Prasanna

Thank You, Ma’am Summary, Theme, Critical Appreciation by Langston Hughes

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Thank You, Ma’am Summary by Langston Hughes

Thank You, Ma’am Summary, Theme, Critical Appreciation by Langston Hughes

Thank You, Ma’am Summary

A large woman with a heavy side-bag was walking down the pavement. The name of the place, the ruler may safely guess, was Harlem. Suddenly an urchin tried the snatch her purse by the strap. The strap snapped but the bag being too heavy for the boy to pull, he lost his balance and fell down on his back. The large woman turned around and lodged a solid kick at the posterior of the boy. Then the woman gripped the boy firmly by his shirt and made him stand.

Dialogues followed and the woman did not let the boy run away. It was revealed from the conversation that the boy had nobody in the world. The woman felt that since nobody was there to take care of the boy, she would at least; cleanse the face of the boy. So, like a kitten hanging between the forefinger and the middle, the woman dragged the boy.

The boy was in his teen, frail and longed to be released from the woman’s grip. But the woman dragged him to her home, a boarding house, pushed him inside down a hall. The woman, known as Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones still gripped the boy firmly. By then the boy had told her that his name was Roger, and she asked him to go to the sink to wash his face.

Suffering from an initial duality of perception-whether to run away through the open front door or not, he decided to go to the sink to wash his face. The woman knew that the boy was hungry and that was perhaps the reason for his snatching the side-bag. But the boy said that he wanted to buy a pair of blue suede shoes and as such, he needed the money.

The woman admitted that she also committed some silly mistakes in her youth but never stole someone’s purse. Mrs. Jones vanished behind a curtain to cook some food whereas the boy sat at a corner of the sofa from where she could easily watch her. The human bondage of mutual trust has already set in. The supper over, Mrs. Jones gave ten dollars to the boy to buy a pair of blue suede shoes and warned him not to steal ever. Out on the street, the boy wanted to say something to Mrs. Jones more than a mere thanks’, but couldn’t. He never saw her ever.

Thank You, Ma’am About the Author Langston Hughes

James Mercer Langston Hughes (1901-1967) was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist from Joplin, Missouri. One of the earliest innovators of the literary art form called “Jazz poetry”, Hughes is best known as a leader of the Harlem Renaissance. He famously wrote about the period that “the Negro was in vogue”, which was later paraphrased as “when Harlem was in vogue.”

Growing up in a series of Midwestern towns, Hughes became a prolific writer at an early age. He moved to New York City as a young man, where he made his career. He graduated from High school in Cleveland, Ohio, and soon began studies at Columbia University in New York City. Although he dropped out, he gained notice from New York publishers, first in “The crisis” magazine and then from book publishers, and became known in the creative community in Harlem.

He eventually graduated from Lincoln University. In addition to poetry, Hughes wrote plays and short stories. He also published several non – fiction works. From 1942 to 1962, as the Civil Rights movement was gaining traction, he wrote an in-depth weekly column in a leading black newspaper, “The Chicago Defender.”

Thank You, Ma’am Theme

Langston Hughes short story, “Thank you, Ma’am” is an excellent example of human bondage. It is a proof that the world has still some people in it whose hearts are punctuated with love, care, tenderness and above all, a feeling for the wretched and the downtrodden. Roger, a frail street urchin in teens tried to snatch Mrs. Jones’ shoulder purse.

The strap of the purse snapped but the weight of the bag had impaired Roger’s balance and he fell on the pavement lifting his legs skyward. Mrs. Jones, a sturdy, strong woman caught him by the shirt and before the curious eyes of the bystanders, dragged him to her home, a boarding house. If Mrs. Jones had handed him over to the police; he might have either been tried in a juvenile court, or worse, sent to a Borstal school. Mrs. Jones dragged Roger to her home, had his face washed, hair combed and helped him with a supper.

Roger had no warm heart waiting at his home. He was a destitute. He tried to snatch Mrs. Jones’ bag as he needed money to buy a pair of blue suede shoes. Mrs. Jones gave him ten dollars to buy a pair of blue suede shoes and simply told him never to steal. Roger came out to the pavement, looked back. Mrs. Jones called him “son”-who tried to snatch Mrs. Jones’ bag.

Roger wanted to say something more than a dry “Thank you” to Mrs. Jones, but could not utter anything but “Thank you” before she shut the door. We can well perceive that the thief in Roger had paled into insignificance. Instead, a teen-aged boy took a rebirth in him. His transformation was complete.

“Thank you, Ma’am” is a short story written by Langston Hughes and published in 1958. Though Hughes doesn’t explicitly state what the setting of the story is, there are some clues that indicate the general place and the time. For one thing, the story was published in 1958, and the Mrs. Jones’ motherly heart got the better than that of an admonisher, and she made Roger wash his face, comb and sit in a place. Roger’s face showed that he was hungry and so she cooked some food and fed Roger.

Stiffened by the discernment and cruelty of the material world, Roger learnt that he must snatch things from others to get his own. But Mrs. Jones raised the curtain in his mind where from a boy, as innocent as others, peeped out. Mrs. Jones bade him good bye and Roger, who had so many things to unfold, could only utter “Thank you”. Therefore, the title is justified.

Thank You, Ma’am Critical Appreciation

“Thank you, Ma’am” by Langston Hughes presents a pen-picture of the socio-economic conditions of the African-Americans in America. The story is confined to two characters and these characters reveal themselves through dialogues and situations which are the essential features of a novel, rather than a short story. The narrative is neutral and provides insight into both Roger and Mrs. Jones.

The purpose of using colloquialism and sluggish dialect is to bring out realism in the story. Destitution, loneliness, insecurity, fears, greed are all mixed in the characters and the situations. The eternal human qualities like love, compassion, trust, respect and such other things, hitherto silted under the layers of inhuman, unequal socio – economic combat, are dug out from the depth of oblivion.

Thank You, Ma’am Characters

Mrs. Jones:

Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones or more simply, Mrs. Jones worked in the Beauty Salon of a hotel meant for women only. She had to work till late at night and walk home at that hour. The setting is probably Harlem, a crime prone zone in America where African-Americans prevailed by number.

Mrs. Jones was a well built, strong woman by nature and by heart. Once she caught a purse-snatcher on her way home. The snatcher was a frail, teen-aged destitute who wanted to buy a pair of blue suede shoes with the snatched money. What is expected at this juncture is that Mrs. Jones would hand him over to police and the police in turn, would either send him to a court for juvenile crime or worse, to a Borstal school.

Instead, Mrs. Jones dragged the boy named Roger to her home, a boarding house, made him wash his face, and then Roger sat on the bedstead like a good boy as awaiting his mother to cook his meal.

The front door was open and if Roger took a full blast out of the door, nobody could catch him. But he didn’t. Mrs. Jones disclosed that she also wanted things in her youth like others did, but didn’t get those. She admitted that she also did unfair things on her youth.

After that, it appears from the continuous conversation between Mrs. Jones and Roger that it was quite a normal conversation between a mother and her son. Mrs. Jones’ motherhood got the better and her fondness for Roger, until then a juvenile criminal, was evident from her paying ten dollars to Roger and from her warning, “I wish you would behave yourself, son, from here on in.” Roger was transformed into a mother’s son.

Roger :

A frail, petty, juvenile criminal at his early teens, Roger was a destitute. When he was caught by Mrs. Jones for her purse-snatching, he thought that the lady would hand him over to the police. But instead, she dragged her to her home, which was a boarding house, made him wash his face, comb his hair and fed him with a square supper.

Roger was never accustomed to such motherly behaviour. All he knew was that he must steal things for his own. He didn’t do anything at that age to earn his livelihood. He had a kind of home, but no warm heart waited there for him. Therefore, he took a short cut to success. He started stealing.

Mrs. Jones’ motherly love re-invented the innocent boy in him. When Mrs. Jones was busy preparing meal, Roger could have easily dashed out of the house. But the thought of running away from Mrs. Jones never occurred to him. He sat at the bedstead, like a mother’s child throughout Mrs. Jones’ cooking and had his meal.

When Mrs. Jones offered him ten dollars to buy a pair of blue suede shoes and bade him good bye, he was overwhelmed with emotion. Motherhood’s sudden gush of love almost inundated the thief in Roger and he was reincarnated as a human being- pure at his heart.

Thank You, Ma’am Annotations and Vocabulary

Slung — suspended, especially with a strap
Rattled — made a rapid succession of short, sharp knocking sounds
Tug — pull hard
Full blast — run away at great speed
Frail — weak and delicate
Willow — wild-growth like wild willows without care
Half-nelson — A wrestling hold
Latching — fasten a door or gate with a latch
tug — to pull hard and quickly
large — huge, quite big
pocket book — purse
turn loose — to let someone or something free blue feared sitter backside of someone wearing blue jeans.
short front — front part of a shirt
lima beans — edible flat bean
kitchenette — area of a room used as a kitchen
latching — fasten a door with a latch
supper — light evening meal after dinner
suede — type of leather with a velvety raised surface
presentable — work to be presented
ice-box — cold storage box to keep food.
gas plate — natural gas flame for cooking
popped out — to come out, appear
embarrass — to make someone feel uncomfortable
barren — unproductive
devilish — like a devil
stoop — to look down upon
frowned — expression of displeasure or disapproval
mistrusted — not trust worthy
barely — hardly, almost not
salon — beauty parlour.

Prism A Collection of ISC Short Stories Workbook Answers

The Great Automatic Grammatizator Summary, Theme, Critical Appreciation by Roald Dahl

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The Great Automatic Grammatizator Summary by Roald Dahl

The Great Automatic Grammatizator Summary, Theme, Critical Appreciation by Roald Dahl

The Great Automatic Grammatizator Summary

Mr. John Bohien was the Head of an Engineering Firm where Mr. Adolph Knipe worked as his subordinate. A talented technocrat, but Knip’s penchant for literary writing was much above his professional zeal. His frustration owing to repeated rejection of his literary contributions to periodicals by the editors of those publications, even when he felt that his skill and ability were well ahead of most of those renowned literary contributors, urged and propelled him to design and invent a gizmo which would produce every form of literary art in a jiffy simply by pressing a button here and a pedal there.

The machine had no artificial intelligence. It had a huge memory and was pre loaded with English Grammatical rules, vocabulary, human emotions, passion, and the styles of a few renowned authors whose literary contributions were in demand. He published a few stories in his name and in the name of Mr. Bohien as well, through his machine. Some of those were accepted by the famous periodicals and some of course, were rejected. But they got paid for the accepted ones.

Then Knipe opened up an Agency proposing to take up the franchise of the renowned and not so renowned writes. The Agreement detailed how such writers would stop contributing directly to periodicals. Instead, the machine would write using their names and contribute to those periodicals. Of course, there was a handsome compensation for the authors under Agreement.

The renowned authors rejected the agreement outright whereas the not-so-renowned and those with exhausted creativity readily signed the Agreement Thus, Knipe’s dual purpose of emulating over the authors all by himself and creating a monopolistic market for machine-generated literature became successful. He became a nouveau riche.

The Great Automatic Grammatizator About the Author Roald Dahl

Roald DahI (1916-1990) was born in Wales. A son of Scandinavian parentage, Dahi served as pilot in the British Royal Air force during the Second World War. He is not much valued for his academic excellence although achieved great popularity for his novels and short stories.

His best known works include ‘James and the Giant Peach’, ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ (Since filmed), ‘Matilda’, The ‘Witches’ etc. He received quite a number of awards for his contribution to English Literature. Those include ‘World Fantasy Award for Life Time Achievement’-1983, the British Book Award,’ Children’s Author of the Year on 1990’ etc.

The Great Automatic Grammatizator Theme

The theme of Roald Dahi’s short story,” The Great Automatic Grammatizator” is simple but a little bizarre. Mr. Knipe, a successful technocrat and failed literary contributor, with a zeal to excel and emulate over the writers in demand, designed and created a gizmo with extraordinary memory storage capacity to preload it with English Grammar, vocabulary, human emotions, passions, and styles of some renowned authors who were on demand in the literary circle.

Inspired by initial success in getting his machine-generated stories accepted by some editors of reputed magazines, he opened up an Agency and having failed to bait the top literary notches, offered agreements to less renowned authors who would get a handsome compensation in lending their names to his Agency and not write directly in the magazines. His writing machine would write for them.

The theme thus deals with commercialization of the literary art through automation to create a monopolistic capitalism. In other words, the story deals with the possibility of replacing human creativity by way of automation and probable profitability of the monopolistic capitalism.

The Great Automatic Grammatizator Critical Appreciation

Roald Dahi’s “The Great Automatic Gammatizator” impregnates within it a general apprehension of the writers of the ‘50s and even the ‘60s that the advent of computers was akin to the advent of artificial intelligence. In a relevant manner therefore, he satirizes in the story a machine complete with almost a memory bank- stacked with vocabulary, plot, English Grammatical rules; and all those elements that are needed to write in one of the forms of literary art.

Knipe, a technocrat as well as a failed aspirant in the field of literary art, invents such a machine that can, with a press on a switch here and another press on a pedal there, print all kinds of literary art like stories, novels and so on. His techno-commercial acumen propels him to sell the idea to the not-so renowned and the exhausted authors to lend their names to his Agency which would publish literary contributions in their names in different eriodicals and pay them handsomely and they wouldn’t have to write a single line anywhere.

Knipe was successful because his targeted people needed money, and himself became a nouveau riche by way of his innovative monopolistic financial strategy. Dahi hasn’t spared the editors of famous magazines or periodicals. Knipe curses on the very word, “Editor” and says to Mr. Bohlen, when his literary contributions are compared with those that are usually published in renowned magazines; his seems to be much better. Well, it was his conviction.

Dahi always dealt with the bizarre, fanciful and the impractical. His description of the machine is reminiscent of the cockpit of a Second World War fighter plane, one of which he once flew. The mutual distaste between Mr. Bohlen and Mr. Knipe has produced some humerous soliloquies; especially when they talk about their appearances and that of course, brings some comic relief.

Like a host of people in those days, Dahl misunderstood the difference of rationale between a computer and an artificial, self propelling intelligence. In case of a computer, it’s a “Garbage in, Garbage out” syndrome. It will give its output according to the quality of the input. It can’t THINK! It can neither monitor or sensor whatever it is fed with! It works algorithmically, and can’t breach out its given limit. It is preprogrammed.

But the noetic quality of human mind or artificial intelligence cannot be used in a machine as an input simply because nobody can fathom the bottomless depth of human mind and its variations. Dahi wrote many short stories, novels and even the script of the James Bond movie,” You only twice”. Unfortunately, he never remembered the Shakespearian adage, “Brevity is the soul of wit”. Whereas the ideal canvass of a short story is necessarily short, his stories are unusually long, the crux of which is just minuscule. However, his satire of the literary world in general is well-avowedly clear. The present story is no exception.

The Great Automatic Grammatizator Characters

Adolf Knipe:

Adolf Knipe was a technocrat by profession and was exceedingly creative. He designed and made a Computing Machine that could calculate and do all mathematics in a jiffy. But his penchant for literary art was almost an obsession. He thought himself a litterateur and then realized that neither the editors and nor the readership understood anything like literature since none of his contributions saw the light of the day in one of the periodicals.

