Prasanna

We have decided to create the most comprehensive English Summary that will help students with learning and understanding.

The Portrait of A Lady Summary in English by Khushwant Singh

The Portrait of A Lady by Khushwant Singh About the Author

The Portrait of A Lady Summary in English

“The Portrait of a Lady” is a heart-warming pen picture of Khushwant Singh’s grandmother who brought him up.

The author describes his association with his grandmother and the changes that came about in their relationship with the passage of time. Her simplicity and beauty left an indelible imprint on the poet’s mind.

Khushwant Singh’s grandmother was short, old and slightly bent, and hobbled around the house telling the beads on her rosary. He had seen her look the same for twenty years and to him it seemed that she was really old and could not grow older. It was difficult for him to conceptualise that she could have been young and . pretty; to believe that she had had a husband. His grandfather’s portrait hung on the wall of the drawing room.

He too looked very old arid very grandfatherly. Looking at his portrait one could visualise that he had many grandc hildren but one could not imagine him in his youth with his wife and children.

When Khushwant Singh was still young, his parents left for the city leaving him to the care of his grandmother.

They were good friends. She woke him up each morning, bathed him, dressed him, plastered his wooden slate, gave him breakfast—a stale, buttered chapatti with sugar sprinkled on it and walked him to school. The school was attached to a temple. While Khushwant Singh and the other children sat in the veranda learning the alphabets and morning prayers, his grandmother sat inside the temple reading scriptures. After they had both finished, they would head back home. On their way, she fed the dogs each day with the stale chapattis that she carried with her. When the writer’s parents had settled in the city, they sent for them. This proved to be a turning point in their relationship. The only thing that remained unchanged was their common bedroom.

She could not accompany him to school as he went by the school bus. Now, he went to an English school where they taught science. She could not understand English and did not believe in science. The fact that they were not taught about god made her unhappy. Khushwant Singh’s learning music in school made her unhappier as she felt it was not meant for gentle folk. Her communication with him deteriorated further. But it was when he went to the university and got a separate room that even this link was snapped.

When the writer was going abroad, she went to the railway station to see him off but did not speak a word, only kissed his forehead. The writer believed this was their last physical contact as he was going away for five years. But she was there when he returned and was delighted to see him back. In the evening she collected women from the neighbourhood and beat the drum and sang for hours of the homecoming of warriors. For the first time she missed her prayers.

She was then taken slightly ill. The doctors reassured the family that there was nothing to worry but she stopped talking. She said her end was near. She began to tell the beads of her rosary and her lips moved in a silent prayer before she died.

After her death, her body was laid on the floor, covered in a red shawl. Thousands of sparrows came and sat quietly all around her body. The writer’s mother threw breadcrumbs but the sparrows took no notice of them.

After her cremation they flew away without touching the crumbs.

The Portrait of A Lady Summary Questions and Answers

Question 1.
Why was it hard for the author to believe that the grandmother was once young and pretty?
Answer:
It was difficult for the author to believe that his grandmother was once young and pretty. In fact, the thought was almost revolting. He had seen her old for the last twenty years. He felt she could age no further. The very thought of her playing games as a child seemed quite absurd and undignified.

Question 2.
The grandmother has been portrayed as a very religious lady. What details in the story create this impression?
Answer:
The author recalls his grandmother as a very religious woman. He remembers her hobbling about the house, telling the beads of her rosary. He recalls her morning prayers and her reading scriptures inside the temple. The author recounts how, during the last few days, she spent all her time praying.

Question 3.
The grandmother had a divine beauty. How does the author bring it out?
Answer:
The grandmother was not pretty but had a divine beauty. She dressed in spotless white. Her silver locks were scattered untidily over her pale, puckered face, and her lips constantly moved in an inaudible prayer. The author describes her “like the winter landscape in the mountains”—a personification of “serenity, breathing peace and contentment.”

Question 4.
What proofs do you find of friendship between the grandmother and grandson in the story?
Answer:
The grandmother and grandson were good friends. She got him ready and walked him to and back from school. In the city, they shared a common bedroom. The author’s grandmother saw him off, silently, but kissing him on his forehead, when he went abroad and celebrated his return five years later.

Question 5.
The grandmother was a kind-hearted woman. Give examples in support of your answer.
Answer:
The grandmother was a kind-hearted woman. On her way back from school, she would feed the village dogs with stale chapattis. In the city, when she could not move out, she took to feeding sparrows that came and perched on her legs, shoulders, and head.

Question 6.
“This was the turning point in our friendship.” What was the turning point?
Answer:
The turning point in the friendship arrived when they shifted to the city. They saw less of each other as she could neither accompany him to school, nor understand English. She did not believe in science. She could not keep pace with the author’s modem education that he received in the city school.

Question 7.
Draw a comparison between the author’s village school education and city school education.
Answer:
The village school was attached to a temple and the students were taught the alphabet and morning prayers. The author and his grandmother walked to the school in the village. However, in the city he went by the school bus. He was taught science and English but not taught about god. He was also taught music.

Question 8.
What was the happiest moment of the day for the grandmother?
Answer:
The happiest moment of the day for the grandmother in the city was when she was feeding the sparrows.
They perched on her legs, shoulders, and head but she never shooed them away.

Question 9.
What was ‘the last sign’ of physical contact between the author and the grandmother? Why did the author think that to be the last physical contact?
Answer:
The author was going abroad for five years. His grandmother kissed his forehead. He presumed this as the last sign of physical contact between them. He feared that she would not survive till he returned since he was going away for five years.

Question 10.
Everybody including the sparrows mourned the grandmother’s death. Elaborate.
Answer:
When the grandmother died, thousands of sparrows collected and sat in the courtyard. There was no chirruping. When the author’s mother threw some breadcrumbs for them, they took no notice of the breadcrumbs. They were full of grief at her death and flew away quietly after the cremation.

We have decided to create the most comprehensive English Summary that will help students with learning and understanding.

The Road Not Taken Summary in English by Robert Frost

The Road Not Taken Summary in English

This poem talks about the choices that one has to make in life and their consequences. One day, while walking in a wooded area full of trees with yellow leaves, the poet comes to a fork in the road and has to decide which road he should take. He starts debating over the choice as he realizes he cannot walk on both. The second road appears to be less travelled and he is tempted to walk on it even though the first path also appears to have been left undisturbed for some time. However, he decides to take the second path with the intention of walking on the first one sometime in the future.

At the same time he knows that the chances of his returning that way are slim, especially as he is aware of the manner in which one path leads on to the other, taking the traveller far away from the main path. In the last stanza, the poet becomes philosophical when he talks about a future time when he would look back at the choices that he has made in life and their consequences. He feels his life will be very different from others because he has always been tempted to take the path that is not generally followed by others. It shows the poet as an adventurous man ready to take risks in life. He does not appear to like following the conventional path.

The mood of the poem is philosophical and thoughtful as the narrator wonders whether his choice of the road he decided to travel upon had been the right one.

The Road Not Taken Summary Questions and Answers

Question 1.
On the basis of your understanding of the poem, answer the following questions by ticking the correct choice.

a. In the poem, a traveller comes to a fork in the road and needs to decide which way to go to continue his journey. Figuratively the choice of the road denotes:
(i) the tough choices people make the road of life.
(ii) the time wasted on deciding what to do.
(iii) life is like a forest.
(iv) one must travel a lot to realize his dreams.
Answer:
The tough choices people make on the road of life.

b. The poet writes, ‘Two roads diverged in a yellow wood. ’ The word diverged means:
(i) appeared
(ii) curved
(iii) branched off
(iv) continued on
Answer:
Branched off.

c. The tone of the speaker in the first stanza is that of:
(i) excitement
(ii) anger
(iii) hesitation and thoughtfulness
(iv) sorrow
Answer:
Hesitation and thoughtfulness.

