lined the streets to see him. Under the watchful eyes of the officers, the people cheered and waved flags, and the emperor loved every minute of it. But then something unexpected happened. Above the roar of the crowd, the emperor heared a child's voice saying, "Look! The emperor has no clothes!" The cry was at once taken up by the crowd. "The EMPEROR HAS NO CLOTHES! THE EMPEROR HAS NO CLOTHES!" The emperor looked down at himself and saw that it was true. He knew that he had been tricked. Feeling very foolish, he ran back to the palace as fast as he could, the jeers of the crowd ringing in his ears. Who finally disclosed the truth to the emperor? Why did the ministers exclaim in delight? What do you think was the tailor's intention in tricking the emperor? What vocabulary word describes the emperor perfectly? vain? Why do you think the child might have deserved the crowd's applause? P.S. Word List Lesson6 : applaud   crafty   disclose   drab          entire   exclaim       exquisite   intend       jeer     peer         progress   refine   scoundrel   uneasy   vain