His talent and aggression, coupled with tenacity and enterprise to emulate and even excel over the established authors, propelled him to devise a machine with memory-stacked with vocabulary, English Grammatical rules and usages, human sentiment, passion, emotion, style and all those elements that were pre-requisites for literary writing that included stories, novels etc.

The machine had different gears, levers, switches, press-buttons, and pedals and so on. It was reminiscent of the cockpit of a Second World War Fighter Plane (Dahi was once a Fighter Plane Pilot). A press on a switch here, and a press on the pedal there, would print out a particular form of literary art like story, novel etc. The quality of such machine-printed matters would be as good as the stuff that was printed in the standard magazines.

The Great Automatic Grammatizator Title of the Story

Roald Dahi’s “The Great Automatic Grammatizator” deals with the possibility of supplanting human creativity by way of automation and the probable profitability of the monopolistic capitalism. Knipe, a technocrat as well as an unsuccessful literary contributor, invented a machine complete with almost a memory bank which was stacked with English grammatical rules, vocabulary, human passion, piots, emotion and style.

A press on a switch here and a press on a pedal there would print out a story or a novel or other forms. of literary art. Then he took franchise of different mediocre and exhausted authors against a standard monetary compensation to print literary contributions Using their names for different periodicals. Thus he monopolized the literary circle by way of automation. The title is justified.

The Great Automatic Grammatizator Setting

Setting in the story is all but gizmos, engineering drawings, clatters of machines, printing of rims of papers, interspersed with a few conservations between Mr. Bohien and Mr. Knipe. Knipe’s weird imaginative faculty also adds to the setting. Wiring of the machines, their faults and repairs, Mr. Bohien’s initial frustration – all add to the setting for the material purpose. Roald Dahi’s “The Great Automatic Grammatizator” deals with the possibility of supplanting human creativity by way of automation and the probable profitability of the monopolistic capitalism.

Knipe, a technocrat as well as an unsuccessful literary contributor, invented a machine complete with almost a memory bank which was stacked with English grammaticalmies, vocabulary, human passion, plots, emotion and style. A press on a switch here and a press on a pedal there would print out a story or a novel or other forms of literary art.

Then he took franchise of different mediocre and exhausted authors against a standard monetary compensation to print literary contributions using their names for different periodicals. Thus he monopolized the literary circle by way of automation. The title is justified.

Adolf Knipe: Adolf Knipe was a technocrat by profession and was exceedingly creative. He designed and made a Computing Machine that could calculate and do all mathematics in a jiffy. But his penchant for literary art was almost an obsession. He thought himself a litterateur and then realized that neither the editors and nor the readership understood anything like literature since none of his contributions saw the light of the day in one of the periodicals.

His talent and aggression, coupled with tenacity and enterprise to emulate and even excel over the established authors, propelled him to devise a machine with memory- stacked with vocabulary, English Grammatical rules and usages, human sentiment, passion, emotion, style and all those elements that were pre-requisites for literary writing that included stories, novels etc. The machine had different gears, levers, switches, press-buttons, and pedals and so on.

It was reminiscent of the cockpit of a Second World War Fighter Plane (Dahi was once a Fighter Plane Pilot). A press on a switch here, and a press on the pedal there, would print out a particular form of literary art like story, novel etc. The quality of such machine-printed matters would be as good as the stuff that was printed in the standard magazines.

His machine worked out successfully and then his techno-commercial acumen led him to open up an Agency. His Agency solicited Agreements with the renowned authors to lend their names to his Agency. The Agency would machine-print literary contributions to different renowned magazines in their names and earn their bit.

Of course, the name lenders were to be handsomely rewarded. After the renowned authors rejected his witty proposal outright, he opted for the mediocre, not-so-renowned and the exhausted authors, and they readily accepted the proposal. Needless to say that Knipe created a monopolistic machine-controlled literary culture and himself became nouveau riche. Knipe’s character and the character of the gizmo are well defined.

The Great Automatic Grammatizator Annotations and Vocabulary

Sloppily — Badly or carelessly
Drooping — Bend downwards limply
Untidy — Not arranged neatly or in order
Astonishment — Great surprise
Wonder — Amazement or admiration
Queerly — In a strange perplexing way
Stumper — A puzzling question
Exultation — Jubilation, rejoicing
Prowling — Move about restlessly, especially in search of a prey
Imprecations — A spoken or pronounced curse
Ingenious — Clever, inventive
Darndest — Utmost, best
Scribbling — Writing or drawing something carelessly
Distending — Swell or cause to swell
Smacks — A sharp slap or blow, typically one given with the palm of hand
Musing — A period of reflection or thought
Epexegetically — Additional explanation
Breviped — Having short feet or legs
Lewd — Crude and offensive in a sexual way
Mollified– Appease the anger, anxiety
Prolific — Producing much fruit, foliage or many offspring
Prodigious — Remarkably great in extent, size or degree
Profundity — Great depth or insight or knowledge
Clatter — A continuous rattling sound as of hard objects falling or striking each other
Dismayed — Concern or distress caused by something unexpected

Prism A Collection of ISC Short Stories Workbook Answers

OU Degree 6th Sem English Unit 6 Vocabulary, Grammar

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OU Degree 6th Sem English Unit 6 Vocabulary, Grammar

OU Degree 6th Sem English Unit 6 Vocabulary, Grammar

Vocabulary: Appropriacy

Exercise – I

Identify the formal and informal ways of greeting among the following.

1. How are you? ( )
2. Good to see you. ( )
3. How are things? ( )
4. How are you doing? ( )
5. How are you everything? ( )
6. What’s up? ( )
7. How’s it going? ( )
8. How is life? ( )
9. How have you been keeping? ( )
10. I trust that everything is well.
Answers:
1. Formal
2. Informal
3. Informal
4. Formal
5. Formal
6. Informal
7. Informal
8. Informal
9. Formal
10. Formal

Exercise – II

Rewrite the following sentences in formal /Informal English.

1. Hi there
2. Seeyoulater!
3. I would like to apologize for forgetting your birthday.
4. Thanks a lot for the present!
5. How do you do, Mrs Rao?
6. It is a pleasure to meet you.
Answer:

1. Hi there 1. Hello ! / Hello, May I know who is speaking.
2. See you later! 2. I will meet you later.
3. I would like to apologize for forgetting your birthday. 3. Sony for forgetting your birthday/Sorry, I forgot your birthday.
4. Thanks a lot for the present 4. Thank you so much for your present/ Thank you very much.
5. How do you do, Mrs Rao? 5. How are you Mrs. Rao?
6. It is a pleasure to meet you. 6. Nice meeting you.
7. Call me later. 7. Give me a ring later I Please call me later/ afterwards.
8. I just want to express my sincere thanks for all you have done for us. 8. Thanks for all you have done for us
9. I am afraid you’re mistaken 9. I think you are mistaken.
10. More tea? 10. Would you like to have some more tea?
Do you like to have some more tea?

Exercise – III

Give gender-fair or gender – neutral alternatives to the following words phrases and usages.

1. Miss/Mrs
2. Actress
3. Salesman /salesgirl /Salesbo,
4. Poetess
5. Common man
6. Man-made
7. The best man for the job
8. May the best man win!
9. Mankind
10. Man of the match
Answer:

1. Miss /Mrs 1. Madam
2. Actress 2. Star
3. Salesman/salesgirl / Salesboy 3. Salesperson/Sales Assistant
4. Poetess 4. Writer/ Author/ Poet
5. Common man 5. Mass/Commoner
6. Man-made 6. Human – Made
7. The best man for the job 7. The best choice for the job
8. May the best man win! 8. Let the best person win
9. Mankind 9. Human race
10. Man of the match 10. The best player of the match


Exercise – IV.

Rewrite the following sentences to make them more inclusive.

Question 1.
Give the student his scholarship right away.
Answer:
Give the student’s scholarship right away.
Give the scholarship to the student straight away.

Question 2.
As a teacher, he faces excessive paperwork daily.
Answer:
As a teacher, he faces a lot of paper work daily.

Question 3.
Each student should submit his assignment before the last date.
Answer:
Each student should submit the assignment before the last date.

Question 4.
It is the duty of every driver to carry his driver’s license at all times.
Answer:
It is the duty of every driver to carry his driving license at all times.

Question 5.
When a person watches too much television, his brain turns to mush.
Answer:
When a person watches television for a long time, his brain turns to much.

Question 6.
If an employee has a problem with a supervisor, he should discuss the problem with the officer.
Answer:
If an employee has got a problem with a supervisor, they should discuss the problem with the officer.

Question 7.
The average student is worried about his grades.
Answer:
The student of average level is worried about his grades.

Question 8.
Does everybody have his book?
Answer:
Does everybody possess a book.

Question 9.
When the student hands in his paper, assess it immediately.
Answer:
When the student hands over his paper, assess it immediately.

Question 10.
A law-abiding citizen pays his taxes promptly.
Answer:
A law abiding citizen pays the taxes promptly.

Grammar: Common Errors

Exercise-I.

Correct the following sentences.

Question 1.
The chair is made of the wood.
Answer:
The chair is made of wood.

Question 2.
He always eats piece of chocolate after lunch.
Answer:
He always eats a piece of chocolate after lunch.

Question 3.
She told me the interesting story.
Answer: .
She told me an interesting story

Question 4.
He has good idea about the matter.
Answer:
He has a good idea about the matter

Question 5.
I saw him in yellow car.
Answer:
I saw him in the yellow car.

Question 6.
People consider him as a great leader.
Answer:
People consider him a great leader.

Question 7.
I agree with your proposal.
Answer:
I agree to your proposal.

Question 8.
They started to Karimnagar.
Answer:
They went to Karimnagar / They left for Karimnagar.

Question 9.
They will return in this month.
Answer:
They will return within this month.

Question 10.
I suffer with Short-sightedness.
Answer:
I suffer from short sightedness.

Exercise-II.

Correct the following sentences.

Question 1.
The police will cancel your driving license if you will break the rules again.
Answer:
The police will cancel your driving license if you break rules gain.

Question 2.
It is time they start.
Answer:
It is time for them to start

Question 3.
He lives in Delhi for five years.
Answer:
He has lived in Delhi for five years.

Question 4.
If I had known of your arrival, I would meet you.
Answer:
If I had known of your arrival, I would have met you

Question 5.
He was late so he is scolded by the teacher.
Answer:
He was late and so he was scolded by the teacher.

Question 6.
The teacher is taking two classes daily.
Answer:
The teacher takes two classes daily

Question 7.
I am having a headache.
Answer:
I have a headache.

Question 8.
When she sings, you can’t help to listen to her.
Answer:
When she sings, you can’t help listening to her.

Question 9.
He wants that I should do the work.
Answer:
He wants me to do the work.

Question 10.
The students and the teacher is in the class.
Answer:
The students and the teacher are in the class.

Exercise III.

Correct the following sentences.

Question 1.
You need not to tell me again.
Answer:
You need not tell me again

Question 2.
They disposed off all the junk.
Answer:
They disposed off the junk.

Question 3.
He is trying hard to cope up with the situation.
Answer:
He is trying hard to cope up with he situation.

Question 4.
Did you ever read The Jungle Book?
Answer:
Did you read ” The Jungle Book” ?

Question 5.
According to me, it’s true.
Answer:
In my view, it’s true.
I believe, it’s true.

Question 6.
If I will be late, I’ll call you.
Answer:
If I am late, I’ll call you

Question 7.
She tried to quickly finish the book before she had to leave.
Answer:
She tried to finish the book before she had left.

Question 8.
While walking in the garden, he found a sparkling woman’s bracelet.
Answer:
While walking in the garden, he found a woman’s sparkling bracelet.

Question 9.
Please reply back immediately.
Answer:
Please reply immediately.

Question 10.
Being a hot day, the old man did not go out.
Answer:
It being a hot day, the old man did not go out.

OU Degree 6th Sem English Study Material

The Paper Menagerie Summary, Theme, Critical Appreciation by Ken Liu

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The Paper Menagerie Summary by Ken Liu

The Paper Menagerie Summary, Theme, Critical Appreciation by Ken Liu

The Paper Menagerie Summary

The emotional story revolves round a Chinese – American boy, struggling to be one with American way of life, and his Chinese mother, unwilling to give up Chinese language and culture even in America. The mother was gifted with a unique quality of origami. She made animals, birds, dolls and with almost a magical skill, she could animate those creations. They could move, make sound, fly and act like animated objects. She did all these to amuse and entertain her child.

But the child started liking American toys and developed a dislike for his mother’s origami and everything that belonged to his mother’s Chinese culture. He felt that his slit-eyed, flat nosed face and yellowish complexion were hated by American neighbours and his classmates. So, he tried to emulate them by transforming himself into an American.

He even stopped talking to his mother when she could not interact in English. With time, the boy’s interest in his mother’s origami was lost and even her terminal illness couldn’t carve a line in the boy’s mind. Finally, the mother died, mumbling a few words to the boy’s father and the boy.

After two years of his mother’s death, the boy – then a grown-up man found a piece of origami in the shape of a dog, and when he straightened up the paper- folds he found something was written in Chinese script. As he never had learnt to read Chinese script, he consulted a young Chinese woman who deciphered the script and the man got to know the rueful story of his mother.

Born in 1957, the mother was from a remote village of China. She survived the great famine but lost all but herself in the Chinese Cultural Revolution of 1966. As a fugitive she tried to reach Hong Kong but was caught in the way and was handed over to the girl-traffickers of Hong – Kong. The boy’s father, then settled in America, bought her and took her to America as his wife. Thus, she was sans education, money, help but inherited the great magical art of origami which was the only thing she could offer to her son.

The Paper Menagerie About the Author Ken Liu

Born in Lanzhou, China in 1976, and educated at Harvard law school, Ken liu is a Chinese-American author of speculative fiction. A winner of Nebula, Hugo, and World Fantasy Awards for his fiction. Liu’s most characteristic work is the four-volume epic fantasy series, The Dandelion Dynasty, in which engineers, not wizards, are the heroes of a silk punk world on the verge of modernity.

His debut collection of short fiction, THE PAPER MENAGERIE and other stories has been published in more than a dozen languages. A second collection, THE HIDDEN GIRL and other stories followed suit. He also wrote the STAR WARS novel, the legends of Luke Sky walker.

The Paper Menagerie Theme

The theme of Ken Liu’s short story, “THE PAPER MENAGERIE” is primarily the universal bond between a mother and her son. Settled in America, the son struggles to identify himself with Americans and their way of life. He also tries to transform his mother to Americanism but she couldn’t and perhaps wouldn’t. She was a gifted artist of magical origami. She created animals and birds and sea animals that could move, make sound and swim.

But the more the boy grew, the more banal his mother’s artistry appeared to him and he, in order to be an American, developed his interest in American toys. Gradually the boy grew up, his father settling up elsewhere, and got to know about his mother’s rueful story from one of his mother’s origami. He got to know what damage and destruction could natural disasters and political upheavals could do to human life. The genocide in name of Chinese Cultural Revolution of 1966 played havoc in the life and family of his mother.

Once a family of happy peasantry, his mother became a fugitive at an age, when she should have been playing with doll or practicing the art of origami, she had to flee to Hong – Kong for life and there she was sold to her husband by the woman traffickers. The boy’s father’s role in the story is significant in the way that without him, the conflict of culture between the west and the orient couldn’t be slated.