Question 2.
Answer the following questions briefly.

a. Describe the two roads that the author comes across.
Answer:
The author comes across a fork in the road as he is travelling through the woods. Both the roads look similar to him because of the undisturbed leafy undergrowth, but he senses that one of the roads has been trodden on less often than the other. .

b. Which road does the speaker choose? Why?
(Encourage the students to think creatively andformulate their own answers.)
Answer:
The speaker finally decides to take the road that not many people had walked on because it seems more adventurous than the route everyone seemed to take.

c. Which road would you choose? Why?
(Encourage the students to think creatively and formulate their own answers.)
Answer:
I would choose the road that many people have walked on because that is a tried and tested road. Many people have walked that path and achieved success.

I would choose the road less travelled because I want to do something different and carve out my own space in the world.

d. Does the speaker seem happy about his decision?
Answer:
No, the speaker does not seem happy about his decision because although he plans to come back to the path that he doesn’t take, he knows that the path that he has chosen might lead him to other, far flung paths. He might not get a chance to come back to the road that he did not take.

e. The poet says ‘I took the one less travelled by, And that has made all the difference. ’ What is ‘the difference ’ that the poet mentions?
Answer:
The poet talks about his decision of choosing a path that is different from the path that everybody has chosen to take. His choice of path will lead him to a destination that is different from the one that everybody has reached. This is the difference that the poet is talking about.

We have decided to create the most comprehensive English Summary that will help students with learning and understanding.

The Brook Summary in English by Alfred, Lord Tennyson

The Brook Summary in English

This is a poem that traces the life of a brook or a small stream as it emerges from the mountaintop and flows down the hills and across valleys to empty into the river. On a deeper level, the poet uses the brook to draw a parallel with the life of man. Like the brook, man is energetic, lively, and moves swiftly when he is young but slows down later on in life, just like the brook does, before it empties into the river.

By the use of words like ‘chatter’, ‘babble’, ‘sharps and trebles’, the poet describes the energetic movement of the brook in the initial stages which changes to the usage of words like ‘steal’, ‘slide’, ‘gloom’, ‘glide’, ‘murmur’ and ‘loiter’ to express the slower movement towards the end of its journey. As it slows down, it also deposits the ‘shingle’, sand and silt that it has brought down from the mountain and hills during its journey.

It passes through different landforms, through forests and past fields that are either fertile or fallow. It also passes by grassy lawns and flower filled gardens with forget-me-nots and hazel trees. It does not follow a straight path but meanders on around rocks and boulders without letting anything stop its path. Similarly, a man also is faced with many challenges in life and has to go on regardless finding new paths. The picture of the brook comes alive with the mention of the fishes like trout and grayling that swim in it and the reflection of the sunbeam dancing on its waves.

Through this poem, the poet points to the eternal nature of the brook that outlives man. Many men are bom and die but the brook never ceases to exist. It continues to flow from its source to the river eternally.

The Brook Summary Questions and Answers

Question 1.
On the basis of your understanding of the poem, answer the following questions by ticking the correct choice.

a. The message of the poem is that the life of a brook is:
(i) temporary
(ii) short-lived
(iii) eternal
(v) momentary
Answer:
Eternal.

b. The poet draws a parallelism between the journey of the brook:
(i) the life of a man
(ii) the death of man
(iii) the difficulties in a man’s life
(iv) the endless talking of human beings
Answer:
And the life of man.

c. The poem is narrated in the first person by the brook. This figure of speech is:
(i) Personification
(ii) Metaphor
(iii) Simile
(iv) Transferred epithet
Answer:
‘Personification’.

d. In the poem, below mentioned lines: ‘And here and there a lusty trout, And here and there a grayling ’ suggest that:
(i) the brook is a source of life.
(ii) people enjoy the brook.
(iii) fishes survive because of water.
(iv) the brook witnesses all kinds of scenes.
Answer:
The brook is a source of life.

Question 2.
Answer the following questions.

a. How does the brook sparkle?
Answer:
The brook sparkles because the sunlight reflects off its clear water.

b. Bicker’ means to quarrel. Why does the poet use the word here?
Answer:
The brook makes a noise which can be compared to the sound of quarrelling as it flows down into a valley.

c. How many hills and bridges does the brook pass during its journey?
Answer:
The brook passes thirty hills and fifty bridges during its journey.

d. Where does it finally meet the river?
Answer:
It finally meets the river after flowing by Phillip’s farm.

e. Why has the word‘chatter’been repeated in the poem?
Answer:
The word ‘chatter’ has been repeated in the poem to create the sound effect of the rapid movement of the brook.

f. With many a curve my banks I fret’. What does the poet mean by this statement?
Answer:
The brook shapes its bank by constantly eroding it and depositing silt. This creates new curves on the banks. This process is referred to in the above mentioned line.

g. ‘I wind about, and in and out’. What kind of a picture does this line create in your mind?
Answer:
This line creates a picture of a meandering brook, weaving itself into the landscape. Its movement is rapid as curved and it rolls down the gentle slopes, making its marks on the landscape.

h. Name the different things that can be found floating in the brook.
Answer:
Blossoms of flowers, lusty trouts, graylings and foamy flakes can all be found floating in the brook.

L What does the poet want to convey by using the words ‘steal’ and ‘slide’?
Answer:
‘Steal’ and ‘slide’ implies that the brook is moving quietly and fluidly through the landscape.

j. The poem has many examples of alliteration. List any five examples.
Answer:
Five examples of alliteration in the poem are:
‘field and fallow’
‘fairy foreland’
‘With willow-weed’
‘foamy flake’
‘golden gravel’

k. ‘I make the netted sunbeam dance ’. What does ‘the netted sunbeam ’ mean? How does it dance?
Answer:
The rays of the sun, as they filter through the leaves of the trees, create a netted pattern. This pattern projects itself on the surface of the water and gives the illusion of dancing sunbeams.

l. What is the ‘refrain ’ in the poem? What effect does it create?
Answer:
The refrain is ‘For men may come and men may go, But I go on forever.’ It creates an effect of timelessness.

Question 3.
Read the given lines and answer the questions.
“I chatter, chatter, as I flow
To join the brimming river,
For men may come and men may go,
But I go on for ever.”

a. Who does ‘I’ refer to in the given lines?
Answer:
‘I’ refers to the brook.

b. How does it ‘chatter’?
Answer:
It ‘chatters’ because of the noise that it makes as it flows over the golden bedrock, cutting through the landscape.

c. Why Has the poet used the word ‘brimming’? What kind of a picture does it create?
Answer:
The poet has used the word ‘brimming’ to indicate that the river is overflowing its banks in its motion.

d. Explain the last two lines of the stanza.
Answer:
The last two lines of the stanza imply that although the life of human beings is finite, the flow of the river is eternal.

We have decided to create the most comprehensive English Summary that will help students with learning and understanding.

Best Seller Summary in English by O.Henry

Best Seller Summary in English

The story is set in a typical American background with the twists and turns associated with an O. Henry story. It traces the life of a travelling salesman John Pescud, who believes that bestselling romances are the product of an over-imaginative mind. He finds the stories impossible to believe and feels that they are far removed from real life. He finds it hard to digest that an American man from Chicago would feel so deeply about a girl as to follow her to a remote European country with an unpronounceable name and fight half a dozen soldiers to win her hand in marriage.