The Paper Menagerie Critical Appreciation

Ken Liu’s “The Paper Menagerie” is a moving, emotional short story that deals with estrangement, love magic, identity crisis, ambition discernment, distress due to political upheaval, and a perpetual conflict of philosophy between the orient and the west. Like one of those from universal motherhood, Jack’s mother loves him dearly.

Jack mother, all but a fugitive from China, fleeing to Hong kong for life, is caught by the girl traffickers, but is helped by an old lady to gets listed in the catalogue of Chinese women who are to be sold to Chinese-American husbands. She is also sold to a Chinese- American husband, who treats her well and settles in Connecticut, U.S.A.

Often she felt estranged from her peasant life at Sigulu, her village in China, where she learnt the art of magical origami which put life into the paper crafts of animals and birds. The Cultural Revolution of China in 1967 caused havoc in the lives of the Chinese people and that brought a mass exodus from China to which Jack’s mother fell victim.

Jack says, “Mom’s breath was special. She breathed into her paper animals so that they shared her breath, and thus moved with her life. This was her magic.” This statement however, is exaggerated since no mortal hand could instill life in inanimate objects in the world. In his desire to emulate the Americans, Jack develops his choice for American toys and their way of life.

The magical origami of his mother was now a matter of distaste and so was the Chinese language. He wanted to identify himself as an American. Both he and his father implored upon the mother to cook and speak American. She tried but failed. Jack was discerned because by then, he had been caught in the Menagerie of American Dreams.

His mother’s oriental mind could not reconcile with the western way of life and in finally, died in a terminal disease, living behind her pitiful biography in Chinese script on Laohu, a paper tiger. The pathos in the story is obvious and has an emotional appeal for the reader.

The Paper Menagerie Characters

Jack-Jack is a Chinese-American boy settled in Connecticut, U.S.A. His father has reconciled with American life style and society. But his mother cannot. Jack feels alienated in American set up with his Mongoloid looks and his mother’s magical origami. He is lured by the dream of American El Dorado and therefore, tries to become an American in body, mind and in everything. In order to be a perfect American, both he and his father implore upon his mother to speak and cook American. And much though she tries her best, her oriental lineage stands before her as the buffer.

One cannot accuse Jack for his mind set. He must have the adage at the back of his mind which says, ‘Be a Roman, when you are in Rome’.’ living in America, and working there for a career with an oriental mind-set would hardly help Jack attain his ambitious goal.

Even he prefers American toys to his mother’s origami. Albeit it is true that unless and until one becomes a part of mainstream American life, it is difficult for an easterner to survive in American environment. But that hardly demands any disrespect for his ancentral lineage and that is where Jack is mistaken.

He had even stopped talking to his mother when she failed to comply with American way of life, which was an act of cruelty on Jack’s pari Jack’s discernment for his ailing mother is almost an unforgivable offence. In his run for career, he forgets his mother, his father withdraws from him and relocates elsewhere but Jack has his target fixed at his corporate career. This is quite an example of a selfish, ungrateful young man forgetful about his responsibilities towards his family.

Jack learns the pitiful background of his mother only after her death. She had recorded her pitiful life in Chinese script on a piece of her origami. Jack gets its translated from a Chinese interpreter and then realizes the pangs of the conflicting life of his mother who could not reconcile in western environment leaving her oriental lineage.

The mother-Jack’s mother, a peasant girl, had a peaceful life in a remote village of China. At a very tender age, she mastered the art of origami and knew how to instill life in those paper animals and birds. Unfortunately, during the mass exodus from China to Hong Kong after the Cultural Revolution in China in 1966, she became a fugitive and fell in the trap of girl traffickers of Hong Kong, and worked there, almost as a slave. Jack’s father, then an unmarried Chinese-American, bought her and married her to take her to Connecticut, U.S.A. There they got settled.

In Connecticut, she gave birth to Jack and like a universal mother, loved her son and took every possible care to rear him. She believed in the simpler pleasures of oriental life and could never reconcile with American life. She made her paper creatures and instilled life into them and those could move, make sounds like their real counterparts. All these she did to amuse and please her only son.

Her son grew up and wanted to come out of his oriental background and embrace American culture in body and mind. He detested his mother’s creations and opted for American toys. She was hurt, but bore it silently because that was part of her oriental habit. She was implored by her husband and her son to speak and cook American.

She, much like a patient wife and mother, tried to comply. In the process, she learnt to cook American food, but couldn’t pick up American English. Her inability almost made her shrink into insignificance in the life of her husband and her son. But she never protested, and remained within her oriental frame of mind. She wrote and spoke Chinese, but stopped making any more origamic creatures. Life for her became grey and colourless.

There was no material insecurity in her life, but the life of pleasure, the essential elixir for living, was taken away from her. She missed her simple pastoral life of the village and felt a fish out of water in the U.S. Finally, god becomes merciful to her and relieves her from the pangs of life through mundane finality-death by Cancer after proloned illness.

The Paper Menagerie Title of the Story

Menagerie means a collection of wild animals kept in captivity for exhibition. The Paper Menagerie means paper made animals by way of origami. The Chinese-American family in the short story consists of a father, a mother and their only son, named Jack. They are settled in the U.S.A. The mother is almost a wizard in origami. Her creation of animals and birds can make sounds and move as if they are animated. As a boy, Jack loves his mother’s creation.

But with years, he develops his obsession for American toys and American life style as he is afraid that his Mongoloid looks may alienate him from mainstream American life. Since he decides to settle there permanently, he has to be an American by every means. He even impresses upon his mother to speak English and cook American food.

But his mother, much though her husband implores upon her to act like what his son says, cannot fully comply with both her son and her husband. Jack grows up and his distaste for his mother’s origami grows bitter. He becomes an American boy in life and style. Then one day, he hoards his mother’s origami creations into a shoe box and forgets about those in due course, making the shoe box a menagerie for all those paper animals.

Jack grows up and his distaste for his mother’s origami grows bitter. He becomes an American boy in life and style. Then one day, he hoards his mother’s origami creations into a shoe box and forgets about those in due course, making the shoe box a menagerie for all those paper-animals.

Jack grows to be a young man and has Susan, an American girl, as his friend who retrieves all those paper animals from the shoe box in the Attic. She calls Jack’s departed mother “an amazing artist.” Without repeating the whole story, we may say that not only does Jack make a Menagerie of the paper animals created by his mother, but also he makes himself one of the living animals in the luring Menagerie of the west. Thus the title is justified.

The Paper Menagerie Setting

Setting forms an integral part of the story. Set at Connecticut, U.S.A, the story draws the picture of a conflicting culture between the west and the orient. The Chinese family in the story has migrated to America and is settled there. Whereas Jack and his father reconcile with American language and culture, his mother can’t.

Jack liked his mother’s origami at an early age because it was simple magical as it animated the paper dogs, fish, birds etc. Those could move and even make sounds of their likes in the real world. But gradually, he became obsessed with American toys and culture as he wanted to identify himself as an American, lest he was alienated for his Mongoloid looks.

The adage says, “Be a Roman when you are in Rome.” Jack believes in the adage and therefore, takes all the trouble to convert himself into an American. His mother was a fugitive from trouble-tom remote village of China where she mastered the art of magical origami. Pertaining to a peasant family, her life was pure and simple, befitting to an Oriental village. She cannot give up her cultural identity for the lure of the west, much though her husband and her son press her to take to American way of life.

The setting therefore, is important in the story so as to understand this perpetual conflict. We may recount from our experience about the refugees from erstwhile East Pakistan, who resettled in India and most of them changed in behaviour and culture. It was easy for the newer generation to change with the change in set-up, but the elders suffered greatly as they felt alienated in a new setting.

The mother in the story died of a terminal disease leaving behind her pathetic story in Chinese script on a paper-dog. Jack, by then a young man, got to know though a Chinese interpreter the pangs of his mother’s life and there the story ended. Thus the setting is important in the short story, THE PAPER MENAGERIE.

The Paper Menagerie Annotations and Vocabulary

Menagerie — A collection of wild animal kept in captivity for exhibition
Sobbing — crying noisily
Soothed — gently calm, reduce pain or discomfort
Pleated — fold in cloth made by doubling materials over on itself
Tucked — Push, fold or turn
Twitched — give a short, sudden jerking or convulsive movement.
Pounced — spring or swoop suddenly so as to catch prey.
Rustling — make a soft muffled cracking sound like one caused by the movement of day leaves or paper.
Startled — showing sudden shock or alarm.
Vibrated — Move rapidly to and fro.
Origami — Japanese art of folding paper in decorating shapes and figures.
Catalogue — a complete list of items typical one in alphabetical order.
Flipping — To express mild annoyance.
Cheongsam — also known as Qipao, is a Chinese gown worn by women.
Calm — absence of strong emotions.
Contempt felt good like wine — The need to belong is intrinsic to all people. But especially for children, it is the need to make it or break it, the force that determines their viewpoints, attitudes,The way they experience the world.
Growling — Animal, guttered sound expressing hostility.
Capillary action — It is the process of a liquid flowing in a narrow space without the assistance of, or in opposition to, any external forces like, gravity.
Limp — walk with difficulty because of damaged legs.
Whimpered — Feeble sound experience of fear, pain etc.
Winced — make an involuntary grimace or shrinking movement of the body out of pain or distress.
Soggy — wet and soft.
Translucent — allowing light, but not detailed shapes to pass through-semi transparent.
Drooping — let or make fall vertically.
Skittering — more quickly or lightly.
Peeking — look quickly or furtively
Chink — slit eyed
Hunched — bend the top of one’s body favoured.
Attic — a space or room in the roof of a building.
Shoved — push roughly.
Mime — The theatrical technique of suggesting action, character or emotion without using words.
Exaggerated — Over stated the reality
Cuddle — hold close in one’s arms as a way of showing love.
Hum — make a low, continuous sound like a bee.
Smuck — move or go in a furtive way
Interwining — Connect or link closely.

Prism A Collection of ISC Short Stories Workbook Answers

The Medicine Bag Story Questions and Answers & MCQs

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The Medicine Bag Story Questions and Answers

ISC Prism Workbook Solutions Chapter 10 The Medicine Bag

The Medicine Bag Story Long Answer Questions

Question 1.
Explain the vision quest of Grandpa’s father.
Answer:
Grandpa’s father in his early manhood made a vision quest to find a spirit guide for his life. At that time the great Teton Sioux were first made to stay on reservation. There was a strong need for guidance from Wakantanka, the Great Spirit. Many of the young men were filled with despair and hatred. They thought it was quite hopeless to search for a vision when the glorious life was gone and only the hatred confined them at the Reservation.

Grandpa’s father held to the old ways carefully prepared for his quest with a purifying sweat bath and then he went alone to a high butte top to fast and pray. After three days he received his sacred dream-in which he found, after long searching, the white man’s iron.

He did not understand his vision of finding something belonging to the white people-as they were their enemy. When he came down from the butle to cleanse himself at the stream below, he found the remains of a campfire and the broken shell of an iron kettle.

This was a sign which reinforced his dream. He took a piece of iron for his medicine bag from elk skin years before to prepare for his quest. When he narrated his dreams to the old wise man of his society, they gave him the name “Iron Shell”. Iron Shell kept the piece of iron with him at all times and believed it gave him protection from the evils of those unhappy days.

Question 2.
Narrate the short story “The Medicine Bag”.
Answer:
In the short story written by Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve “The Medicine Bag” the author narrates the tale of Martin, a bi-racial lad of fourteen. Martin used to live with his parents and his young sister Cheryl. His life was interrupted when his Lakota Grandpa comes to visit them at Iowa. Grandpa tells the story of his culture and life as an Native American, but Martin was afraid that his grandfather might not live up to the expectation of his friends.

However, his friends are deeply appreciative of his grandfather. The old man felt that his ends was near, so he gave Martin “the medicine bag” as a parting gift to remember his family culture. In the end, Martin visited the Iowa sanctury to commemorate his Grandpa-Joe Iron Shell and his medicine bag. The dangers of judging one own family, culture and those around us are explored in the story.

In “The Medicine Bag” the remarkable events during Grandpa’s visit enlightened Martin of the importance of family culture and the acceptance of others. The story clearly brings out the conflict between tradition and modernity. It silently gives message to the youth that we should alway comprehend and give respect to our traditional culture and heritage. We should never disregard them.

The Medicine Bag Story Short Answer Questions

Question 1.
Describe Grandpa when he came to visit Martin?
Answer:
Martin Grandpa-Joe Iron Shell came to visit Martin at Iowa from South Dakota. Grandpa wasn’t tall and stately like TV IndiAnswer:His hairs were grey string like which hung on his neck. When he visited Martin he was drapped in brown leather suit. He wore a big black hat which had a dropping feather in its crown. He carried an old tin suit case tied shut with rope.

Question 2.
Describe the things Martin got from his Grandpa during one of his visits.
Answer:
Martin Sioux Grandpa often presented the children new moccasins made by him, small round flat raw hide drum decorated with a painting of a warrior riding a horse. He also taught Martin Sioux chant to sing and Martin enjoyed beating the drum with leathered covered stick that had a feather on the end.

Question 3.
What happened when narrotor’s friends met Grandpa?
Answer:
Grandpa treated Martin’s friends as his own grand children and also offered them lemonade. He narrated how he killed the dear from which his vest was made. Martin’s friend were moved by the genial behaviour of the Grandpa and Martin too felt proud about him.

Question 4.
What does Grandpa say about the money he has saved?
Answer:
Grandpa had saved a hundred dollar, which he carried in his old scuffed cowboy, boots for his funeral cost. He wanted to part the money to buy groceries as he never wanted to be a burden on Martin’s family.

Question 5.
What did Grandpa carry in the leather pouch around his neck?
Answer:
The leather pouch which the Grandpa carried contained a broken shell off the iron kettle, a pebble from the butte and a piece of the sacred sage.

Question 6.
How did Martin feel when Grandpa told that he was to handover the medicine bag to him?
Answer:
Martin on realising the ancestral cultural and heritage felt proud when his Grandpa told that he was going to handover the medicine bag to him. In great pride Martin closed his eyes and wished his Grandpa to slip it over his head. But his Grandpa placed to on Martin’s right hand and closed it. He advised him to wear the medicine bag on the Reservation only with sacred sage replaced in it.

The Medicine Bag Story Logic Based Questions

Complete the following sentences by providing a REASON for each:

Question 1.
Martin who lived in the city did not know the reality about the Indians because ……..
Answer:
his ideas about Indians were based on shows shown in television and other media about native American lifestyle only.

Question 2.
Martin never showed his Grandpa’s picture to his friends because
Answer:
he had depicted impressive picture of their Grandpa to his friends, which did not match with reality.

Question 3.
Martin thought that his friends would have laughed at Grandpa’s picture because
Answer:
his Grandpa wasn’t tall and stately like TV Indians. His hairs wasn’t in braids but hung in stringy grey strand on his neck and he was old. He didn’t live in a tepee but in the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota.

Question 4.
Martin says “I was so ashamed and embarrased I could have died” because
Answer:
his Grandpa visited their house suddenly and all his impressive features about his Grandpa which he narrated to his friend will crash with the reality. So Martin felt ashamed and embarrased.

Question 5.
Martin did not allow his friends to come to his residence during his Grandpa’s stay because
Answer:
he felt to be rediculed and laughed by his friend for his Grandpa. He feared embarrassment.