Ironically, when he recounts the story of his own marriage to his travelling companion, the reader is exposed to events that are as extraordinary as a best seller. He meets his wife for the first time in a train and follows her as she changes train after train, travelling all the way from Pittsburgh to Virginia only because he falls in love with her. He stays in a local hotel, finds out all about her background and then approaches her to inform her of his intentions of marrying her. Then, he proceeds to meet her father, informs him about his background and his intentions of marrying his daughter, charms him with his stories, and finally gets his permission to marry his daughter.

Best Seller Summary Questions and Answers

Question 1.
Based on your reading of the story, answer the following questions by choosing the correct option.

a. The narrator says that John was ‘of the suff that heroes are not often lucky enough to be made of ’ His tone is sarcastic because:
(i) he hated John.
(ii) he felt that John was a threat to him.
(iii) John was not particularly good-looking.
(iv) nobody liked John.
Answer:
He felt that John was a threat to him.

b. Pescud felt that best-sellers were not realistic as:
(i) American farmers had nothing in common with European princesses.
(ii) men generally married girls from a similar background.
(iii) American men married girls who studied in America.
(iv) American men did not know fencing and were beaten by the Swiss guards.
Answer:
Men generally married girls from a similar background.

c. ‘Bully’, said Pescud brightening at once. He means to say that:
(i) he is a bully. ‘
(ii) his manager was a bully.
(iii) he was being bullied by his co-workers.
(iv) he was doing very well at his job.
Answer:
He was doing very well at his job.

d. The narrator says that life has no geographical bounds implying that:
(i) human beings are essentially the same everywhere.
(ii) boundaries exist only on maps.
(iii) one should work towards the good of mankind.
(iv) he was happy to travel to other countries.
Answer:
Human beings are essentially the same everywhere.

Question 2.
Answer the following questions briefly.

a. One day last summer the author was travelling to Pittsburgh by chair car. What does he say about his co-passengers?
Answer:
The author’s co-passengers were well- dressed ladies who refused to open their windows and men wearing identical looking business suits with the same expressionless faces.

b. Who was the passenger of chair no. 9? What did he suddenly do?
Answer:
The passenger of chair no. 9 was a travelling salesman named John Pescud of Pittsburgh, who the narrator was acquainted with.
He suddenly threw a book to the floor between his chair and the window, in disgust.

c. What was John Pescud’s opinion about best sellers? Why?
Answer:
John Pescud felt that the stories in such books were of a poor quality and far removed from real life.

d. What does John say about himself since his last meeting with the author?
Answer:
According to John, he was on his way to becoming prosperous. His salary had been raised twice along with receiving a commission. He had bought some real estate and was on the way to buy some shares. He was also married now.

e. How did John’s first meeting with Jessie’s father go ?
Answer:
For the first few seconds of John’s first meeting with Jessie’ father was a little nervous but they soon hit it off. John got him to laugh at his stories. They talked for two hours. He was honest with his intentions and asked the colonel to give him a chance to woo his daughter.

f. Why did John get off at Coketown?
Answer:
Some time back Jessie had admired some petunias growing in some of the houses in Coketown, so John had got down there in the hope of finding some saplings of these flowers to take back for Jessie.

g. John is a hypocrite. Do you agree with this statement? Substantiate your answer.
(Encourage the students to think creatively andformulate their own answers.)
Answer:
Yes, John was a hypocrite because on one hand, he was making fun of the romantic stories written in best-sellers but on the other hand, he himself had had a romantic marriage. He had followed the girl he had seen in a train to her hometown, changing a number of trains till he had landed in her hometown, met her father, and wooed her in the style of any romantic hero of a best-seller.

No, John was not a hypocrite. In my opinion, he probably had not realized that his love story was as romantic as the stories of the best selling novels that he so disliked were meant to be.

h. Describe John A. Pescud with reference to the following points:
Answer:
Physical appearance: He had a small, black, bald-spotted head. He was a small man with a wide smile, and an eye that seemed to be fixed upon that little red spot on the end of one’s nose.

His philosophy on behavior: He believed that when a man is in his home town, he ought to be decent and law-abiding.
His profession: He was a travelling salesman for a plate glass company based in Pittsburgh.
His first impression of his wife: She was the loveliest creature that he had set his eyes upon.
His success: He’d had his salary raised twice since he last saw the author and he got commission for his sale. He had bought some real estate and the following year the firm was going to sell him some shares of stock.

Question 3.
Rearrange in the correct sequence as it happens in the story.
Pescud sees a girl (Jessie) reading a book in the train.
Pescud instantly gets attracted to the girl (Jessie)
Jessie takes a sleeper to Louisville.
Pescud follows her but finds it difficult to keep up.
Jessie arrives at Virginia. .
Pescud goes to the village to find out about the mansion Pescud speaks to the girl (Jessie) for the first time.
Jessie informs Pescud that her father would not approve of them meeting.
Pescud meets Jessie’s father.
They meet alone two days later.
They get married a year later.

Question 4.
A newspaper reporter hears of the marriage of Pescud and Jessie. He interviews them and writes an article for the paper entitled: A Modern Romance.
Answer:
Pittsburgh, 19 March, 20xx

And we thought romances were the creations of highly imaginative minds! Recently I had the privilege of interviewing Mr and Mrs Pescud of Pittsburgh on their fairy-tale romance which culminated in marriage a year ago.

Mr John Pescud is a highly successful man working for Cambria Steel Works as a travelling salesman selling plate-glass. He comes from a humble background while Mrs Pescud belongs to an old aristocratic family of Virginia. How they met can make any best-selling novel pale in comparison!

Well, Pescud first saw his wife, Jessie reading a book in the train in which he was travelling. He got instantly attracted to her and followed her as she changed several trains till she finally reached Virginia. In fact he says that during that time his business took a back seat!

Jessie’s father came to receive her at the station at Virginia and Pescud followed them till they reached their mansion. He booked himself in a hotel and found out details about the family from the landlord of his hotel. On the third day, he met Jessie alone for the first time and informed her of his intentions of marrying her. Jessie was obviously taken aback and informed him that her father may not approve of him and probably would set the hounds on him. Pescud was not a man to be frightened so easily. He met Jessie’s father at the mansion. The meeting was surprisingly a pleasant one and a year later he married Jessie. Today, the old Colonel, her father lives with them in Pittsburgh!

As Shakespeare had wisely said—“All’s well that ends well!”

We have decided to create the most comprehensive English Summary that will help students with learning and understanding.

The Bishop’s Candlesticks Summary in English by Norman Mckinnell

The Bishop’s Candlesticks Summary in English

The play, which is very popular, is based on the theme that love and kindness can change a man rather than violence.

The play is about a convict who breaks into a Bishop’s house and is clothed and warmed. The benevolence of the Bishop somewhat softens the convict, but, when he sees his silver candlesticks, he steals them. He is captured and brought back. He expects to go back to jail, but the Bishop informs the police that they are a gift. This one kind act of the Bishop reforms the convict to believe in the spirit of God that dwells in the heart of every human being.

The play is set in the house of a Bishop, on a cold winter night. On the mantelpiece are two handsome candlesticks, quite out of place with the plain furnishings of the room. Marie, the maidservant, is busy stirring a pot of soup on the fire and Persome, the Bishop’s sister, is laying the table and keeping an eye on the soup being cooked by Marie. Persome is worried as it is already past 11 o’clock and her brother has not yet returned. She wonders where her brother, the Bishop, could be at that late hour. She asks Marie if there is any message. Marie tells her that the Bishop has gone to see her ailing mother.

This angers Persome who feels that most people take advantage of her simple brother who is always eager to help the poor and the needy. While the table is being laid for dinner, Persome asks Marie if she has placed the salt-cellars on the table. Marie tells her that the Bishop has sold the salt-cellars to pay the house rent for Mere Gringoire, who was being troubled by the bailiff. Persome curses the old lady for taking advantage of her brother, lamenting that the Bishop, who has already sold many of his belongings to help others, would sell everything.