Question 6.
Martin learned to beat the drum with leather covered stick because
Answer:
his Grandpa taught him real Sioux chart to sing and beat the drums with stick that had feathers at the end.

Question 7.
Grandpa’s shoes fit him very tight because
Answer:
it was the scuffed old cowberg boots stuffed with money.

Question 8.
Grandpa had saved one hundred dollar because
Answer:
he saved that money for his funeral. He was ready to part the money to buy groceeries for Martin’s family because he does not want to be their burden.

Question 9.
Martin’s Dad felt sorry because
Answer:
he had never thought of bringing Grandpa to Iowa to spend summer with them.

Question 10.
Grandpa came to meet Martin because
Answer:
he wanted to handover “the medicine bag” to the male child, to carry forward his ancestral relies after his death.

The Medicine Bag Story MCQs

Question 1.
Who wrote the short story “The Medicine Bag”?
a. Dafeadio Hearn
b. Ken Liu
c. Roald Dahi
d. Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve
Answer:
d. Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve

Question 2.
Who is the narrator of the story?
a. Martin
b.Grandpa
c. Iron Shell
d. Cheryl
Answer:
a. Martin

Question 3.
The narrator and his family lives in:
a. Iowa
b. Italy
c. Dakota
d. India
Answer:
a. Iowa

Question 4.
On one of his visits Grandpa gave Martin:
a. moccasins
b. a horse
c. a golden ball
d. a decorated drum
Answer:
a. moccasins

Question 5.
Martin had not shown Grandpa’s picture to their friends because….
a. they were ashamed of him
b. the glorious tales told about him did not match him
c. they did not have any picture of their Grandpa
d. Mom had asked the children not to show the picture to anyone.
Answer:
b. the glorious tales told about him did not match him

Question 6.
When Grandpa came to visit Martin’s family Martin
a. was very happy
b. could not recognize him
c. felt ashamed and emparrased
d. went out to tell his friends
Answer:
c. felt ashamed and emparrased

Question 7.
Grandpa carried with him
a. tin suit-case
b. a big ball
c. a gold chain
d. a beautiful toy for Martin’s sister.
Answer:
a. tin suit-case

Question 8.
What was Grandpa’s name:
a. Martin
b. Iron Shell
c. Joe Iron Shell
d. None of the above
Answer:
c. Joe Iron Shell

Question 9.
How old was Martin’s sister?
a. ten years old
b. fourteen years old
c. six years old
d. nine years old
Answer:
d. nine years old

Question 10.
With what name Grandpa greeted Cheryl?
a. Takoza
b. Virginia
c. Sweet Cheryl
d. Wicincala
Answer:
d. Wicincala

Question 11.
Martin picked up Grandpa’s suit case and
a. asked him to go black
b. told him to hide somewhere
c. guided him to take him home
d. informed his mother about Grandpa’s visit
Answer:
c. guided him to take him home

Question 12.
Grandpa had save the money:
a. to buy sweets for the children
b. for Martin’s education
c. to donate
d. for his own funeral
Answer:
d. for his own funeral

Question 13.
What kind of boots did the Grandpa wear?
a. heavy boots
b. black boots
c. scuffed old cowboy boots
d. spiked boots.
Answer:
a. heavy boots

Question 14.
How old was Martin’s Grandpa?
a. eighty-six years
b. ninety years
c. eighty years
d. ninety-six years
Answer:
a. eighty-six years

Question 15.
He could chant well in what language?
a. Hebrew
b. Hindi
c. Chinese
d. Sioux Native Language
Answer:
d. Sioux Native Language

Question 16.
Martin’s Dad felt sorry as:
a. he had not gone to receive the old man
b. he had not recognised Grandpa
c. he had not helped the old man
d. he had not thought of bringing Grandpa with them
Answer:
d. he had not thought of bringing Grandpa with them

Question 17.
The medicine bag was actually:
a. a suitcase
b. a dirty leather pouch
c. an iron shell
d. None of the above
Answer:
b. a dirty leather pouch

Question 18.
The old man said that it was time for Martin to have the medicine bag
a. he wanted to pass on the bag to the male child
b. as Martin was ready to keep it
c. because grandpa thought that he was going to die
d. both (a) and (c)
Answer:
d. both (a) and (c)

Prism A Collection of ISC Short Stories Workbook Answers

Indigo Story Questions and Answers & MCQs

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Indigo Story Questions and Answers

ISC Prism Workbook Solutions Chapter 9 Indigo

Indigo Story Long Answer Questions

Question 1.
Satyajit Ray’s short story, “Indigo” is out and out a supernatural story. Do you agree? Give reasons in support of your answer.
Answer:
Supernatural stories or fictions normally concern itself with the matters of god, the soul, archangels and resurrection. Subgenres include horror fiction, gothic, ghost stories, supernatural thrillers and other macabre stories in the horror genre. But the primary essence of a supernatural story is to create an atmosphere of uncanny, ominous world where ‘’fair is foul, and foul is fair.” Besides, the reader must be mentally ready to suspend their disbelief.

Ray’s “Indigo” is necessarily a supernatural story in all respect. The rain soaked, frog croaking night, the old dilapidated Dak bungalow, the old chowkidar, the spooky big room with only a charpoy- all create in reader a readiness for a mystery and omen. Aniruddha, the central character in the story and the only occupant of the Dak Bungalow at that night, slowly observed changes in the dimly lit room. His wrist watch was gone and so was his torch from under the pillow.

He jumped out of the charpoy and looked under it. His suitcase too, was gone. He wondered because no thief could come in as the door was neatly bolted. While undoing the bolt, he suddenly noticed that his hands had become white. He found to his utter surprise that his erstwhile vest was replaced by a long-sleeved silk shirt. His surprise knew no bounds when he shouted from the veranda, ’’Chowkidar”, and the voice and the accent were unmistakably that of an Englishman.

In the distance, was a building with a high chimney-reminiscent of an Indigo processing unit, that added to the eerie of the situation. The surroundings were unusually quiet. The dimly lit lantern had actually made the room darker but now Aniruddha could clearly see through the darkness.

He could see clearly that his charpoy was replaced by a costly cot covered with mosquito net. The pillow had a border with frills. The table and chair had lost their aged look. Instead of a lantern, there stood a kerosene lamp with an ornate shade. There were other paraphernalia which he had not brought with him.

Aniruddha was terrified now and went to bathroom to look at his reflection in the mirror. All he found there was a nineteenth century Englishman with a sallow complexion, blond hair and light eyes from which shone a strange mixture of hardness and suffering. The spirit of the Englishman had possessed Aniruddha. It was the Englishman who moved, spoke and acted in the body and mind of Aniruddha, who was in his full senses but was helpless.

Then the ghost of the Englishman came to the writing desk and made Aniruddha write some confessions. How malaria, played havoc in his life, how his ill reputation barred him to go back to England etc. Then he drew out a revolver from the drawer, called ‘’Rex”, his pet hound, and shot him. He also shot at the right ear with the same revolver. Aniruddha fainted and that signified that the ghost had left him. Thus, the story is perfectly supernatural only.

Question 2.
What were the “snags” for Aniruddha from the start of his journey till Dumka?
Answer:
To start with Aniruddha’s father’s old friend uncle Mohit suddenly turned up when Aniruddha was ready to set out from home. Then came Bholababu, Aniruddha’s ground-floor neighbor, whose advice for an additional driver for this long journey, was to be heeded to. The first thirty miles of journey through dinghy towns took out from him the fun of driving.

Close to Panagarh military camp, one of his car’s rear tyres became flat. He brought out the jack from the boot of the car and replaced the flat tyre. It was half past two of the day and Aniruddha was back to his driving seat. Seeing a patch of blue-black clouds in the western sky, he doubted about the impending strike of a norwester, but he couldn’t help it anyway.

So, he drank some hot tea from the flask, and concentrated on driving faster. Before he could cross Ilambazar, the violent norwester pounced on his car and it seemed that the shafts of lightning were sure to make the car its mark in no time.

Somehow Aniruddha passed Suri and was on way to Massanjore when another tyre of the car gave in. By the time, the cloud, had burst out and were raining in all their might. The wiper was moving but it hardly cleared the frontal view. Looked liked the world was enveloped in a dusky wrapper whereas the April sun still should be in the sky. After waiting there for quarter of an hour, Aniruddha found that no other vehicle had passed by that road. He must have mistaken to keep up the right road.

Then suddenly there blew a horn from behind. It was a truck. Aniruddha got down from his car and found that his car stood swerved in the middle of the road and that had blocked the way of the truck. Aniruddha, the truck driver and his helper came out in the drizzling street and struggled hard to push the car at a side of the road. The truck left and Aniruddha went back to his car.

Minutes later, Aniruddha found the mild gleam of a lantern light and following it, he arrived at an old, dilapidated Dak bungalow where the main story began. We, however, do not know whether or not Aniruddha reached his destination after what happened at the Dak bungalow. These were the “snags” for Aniruddha from the start of his journey to Dumka.

Indigo Story Short Answer Questions

Question 1.
What information does Aniruddha Bose share with readers in the beginning?
Answer:
Introducing himself to the reader, the main character Aniruddha Bose, a bachelor of twenty-nine, informs the reader that he works for an advertising agency He resides in a flat at Sardar Shankar Road in Calcutta. He possess an Ambassador car. He takes infacy in writing which gets published in various magazines. Recently he is reading a lot about the 19th century “Indigo” plantation in Bihar and Bengal. This research work has made him quite expert.

Question 2.
Why did Aniruddha Bose consider himself an expert on indigo plantation.
Answer:
Aniruddha Bose, a bachelor of twenty-nine is considering himself an expert on indigo plantation because he is reading a lot and making research on the events related with the 19th century indigo plantation in Bihar and Bengal under the British era.

Question 3.
Who was Pramode? Why did Aniruddha Bose went to visit Dwnka?
Answer:
Pramod was Aniruddha Bose’s friend and classmate. He was posted in Dumka in the Forest Department. Pramode invited Aniruddha to visit Dumka on 27th April and Aniruddha readily accepted it to escape from the noisy hectic city in to the open

Question 4.
What glitches did Aniruddha face on the day of her visit to Dumka?
Answer:
Aniruddha decided to start early but there were some glitches which prevented him from a good start. Uncle Mohit visited him after ten year. Aniruddha catered him with tea and light refreshments. His neighbour Bhola Babu stopped him and enquired about his visit. Satisfying them somehow, Aniruddha left Calcutta for Dumka around ten minutes past eleven.

Question 5.
Describe Aniruddha’s family background.
Answer:
Aniruddha Bose in his autobiography narrated that his father was a well-known physician who practiced at Monghyr – where he was born. His brother was five years older than him. His father died when Aniruddha was just sixteen. After his father’s death, they shifted to Calcutta and he studies at St. Xavier’s College for his bachelor degree. As he could speak English. Fluently, he easily got a job in an Advertising agency.

Question 6.
Why did the Sikh truck driver honked so loudly.
Answer:
On his way to Dumka, Aniruddha relaxad himself for a short while with his cigarette. He was oblivious of the fact that he had left his Ambassador right in the middle of the road and had blocked the road, for traffic to pass. The Sikh driver at first became annoyed and honked loudly for his clear exit. Later realising that Aniruddha’s tyre was flat, the driver and his helper helped Aniruddha to push his car on one side of the road.

Question 7.
What did Aniruddha decide when he realised that it was quite difficult to reach Dumka?
Answer:
When Aniruddha realised that it was difficult for him to reach Dumka that night, he decided to continue his journey until he seeks for himself a night shelter. Meanwhile, the rain turned into a drizzle. While continuing his journey he identified a rectangle of orange light and guessed out that it was a type of shelter for him and approached towards it.

Question 8.
Who was Sukhanram?
Answer:
Sukhanram was the caretaker of the old Dak Bungalow, of the indigo planters, where Aniruddha took his night refuge. He was a stocky, middle aged man with a thick moustache. He offered food and
shelter to Aniruddha

Question 9.
How did Anirud dha feel on getting transformed?
Answer:
Due to excessive journey and rain. Aniruddha took refuge in an old British Dak Bungalow on the night of 27th April. The Dak Bungalow belonged to the old British indigo planters. That night Aniruddha experience shocking change in him and he transformed into an English indigo tax collector. He was not in his self. He wrote letter dated 27th April,1868. He also lost his self control and shot Rex with his pistol. But the very next day Anirnddha awakes and find everything normal.

Question 10.
What kind of story is the ‘Indigo’
Answer:
Satyajit Ray’s short story ‘Indigo’ is a well knit gripping horror story where suspense plays a beautiful part. The story is narrated by the main character, Aniruddha Bose, who had to spend an unplanned night in an old bungalow wherein he has to encounter an almost paranormal phenomenon. He begins to doubt if anybody would believe his story of nightmares which took place of 27th April – the 100th death anniversary of one of the indigo tax lords.

Question 11.
What was the first snag at Aniruddha’s journey from Calcutta to Dumka?
Answer:
Uncle Mohit, Aniruddha’s father’s old friend paid a visit at the material hour after ten years. Aniniddha had to offer him tea and listen to his chit-chat for over an hour. That was the first snag.

Question 12.
What was the second snag?
Answer:
The second snag was Bholababu, Aniruddha’s ground floor neighbour who walked up with his four year old son Pintu in two. After knowing about his solo driving to Dumka, he expressed his concern and being assured that Aniruddha was a cautious driver, he left wishing good luck

Question 13.
Where did Aniruddha have a light meal?
Answer:
When Aniruddha was driving near Burdwan, he stopped his car by the station and had a light meal of toast, omelette and coffee. It was about half past 12.

Question 13.
when did Amruddha have his second tyre of the car flat?
Answer:
It was through a heavy shower of the norwester that Aniruddha was on his way to Massanjore when his second tyre became flat

Question 14.
Why did the truck blow its horn from behind when Aniruddha’s car had stopped on the road?
Answer:
When Aniruddha’s car stopped on the road having a flat tyre, it had swerved at an angle that blocked the road. The truck-driver wanted Aniruddha to remove his car at a side of the road. So, he blew his horn.

Question 15.
After the truck went away and Aniruddha resumed his seat in the car, he saw a rectangle orange light through the branches of tree. What was that?
Answer:
It was a small cottage with a corrugated tin roof under which there were a hurricane lantern and a charpoy.

Question 16.
Who was the “Stocky, middle-aged man”?
Answer:
He was Sukhanram, the chowkidar of the Dakbungalow.

Indigo Story Logic Based Questions

Complete the following sentences by providing a REASON for each:

Question 1.
Aniruddha was doing a bit of writing work also because ………….
Answer:
some of his stories were published in some magazines.

Question 2.
Aniruddha considered himself an expert on “Indigo plantation” because ………….
Answer:
For last few month he was reading a lot about the 19th century indigo plantation in Bihar and Bengal. He consider himself an expert from the knowledge he gained from such research.

Question 3.
Aniruddha and his mother had to shift to calcutta because
Answer:
his father, a well-known physician in Monghyr, the place where he was bom, died. After his father’s death he shifted from Monghyr to Calcutta with his mother.

Question 4.
Aniruddha got job in an Advertising Agency because ……..
Answer:
he could speak English fluently.

Question 5.
He had made several trips in his car bee mse ……..
Answer:
he had a strong desire to get away from the noisy hectic city in the open to breath in fresh air.

Question 6.
Aniruddha left for Dumka because ……..
Answer:
his friend and classmate Pramode, who was posted in Dumka in the Forest Department insisted him to visit Dumka.

Question 7.
Uncle Mohit could not be treated lightly because ……..
Answer:
he was Animddha’s father’s old friend who came after ten years to meet hitn. Aniruddha had to offer him tea and listen to his chat for over an hour.

Question 8.
Aniruddha watch turned muggy because ……..
Answer:
at Panagarh his car tyres went flat. He had a spare tyre and he set for the repair work. The work made him dripping with sweat and his watch turned muggy in the meanwhile.

Question 9.
Aniruddha recited Tagore’s poems to himself because ……..
Answer:
he wanted to blend his mood. He wanted to make his long drive enjoyable and relaxing.

Question 10.
The truck driving was honking again and again because ……..
Answer:
Aniruddha was relaxing with his cigarrette placing his car in the middle of the road and blocking the road and making it difficult for the truck to pass.

Indigo Story MCQs

Question 1.
Aniruddha is – years old
a. 35
b. 25
c. 45
d. 29
Answer:
d. 29

Question 2.
Aniruddha has been working in an ………..
a. Steel factory
b. Aluminum factory
c. Publishing house
d. Advertising agency
Answer:
d. Advertising agency

Question 3.
Aniruddha has a car ……….
a. Fiat
b. Maruti
c. Honda
d. Ambassador
Answer:
d. Ambassador

Question 4.
Besides job, Aniruddha works as …………
a. Freelance artist
b. Musician
c. Journalist
d. Writer
Answer:
d. Writer

Question 5.
Aniruddha read a lot about
a. Ian Fleming
b. Feluda
c. French Revolution
d. Indigo plantation
Answer:
d. Indigo plantation

Question 6.
“Golders green” is a – in England
a. Sugar cane factory
b. Gold extraction unit
c. Residential complex
d. Hospital
Answer:
d. Hospital

Question 7.
Aniruddha was – when his father died
a. 17
b. 18
c. 14
d. 13
Answer:
a. 17

Question 8.
“there was snag right at the start”. The snag was ……………
a. A flat tyre
b. A thief broke in
c. Uncle Mohit came in
d. The servant fainted
Answer:
c. Uncle Mohit came in

Question 9.
The second snag was …………
a. When a rain started.
b. When Bholababu came.
c. When he was allowed to leave Calcutta.
d. His bike collided.
Answer:
b. When Bholababu came.

Question 10.
The first tyre became flat when Aniruddha was closed to …………
a. Burdwan
b. Bankura
c. Panagarh
d. Barasat
Answer:
c. Panagarh

Question 11.
Predicament means-
a. An invitation
b. A dress
c. Difficulty
d. Journey
Answer:
c. Difficulty

Question 12.
FroJicsome means-
a. Lively and playful
b. Troublesome.
c. Dangerous.
Answer:
a. Lively and playful

Question 13.
The second tyre fell flat when Aniruddha was on his way to
a. Mussourie
b. Mathabhanga
c. Massanjore
d. Mashagram
Answer:
c. Massanjore

Question 14.
The driver of the truck was
a. A Bihari
b. A Haryanvi
c. A Sikh
d. A Marathi
Answer:
c. A Sikh

Question 15.
The name of the Chowkidar at the Dakbungalow was ……….
a. Tukaram
b. Bitthalrarn
c. Sukhanram
d. Hariram
Answer:
c. Sukhanram

Prism A Collection of ISC Short Stories Workbook Answers

There Will Come Soft Rains Story Questions and Answers & MCQs

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There Will Come Soft Rains Story Questions and Answers

ISC Prism Workbook Solutions Chapter 8 There Will Come Soft Rains

There Will Come Soft Rains Story Long Answer Questions

Question 1.
Vividly describe what happened when the dog entered the automated house.
Answer:
The Automated house had a very developed gadget to keep vigilance of the house. It never failed to interrogate anyone tiying to enter the house. It asked for password if anything approached such as foxes and cats, at it also shuts the window and draws the shade if a bird flies near the house. It has done so as if the house were paranoid.

Despite of all this vigils, a dog enters the house. It is because the house is used to its voice. Once huge and fleshy the dog has been reduced to skeleton due to starvation. The body was filled with sores, as exposed to radioactive rays of nuclear explosion. The condition of the dog clearly indicates that something catastrophic had happened to the occupants of the house.

The dog goes franatically from door to door of the house in search of its occupants. It fails to find anyone except the working gadgets-like the robotic clean mice running after him to clear the mud track created by the dog.

Later the dog begins to froth at the mouth and collapses and dies eventually. Delicately sensing decay, the house’s cleaning mice goes into the room to remove the dog. It dead body was deposited into the incinerator in the cellar.

Question 2.
Describe in detail how the automated house turned into ruins?
Answer:
In Ray Bradbury’s short science fiction “There Will Come Self Rains” we come to know about an automated house where all various technologically developed gadgets worked labouriously to provide human comfort and ease. The house was devoid of human existence, which was the result of nuclear explosion last night. The automated devices performed their daily routine.

Late in the night, a furious wind blew which knocked a tree in the kitchen window. The cleaning solvent kept near the window fell over the burning stove and a fire started to engulf the house. The automated house tried to save itself with fire extinguishers, but water ran out. Modem technology was pressed into service. Work and confusion went together.

There was confusion and pandemonium all around. Sarcastically the author explained that the colourful animals on the glowing walls of the nursery walls fled in panic, and the programmed device recited the poem “There Will Come Soft Rains”.

The huge fire burnt the house and its well equipped gadgets. The house could not with stand anymore and collapsed. Smoke poured from the rubble. One one wall stood alone with remnant voice declaring in a frightened and wierd tone the phrase “Today is August 5, 2026”. The voice reminds us the sad tale of the house and its inmates before the nuclear explosion.

There Will Come Soft Rains Story Short Answer Questions

Question 1.
What kind of story is “There Will Come Soft Rains”?
Answer:
Ray Bradbury’s short story “There Will Come Soft Rains” is a science fiction. It narrates the story of an automatic lone house that stands intact and unaffected in a California city that has been annihilated by nuclear bomb. The main theme of the story is the horrors of nuclear war.

Ray Bradbury explores and reveals with grim ironies the effect of technological developments like the robotic mice and mechanical labour saving devices aimed at providing ease and Comfort to mankind. The tone of the story throughout is serious as the author warns us of the dangers of technology awaiting humans.

Question 2.
Which activities are performed by the gadgets in the automated house at seven o’clock?
Answer:
At seven o’clock the alarm cock gadgets “tich locked” and declared the time and requested the inmates of the house to get up. The clock ticked repeatedly as no one responded to stop it. At seven to nine it declared breakfast and engaged in its preparation.

Question 3.
Who were the occupants of the house?
Answer:
The entire McClellan family were the or upant of the house that comprised of Mr. and Mrs. McClellan and their two children-a boy and a girl. They also had a pet dog. The whole family perished in the nuclear explosion so nothing could be said clearly about their profession and activities.

Question 4.
Explain the cleaning devices in the house.
Answer:
The Automated house had beautiful cleaning devices attached to it. The gadgets were filled to clean the dishes and the house. As the house had all the appliances essential for the upkeep, robot mice, which had mice-like appearance, projected out at necessary times to clean up all the dust, mud particles in the house.

Question 5.
Whose photographs were affected in the catastrophe?
Answer:
In the nuclear explosion the west side of the house was charred. In a photography-probably Mrs. McClellan-a woman bend to pick flowers remained. There were five spots of paints-the man, the woman, the children, the ball-remained. The rest were a thin layer of charcool.

Question 6.
What happened to the pet dog of the house?
Answer:
The pet of the Mcclellan family appeared for a short while. The gadget allowed the dog sensing its voice and smell. It had sores on its body and was reduced to skeleton due to starvation. The poor beast was seriously been affected by radioactive rays. It appeared restless, later frothed and died.

Question 7.
How did the house catch fire?
Answer:
Later in the night, furious winds blew and knocked a tree in the kitchen window. It tipped over a cleaning solution, which fell over the stove. It started a fire which engulfed the whole house. The house tried to save itself with fire extinguishers but water ran out. Slowly the fire destroyed the whole house except a lone wall and a lone gadget.

There Will Come Soft Rains Story Logic Based Questions

Complete the following sentences by providing a REASON for each:

Question 1.
The dog is allowed to enter the house because ………….
Answer:
The front door gadgets recognised the dog voice and allowed him by opening the door.

Question 2.
There was no one in the because …..
Answer:
At night the whole city was ruined by nuclear explosion. Only the automated house existed among the ruins.

Question 3.
The beds were warmed at night because …..
Answer:
The gadgets were programmed to heat the beds of the inmates of the house at nine o’clock as the nights are cool in California.

Question 4.
The dirty dishes were dropped into a hot water because ……
Answer:
the gadget were programmed to clean then in a germ free manner and make them dry and shiny.

Question 5.
The robot mice came out because ……
Answer:
The mice was programmed to clean the automated house and make it dust free. It came out hurriedly to clean the mud track created by the wounded pet dog.

Question 6.
The house failed to save itself from the fire because …….
Answer:
The water supply was quite exhasted and due to scarcity of adequate water, the house failed to fight with the engulfing fire.

Question 7.
No one could enter the house because ……
Answer:
The automated house was fitted with developed sensors that kept vigil on any one’s entry-whether a lonely fox or a whining cats. It only allowed the known ones like the pet dog.

Question 8.
The mice were angry because ……
Answer:
The pet dog, moved into the house tracking mud. Seeing it robotics mice were quite angry as it had to pick up mud and it created lots of inconvenience.

Question 9.
The voice tells Mrs. McClellan that it will read out the poem on its own because ……
Answer:
The machine received no suggestions about the poems preferred by Mr. Macciellan-whose existence was ended by the nuclear explosion last night.

Question 10.
The fire continued to rage because ……
Answer:
The water supply exhausted and the water pump stopped working. There was no adequate water supply to cease the fire, so the fire continued to spread throughout the house.

There Will Come Soft Rains Story MCQs

Question 1.
The author of the story “There Will Come Soft Rains” is ……
a. H.GWells
b. Ray Bradbury
c. Stephen Leacock
d. Philip. K Dick
Answer:
b. Ray Bradbury

Question 2.
The poem with same title “There Will Come Soft Rains” is written by ……
a. Walt Whitman
b. John Keats
c. Sara Teasdale
d. William Shakespeare
Answer:
c. Sara Teasdale

Question 3.
The incident of the story took place on ……
a. August 4, 2026
b. August 6, 2023
c. August 13, 2013
d. August 5, 2025
Answer:
a. August 4, 2026

Question 4.
The alarm clock of the automatic house announces which time at the beginning of the story?
a. 6 o’clock
b. 5o’cloclc
c. 7o’clock
d. 8o’clock
Answer:
c. 7o’clock

Question 5.
What did the voice repeat about Tilita?
a. birthday
b. marriage anniversary
c. appoinment with doctors
d. baby shower
Answer:
b. marriage anniversary

Question 6.
The weather-box on the front door said quietly about ……
a. strong winds
b. the possibility of rain
c. the sunny day
d. the tempest
Answer:
b. the possibility of rain

Question 7.
At what time of the day was the house cleaned?
a. 9 o’clock
b. 9:15 a.m
c. 10 o’clock
d. 10:30 a.m
Answer:
b. 9:15 a.m

Question 8.
When did the garden sprinklers whirled up in golden founts, filling the soft air with scattering of brightness ……
a. Ten-fifteen
b. ten o’clock
c. 9:15 a.m
d. Two o’clock
Answer:
a. Ten-fifteen

Question 9.
What could be seen in the photograph of a woman?
a. painting a wall
b. picking flowers
c. washing dishes
d. washing clothes
Answer:
b. picking flowers

Question 10.
What came out from behind there rain?
a. the swallows
b. the store
c. the moon
d. the sun
Answer:
d. the sun

Question 11.
What happened to the dog that entered?
a. covered with sores
b. badly beaten
c. suffering from rabies
d. bleeding profusely
Answer:
a. covered with sores

Question 12.
Where was the incinerator lying?
a. on the porch
b. into the cellar
c. in the kitchen
d. in the backyard
Answer:
b. into the cellar

Question 13.
The incinerator was compared to ………
a. Pluto
b. evil Baal
c. Wise Solomon
d. furnace
Answer:
b. evil Baal

Question 14.
The pancakes were baked with ……
a. raisens and nuts
b. chocolate syrup
c. vanilla syrup
d. maple syrup
Answer:
d. maple syrup

Question 15.
When the dog went into the incinerators?
a. Two-fifteen
b. Twelve noon
c. Ten o’clock
d. ten fifteen
Answer:
a. Two-fifteen

Question 16.
What set the room ablaze?
a. cleaning solvent shattered over the stove
b. a match stick
c. cylinder blast
d. nuclear explosion
Answer:
a. cleaning solvent shattered over the stove

Question 17.
Which two artist and painter has been mentioned in the stry?
a. Van Gogh and Picassos
b. Rabindranath and Abanindranath
c. Picassos and Matisses
d. None of the above
Answer:
c. Picassos and Matisses

Question 18.
At the end of the story the electrical gadgets announced which date?
a. Today is August 5, 2026
b. Today is August 4, 2026
c. Today is April 20, 2023
d. Today is August 13, 2013
Answer:
a. Today is August 5, 2026

Prism A Collection of ISC Short Stories Workbook Answers

Telephone Conversation Poem Questions and Answers & Summary

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Poem 6 Telephone Conversation Questions and Answers

Telephone Conversation Poem Summary, Questions and Answers

Telephone Conversation Poem Long Answer Questions

Question 1.
Attempt a critical Appreciation of Wole Soyinka’s Telephone Conversation.
Or
Question 2.
Soyinka’s Telephone Conversation is a strong protest against racism. Discuss.
Or
Question 3.
In What way does Soyinka’s Telephone Conversation urge us to think about racial prejudice?
Answer:
Nigerian poet Wole Soyinka presents the absurdity of racism in his poem, Telephone Conversation. The speaker of the poem, a dark West African man searching for a new apartment, tells the story of a telephone call he made to a potential landlady.

Instead of discussing price, location, facilities, and other information significant to the apartment, the landlady is more interested in the speaker’s skin color. This shows that despite being a well-bred woman, the landlady is after all shallowly racist.

Right from the very outset of the poem, the speaker shows how pathetically he is the victim of racism. The landlady asks him straight “HOW DARK” he is, after knowing that he an African. The speaker is shown to be genuinely modest. Instead of informing that he is an African he “warned” her against his skin colour. This however ascertains that the speaker actually feels genuinely sorry for his skin colour. To the modern thinkers, it seems almost ridiculous that anyone should be so submissive when he has committed no crime.

But then despite being unexpectedly modest, the speaker feels much annoyed when he is asked “HOW DARK” he is. His anger is subtly expressed through the repetition of the word “red” before booth, pillar box and double-tired. Yet he has no other option than to endure the humiliation since the whites are destined to take upper hand over blacks.

The landlady does exactly the same and in doing so all her sophisticated appearance seems to contrast terribly with her real-self. In other words, despite her “good-breeding,” and “Lipstick-coated” voice, she is after ail too unsophisticated to ask a gentle-man whether he is “LIGHT / OR VERY DARK?”