The Bishop enters the cottage and informs Marie that her mother was better. He gives her his comforter and asks her to run home since it is very cold. Persome, who has been crying, gets very angry with the Bishop. When Marie leaves, she tells him that people lie to him to get help from him. The Bishop regrets that there is so much suffering in the world and so little that he can do.

To show her anger and resentment over his selling her salt-cellars, Persome taunts the Bishop that one day he would sell the candlesticks also. The Bishop assures her that he would never sell the candlesticks, as they are a token from his dying mother and encompass her memory. However, in the next breath, he feels bad to set such store by them.

As it is midnight, Persome goes off to bed and the Bishop sits down to read. Suddenly, a runaway convict, with a long knife in his hand, enters the room. He threatens to kill the Bishop if he tries to call out, and demands food. The Bishop greets him lovingly and assures him that he shall have food. He calls Persome to open the cupboard. Persome is scared to see the convict but the Bishop reassures her and takes the keys of the cupboard from her. He then serves the convict cold pie, wine, and bread.

After having his fill, the convict feels relaxed. He tells the Bishop that he has lived in Hell for ten years. He narrates the circumstances under which he was imprisoned. Once upon a time he, too, had a lovely wife and a home. His wife, Jeanette, was ill and dying and there was no food. He could not get work. So, he stole money to buy food for her. He was caught and sentenced to ten years in prison. The jailor told him that his wife had died the night that he was sentenced.

The convict recounts his sufferings in the prison. The jailer took away his name and only gave him a number. One day, they forgot to chain him and he escaped. After his escape from prison, he has been wandering from pillar to post without food and shelter, pursued by the gendarmes.

The Bishop is moved upon hearing his story. He consoles the convict and tells him that although he has suffered a great deal, there is hope for him. He then asks the convict to sleep in his house and assures that no harm would come to him. Saying this, the Bishop goes inside to bring him a coverlet.

The convict happens to see the candlesticks on the mantelpiece. He takes them down and finds that they’re quite heavy and made of pure silver. On his return, the Bishop finds the candlesticks in the convict’s hands. He tells the convict that they’re a parting gift from his mother. He bids the convict good night and goes to bed.

The convict decides to steal the candlesticks and use them to start a new life. He does think of the Bishop’s kindness but hardens his heart, stuffs the candlesticks in his pocket, and escapes.

Persome wakes up on hearing the noise and rushes downstairs. She finds the candlesticks missing and raises a hue and cry. She wakes the Bishop up and informs him about the theft. The Bishop regrets the loss of the candlesticks but refuses to call in the police as he doesn’t want the convict to be sent back to the prison, to suffer once again.

Just then a sergeant enters the cottage with the convict, led by three constables. He tells the Bishop about the circumstances under which he caught the thief. He had been moving along the roads suspiciously. On searching him, they found the candlesticks on his person. The sergeant remembered that they belonged to the Bishop, so he arrested the thief and brought him there.

The Bishop tells the sergeant that the gentleman he had brought was his good friend and he himself had given the candlesticks to him that night. The sergeant finds it difficult to accept this explanation. However, he releases the prisoner and goes out.

The convict is now a changed man. He is overwhelmed with remorse. He begs forgiveness from the Bishop, who has made him feel that he was a man again and not a beast. He asks his permission to go to Paris. The Bishop gives him the candlesticks so that they might help him and tells him about a safe route to Paris. As parting advice, he tells the convict to remember that the body was the ‘Temple of the Living God’. The convict assures him he would remember that all his life.

The Bishop’s Candlesticks Summary Questions and Answers

Question 1.
Copy and complete the following paragraph about the theme of the play in pairs.
Answer:
The play deals with a convict and a Bishop who is always ready to lend a helping hand to anyone in distress. A convict breaks into the Bishop’s house and is fed and warmed. The benevolence of the Bishop somewhat transforms the convict, but, when he sees the silver candlesticks, he steals them, and runs away. However, he is caught and brought back. He expects to go back to jail, but the Bishop informs the police that they are a gift. The convict is overwhelmed by this kindness of the Bishop and before he leaves he seeks the priest’s blessing.

Question 2.
Answer the following questions briefly.

a. Do you think the Bishop was right in selling the salt-cellars? Why/ Why not?
Answer:
Encourage the students to come up with their own answers.
Yes, I th
ink the Bishop was right in selling the salt-cellars because he sold them for a good cause. His act of selling the salt-cellars helped somebody to get out of trouble.

No, I don’t think the Bishop did the right thing by selling the salt-cellars because they belonged to Persome too and selling them without Persome’s knowledge was not the right thing to do.

b. Why does Persome feel the people pretend to be sick?
Answer:
Persome feels that people pretend to be sick so that they can take advantage of the Bishop’s kindness. Persome claims that the people realize that the Bishop will definitely help those in need even at the cost of himself and his family. Hence, they try to take advantage of this fact.

c. Who was Jeanette? What was the cause of her death?
Answer:
Jeanette was the convict’s deceased wife. She was sick and did not have enough to eat. Hence, she died.

d. The convict says, “/ am too old a bird to be caught with chaff. ” What does he mean by this statement?
Answer:
The convict believes that the Bishop is trying to call the police rather than Persome and implies that he is too experienced in the life of a runaway prisoner to fall for the trick of calling the police under the pretense of calling someone else.

e. Why was the convict sent to prison? What was the punishment given to him?
Answer:
The convict was sent to prison for stealing food. His name was taken away from him, as was his humanity. He was treated like an animal, made to sleep on boards with vermin crawling on him. He was not given food and lashed like a hound.

f. Do you think the punishment given to the convict was justified? Why/ Why not?
Answer:
No, the punishment given to the convict was not justified. Punishment should be proportionate to the crime committed and one should always try to understand the reason behind the crime. The convict stole food to feed his ill wife, after he had been disappointed in the day’s work. His crime was bom out of desperation. He should have been dealt with in a more humane manner. By sentencing him to prison, the judiciary created a criminal, distrustful of the system and vengeful at the world.

g. Why is the convict eager to reach Paris?
Answer:
The convict is eager to reach Paris because he wants to start a new life there, leaving his old life behind.

h. Before leaving, the convict asked the Bishop to bless him. What brought about this change in him?
Answer:
The convict asked the Bishop to bless him before leaving because he realized that the Bishop was a great man and was, perhaps, the only person in the world who wanted the best for him. The Bishop’s kindness and love had transformed the hardened convic into a humble and trusting man.

Question 3.
Read the following extract and answer the questions that follow by choosing the correct options.

A. Monseigneur, the Bishop is a … a hem!

a. Why does Persome not complete the sentence?
Answer:
she did not wish to criticise the Bishop in front of Marie.

b. Why is she angry with the Bishop?
Answer:
the Bishop has sold her salt-cellars.

B. She sent little Jean to Monseigneur to ask for help.

a. Who sent little Jean to the Bishop?
Answer:
Mere Gringoire

b. Why did she send Jean to the Bishop?
Answer:
as she knew that he was a generous person.

C. I offered to take her in here for a day or two, but she seemed to think it might distress you.

a. The Bishop wanted to take Mere Gringoire in because:
Answer:
She was unable to pay the rent of her house.

b. Persome would be distressed on Mere Gringoire’s being taken in because:
Answer:
She felt that Mere Gringoire was taking undue advantage of the Bishop.

We have decided to create the most comprehensive English Summary that will help students with learning and understanding.