On contrary, the gentleman who feels genuinely sorry for his skin colour appears more refined. Citing his pass-port, he says that he his body colour is “West African sepia”. The landlady still demands a quantifiable expres-sion of his darkness. The tenant instead of satisfying her curiosity, chooses to detail the different colours of the different parts of his body. He says that though he is dark facially, the palm of his hand and the soles of his feet are lighter than the colour of his face.

The landlady expecting only yes or no regarding whether he is black or white, finally hangs up on him. The speaker, still playing his ignorance of what the lady actually wants to know from him, asks her if she is willing to meet him in person to judge his skin color for herself: ” ‘Madam/ I pleaded, wouldn’t you rather / See for yourself?” says the helpless man.

Question 4.
How far do you agree with the view that Telephone Conversation is an ironical conversation between the lodger and his landlady.
Ans.
Wole Soyinka’s “Telephone Conversation” is packed with subtleties. The puns, irony, and sarcasm employed in the poem, help him to ridicule an overtly racist woman. The conversation we observe is ironical in the sense that instead of discussing price, location, facilities, and other information significant to the apartment, the land-lady is more interested in the speaker’s skin color. This shows that despite being a well-bred woman, the land-lady is after all shallowly racist.

From the very outset of the poem, the speaker appears as a pathetic victim of racism. The landlady asks him straight, “HOW DARK” he is after knowing that he is an African. This is ironical in the sense that after all the colour of a man’s skin does matter while he is to rent an apartment. From thence onward, the landlady is perculiarly interested in discussing her lodger’s colour of skin. Moreover, it is also ironical that the speaker feels sorry for his skin colour.

He apologetically says that he is an African. The word “warned” which means cautioned shows how the humbly speaker actually attempts to warn his would-be landlady against his skin colour as if to allow him to rent her apartment is a crime, since he is an African. But despite being unexpectedly modest, the speaker feels much annoyed when he is asked unabashedly “HOW DARK” he is.

His anger is subtly expressed through the repetition of the word “red” before booth, pillar box and double-tired. Yet he has no other option than to endure the humiliation since the whites are destined to take upper hand over blacks.

The landlady does exactly the same and in doing so all her sophisticated appearance seems to ironically contrast her terribly real- self. In other words, despite her “good-breeding/? and “Lipstick-coated” voice, she is after all too rude to ask a gentleman whether he is “LIGHT / OR VERY DARK?”

On contrary, the tenant appears more refined. Words like “pipped,” “rancid,” and “spectroscopic” are not words that an unrefined man would have in his vocabulary. The gentleman’s intelligence is further displayed through his use of sarcasm and wit in response to the landlady’s questions. For example, when asked if he is “DARK / OR VERY LIGHT”, the gentleman says, citing his passport that exactly his colour is “West African sepia”.

The land-lady still demands a quantifiable expression of his darkness. The tenant instead of satisfying her curiosity, chooses to detail the different colours of the different parts of his body. He says that though he is dark facially, the palm of his hand and the soles of his feet are lighter than the colour of his face.

The landlady expecting only yes or ho regarding whether he is black or white, finally hangs up on him. We feel extremely amused when the speaker further asks the lady if she is willing to meet him in person to judge his skin color for herself: “‘Madam,’ I pleaded, wouldn’t you rather / See for yourself?”

Telephone Conversation Poem Short Answer Questions

Question 1.
How does the tenant speaker in the poem describe the colour of his skin to the landlady?
Answer:
The tenant speaker of the poem, Telephone; Conversation is of West African origin. He feels deeply ashamed because of his dark skin. The way he talks with the landlady amply suggests his embarrassment particularly when he warns the lady against his skin colour. The word “warned” which means cautioned lends an impression of the speaker being roosted by his own ‘ complex. It seems as if to allow him to rent an apartment

is a crime since he is an African. Such irrational complex goads him to remain calm even when the landlady ’ annoys him asking “HOW DARK” he is. The speaker continues describing that his body colour is “West African sepia”.

Moreover, he goes further into detailing that he is dark facially, the palm of his hand and the soles of his feet are lighter than the colour of his face. Towards the end of the poem he shows his willingness to appear up before the landlady so that the lady can judge his skin colour: “Madam/ I pleaded, wouldn’t you rather / See for yourself?”

Question 2.
Would you consider the landlady as a racist? Give reason for your answers.
Answer:
The landlady is presented as an immodest woman who simply harasses her would be tenant once she learns that the man is of West African origin. Instead of discussing price, location, facilities, and other information significant to the apartment, the landlady is more interested in the speaker’s skin colour. This is evident when she demands to know “HOW DARK” is her tenant.

The speaker’s silence goads her to reshape her question into a bit amiable tone. She politely asks the tenant if he is dark “OR VERY LIGHT?” The answer doesn’t satisfy her and she demands a quantifiable expression of his darkness. Finally, she hangs up failing to get a specific answer from the tenant. After all, she expected only yes or no regarding whether he is black or white. But, the tenant’s riddling answer dissatisfies her. The landlady thus appears to be shallowly racist, despite being a well-bred woman.

Telephone Conversation Poem Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)

Question 1.
The tenant in the poem hails from …………….
a. India
b. West Indies
c. West Africa
d. Germany
Answer:
c. West Africa

Question 2.
The tenant feels uncomfortable because of his ……..
a. poor financial condition
b. skin colour
c. deformity
d. criminal record
Answer:
b. skin colour

Question 3.
Why does the speaker warn the landlady against the colour of his skin?
a. Because he knows that he the landlady might reject him as her tenant once she finds him black
b. Because neighbours might object staying with a man of black skin colour
c. Because the man doesn’t want to stay with the whites and thus, wants to know if the lady is black
d. Because the man was rejected elsewhere and thus wants to be sure whether the landlady would allow him to rent her apartment
Answer:
a. Because he knows that he the landlady might reject him as her tenant once she finds him black

Question 4.
The colour mentioned in the passport of the speaker is ………
a. while
b. brown
c. West African sepia
d. red
Answer:
c. West African sepia

Question 5.
What do the expressions “Lipstick coated, long gold-rolled / Cigarette-holder piped” tell us about the landlady?
a. that she is a fashion-able woman
b. that she belongs to higher echelons of society
c. that she is a white woman
d. that she has a good breeding
Answer:
d. that she has a good breeding

Question 6.
Which question of the landlady deeply annoys the speaker?
a. How tall he is?
b. How wealthy he is?
c. How dark he is?
d. How educated he is?
Answer:
c. How dark he is?

Question 7.
What colour does the speaker see around when the landlady annoys him?
a. white
b. red
c. blue
d. orange
Answer:
b. red

Question 8.
What does the landlady do finally with the speaker?
a. she invites him to her apartment
b. she agrees renting the apartment to the speaker
c. she hangs on the telephone
d. she asks the speaker not to meet her
Answer:
c. she hangs on the telephone

Question 9.
What was the final proposal of the speaker?
a. that he will not rent the apartment
b. that he is willing to come and meet her
c. that he would send her his photograph
d. that he will not come and meet her
Answer:
b. that he is willing to come and meet her

Question 10.
The speaker asks the landlady to visit him to…………………
a. discuss the rent
b. show the apartment
c. see how dark he is
d. to hand over the key of the apartment.
Answer:
c. see how dark he is

Telephone Conversation Poem Summary

Telephone Conversation Poem Introduction

Nigerian poet Wole Soyinka presents the absurdity of racism his poem, Telephone Conversation. The speaker of the poem, a dark West African man searching for a new apartment, tells the story of a telephone call he made to a potential landlady. Instead of discussing price, occation, facilities, and other information significant to the apartment, the landlady is more interested in the speaker’s skin color. This shows that despite being a well-bred woman, the land lady is after all shallowly racist.

Telephone Conversation Poem Summary

The telephonic conversation between the tenant and the landlady begins with the tenant knowing little about the apartment he proposes to rent. Only he gets to know that the rental charge of the apartment is affordable and is without the landlady’s interference since she stays away from the appartment. After this minimal information, the tenant begins his “self-confession”

that he is an African and his skin colour is black. The landlady is shocked and sighs over phone. After she recovers from her initial shock her sophisticated voice once again resounds in the speaker of the public telephone, booth. Curious to know how dark is her would be lodger, the landlady shamelessly asks him straight.

The tenant is deeply annoyed. He sees red everywhere “Red booth. Red pillar box. Red double-tiered Omnibus.” This however indicates his anger which made him almost tongue tied. The landlady perhaps uncomfortable with the sudden silence decides to rephrase her question. She politely asks the tenant if he is dark “OR VERY LIGHT?” The anger of the tenants continues growing from more to more. Even at this time, he fails to reply her back At last the tenant replies the shallowly racist land-lady.

Citing his passport, he says that he his body colour is “West African sepia”. The landlady still demands a quantifiable expression of his darkness. The tenant instead of satisfying her curiosity, choose to detail the different colours of the different parts of his body. He says that though he is dark facially, the palm of his hand and the soles of his feet are lighter than the colour of his face.

The landlady expecting only yes or no regarding whether he is black or white, finally hangs up on him. The speaker, still playing his ignorance of what the lady actually wants to know from him, asks her if she is willing to meet him in person to judge his skin color for herself: ” ‘Madam/ I pleaded, wouldn’t you rather / See for yourself?” says the helpless man.

Telephone Conversation Poem Paraphrase

Lines 1 to 9 :

The telephone conversation begins with the tenant knowing little about the apartment he is about to rent. Only he gets to know that the rental charge of the apartment is affordable and is without the landlady’s interference. After this minimal information, the tenant begins his self-confession that he is an African and his skin colour is black. Within moment, the landlady is bowled over. When she recovers from her initial shock her sophisticated voice once again reverberates in the speaker of the public telephone booth.

Lines 10 to 14:

The landlady unabashedly asks the tenant how dark he is. The tenant however is confirmed about hearing her question, asking him straight how dark he is. Instantly, the man is red with anger. This is subtly expressed through the repetition of the word “red” before booth, pillar box and double-tired. Moreover, the speaker’s consciousness of the world around him is also evident from speculation of the red booth, red pillar box and his awareness about the foul smell hovering inside the booth.

Lines 15 to 21 :

The landlady however is considerate in rephrasing her question at last. Finding her tenant taking time to reply how dark he is, she asks him politely if he is dark and if so how does he looks like. The speaker says that the negotiation of the landlady is too judgmental, no matter how seemingly she appears to be pleasant.

Lines 22 to 35 :

Finally the tenant replies her, overcoming his anger. Citing his passport, he says that he his body colour is “West African sepia”; i.e. reddish-brown. Yet the landlady is unsatisfied. She wants a quantifiable expression of his darkness. But the man instead of satisfying her curiosity, choose to detail the different colours of the various parts of his body. He says that though facially he is dark, the palm of his hand and the soles of his feet are lighter than the colour of his face.

The landlady expecting only yes or no regarding whether he is black or white, finally hangs up his face. The landlady expecting only yes or no regarding whether he is black or white, finally hangs up on him. The speaker, still playing his ignorance of what the lady actually wants to know from him, asks her if she is willing to meet him in person to judge his skin colour for herself.

Telephone Conversation Poem Annotations with Comments

Lines 1 to 9 :

price : refers to the rental charge
location : location of the apartment
indifferent : it hardly matters
swore : promised she lived
premises : without her interference
Nothing remained : nothing more to know
self-confession : revealing about own self
silence : the woman was dumb founded hearing that her would be tenant is an African
transmission : the word is significant since the poem is about telephonic conversation
pressurized : hassled
voice : refers to the voice of the land lady

Comments:

Nothing remained / But self-confession: Having known a bit about the apartment, the speaker begins his “self-confession” about his skin colour. It is ironic that this is called a self-confession since the speaker has nothing that he should have to confess because of doing no wrong. He warns the landlady that he is African, instead of just informing her.

I warned: Note the words “warned”. By making the speaker actually seem sorry for his skin colour, Soyinka shows how ridiculous it really is for someone to apologize for his race. To the modern thinkers, it seems almost ridiculous.

Rhapsody: A Collection of ISC Poems Workbook Answers

Strange Meeting Poem Questions and Answers & Summary

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Poem 5 Strange Meeting Questions and Answers

Strange Meeting Poem Summary, Questions and Answers

Strange Meeting Poem Long Answer Questions

Question 1.
Write a critical appreciation of Strange Meeting.
Or
Question 2.
“The Poetry is in the pity Show how Owen has expressed the “pity of war” in his poem Strange Meeting.
Answer:
Strange Meeting is the grim account of Owen’s terrible experience in the First World War. Published in 1920 in a volume entitled Poems, two years after Owen’s death in 1918, the poem brings together two young, former, enemy-soldiers a British and a German one who meet, after they have died on the battle field. The German soldier however speaks at length of his earnest desire to live more and unveils the tragic futility of war.

The poem opens with the soldier-poet’s illusion that he has escaped out of the battlefield “down to some profound dull tunnel”, where in the midst of the corpse of warriors, one suddenly leaps up as he is “probed” by the soldier-poet. He continues staring at the soldier-poet with pitiful eyes and lifts up his hands as if to bless the soldier-poet.

By his grim smile on face, the soldier-poet realises that he has after all reached hell where silence reigns everywhere since the sound of battle field is no more audible. The soldier-poet observes the face of the dead soldier disfigured with fear and pains. He consoles the dead soldier saying that there is nothing to mourn for in hell.

The dead soldier begins his monologue bemoaning his early death. He says that had he survived more, he might have enjoyed life, chasing things that are beautiful. Such things are more sublime and subtler than the beautiful eyes and braided hairs of women and makes fun of time as it steadily passes by. What grieves his heart is that his life is cut short and hell offers no joy of aesthetic pursuit.

One can only enjoy eternal sleep in hell. Hence, the dead soldier laments that the truth of war now remains untold. The truth being massive death toll that war claims. Men will now continue fighting, either satisfied or dissatisfied with the results of the war. The dead soldier had both courage and wisdom to counsel the warriors against the horrors of war. He could have given up his life to heal the world of its evils but, would not have lost his precious life in foolish warfare.

Towards the end of the poem, the dead soldier reveals that he was the enemy who was killed by the soldier poet on the other day. He recognizes his slayer by the frown in his eyes. Yet, he addresses the British soldier his “friend” since after death what remains of an individual is only the human identity. In other words, we lose all other identities that separate us from others.

Owen here must be suggesting the barrier of narrow political boundary which the both German and the British soldier overcome after death. Hence, the enemy solider who ‘jabbed and killed’ the German soldier, can be safely called a ‘friend’.

Question 3.
Describe with close reference to the poem Strange Meeting the lament of the German solider
Answer:
The German soldier leaps up from among the heap of corpses, imagined to be dumped in hell. He then painfully lifts up his hands as if to bless the soldier poet though being killed by him. As the soldier poet counsels him not to mourn in hell, the German soldier continues speaking at length about the perilous effect of war on mankind. He says that he feels sad all because of his early death.

Had he survived more, he might have enjoyed life, chasing things that are beautiful and more sublime than the ephemeral beauty of women’s eyes and their braided locks of hair. Owen however lends a human touch as he explores the aesthetic sense of beauty in the German soldier. This however implies that soldiers are not without human feelings which Owen suggests in many of his poems.

However the German soldier also bemoans that if he lyre-have, at least he could have revealed the truth of war which nCVy remains untold. The truth being massive death toll that war claims. Men will now continue fighting, either satisfied or dissatisfied with restricts-of the-war The German soldier had both courage and wisdom to counsel the warriors against the horrors of war. He could have given up his life to heal the world of its evils but, would not have lost his precious life in foolish warfare.

As he is now helplessly inactive in hell, he welcomes the soldier poet as his “friend”. He reveals the soldier-poet that he was the enemy who was killed by the soldier-poet on the other day. He has recognized his slayer by the frown in his eyes. Yet, he addresses the British soldier his “friend” since after death what remains of an individual is only the human identity. In other words, we lose all other identities that separate us from others.

Owen here must be suggesting the barrier of narrow political boundary which the both German and the British soldier overcome after death. Hence, the enemy solider who ‘jabbed and killed the German soldier, can be safely called a ‘friend’. The German soldier invites him to sleep together as they are far removed from every animosity that humans promote against each other.

Strange Meeting Poem Short Answer Questions

Question 1.
What impression of the British soldier do you form based on your reading the poem.
Answer:
The British soldier is the first speaker of the poem. He bc9ino me poem-MTcr. This fancy of entering into a deep, dark tunnel where dead soldiers are huddled together.

As he pokes them, one of the dead soldiers suddenly leaps up and continues staring at the British soldier with pitiful eyes. The dead solider is a German warrior who painfully lifts up his hands as if to bless the British soldier.

By his grim smile, the British soldier realises that he is in hell. Silence reigns everywhere around since the sound of the battlefield is no more audible. The British soldier observes that the face of the German soldier is disfigured with fear and pains. He consoles the German soldier saying that there is nothing to mourn for in hell.

The German soldier, who is the second speaker of the poem, recognises the British soldier and welcomes him as his friend. He says that he was once the enemy of the British soldier and now his friend since after death what remains of an individual is only the human identity.

Hence, the British soldier who ‘jabbed and killed’ the German soldier in the battlefield is called a friend and both of them agrees sleeping eternally together as they are removed from every animosity that humans promote against each other.

Question 2.
What picture of hell is presented by Owen in his poem Strange Meeting.
Answer:
Hell isn’t described exhaustively like Milton in his Paradise Lost or Dante in his Inferno. Owen just lends a succinct picture of hell once the British soldier escapes out of the

Strange Meeting Poem Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)

Question 1.
Who are the speakers in the poem Strange Meeting?
a. French and German soldiers
b. British and French soldiers
c. Indian and British soldiers
d. German and British soldiers
Answer:
d. German and British soldiers

Question 2.
Why is the meeting called strange?
a. Because it was not pre-planned
b. Because the meeting occurred in hell
c. Because the meeting occurred in heaven
d. Because the meeting occurred in dream
Answer:
b. Because the meeting occurred in hell

Question 3.
What did the British soldier say to the German soldier the moment he meets him?
a. He said that he killed the dead soldier last day
b. He said that he was surprised to see him in hell
c. He said that there is nothing to mourn for in hell
d. He said nothing
Answer:
c. He said that there is nothing to mourn for in hell

Question 4.
Why does the German soldier mourn in hell?
a. Because he couldn’t reach heaven
b. Because of his untimely death
c. Because he couldn’t kill the soldier poet before dying
d. Because hell is so unpleasant
Answer:
b. Because of his untimely death

Question 5.
What is the pity of war?
a. That war is an essential part of human civilization
b. That war kills young lives
c. That war is encouraged by politicians
d. That war encourages hatred among nations
Answer:
b. That war kills young lives

Question 6.
What did the German soldier want to tell mankind about war?
a. That war is necessary for ensuring peace
b. That there is no heroism associated with war
c. That war must be promoted for better future
d. That one must give up his life in war
Answer:
b. That there is no heroism associated with war

Question 7.
Why does the German soldier addresses the British soldier as his friend?
a. Because the British soldier helped him to reach hell
b. Because the British soldier saved his life
c. Because the British soldier woke him up in hell
d. Because both of them are dead and they have lost their identity of two different nations.
Answer:
d. Because both of them are dead and they have lost their identity of two different nations.

Question 8.
What does the German soldier ask the British soldier to do?
a. To go away from hell
b. To remain in hell
c. To sleep forever with him
d. To rejoice in hell
Answer:
c. To sleep forever with him

Question 9.
What is kind of poem is Owen’s Strange Meeting?
a. Heroic
b. Poem of friendship
c. Anti-war
d. Poem of love
Answer:
c. Anti-war

Strange Meeting Poem Summary

Strange Meeting Poem Introduction

Strange Meeting is an anti-war poem which records Owen’s grim experience of the First World War. The poem was written during the course of the World War I and was published in 1920, in a volume entitled Poems, two years after Owen’s death in 1918. The poem brings together two young enemy-soldiers – a British and a German who meet, after they have died on the battlefield. The German soldier speaks at length, his earnest desire to live and unveils the tragic futility of war.

Strange Meeting Poem Summary

The soldier-poet imagines that he has escaped from the battlefield into a deep, dark tunnel where dead soldiers are huddled together. As he pokes them, one of the dead soldiers leaps up and continues staring at the soldier-poet with pitiful eyes. He then painfully lifts up his hands as if to bless the soldier poet and by his grim smile, the soldier poet realises that he is in hell.

Silence reigns everywhere around since the sound of battlefield is no more audible. The soldier-poet observes the face of the dead soldier disfigured with fear and pains. He consoles the dead soldier saying that there is nothing to mourn for in hell.

The dead soldier bemoans for his early death. He says that had he survived more, he might have enjoyed life, chasing things that are beautiful. Such things are more sublime and subtler than the beautiful eyes and braided hairs of women and makes fun of time as it steadily passes by. What grieves his heart is that his life is cut short and hell offers no joy of aesthetic pursuit.

One can only enjoy eternal sleep in hell. Hence, the dead soldier bemoans that if he were alive, at least he could have revealed the truth of war which now remains untold. The truth being massive death toll that war claims. Men will now continue fighting, either satisfied or dissatisfied with the results of the war.The dead soldier had both courage and wisdom to counsel the warriors against the horrors of war. He could have given up his life to heal the world of its evils but, would not have lost his precious life in foolish warfare.

The dead soldier now reveals the soldier-poet that he was the enemy who was killed by the soldier poet on the other day. He has recognized his slayer by the frown in his eyes. Since he is killed, he now wants profound and undisturbed sleep. He also invites the soldier-poet to sleep with him as they are no more the enemy of each other.

Strange Meeting Poem Paraphrase

Lines 1 to 14:

The soldier-poet imagines that he has escaped from the battlefield into a deep, dark tunnel where dead soldiers are huddled together. As he pokes them, one of the dead soldiers suddenly leaps up and continues staring at the soldier-poet with-pitiful eyes.

He then lifts up his hands as if to bless the soldier poet and by his grim smile, the soldier poet realises that he is in hell. He notices that the face of the dead soldier is disfigured with fear and pains. He consoles the dead soldier saying that there is nothing to mourn for in hell.

Lines 15 to 39:

The dead soldier pow mourns for his early death. He says that had he survived more, he might have enjoyed life. Even he too had the desire for the beautiful things of life which was beyond physical something more sublime and subtler than the beautiful eyes and braided hairs of women. And what grieves his heart is that his life is cut short and hell offers no joy of aesthetic pursuit.

One can only enjoy eternal sleep in hell. Hence, the dead soldier bemoans that if he were alive, at least he could have revealed the truth of war which now remains untold. The truth being massive death toll that war claims.

Men will now continue fighting, either satisfied or dissatisfied with the results of the war.The dead soldier had both courage and wisdom to counsel the warriors against the horrors of war. He could have given up his life to heal the world of its evils but, would not have lost his precious life in foolish warfare.

Lines 40 to 44:

The dead soldier now reveals the soldier-poet that he was the enemy who was killed by the soldier poet on the other day. He has recognized his slayer by the frown in his eyes. Since he is killed, he now wants profound and undisturbed sleep. He also invites the soldier-poet to sleep with him as they are no more the enemy of each other

Strange Meeting Poem Annotations with Comments

Lines 1 to 14:

It seemed : It seemed that the entire episode of an experience in the dungeon hell came to the soldier-poet in a vision
out of battle : out of the battle-field
escaped : went out
profound : deep
dull : dark
tunnel : opening cut through a hill
long since scooped : dug out long before
granites : rocks of granite stone
titanic : terrible
titanic wars : devastating wars that the Titans waged against their children
groined : vaults
encumbered sleepers : dead soldiers huddled together
encumbered : crowded
groaned : made cries of pain in sleep
Too fast in thought : deeply absorbed in thought
death : senselessness
bestirred : woken up
probed : poked stared with
piteous eyes : stared with distressing signs in his looks lifting distressful
hands, as if to bless : raising his hand painfully as if to bless the soldier-poet
sullen hail : gloomy and dark tunnel
dead smile : smile with a mere grin
thousand pains : the face of the German soldier was marked with the lines of thousand sorrow
vision’s face : face of the figure seen in the vision
grained : lined
blood : bloodshed on the battle-field
thumped : boomed
flues : passages for smoke over chimney
no cause to mourn : no real cause for lamenting in hell (or after-life).

Comment:

Titanic : Titans are the children of Uranus and Gaes. They, often called the Elder Gods, were deities of the early Greeks. They represents either primitive forces of nature or abstract qualities. Titans were originally six males and six females.

Later writers also placed some of the children of Titans among the Titans. The Titans, with the exception of Oceanus, revolted against Uranus, disposed him, and made Coronos ruler of the world. The adjective Titanic therefore refers to some monstrous warfare. – From The Wordsworth Dictionary of Classical Allusion.

undone years : years of his life lie in total ruin in hell
hopelessness : despair
Whatever hope …. life also : The German soldier says that his life was full of hope like the soldier-poet’s
hunting : searching
wild : indefatigably
wildest beauty : most romantic beauty
which lies not calm in eyes : the beauty that he searched for did not lie in the serene eyes or the braided hair of a young girl.
mocks : outpaces
steady : slow and regular
running of the hour : passage of time But mocks the steady
running of the hour: This beauty is eternal if it grieves: If the beauty pursued
Is the cause of sorrow grieves ….. than here: If the beauty pursued is the cause of sorrow, it has greater cause to grieve in this world than it has here
glee: joy
many men have laughed: many people could have been made happy
weeping : mourning
And of my ….. left : sorrows that he suffered in the battlefield yet remains in the world
Which must die now : since he is dead, the sorrows will remain untold to the world
I mean the truth untold : the truth of war will remain untold to the world
Pity of war : the sense of pathos that a right view of the foolish waste of life warfare creates.

Lines 26 to 33:

Now men …. Spoiled : Now when the German soldier is dead and the truth of war remains untold, men will feel complacent with what they did in the war
Spoiled : plundered
boil bloody : rage and fret and grow red in the face
spilled : involved in blood shed, like boiling liquid
brimming over and spilled on the ground
swift : burning with the desire to kill. None will break ranks: no nation will dissolve its army and give up fighting
Treak: march away from
I had mystery : I gained deep insight into the mysteries of life

mystery : mystic knowledge of hiden truth
mastery : excellence
To miss : so that he could easily live apart from the erring world and wait for the opportune moment to come out and heal it by giving it the truths
retreating world : degeneration of civilization, day after day
citadels : forts
That walled : into the unprotected fortress.

Comment:

Into vain citadels that are not walled: Citadel is the symbol of civilization and the word ‘not walled’ means open to attack. Owen perhaps suggests that the civilization is under threat.

Lines 34 to 39:

blood : bloodshed in battlefield
clogged : obstructed
when…..their chariot-wheels : when nations have shed enough of blood and despaired of achieving any good out of hatred suspicion and warfare
I would go up : he would go forward
wash them : wash the wounds of nations
sweet wells : the truth about war
taints : stain
that taints : that cannot be corrupted by vicious doctrines of hate and warfare
I would…spirit : had he lived he would have given his life and soul
without stint : liberally
But not.., wounds : but no dying from the effects of wounds received warfare
cess: forced realization
Foreheads……wounds were : the innocent youth with clean foreheads, compelled to fight and are slaughtered merciless.

Comment:

Foreheads …….. wounds were: There ‘may be just a passing allusion in this line to the foreheads of Christ bleeding because of the crown of thorn thrust upon him:

Lines 40 to 44:

enemy : refers to the German-soldier
know : recognize, identified.
Dark : dark hell
frowned : looked gloomfly
through me : into face
jabbed : stabbed
parried : prevented
but my… cold: when the German soldier was killed by the soldier-poet. He could not defend himself, as he felt disinclined to give him counter-stroke and his hands were cold through exposure
Let us sleep now : The two soldiers now will not be any use to the world. They are dead forever. Hence, the German soldier asks the soldier-poet to enjoy sleep forever.

Comments:

Let us sleep now: The word “us” perhaps suggest that the soldier-poet too dead. I am the enemy you killed, my friend: ‘The two antithetical words ‘enemy and ‘friend suggest the difference between thed entity of a human being before and after death.

Before death, there might be some antagonism between the man of two different nations. But after death the Identity as a human being is larger than any other identity, Hence, the enemy who ‘jabbed and killed’ the German soldier can now safely be called a ‘friend’.

Rhapsody: A Collection of ISC Poems Workbook Answers

Death of Naturalist Poem Questions and Answers & Summary

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Poem 4 Death of Naturalist Questions and Answers

Death of Naturalist Poem Summary, Questions and Answers

Death of Naturalist Poem Long Answer Questions

Question 1.
Attempt a critical appreciation of Death of a Naturalist.
Or
Question 2.
Death of a Naturalist is a poem about the loss of innocence. Discuss with close reference to the poem.
Answer:
Death of a Naturalist was published in 1966 in Heaney’s debut anthology of poetry entitled Death of a Naturalist. Heaney however goes down memory lane to bring alive his childhood days when he was significantly obsessed with frogspawn.

But, with the transition to maturity, the simplicity of nature hardly enthralls him anymore. Instead he feels deeply repulsed observing the tadpoles turning into ugly frogs. The poem however explores the loss of innocence as the poet sees the harsher side of nature and feels threatened and frightened by the end.

Death of a Naturalist begins with a succinct picture of the flax plant being placed over a muddy pool and left exposed to the sun round the year. Such picture abounds in his native Country Derry, Northern Ireland where Heaney makes a frequent visit to collect frogspawn.

Every spring he would fill his jars with frog eggs and leave them on the windowsills at home and at school, waiting and watching until they turn to swimming tadpoles. The obsession for frogspawn is further reinforced when Heaney recalls Miss. Wall, his childhood teacher, explaining the reproductive cycle of frogs the croaking of the male frog inspires the mammy frog to lay hundreds of tiny eggs which however is the frogspawn.

Such simple explanation which Heaney believed as a child reveals his innocent acceptance of things more complicated to comprehend during one’s childhood. However, innocence is also established when Heaney as a child was close to nature. The foul smell of rotting flax, the thick, stagnant, rotten water, the unpleasant sight of insects hovering around the muddy earth had no repulsive effect upon him. In this part of the poem, the flax dam appears charming despite all its nauseating effect.

But, as Heaney grows closer to being an adult, the natural world becomes more foreign and menacing to him. The smell of the flax dam now “rank” with “cow dung in the grass”. The sight of adult frog is deeply loathsome. Some of them jumped around and the others sitting “like mud grenades” ready to explode. It seems as if the vicious frogs are “gathered there for vengeance”.

The speaker once stole away their frogspawn.’It’s time for them to attack the intruder once they find the speaker within their range. Hence, the speaker flees the scene which once pleased him during his childhood days.

Question 3.
Comment on the significance of the title Death of a Naturalist.
Answer:
The epithet Death of a Naturalist is deeply ironic in the sense that a child’s obsession for nature turns into aversion once he grows closer to being an adult. As a naturalist, one would not be bothered about the “coarse croaking” of the “angry frogs”, or the stinky odour “cow dung in the grass”.

But, Heaney’s speaker runs away from his favourite place during childhood since his attachment to the world of nature weakens over time. Initially Heaney’s obsession with the frogspawn made him believe that he was a naturalist. Every spring he would fill his jars with frog eggs and leave them on the windowsills at home and at school, waiting and watching until they turn to swimming tadpoles.

The obsession for frogspawn is further reinforced when Heaney recalls Miss. Wall, his childhood teacher, explaining the reproductive cycle of frogs, which Heaney still remembers. But a significant change is observed in one ‘hot day’ when the same field of flax repulses him with all its unpleasant sight, sound and smell.

For example, smell of the flax dam now “rank” with “cow dung in the grass”. An army of hostile frogs were seen aggressively darting inside the flax dam. The speaker was so appalled by the sinister croak of the frogs and the stench of the field that he chose to stay away from the place.

He says that he has never in fact, heard the horrifying croak of frogs that seems so horrible, especially when they puff out their throats with deep anger. The negative image of frog suggests the change of mindset that an individual experience while moving towards adulthood.

Such change is further reinforced when Heaney fancies the frogs as mud grenades, ready to explode. The frogs are “gathered there for vengeance”. The speaker once stole away their frogspawn. It’s now time for them to attack the intruder once they find the speaker within their range.

Hence, the speaker flees the scene which once pleased him during his childhood days. The escape from the harsh and dreadful natural world results in the death of the naturalist in him.

Death of Naturalist Poem Short Answer Questions

Question 1.
Describe in brief Heaney’s obsession with the frogspawn during his childhood days.
Answer:
During his childhood days, Heaney developed a severe obsession for frogspawn which made him believe that he was a naturalist. Every spring time he would make a frequent visit to the flax dam his native Country Derry, Northern Ireland to collect frogspawn.

He would fill his jars with frog eggs and leave them on the windowsills at home and at school, waiting and watching until they turn to swimming tadpoles. The obsession for frogspawn is further reinforced when Heaney recalls Miss. Wall, his childhood teacher, explaining the reproductive cycle of frogs.

In a simple way, Miss. Wall would describe how the female frogs are inspired to lay eggs by the male frog, i.e. the bullfrog. The croaking of the bullfrog would tempt the mammy frog to lay hundreds of tiny eggs which however is the frogspawn.

Such simple explanation which Heaney believed as a child reveals his innocent acceptance of things more complicated to comprehend during one’s childhood. In fact, childhood is the time when one develops obsessions for the simple natural things which ultimately weakens over time. This is what is suggested by Heaney in his Death of a Naturalist.

Question 2.
What significant change does Heaney observe in him on a hot day?
Answer:
Heaney’s obsession for nature turns into aversion once he grows closer to being an adult. Particularly on a hot day, Heaney observes this change in him when suddenly the same flax repulses him with all its unpleasant sight, sound and smell.

The fax which once had no repulsive effect on him now reeks with “cow dung in the grass”. On the other hand, the sight of grown up frogs seems terribly threatening. The speaker is so appalled by the sinister croak of the frogs and the stench of the field that he chose to stay away from the place.

He says that he has never in fact, heard the horrifying croak of frogs that seems so horrible, especially when they puff out their throats with deep anger. The negative image of frog suggests the change of mindset that an individual experience while moving towards adulthood. Such change is further reinforced when Heaney fancies the frogs as mud grenades, ready to explode.

The frogs are “gathered there for vengeance”. The speaker once stole away their frogspawn. It’s now time for them to attack the intruder once they find the speaker within their range. Hence, the speaker flees the scene which once pleased him during his childhood days. The escape from the harsh and dreadful natural world results in the death of the naturalist in him.

Death of Naturalist Poem Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)

Question 1.
“What is left exposed to the sun round the year?
a. Tobacco leaves
b. Flax plant sheaves
c. Leather
d. Grapes
Answer:
b. Flax plant sheaves

Question 2.
Why does the speaker visit the place where flax are left exposed to sun?
a. To collect flax
b. To watch various insects
c. To smell the odour of rotten flax
d. To collect frogspawn
Answer:
d. To collect frogspawn

Question 3.
Where does the speaker keep the frogspawn?
a. In basket
b. In jars
c. In bowl
d. In mug
Answer:
b. In jars

Question 4.
Who among these was the teacher of the speaker?
a. Miss. Meadow
b. Miss. Wills
c. Miss. Wall
d. Mr. Wall
Answer:
c. Miss. Wall

Question 5.
What did Miss. Wall teach the speaker?
a. The way to collect frogspawn
b. The life of frog
c. The way to cultivate flax
d. The reproductive cycle of frogs
Answer:
d. The reproductive cycle of frogs

Question 6.
How does Miss. Wall call male and female frog?
a. Mama and daddy frog
b. Papa and mama frog
c. Bullfrog and mammy frog
d. Bullfrog and mummy frog
Answer:
c. Bullfrog and mammy frog

Question 7.
Which among these insects is not mentioned in the poem?
a. Dragonfly
b. Butterfly
c. Blue fly
d. Grasshopper
Answer:
d. Grasshopper

Question 8.
What changes did the speaker find in him in one hot day?
a. He has grown old
b. His love for the frogspawn has grown intense
c. He no longer remains a naturalist
d. None of the above
Answer:
c. He no longer remains a naturalist

Question 9.
The adult frogs were gathered to ……….
a. Lay eggs
b. croak together
c. eat insects
D. Take revenge against the speaker
Answer:
D. Take revenge against the speaker

Question 10.
The adult frogs wanted to take revenge against the speaker since ………..
a. He once killed their babies
b. He scared them away from the field
c. He stole away their frogspawn
d. He no longer remains a child
Answer:
c. He stole away their frogspawn

Death of Naturalist Poem Summary

Death of Naturalist Poem Introduction

Published in 1966 in Heaney’s debut anthology of poetry entitled Death of a Naturalist, the present poem establishes Heaney’s reputation as the foremost Irish poet of his generation. Heaney however goes down memory lane to bring alive his childhood days when he was significantly obsessed with frogspawn.

But, with the transition to maturity, the simplicity of nature hardly enthralls him anymore. Instead he feels deeply repulsed observing the tadpoles turning into ugly frogs. The poem however explores the loss of innocence as the poet sees the harsher side of nature and feels threatened and frightened by the end.

Death of Naturalist Poem Summary

A child speaker observes how flax plant sheaves are positioned over a muddy pool and left exposed to the sun all year long. The flax rots in the muddy water and then becomes hot in the extreme heat of the sun. Foul smell of rotten flax hover around the field where insects like blue flies, dragonflies and butterflies gather around the thick, stagnant, rotten water with bubbles winking on its surface.

The speaker who often visits the place, becomes obsessed with the frogspawn, a jelly like substance which bears the egg of a frog. Every spring he would fill his jars with frog eggs and leave them on the windowsills at home and at school, waiting and watching until they turn to swimming tadpoles. The speaker’s obsession is further tantalized by Miss. Wall, probably his teacher, whose classes on the reproductive cycle of the frogs is still remembered by him.

The speaker says that Miss. Wall described the way the female frog lays eggs when inspired by the male frog, i.e. the bullfrog. The bullfrog croaks and the mammy frog lays hundreds of tiny eggs which however is the frogspawn. Moreover, the speaker’s innocent mind would also believe that the colours of frogs determine the weather.

The yellow frog and the brown frog represent sun and rain respectively. Innocence, however is thwarted once the speaker grows up. He remembers one hot day when he saw an army of hostile frogs aggressively darting inside the flax-dam. The frogs were croaking furiously aloud, puffing out their throats with deep anger. Some of them jumped around, while some others sat, seething with furious rage, once they see the speaker within their range. They looked like mud grenades, ready to explode.

The dreadful sight of the frogs, their menacing activities terrorized the speaker. It seemed as if the ugly frogs’ were all gathered to take revenge upon the speaker since he once stole away the frogspawn. The speaker now feels that the spawn that he so earnestly held up in his hand to put into his jar seem to be ready to seize his hand if he dipped it in the spawn. Terrified, he runs away from the loathsome place.

Death of Naturalist Poem Paraphrase

Lines 1 to 6:

A child speaker observes how the sheaves of flax plants are placed over a muddy pool and left exposed to the sun round the year. The flax rots in the muddy water and then becomes hot in the extreme heat of the sun. Foul smell of rotten flax hover around along with the buzzing sound of blue flies, gathered around the thick, stagnant, rotten water with bubbles winking on its surface.

Lines 7 to 15:

Along with the blue flies, dragonflies and butterflies too thronged the place. But, what enthralled the speaker most was the frogspawn, a jelly like substance which bears the egg of a frog. Every spring the speaker would fill his jars with frog eggs and leave them on the windowsills at home and at school, waiting and watching until they turn to swimming tadpoles.

Lines 15 to 21:

Miss Wall, probably the speaker’s teacher, would explain the complete reproductive cycle of the frogs by detailing the process as simply as possible. The speaker remembers the words of his teacher which states that the male frog, i.e. the bullfrog inspires the female frog to lay eggs while he croaks. The mammy frog lays hundreds of tiny eggs which however is the frogspawn. One could forecast the weather by looking at the colours of frogs. The frog however turns yellow in the sun and brown in the rain.

Lines 22 to 26:

One hot day when the field was stinking with the foul smell of cow dung, an army of hostile frogs were seen aggressively darting inside the flax-dam. The speaker was so appalled by sinister croak of the frogs and the stench of the field that he chose to stay away from the place. The speaker however had never, in fact, heard the horrifying cacophony of frogs, croaking aloud.

Lines 27 to 33:

The sight of the grown up frogs seem too unpleasant for the speaker. They continued croaking furiously aloud, puffing out their throats with deep anger. Some of them jumped around, while some others sat, seething with furious rage, once they see the speaker within their range. They looked like mud grenades, ready to explode.

The dreadful sight of the frogs, their menacing activities terrorized the speaker. It seemed as if the ugly frogs were gathered to revenge upon the speaker since he once stole away the frogspawn. The speaker now feels that the spawn that he so earnestly held up in his hand to put into his jar seem to be ready to seize his hand if he dipped it in the spawn. Terrified, he runs away from the loathsome place.

Death of Naturalist Poem Annotations with Comments

Lines 1 to 6:

All year : throughout the year
Flax : herbaceous plant that is cultivated for its seed
Festered : rotted
Towniand : a division of land of varioussizes
heavy headed : heavy on top. A human quality is attributed to the flax when the poet says that flax are heavy headed
rotted: decayed
weighted down: weighed down
sods: pieces of cut turf which helps to cultivate the flax
sweltered: becomes hot and suffocative
punishing sun: torturous sun in the sense that its very hot. Sun here is fancied as oppressor, burning down on the flax.
Bubbles : The bubbles in the muddy earth are producing gargling sound.
Gargled : the gargling sound produced by bubbles
Bluebottles : kind of flies
Wove a strong the smell : the hordes of flies buzzing around the flax-dam

Comment:

flax dam : A flax dam isn’t actually a dam, but a muddy patch of earth which is soaked to soften the flax. During such process, things get pretty stinky. ‘The plant basically rots as it softens, let ting off, an unpleasant smell.’ Heaney however looks back to a time when he was a boy. During those days he was deeply enthralled by the local flax-dam, an area of boggy water in his native County Derry, Northern Ireland.

Lines 7 to 15:

Dragonflies : a large insect with a long,thin, brightly coloured body and two pairs of transparent wings
Slobber : thick saliva
Frogspawn : a jelly like substance which bears the egg of a frog
Clotted : thick
Jampotfuls : fill jars with frog eggs
Specks : eggs
Range: place
window sills : narrow shelf below a window either inside or outside
fattening dots : growing eggs
burst : hatches
nimble : swift moving
tadpoles : a larval amphibian

Comment:

every spring …. jampotfuls of the jellied specks: Spring is the time of rebirth and renewal. The frogspawns are thus, all over the place responding to the cycle of life

to range on window sills …shelves at school: The speaker appears to be an avid collector of frogspawn. He would fill the jam jars with the eggs and leave them on the windowsills at home and at school, waiting and watching until they turn to swimming tadpoles.

This establishes his obsession for the frogspawn which is further established once he recalls the lessons of Miss Walls. Presumably the teacher of the speaker during his childhood, Miss. Walls used to teach how “hundreds of little eggs” finally hatch into tadpoles which the speaker once liked to watch.

Lines 15 to 21:

Miss Walls : probably the speaker’s teacher
daddy frog : male frog
bullfrog : large frog having a deep booming croak
mammy frog : female frog Laid hundreds…..
this was Frogspawn : female frog lays hundreds of eggs in the frogspawn, tadpoles eventually hatch out from the eggs
tell the weather : predict the weather yellow in sun ….
brown in rain : the colour of frog turns yellow in the sun and brown in the rain.

Comment:

You could tell the weather by frogs: The fact that one could forecast the weather by looking whether the frogs were yellow or brown is also related to suggest the innocence as well as the confident curiosity of the young boy.

Lines 22 to 26:

Rank with : filled with
Invaded : enter aggressively
Ducked : dodged
Hedges : bushes
Coarse : rough
Croaking: refers to the croaking sound of frogs
Bass chorus: deep sound produced by a group of frogs

Comment:

Then one hot day: Heaney now deviates from his collective memory of “every spring,” when his speaker used to collect frogspawn and Miss. Wall, his teacher would give a lesson on the reproductive cycle of frogs. He now meditates upon a “hot day” with unpleasant images of ”angry frogs” which simply sickens him.

This how ever indicates his loss of innocence when even the most basic natural sceneries would make him happy. The speaker’s transition to maturity and loss of innocence is symbolised by the swimming tadpoles turning into “great slime kings”.

Lines 27 to 33:

Gross : ugly
Bellied : swelled (here it refers to the frog bellies)
Sods : pieces of turf.
Pulsed : throbbed The loose necks…
snails: the frogs make their croaking sound, by puffing out their throats.
Hopped : jumped
slap and plop : various kinds of sounds made by frogs while they are on move
obscene : unpleasant
poised : prepared and waiting for something
grenades : hand bomb
blunt heads : soft heads
slime : an unpleasantly thick and slippery liquid substance
slime kings : refers to the ugly big frogs which look like slippery liquid substance
vengeance : revenge
dipped : put or let something down
spawn : frog spawn
clutch : hold tightly

Comment:

sickened, turned, and ran: The speaker now ceases to be a naturalist all because of his aversion for the nature. As Heaney grows closer to being an adult, the natural world becomes more foreign and menacing to him. The smell of the flax dam now “rank” with “cow dung in the grass”.

The adult frogs appear threatening with their resolution to take revenge against the speaker who once stole away their frogspawn. They look like “mud grenades” ready to explode. Hence, the speaker flees the scene which once pleased him during his childhood days.

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