Keeping it from Harold Summary in English by P.G. Wodehouse

Keeping it from Harold Summary in English

Mr Bramble is a famous boxer, popular by the name of ‘Porky’, with a large fan following. But, despite his successful boxing career, he is keen to give it all up because of his son Harold. Harold, a ten-year- old schoolboy, is unaware of his father’s profession and has been told that he is a commercial traveller. Harold is a constant source of amazement to his parents because of his excellence in studies and his impeccable manners. His mother, Mrs Bramble is convinced that he is a child prodigy. They fear that such a superior human being might not approve of his father’s profession.

Encouraged by his brother-in-law (Mrs Bramble’s brother), Major Percy Stokes, Mr Bramble decides to give up his boxing career and look for a job as a boxing instructor in a school or college. Unfortunately, the decision is taken days before a major boxing event where he stands to win a lot of money and fame. His wife does not appear too happy at this decision as she feels the money he would have won would have helped in their son’s education. Before the discussion can go any further, Mr Fisher, the trainer and promoter of Mr Bramble’s fight, arrives. He is horrified at Mr Bramble’s decision to give up boxing at such a time and does all he can to make him change his mind. In the middle of all this chaos enters Harold wanting to know why there was so much fighting in the house.

Much to the surprise of his parents he is extremely excited to know that his father is the famous boxing champion ‘Porky’ and surprises everyone with his in-depth knowledge of the boxing world and the fact that he has bet some money on ‘Porky’s’ win. Hence, matters end peacefully, with Mr Fisher taking Mr Bramble to train for the ‘big fight’ and Harold asking his mother to help him with his studies.

The story is written in the typical humorous, ironical style that came so naturally to P.G. Wodehouse.

Keeping it from Harold Summary Questions and Answers

Question 1.
Based on your reading of the story, answer the following questions by choosing the correct option.

a. Mrs Bramble was a proud woman because:
(i) she was the wife of a famous boxer.
(ii) she had motivated her husband.
(iii) she was a good housewife
(iv) she was the mother of a child prodigy.
Answer:
She was the mother of a child prodigy.

b. ‘The very naming of Harold had caused a sacrifice on his part ’ The writer’s tone here is:
(i) admiring
(ii) assertive
(iii) satirical
(iv) gentle
Answer:
Satirical.

c. Harold had defied the laws of heredity by:
(i) becoming a sportsperson.
(ii) being good at academics.
(iii) being well-built and muscular
(iv) respecting his parents
Answer:
Being good at academics.

d. Harold felt that he was deprived of the respect that his classmates would give him as:
(i) they did not know his father was the famous boxer, ‘Young Porky’.
(ii) his hero, Jimmy Murphy had not won the wrestling match.
(iii) he had not got Phil Scott’s autograph.
(iv) Sid Simpson had lost the Lonsdale belt.
Answer:
They did not know his father was the famous boxer, ‘Young Porky’.

Question 2.
Answer the following questions.

a. What was strange about the manner in which Mrs Bramble addressed her son? What did he feel about it?
Answer:
Mrs Bramble addressed her son in the third person and it jarred upon him as he felt she was addressing him the way one addresses a baby. He felt offended especially as he felt all grown up since he had won a prize for dictation and spelling.

b. Why was it necessary to keep Harold’s father’s profession a secret from him?
Answer:
Harold was studying in an expensive private school and was growing up to be quite a don. He was very intelligent and interested in studies. He amazed his parents with his courteous behaviour. Therefore, they felt that he might be embarrassed if he came to know that his father was a boxing champion and belonged to the rough world of boxing.

c. When Mr Bramble came to know that he was going to be a father what were some of the names he decided upon? Why?
Answer:
Mr Bramble had wanted to call the child John if he was a boy, after the American boxing legend John L Sullivan, and Marie if she were a girl, after Marie Lloyd, the music hall artist. He probably decided upon these names because they were famous and belonged to his world of entertainment and sports.

d. Describe Mr Bramble as he has been described in the story.
Answer:
Mr Bramble was one of the mildest and most obliging of men in private life and always yielded to everybody. Nobody could help but like this excellent man.

e. Why was Mrs Bramble upset when she heard that Bill had decided not to fight?
Answer:
Mrs Bramble was upset because the money that Bill would have made after the boxing match would have helped to provide for the expenses of their son’s education.

f. Who was Jerry Fisher? What did he say to try and convince Bill to change his mind?
Answer:
Jerry Fisher was the trainer, manager, and promoter of Mr Bramble’s boxing matches.

He tried to tempt Mr Bramble by reminding him of the large sum of money that he would win at the end of the fight, the celebrities who would come to watch him fight and the publicity he would get. He also tried to point out the problems that he would have to face if he decided not to fight.

g. How did Harold come to know that his father was a boxer?
Answer:
When Harold returned from a walk, finding the door of his house open, he walked into a room full of adults discussing about him. Seizing the opportunity, Mr Fisher told him that his father was the famous boxing champion, popularly called ‘Young Porky’.

h. Why was Harold upset that his father had not told him about his true identity? Give two reasons.
Answer:
Harold was upset that he had been denied the chance to show off before his friends that his father was the famous boxing champion ‘Young Porky’. He also felt that if his friends had known of his father’s true identity, they would have treated him with more respect and not called him ‘Goggles’.

i. Do you agree with Harold’s parents ’ decision of hiding from him that his father was a boxer? Why? Why not?
(Encourage the students to think creatively andformulate their own answers.)
Answer:
Yes, they did the right thing by hiding the fact from Harold because they did not know how he would react. They felt they were saving him from embarrassment .They did not want him to feel inferior to the other boys in his class, especially as most of them came from the upper strata of society and may have looked down upon him once they came to know of it.

No, it was foolish on their part to hide things from him because by doing so they were living under false pretenses • and this would have had painful consequences in the future. Also, they were being overprotective, deciding what their son should or should not be told. They were turning him into a snob by hiding his true background from him.

Question 3.
The sequence of events has been jumbled up. Rearrange them and complete the given flowchart.
Answer:
a. Harold is alone with his mother in their home.
b. Mrs. Bramble is amazed to think that she has brought such a prodigy as Harold into the world.
c. Mrs. Bramble resumes work of darning the sock.
d. Major Percy and Bill come to the house.
e. Mrs. Bramble is informed that Bill had decided not to fight.
f. Bill tells his wife that he is doing it for Harold.
g. Jerry Fisher tries to convince Bill to reconsider.
h. Harold comes to know that his father is a boxer.
i. Harold wants to know what will happen to the money he had bet on Murphy losing.

Question 4.
Choose extracts from the story that illustrate the characters of these people in it.
Answer:

We have decided to create the most comprehensive English Summary that will help students with learning and understanding.

Indigo Summary in English by Louis Fischer

Indigo by Louis Fischer About the Author

Louis Fischer (29 February 1896 – 15 January 1970) was an American journalist. He wrote the biography of Mahatma Gandhi entitled The Life of Mahatma Gandhi. ‘Indigo’ is an excerpt from this book widely acknowledged as one of the best books written on Gandhi.

Indigo Introduction to the Chapter

In the chapter’Indigo’, the author describes the struggle of Gandhi for the poor peasants of Champaran, who had to share their crops with the British planters. This made their life miserable as they were forced to grow indigo according to an agreement.

Indigo Theme

In the chapter ‘Indigo’, the main theme covered by the author is that how an effective leadership can overcome any problem. The chapter tells us about the leadership shown by Mahatma Gandhi to secure justice for the oppressed people through convincing argumentation and negotiation.

Indigo Summary in English

The story ‘Indigo’, written by Louis Fischer narrates Gandhiji’s struggle for the poor peasants of Champaran. The peasants were sharecroppers with the British planters. According to an old agreement, the peasants had to produce indigo on 15 per cent of the land and give it as rent to the landlords. Around 1917, it was told that Germany had developed synthetic indigo. So the British planters now no longer desired the indigo crop. To release the peasants from the old 15 per cent agreement, they demanded compensation from them. Most of the illiterate peasants agreed to it.

However, others refused. Lawyers were engaged to go to the court. At that time, on the request of Rajkumar Shukla a sharecropper, Gandhiji appeared in Champaran. He fought for the poor peasants a long battle for one year and managed to get justice for them. The peasants now got courage and became aware of their rights. Along with the political and economic struggle, Gandhiji worked on the social level also. He made arrangements for the education, health and hygiene of the families of poor peasants by teaching the lesson of self¬reliance. It was one of the ways to forward the struggle for Indian independence.

Indigo Main Characters in the Chapter

Rajkumar Shukla

Rajkumar Shukla was a poor sharecropper who was a victim of British landlords. Though he was illiterate, he was determined to fight against the injustice of the British landlords, and to fight them, he goes to meet Gandhiji to seek his help. It was because of Rajkumar Shukla that Gandhiji came to Champaran village in Bihar. Later, this struggle with British landlords became a turning point in the fight for the independence of India.

Charles Freer Andrews

Charles Freer Andrews was an English pacifist who became a devoted follower of Gandhi. He came to bid farewell to Gandhi before going on a tour to Fizi islands. Gandhi’s lawyer friends insisted him to stay and help them in the battle, but Gandhiji strongly opposed saying that they must not rely on an Englishman but on themselves to win the battle.

Mahatma Gandhi

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, known as Mahatma Gandhi was a highly intelligent and perceptive man. His fundamental principles were non-violence and self-reliance. His entire political campaign for the development of the country was based on these two principles.

Indigo Summary Reference-to-Context Questions

Read the extracts given below and answer the questions that follow.

1. He had gone to the December 1916 annual convention of the Indian National Congress party in Lucknow. There were 2, 301 delegates and many visitors. During the proceedings, Gandhi recounted, “a peasant came up to me looking like any other peasant in India, poor and emaciated, and said, ‘I am Rajkumar Shukla. I am from Champaran, and I want you to come to my district’!”

a. Who is ‘he’ here?
Answer:
Here, ‘he’ is Gandhiji.

b. What was ‘he’ doing in Lucknow?
Answer:
He was attending the annual convention of the Indian National Congress Party.

c. What did Gandhi recount?
Answer:
He recounted about a poor looking peasant who came up to him and asked him to visit Champaran.

d. What did Rajkumar Shukla want from Gandhiji?
Answer:
Rajkumar Shukla wanted Gandhiji to visit Champaran to look after the problems faced by the poor peasants there.

2. Then the two of them boarded a train for the city of Patna in Bihar. There Shukla led him to the house of a lawyer named Rajendra Prasad who later became President of the Congress party and of India.

a. Who are ‘them’ here?
Answer:
Here, ‘them’ are Mahatma Gandhi and Rajkumar Shukla.

b. Where are they going?
Answer:
They were going to the city of Patna in Bihar.

c. Who was Rajendra Prasad?
Answer:
Rajendra Prasad was a lawyer who later became the President of the Congress party of India.

d. Was Rajendra Prasad available at home?
Answer:
Rajendra Prasad was not at home, he was out of town.

3. Gandhi decided to go first to Muzaffarpur, which was en route to Champaran, to obtain more complete information about conditions than Shukla was capable of imparting. He accordingly sent a telegram to Professor J.B. Kriplani, of the Arts College in Muzaffarpur, whom he had seen at Tagore’s Shantiniketan school.

a. Why did Gandhi go to Muzaffarpur?
Answer:
Gandhi went to Muzaffarpur as he wanted to collect more information about the issue addressed by Rajkumar Shukla.

b. Whom did he contact in Muzaffarpur?
Answer:
He sent a telegram to Professor J.B. Kriplani, of the Arts College in Muzaffarpur.

c. Where did Gandhi first meet J.B. Kriplani?
Answer:
Gandhi first met J.B. Kriplani at Tagore’s Shantiniketan school.

We have decided to create the most comprehensive English Summary that will help students with learning and understanding.

Memories of Childhood Summary in English by Zitkala-Sa, Bama

Memories of Childhood by Zitkala-Sa, Bama About the Author

Born Gertrude Simmons Bonnin, (Zitkala-Sa) (22 February 1876 – 26 January 1938) was a Sioux writer, editor, musician, teacher and political activist. She was the co-founder of the National Council of American Indians in 1926. Her articles were published in the ‘Atlantic Monthly’ from 1900 to 1902 and in ‘Harper’s Monthly’. Most of her work is focused on tensions between tradition and assimilation and literature and politics. She was also an active member of the society of ‘American Indians which published the ‘American Indian’ Magazine. She worked for the recognition of native American culture and traditions but at the same time advocated US citizenship rights for American Indians to bring them into the mainstream.

Bama (Born: 1958-) is a Tamil novelist. Her autobiographical novel Karukku (1992) brought her fame. After this she wrote two novels Sangati and Vanmam along with two collections of short stories. Kusumbukkaran and Oru Tattvum Erumaiyum. She was born in a Roman Catholic family in Madras.

Most of her novels focus on caste and gender discrimination and that prevailing in Christians and Hindus. Her works embody the Dalit feminism and celebrate the inner strength of the subaltern woman.

Memories of Childhood Introduction to the Chapter

The “Memories of Childhood”, written by Zitkala-Sa and Bama has extracts taken from the writings of two different female writers from the marginalised communities. In both these autobiographical extracts, the writers narrate the painful experiences of their childhood when they were subjected to humiliation merely as they belonged to backward tribes or communities. The former is a victim of racial discrimination, whereas the latter is a victim of caste discrimination.

The first part titled ‘The Cutting of My Long Hair’ is by the extraordinarily talented and educated Native American writer, Gertrude Simmons Bonnin (pen name Zitkala-Sa). Her works criticised the dogma and the evils of oppression towards the Native American culture and women. The second part ‘Vie too are Human Beings’ is written by Bama, a Tamil Dalit woman from a Roman Catholic family. This is an excerpt from her 1992 autobiography, ‘Karukku’. This excerpt relates her first experience with untouchability.

Memories of Childhood Theme

The chapter, ‘Memories of Childhood’ explores the theme of prejudices and humiliation faced by the marginalised communities. The chapter tells us how the two brave girls stood up for their own and community rights, using their talent and education.

Memories of Childhood Summary in English

The Cutting of My Long Hair – Zitkala-Sa

The first day in school was a bitter and cold day. The noise made by the breakfast bell, the clatter of the shoes and the constant murmuring voices in a foreign tongue annoy the author. She sees many girls dressed in clinging dresses with stiff shoes and shingled hair. She finds the breakfast ritual of doing things according to the bell, strange. She calls it eating by formula. More atrocities were to follow for the new girl.

Zitkala-Sa’s friend overhears a talk about cutting r the long hair of the new girls. For Zitkala-Sa, this was absolutely atrocious. She belonged to a Native American warrior tribe. Their tradition was to keep long and heavy hair. Only those warriors captured by the enemy had their hair shingled. Short hair was worn by mourners, and shingled hair by cowards. Zitkala-Sa tries to rebel by hiding herself, but finally gets caught. Her voluble protests bear no fruit and her hair is also shingled forcibly on the very first day. This extract describes the narrator’s agony. She lost her beautiful long hair. Nobody provided comforit to her. Other children in the school had shingled hair. So she felt herself as one of the many animals driven by a herder.

We too are Human Beings—Bama

Bama was an innocent child living in a village. She had never heard of the word untouchability during her childhood. Certain small incidents of her life made her feel that she was born in the marginalised caste. She was a happy peppy girl. She loved the short-but- long walk from her school to her home. The plethora of beauty that she experienced on the way back from school made her very happy.

The performing monkey, the snake charmer, the Maariyaata temple, the pongal offerings being cooked in front of the temple—she could just go on and on looking at the beautiful sights. Once when she was in the class 3, while going home, she saw her people working hard for their landlords. In spite of their hard work, the landlords humiliated them.

Bama further narrates how an elder of their street had to act in a humiliating manner just because he belonged to the Dalit community. The village landlord sent the elderly man to get some vadai for him. The man held the packet by its string. He was not supposed to touch the packet as his touch would pollute the vadai. That is why, he had to carry the packet by its string. When Bama’s elder brother told her all the reasons behind this, her mind filled with revolt. She was enraged thinking why her elders work so hard for those people who despised them so much.

She wanted her people to stop paying undue respect and reverence to the upper caste people. Her brother told her that if they study hard and progress in their lives, it would help them in throwing away the indignities. Education is their weapon with which they fight back the society. Bama did the same and got many friends in her life. Education gave her double¬sided sword to fight very sharply against the unjustified caste system.

Memories of Childhood Summary Questions and Answers

Question 1.
How was Zitkala-Sa different from the other Native American students?
Answer:
Zitkala-Sa was a Native American girl. She had great love for her tradition and culture. She was proud of her beliefs. She held these beliefs close to her heart and felt hurt when the rest of the girls followed the foreign culture without any hesitation.

Question 2.
Mention any two reasons because of which it would take thirty minutes to an hour for Bama to reach home? (Memories of Childhood—We too are human beings)
OR
What would take ‘Bama’ half an hour to cover ten minutes distance?
Answer:
There were many reasons why Bama took long to reach home. She would watch all the fun and games going on the road, she would also look at the shops and bazaars; she loved looking at the performing monkey and the snake charmers. The various food stalls, the street plays, the political meetings, the Maariyaata temple, the pongal offerings being cooked in front of the temple—she could just go on and on looking at the beautiful sights.

Question 3.
Why was the girl tied to a chair in Memories of Childhood?
Answer:
The girl, Zitkala-Sa was refusing to accept the school’s decision to shingle the hair of all girls. According to her traditions and customs, a girl’s long hair was shingled only when captured by enemy, in mourning or for cowards. She felt insulted and hid herself. She was finally caught and forcefully tied to a chair and her long hair was chopped off.

Question 4.
Why did Zitkala-Sa not want her hair to be cut short?
Answer:
Zitkala-Sa belonged to a Native American warrior tribe. Their tradition was to keep long and heavy hair. Only those warriors, captured by the enemy, had their hair shingled. Short hair was worn by mourners, and shingled hair by cowards. Therefore, for her, this was absolutely atrocious.

Question 5.
When did Bama first come to know of the social discrimination faced by the people of her community?
Answer:
Bama came to know of the social discrimination when she was in class 3. On her way back from school, she saw an elder from her community carrying a small packet of eatables by a string without touching it. She found it very funny that a huge elderly man was carrying a small packet so strangely. Later on, she discovers from her brother that the real reason was that the landlords were of a higher class and they thought that their food would get polluted, if touched by people from her caste.

Question 6.
How did Zitkala-Sa try to prevent the shingling of her hair?
OR
Describe how Zitkala-Sa tried in vain to save her hair from being cut. Why did she want to save her hair?
Answer:
Zitkala-Sa went upstairs and crawled under a bed to hide herself. But to her plight, she was caught and brought downstairs and tied to a chair. Though she made many voluble protests, they were not fruitful. She cried, shook her head all the while but could not avoid her hair from being shingled.

Zitkala-Sa belonged to a Native American warrior tribe. Their tradition was to keep long and heavy hair. Only those warriors captured by the enemy had their hair shingled. Short hair was worn by mourners, and shingled hair by cowards. Therefore, for her, this was absolutely atrocious.

Question 7.
What are the similarities in the lives of Bama and Zitkala-Sa though they belong to different cultures?
OR
What kind of discrimination did Bama and Zitkala-Sa experience? How did they respond to their respective situations?
Answer:
Both Bama and Zitkala-Sa are victims of racial discrimination. Zitkala-Sa was a Native American and their community was treated poorly. The white skinned settlers of Europe considered local tribes as inferior. Similarly, Bama was a Dalit and was treated badly by the higher caste people. Both of them have painful experiences as they were subjected to humiliation merely as they belonged to backward tribes or communities. Both of them protest in their own ways and try their best to overcome all these humiliations. Zitkala-Sa fights against the shingling of hair by hiding, voicing out her protests aloud. Bama tries to study hard and be successful.

Question 8.
How was Zitkala-Sa’s hair cut?
Answer:
Zitkala-Sa’s hair was cut even after her resistance and strong opposition. It was all in vain since her stiff resistance was met with equally stiff efforts. She was tied to a chair and amidst her loud disapproval, her hair was cut.

Question 9.
Why did the landlord’s man ask Bama’s brother, on which street he lived? What was the significance?
Answer:
The street on which a person lived signified the caste of a person. Each street was dominated by a particular caste.

Question 10.
What did Zitkala-Sa feel when her long hair was cut?
Answer:
Zitkala-Sa was terribly shocked. She was in tears. She cried for her mother. However, no one came to comfort or reason out with her.

We have decided to create the most comprehensive English Summary that will help students with learning and understanding.

Going Places Summary in English by A.R. Barton

Going Places by A.R. Barton About the Author

A.R. Barton is a modern English writer. He lives in Zurich and has written a number of literary pieces depicting the contemporary problems and issues. In the present story ‘Going Places’ Barton emphasizes that fantasy and imagination end up in being illusions and empty mirages.

Going Places Introduction to the Chapter

The chapter ‘Going Places’, written by A.R. Barton, discusses about the teenagers and their dreams, f The author says that teen age period is all about aspirations. They believe to achieve the impossible f things in life. Most of the teenagers have a role model, whom they worship as their hero.

Going Places Theme

In this chapter, the author stresses on the fact that it is quite natural for teenagers to have unrealistic dreams, especially when their families are not well off. If the fantasies are beyond our approach, it may lead to miseries. Youngsters usually idiolise successful people and dreams of following their footsteps. Their dreams drive them away from the harsh realities of life. This makes it difficult for them to come in terms with life.

Going Places Summary in English

The story revolves around the life of Sophie, a teenager, who like others of her age, is filled with fantasies and desires. She comes from a poor financial background, but hopes to be sophisticated in the future. Sophie dreams of owning a boutique one day or being an actress or fashion designer, but her friend Jansie believes that both of them were earmarked to work for the biscuit factory. Jansie, who is more realistic, tries to make Sophie see reality, but in vain.

Sophie lives in a small house with her parents and brothers, Geoff and little Derek. Though she voices her feelings and desires, her parents ridicule her because they, unlike her, are more mature and know the truths of life.

Sophie finds a sort of fascination for her elder brother Geoff, who is tall, strong, handsome and reserved. She envies his silence and often wonders about his thoughts and areas of his life that she doesn’t know about.

The centre of this story is that Sophie fantasises about Danny Casey, an Irish football player, whom she had seen playing in innumerable matches. She makes up a story about how she met him in the streets and tells this to Geoff. Geoff, who is more sensible than Sophie, does not really believe her, even if she wants to. It seems an unlikely incident for Sophie to meet the prodigy in their street, but when Sophie describes the meeting in detail, he begins to hope that it could be true. She tells him that Danny has promised to meet her somewhere again.

Sophie gets so pulled into the story she made that she herself begins to believe that it’s true. She waits for the Irish player, but obviously, he never arrives. Then, she makes her way home, wondering how her brother would be disappointed on knowing that Danny Casey never showed up. However, Sophie still fantasises about her hero, unperturbed.

The whole story is about unrealistic dreams and how we love to indulge in them knowing all the while that they have little possibility of coming true. The story seems to hint at dreaming within limits. Unless you are impossibly ambitious, hardworking, and have loads of patience and perseverance, such dreams are best kept under lock and key unless you like the taste of bitter disappointment.

Going Places Main Characters in the Chapter

Jansie

Jansie belonged to a middle class family. She was a sensible and a practical girl. She did not have high ambitions in life as she is aware of the realities of her life. She does not believe in fantasies, unlike Sophie. She already knew that she has to work in a biscuit factory after completing school.

Geoff

Geoff was a soft-spoken person and an introvert. He preferred to live in reality and was very hardworking.

Sophie

Sophie was an outspoken and a daydreamer. She had various dreams and fantasies. She refused to accept the realities of life. Belonging to a middle class family, her fantasies were very far away from her reach.

Going Places Summary Reference-to-Context Questions

Read the extracts given below and answer the questions that follow.

1. Jansie, knowing they are both earmarked for the biscuit factory, became melancholy. She wished Sophie wouldn’t say these things. When they reached Sophie’s street Jansie said, “It’s only a few months away now, Soaf, you really should be sensible.

a. Who became sad?
Answer:
Jansie became sad.

b. What does Jansie know?
Answer:
Janise knows that they both are earmarked for the biscuit factory.

c. What are ‘these things’ referred to here?
Answer:
Here, ‘these things’ are referred to the fantasies of Sophie.

d. “You really should be sensible”. Why did she say so?
Answer:
Jansie says so because Sophie has been daydreaming and fantasising those things which can never happen in real life.

2. He was kneeling on the floor in the next room tinkering with a part of his motorcycle over some newspaper spread on the carpet. He was three years out of school, an apprentice mechanic, travelling to his work each day to the far side of the city.

a. Who is ‘he’ here?
Answer:
Here, ‘he’ is Geoff, Sophie’s brother.

b. What was he doing in the next room?
Answer:
He was kneeling on the floor on the next room tinkering with a part of his motorcycle over some newspaper spread on the carpet.

c. For how long had Geoff been out of school?
Answer:
He had been out of school for three years.

d. What was Geoff’s profession?
Answer:
Geoff was an apprentice mechanic. He travelled every day to the far side of the city.

3. And she was jealous of his silence. When he wasn’t speaking it was as though he was away somewhere, out there in the world in those places she had never been.

a. Who is ‘she’ here?
Answer:
Here, ‘she’ is Sophie.

b. Whom was she jealous of?
Answer:
She was jealous of her brother, Geoff.

c. What was the reason of her jealousy?
Answer:
She was jealous of her brother’s silent nature.

d. What did Sophie feel about her brother when he does not speak?
Answer:
According to Sophie, when Geoff does not speak, his mind is travelling some other places where she had never been.

4. And I knew it must be him because he had the accent, you know, like when they interviewed him oh the television. So I asked him for an autograph for little Derek, but neither of us had any paper or a pen.

a. Who is ‘I’ here?
Answer:
Here, ‘I’ is Sophie.

b. About whom is the speaker speaking?
Answer:
The speaker is speaking about Danny Casey, the footballer.

c. How did she know that he was him?
Answer:
She knew that he must be Danny because she recognised his accent which was familiar with the one, she heard on a television interview.

d. Why did they need paper or pen?
Answer:
They needed paper or pen for an autograph.

We have decided to create the most comprehensive English Summary that will help students with learning and understanding.

A Dog Named Duke Summary in English by William P Ellis

A Dog Named Duke Summary in English

Charles “Chuck” Hooper had everything going for him. He was tall, popular, used to play for the university football team and was now a successful zonal sales manager for a chemical company. He was happily married and had brought home a four year- old Doberman called Duke. But things changed dramatically after a freak accident which left him depressed and bed-ridden for life. After a long stay at the hospital, during which time Duke was kept in a kennel, he returned to an empty home which further heightened his depression and loneliness. His wife Marcy brought Duke back home and right from day one Duke understood his master’s needs and did not leave his bedside even for a moment.

Master and dog spent time staring at each other till one day the dog lost patience and started poking and prodding his master, compelling him to respond. Slowly, he guided his master and pushed him to walk again. Initially, Chuck walked very slowly holding on to the dog’s leash but gradually he started walking by himself. The progress was slow, almost a step at a time, till he was able to walk around his neighbourhood. One day he walked to his old work place and started working—at first for a few hours—till, slowly, he was able to work for a full day. All this time, Chuck was shadowed and guided by his loyal companion, Duke. They became a familiar sight in the neighbourhood. The partnership however came to an abrupt end one day when Duke was hit by a car and succumbed to his injuries.

A Dog Named Duke Summary Questions and Answers

Question 1.
Based on your reading of the story answer the following questions by choosing the correct option.

a. With reference to Hooper, the author says, ‘Every thing was going for him ’. What does it imply?
(i) he had everything that a man aspires for.
(ii) people admired him.
(iii) he did what he wanted.
(iv) he was capable of playing games.
Answer:
He had everything that a man aspires for.

b. Duke never jumped on Chuck again because:
(i) Duke was paralysed and unable to jump.
(ii) Chuck was angry with Duke for jumping at him.
(iii) Duke realized that Chuck was not well and could not balance himself.
(iv) Marcy did not allow Duke to come near Chuck.
Answer:
Duke realized that Chuck was not well and could not balance himself.

c. The author says that Duke ‘knew his job ’. The job was:
(i) to look after Chuck.
(ii) to get Chuck on his feet.
(iii) to humor Chuck
(iv) to guard the house.
Answer:
to get Chuck on his feet.

d. ‘…even Duke’s presence didn’t reach Chuck ‘. Why?
(i) Duke was locked in his kennel and Chuck couldn’t see him.
(ii) Duke hid himself behind the bed post.
(iii) Duke had come to know that Hooper was not well.
(iv) Hooper was lost in his own grief and pain.
Answer:
Hooper was lost in his own grief and pain.

Question 2.
Answer the following questions briefly

a. “In 1953, Hooper was a favored young man. ” Explain.
Answer:
It means that Chuck Hooper had everything going for him. He was a tall young man who had played in the university football team and was now a zonal sales manager for a chemical company. He seemed to have everything that he wanted.

b. “They said that they would create a desk job for Hooper at headquarters. ” Why did they decide to do this?
Answer:
They decided to do this because they wanted to show their support for Chuck during his difficult time. They realized he would not be as active as he had been in the past.

c. “Duke was an extraordinary dog. ” What special qualities did he exhibit to justify this?
Answer:
Duke was truly an extraordinary dog, he was quick to understand his master’s disability and took care not to injure him. Duke also managed to push Hooper out of a rut and gave him the strength and the will to walk again.

d. What problems did Chuck present when he returned to the company headquarters?
Answer:
The problem was that the company did not think that he would be able to contribute much to the work due to his injuries and handicap, yet they did not have the heart to discourage him especially as he was trying so hard to bring some normalcy into his life.

e. Why do you think Charles Hooper’s appointment as Assistant National Manager is considered to be a tribute to Duke?
Answer:
It was a tribute because it was the result of Duke’s persistence, help, support, and love that Hooper regained an interest in life and started working again, to prove that his handicap was not going to limit his abilities.

Question 3.
Following dates were important in Charles Hooper’s life in some way. Complete the table by relating the description with the correct dates.
Answer: