Prasanna

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

How I Taught My Grandmother to Read Summary in English by Sudha Murthy

How I Taught My Grandmother to Read Summary in English

The story is a first-hand narrative in which the author recalls how she taught her grandmother to read. The author’s grandmother had never gone to school as a young girl, but had nursed a deep desire to study. As she grew older, she ensured that her children, and later, her grandchildren were educated.

Her deep desire to read came alive when her granddaughter went to another village to attend a wedding and she was not able to follow one of the stories that her granddaughter used to read out to her, from a magazine. This made her determined to learn to read, even though she was sixty two years old. She asked her granddaughter to be her teacher and the author was amazed at the sincerity and dedication with which she applied herself to her studies.

By Dussehra, the grandmother had learnt to read and on the day of Saraswati Puja, she gifted her granddaughter material for a frock and touched her feet as a mark of respect for her young teacher. In return, the author gifted her grandmother her favourite story, Kashi Yatre, which had inspired her to learn to read and which had now been published as a novel.

How I Taught My Grandmother to Read Summary Questions and Answers

Question 1.
Now that you have enjoyed reading the story, answer the following questions by choosing the correct options.

a. The grandmother could relate to the central character of the story Kashi Yatre as:
(i) both were old and uneducated.
(ii) both had granddaughters who read to them.
(iii) both had a strong desire to visit Kashi.
(iv) both were determined to learn to read.
Answer:
(iii) both had a strong desire to visit Kashi.

b. Why did the women at the temple discuss the latest episode o/Kashi Yatre?
(i) to pass their time.
(ii) the writer, Triveni. was very popular
(iii) they could relate with the protagonist of the serial.
(iv) women have a habit of discussing serials.
Answer:
Because the writer, Triveni, was very popular

c. The granddaughter found her grandmother in tears on her return as:
(i) the grandmother had been unable to read the story ‘Kashi Yatre’ on her own.
(ii) the grandmother had felt lonely.
(iii) the grandmother wanted to accompany her granddaughter.
(iv) she was sad she could not visit Kashi.
Answer:
The grandmother had been unable to read the story Kashi Yatre on her own.

d. Why did the grandmother touch her granddaughter’s feet?
(i) As a mark of respect to her teacher.
(ii) It was a custom in their family.
(iii) Girls should be respected.
(iv) She had read the story of ‘Kashi Yatre’ to her.
Answer:
(i) As a mark of respect to her teacher.

Question 2.
Answer the following questions briefly.

a. What made Triveni a popular writer?
Answer:
Triveni wrote in an easy, convincing style. Her stories dealt with the complex psychologicafproblems in the lives of ordinary people and were very interesting.

b. Why did the grandmother depend on her granddaughter to know the story?
Answer:
The grandmother had never gone to school, so she could not read. Therefore, she depended on her granddaughter to read out the story to her.

c. Pick out two sentences which state that the grandmother was desperate to know what happened in the story.
Answer:
Para 4: ‘During that time… I read the serial out to her.’
Para 14: ‘Many times I … read for me.’

d. Could the grandmother succeed in accomplishing her desire to read? How?
Answer:
The grandmother did succeed by working hard under the guidance of her granddaughter. She would read, repeat, write, and recite what she was taught.

e. Which of the following traits would be relevant to the character of the narrator’s grandmother?
Answer:
(i) determined
(ii) selfish
(iii) emotional
(iv) mean
Give reasons for your choice.
(i) determined: We know that the grandmother was determined because once she made up her mind to study . she set a date by which she wanted to become literate and accomplished it through perseverance and sincere hard work.
(iii) emotional: We know that she was emotional because she felt embarrassed and upset at not being able to read her favourite story when her granddaughter had gone away to attend a wedding in a nearby village.

Question 3.
Here are some direct quotations from the story. Identify the speaker and write what each quotation suggests about the speaker. You can use the adjectives given in the box and may also add your own.
Answer:

Speaker		Quotation	Quality Highlighted
a.	Narrator	‘Avva, is everything all right? Are you O.K.?’	concerned, kind, tender
b.	Grandmother	‘At times, I used to regret not going to school, so I made sure that my children and grandchildren studied well.’	prudent, understanding, determined
c.	Narrator	‘Avva, don’t cry. What is the matter? Can I help you in anyway?’	enthusiastic, tender, kind, helpful
d.	Grandmother	‘We are well-off, but what use is money when I cannot be independent.’	wise, understanding
e.	Grandmother	‘I will keep Saraswati Pooja day during Dassara as the deadline.’	determined, diligent, systematic
f.	Grandmother	‘For a good cause if you are determined you can overcome any obstacle.’	wise, determined
g.	Grandmother	I am touching the feet of a teacher not my granddaughter.’	humble, amiable

 

We have decided to create the most comprehensive English Summary that will help students with learning and understanding. in This article, we are discussed The Interview Summary

The Interview Summary in English by Christopher Silvester

The Interview by Christopher Silvester About the Author

Christopher Silvester (1959) was educated at Lancing College Sussex, and Peter House, Cambridge, where he read history. From 1983 to 1994, he worked for Private Eye, initially writing the ‘New Boys’ column. He has written for several newspapers and magazines. He is also the Editor of The Penguin Book of Interviews: An Anthology from 1859 to the Present Day and the author of The Pimlico Companion to Parliament. He currently writes obituaries for the Times (of London) and book reviews. He is writing a three-volume social history of Hollywood for Pantheon Books.

Author Name	Christopher Silvester
Born	1959, London
Education	Lancing College, Sussex, and Peterhouse, Cambridge, where he read history
Books	The Pimlico Companion to Parliament: A Literary Anthology
Books edited	The Penguin Book of Interviews: An Anthology from 1859 to the Present Day

The Interview Introduction to the Chapter

‘The Interview’ is an extract from an interview of Umberto Eco. The interviewer is Mukund Padmanabhan : from the ‘The HINDU’. Thousands of celebrities have been interviewed over the years. Our most vivid impressions about contemporary celebrities are through interviews. But for some of them, interviews , are ‘unwarranted intrusion in their lives’.

In the second part of the chapter, the interviewer highlights how Umberto Eco considers himself as an . academician first and a novelist later on. He considers himself a university professor who writes novels : on Sundays – occasionally. The possible reasons of the huge success of Eco’s novel, ‘The Name of the i Rose’ are also highlighted in the interview.

The Interview Theme

‘The Interview’ written by Christopher Silvester briefs the new invention ‘Interview’ in the field of journalism. Interview that was invented over 130 years has become a commonplace journalism. Today, every literate or illiterate will have to experience interview at some points of their life. It is surprising to notice that as an interviewer, each one is comfortable, whereas as an interviewee, they feel it much disturbing and diminishing.

The Interview Summary in English

The narration, “The Interview”, written by Christopher Silvester is a very interesting lesson speaking about the invention of the interview about 130 years ago. We face interviews throughout our journey of life and several thousand celebrities are the part and parcel of this process. Yh e opinions of the interview—its functions, methods and merits—vary considerably. Some people believe that they are able to recall the truth while there are those who have a great despise from the word ‘interview’. They believe it to be a kind of direct encounter into the lives of the celebrities. In this context, some of the world fame writers had varied opinion. According to V.S. Naipaul, a cosmopolitan writer, “Some people are wounded by interviews and lose a part of themselves.”

Given below is an extract from an interview of Umberto Eco. He is interviewed by Mukund Padmanabhan from The Hindu.

Mukund : Once an English novelist, David Lodge remarked that he was unable to understand how Eco could do so many things.

Umberto Eco : People might feel, ‘I am doing many things but in the end I have found that I am always doing the same thing.’

Mukund : Which is that thing?

Umberto Eco : It is very difficult to explain. I have got some philosophical interests which are pursued by my novels and academic work. There are my books for children. They are about peace and non-violence and this is all philosophical interest. Even then there is a secret. All of us have a lot of empty spaces in our lives and I call them interstices.

Suppose you are coming over in an elevator to my place and I am waiting for you. This is an interstice—an empty space. I work in empty spaces. Your elevator will come up from the first to the third floor, and I am waiting for it. I have already written an article.

Mukund : It must be your non-fictioiial writing. Your work has a certain playful and personal quality about it. This is a departure from a regular academic style. You must have adopted an informal approach.

Umberto Eco : While presenting my first doctoral dissertation in Italy, one of the professors said “Scholars learn a lot of certain subjects, then they make a lot of false hypotheses, correct them and give the conclusions. But you told the story of your research.”

At the age of 22,1 understood that the scholarly books should be written the way I had done—by telling the story of the research. So, my essays have a narrative aspect. At the age of 50, I started writing novels. I remember that my friend Roland Barthes was always frustrated that he was an essayist and not a novelist. He wanted to do some creative writing but he died. In my case, I started writing novels by accident. The novels satisfied my taste for narration.

Mukund : Thus, you became famous after the publication of The Name of the Rose. You have written five novels and many more on non-fiction. Among them a seminal piece of work on semiotics. If we ask people about Umberto Eco, they will say that he is a novelist. Does it trouble you?

Umberto Eco : Of course, it troubles me. I consider myself a University Professor who writes novels on Sundays. It is not a joke. I always participate in academic conferences. I do not attend the meetings of Pen Clubs and writers. I identify myself with the academic community. By writing novels, I am in a position to reach to the large number of people. I cannot expect to have one million readers with stuff on semiotics.

Mukund : I ask you another question. Your novel The Name of the Rose is very serious novel. At one level, it is a detective tale, and then it goes deep into metaphysics, theology and medieval history. It is being enjoyed by a large number of audience. Were you puzzled at all by this?

Umberto Eco : No, the journalists are puzzled. We can even see that sometimes publishers also get puzzled because both believe that people like trash and do not like difficult reading experiences. Suppose there are six billion people in this planet and the novel is sold to 10 and 15 millions. Thus, I am getting only a small percentage of readers. Thus, these readers do not always want easy experiences. After dinner at 9.00 p.m., I watch television, and see ‘Miami Vice’, or Emergency Room. I enjoy it and I need it but not all day.

Mukund : Can you tell that how your novel has got a good success even if it deals with the medieval history?

Umberto Eco : That is possible. But I can tell you another story. My American publisher told she did not expect to sell more than 3000 copies in a country where some has seen a cathedral or studied Latin. So, I was given an advance for 3000 copies but in the end it sold two or three million in the U.S. So many books have been written about the medieval past but the book has a mysterious success. Nobody can predict it. If I had written it ten years earlier or later, it would not have been the same. Why it worked is a mystery? Thus, the novel The Name of the Rose has got a good success.

The Interview Main Characters in the Chapter

Mukund Padmanabhan

He is an interviewer from ‘The Hindu’ who interviews Umberto Eco after his huge success of the book he wrote.

Umberto Eco

He is the author of the popular novel, ‘Name of the Rose’. He is a University Professor. Writing novel is his hobby which he does only on Sundays. He had written 40 scholarly works of non-fiction and 5 novels. He always identified himself with the academic community, and never with writers or novelists.

The Interview Summary Reference-to-Context Questions

Read the following extracts and answer the questions that follow.

1. Some might make quite extravagant claims for it as being, in its highest form, a source of truth, and, in its practice, an art. Others, usually celebrities who see themselves as its victims, might despise the interview as an unwanted intrusion into their lives, or feel that it somehow diminishes them, just as in some primitive cultures it is believed that if one takes a photographic portrait of somebody then one is stealing that person’s soul.

a. What is ‘it’ referred here?
Answer:
Here, ‘it’ is referred to interview.

b. How is ‘it’ described in the above lines?
Answer:
The interview is described as the highest form, a source of truth and an art in its practice.

c. Who might despise the interview?
Answer:
Celebrities who see themselves as its victim despise the interview.

d. Why do they despise?
Answer:
Celebrities despise interview because they consider it as an unwanted intrusion into their lives.

2. Rudyard Kipling expressed an even more condemnatory attitude towards the interviewer. His wife, Caroline, writes in her diary for 14 October 1892 that their day was ‘wrecked by two reporters from Boston’. She reports her husband as saying to the reporters, “Why do I refuse to be interviewed? Because it is immoral!

a. What was the attitude of Rudyard Kipling towards the interviewer?
Answer:
Rudyard Kipling expressed a condemnatory attitude towards the interviewer.

b. What happened on 14 October 1892?
Answer:
On 14 October 1892, Rudyard Kipling and his wife’s day was wrecked by two reporters from Boston.

c. Where were the two reporters from?
Answer:
The two reporters were from Boston.

d. Why did Rudyard Kipling refuse to be interviewed?
Answer:
Rudyard Kipling refused to be interviewed because he considers it to be immoral.

3. H.G. Wells in ah interview in 1894 referred to ‘the interviewing ordeal’ but was a fairly frequent interviewee and forty years later found himself interviewing Joseph Stalin. Saul Bellow, who has consented to be interviewed on several occasions, nevertheless once described interviews as being like thumbprints in his windpipe.

a. What did H.G. Wells refer to in an interview in 1894?
Answer:
In an interview in 1894, H.G. Wells referred to ‘the interviewing ordeal’.

b. Who was a frequent interviewee?
Answer:
H.G. Wells was a frequent interviewee.

c. Who was H.G. Wells interviewing to after forty years?
Answer:
After forty years, H.G. Wells was interviewing Joseph Stalin.

d. How did Saul Bellow once describe interviews?
Answer:
Saul Bellow once described interviews as being like thumbprints in his windpipe.

4. Aah, now that is more difficult to explain. I have some philosophical interests and I pursue them through my academic work and my novels. Even my books for children are about non-violence and peace…you see, the same bunch of ethical, philosophical interests.

a. Who is the speaker of the above lines?
Answer:
Umberto Eco is the speaker of the above lines.

b. Whom is the speaker speaking to?
Answer:
The speaker is speaking to Mukund Padmanabhan, the interviewer.

c. How does the speaker pursue his philosophical interests?
Answer:
He pursues his philosophical interests through his academic work and his novels.

d. What are his books for children about?
Answer:
His books for children are about non-violence and peace.

5. This is why my essays always have a narrative aspect. And this is why probably I started writing narratives (novels) so late – at the age of 50, more or less. I remember that my friend Roland Barthes was always frustrated that he was an essayist and not a novelist. He wanted to do creative writing one day or another, but he died before he could do so.

a. Why did his essays have a narrative aspect?
Answer:
His essays have a narrative aspect because he used to write in a way of telling stories.

b. When did Umberto Eco start writing novels?
Answer:
He started writing novels at the age of 50, more or less.

c. Why was his friend Roland Barthes always frustrated?
Answer:
Roland Barthes was always frustrated that he was an essayist and not a novelist.

d. What did his friend want to do?
Answer:
His friend wanted to do creative writing.

 

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

Deep water Summary in English by William Douglas

Deep water by William Douglas About the Author

William O. Douglas (16 October 1898 – 19 January 1980) was born in Maine, Minnesota and was raised in Yakima, Washington. He was an American jurist and politician. He served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He was nominated at the age of 40 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt and was the youngest justice appointed to the court and served for the longest term in the history of the Supreme Court.

Author Name	William O. Douglas
Born	16 October 1898, Minnesota, United States
Died	19 January 1980, Bethesda, Maryland, United States
Books	Of Men and Mountains
Party	Democratic Party
Nationality	American, Canadian

Deep water Introduction to the Chapter

‘Deep Water1 is our autobiographical account of the author’s childhood misadventure at the swimming pool. In this chapter, he tells us how as a young boy, he was nearly drowned in the swimming pool. Thereafter, he feared water so much that he avoided it whenever he could, but on the other hand, he was also determined to get rid of his fear. Slowly and steadily, he overcame the fear of water in the end.

Deep water Theme

The chapter, ‘Deep Water’ is an essay written by William Douglas, in which he shares about his fear of water and how he overcomes the fear with courage, hardwork, determination, will power, perseverance and a strong desire to learn swimming. The theme covered in this chapter is ‘fear’ and his ‘triumph’ over it. It conveys the idea that fear is a great obstacle to our happiness and progress. It is a negative feeling which we can overcome by sheer will power and optimism.

Deep water Summary in English

The excerpt, ‘Deep Water’ written by William Douglas is taken from his book ‘Of Men and Mountains’.

‘Deep Water’ talks about his fear of water, and thereafter, how he finally overcame it. His first such experience was on the sea beach. He was with his father when a powerful wave swept over him. Though the wave receded, it left Douglas petrified. He decided to learn swimming. For this, he chose the Y.M.C.A. pool. It was safe. Its depth at the shallow end was only two feet. However, the deep end was nine feet deep.

One day, a strong young man picked Douglas and tossed him into the deep side of the pool. Douglas sank to the bottom. However, he jumped and came up gradually. Fear had seized him and he was nearly drowned. His efforts to save himself went in vain. No one came to’ his rescue. He tried to breathe but swallowed water. Though death was at his doorstep, he experienced complete freedom from the fear of death. He lay in complete peace. There was no sensation or fear of death. But someone finally saved him. This horrific experience, however, shook Douglas badly. Its memories haunted him so much that he felt sick. The sight of water rattled him so much that he could not even go canoeing or fishing.

Finally, he made up his mind to overcome his fear. He found an instructor who trained him as a swimmer bit by bit. He was able to overcome his fear completely and swim for miles.

The experience of fear and death; and its conquest made him live intensely. Conquering fear made him realise the true value of life and this helped him enjoy every moment of his living. He finally learnt to live life to the fullest.

Deep water Main Characters in the Chapter

William Douglas

William Douglas, the narrator of the story, was a positive thinker. He feared water since childhood. So he decided to overcome his fear. He was a determined man with a very strong will power. It was his determination and will power that helped him get rid of his fear. He was a strategic thinker also. When he was unexpectedly pushed into the water, he quickly planned his strategy to save his life.

Deep water Summary Reference-to-Context Questions

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

1. From the beginning, however, I had an aversion to the water when I was in it. This started when I was three or four years old and father took me to the beach in California. He and I stood together in the surf. I hung on to him, yet the waves knocked me down and swept over me. I was buried in water. My breath was gone. I was frightened. Father laughed, but there was terror in my heart at the overpowering force of the waves.

a. Who is ‘I’ here?
Answer:
Here, T is the author, William Douglas.

b. When did the aversion to water start?
Answer:
Aversion to water started at the age of three or four.

c. Where did his father take him?
Answer:
His father took him to the beach of California.

d. Why was the author frightened?
Answer:
The author was frightened because he was swept over by the waves while surfing with his father.

2. With that he picked me up and tossed me into the deep end. I landed in a sitting position, swallowed water, and went at once to the bottom. I was frightened, but not yet frightened out of my wits. On the way down I planned: When my feet hit the bottom, I would make a big jump, come to the surface, lie flat on it, and paddle to the edge of the pool.

a. Who is ‘he’ here?
Answer:
Here, ‘he’ is a boy of eighteen years old.

b. In which position did he land?
Answer:
He landed in a sitting position and went once to the bottom.

c. Was he frightened?
Answer:
He was frightened but was not out of his wits.

d. What did he plan?
Answer:
He planned that when his feet would hit the bottom, he would make a big jump, come to the surface, lie flat on it and paddle to the edge of the pool.

3. The next I remember I was lying on my stomach beside the pool, vomiting. The chap that threw me in was saying, “But I was only fooling.” Someone said, “The kid nearly died. Be all right now. Let’s carry him to the locker room.” Several hours later, I walked home. I was weak and trembling. I shook and cried when I lay on my bed.

a. Where was the author lying?
Answer:
The author was lying on his stomach beside the pool.

b. Why was the author vomiting?
Answer:
The author was vomiting because he got drowned inside the pool.

c. Where was the author carried to?
Answer:
The author was carried to the locker room.

d. Describe the condition of the author.
Answer:
The author walked home alone after few hours. He was weak and trembling with fear.

4. Next he held me at the side of the pool and had me kick with my legs. For weeks I did just that. At first my legs refused to work. But they gradually relaxed; and finally I could command them. Thus, piece by piece, he built a swimmer. And when he had perfected each piece, he put them together into an integrated whole. In April he said, “Now you can swim. Dive off and swim the length of the pool, crawl stroke.”

a. What did the author do for weeks?
Answer:
For weeks, the author’s instructor held him at the side of the pool and had him kick with his legs.

b. Was he able to do?
Answer:
Initially, his legs refused to work, but gradually, they relaxed and later he could easily command them.

c. Who built a swimmer?
Answer:
The instructor built a swimmer out of the author, piece by piece.

d. When did he put together into an integrated whole?
Answer:
When the instructor perfected each piece of the author, he put them together into an integrated whole.

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

Poets and Pancakes Summary in English by Asokamitran

Poets and Pancakes by Asokamitran About the Author

Asokamitran (22 September 1931-23 March 2017) was a famous Tamil writer and Sahitya Akademi, winner. He was one of the few writers who wrote fluently in both Tamil and English. In a career spanning over six decades, he wrote 8 novels, 20 novellas and hundreds of short stories, on a wide range of issues.

He spent the initial years of his career in the famous Gemini Studios of Chennai. Although he was entrusted with the clerical task of cutting and pasting newspaper articles, he learned a lot about the functioning of Gemini Studios, which he humorously depicted in his autobiographical book My Years with Boss.

Author Name	Asokamitran
Born	22 September 1931, Secunderabad
Died	23 March 2017, Chennai
Books	The Eighteenth Parallel, Manacarovar, Tannir
Movies	Sivaranjiniyum Innum Sila Pengalum
Awards	Sahitya Akademi Award for Tamil Writers

Poets and Pancakes Introduction to the Chapter

Set up in 1940, for almost thirty years, Gemini Studios of Madras (Chennai) was one of India’s pioneering and influential film-producing organisations of India. Founded by the brilliant and talented S.S. Vasan, it had a staff of over 600 people and made movies for Tamil Nadu and other southern Indian states. Pancake was the make-up material used by Gemini Studios. Sahitya Akademi award winning Tamil writer Asokamitran worked for the Gemini Studios from 1952 to 1966. He later recorded his reminiscences in the book, ‘My Years with Boss’.

Poets and Pancakes Theme

This chapter has been taken from “My Years with Boss’ written by Asokamitran. Through this write up, Asokamitran brings up a lot of topics pertaining to film industry in particular and India in general, and provides the reader a glimpse of independent India in its infancy. Asokamitran also tells about the manner in which the legal advisor ruins the career of a talented actress unwittingly.

Communism also finds a place in the musings of Asokamitran. At that time of India, the educated folk took pride in showing their support for communism and Gemini studios was no exception. He also mentions the anti-communism movement run by the West.

Poets and Pancakes Summary in English

The essay, “Poets and Pancakes” is an extract from Asokamitran’s book “My Years with Boss.” The Boss was S.S. Vasan, who founded the Gemini Studios which produced a number of films that influenced every aspect of Indian life.

Asokamitran talks about his days at Gemini Studios. He is known for his humour and gende satire. He explains us about a make-up material. The brand name of this material was Pancake. This material was bought and used up in the studios. He gives name of few actresses who used that material. He suggests that the make-up department was located in a building which was believed to have been Robert Clive’s stable. However, there were several buildings associated with Robert Clive’s residence but this was not true as Clive’s stay in India was very shortlived.

Further, he gives a description of the make-up department as a symbol of national integration and the make-up room as a hair-cutting salon. Pancake and many other lotions made actors ugly as it was necessary to make them presentable in a movie. In the make-up department, there was a forty-year-old office boy with dream of becoming a star-actor or director or lyrics writer. His dreams remained unfulfilled, making him frustrated. For this, he blamed Subbu, who was No. 2 and a favourite of the boss.

The writer tells about poets who used to wear khadi and believed that Communists were monster^. He even tells about legal adviser who had been the member of the story department. He was at odds in the department and lost his job with the closure of story department. The legal adviser had even once brought an abrupt end to the promising career of a talented actress.

The Gemini Studios even hosted a two-hundred strong Moral Rearmament Army (MRA) which showed two plays in the most professional manner. The plays became a good success and left their impression on Tamil drama. Later, the writer however, learnt that MRA was actually a counter-Communist movement.

The writer even tells us about Subbu, a man of many abilities and kind-hearted person. However, the office boys felt jealous of him, and cursed him.

The writer humorously tells of an English poet’s visit to the studios. Though royal preparations were done but the purpose of his arrival was a mystery for long time to come. At the studios, they had never heard the poet’s name before. Further, they did not understand what he spoke. The poet also perhaps felt baffled.

Asokamitran’s duty at the studios was to cut newspaper clippings on several issues and store them in files. However, anyone who saw him tearing newspapers thought he had no work. Thus, everybody wanted to deliver some work to him.

The author saw a notice in The Hindu. A short story contest had been organised by a British periodical called, The Encounter. The writer desired to send an entry. However, he wanted to know status of the periodical. For this, he went to British Council Library. There he found it. He learnt that the editor of the periodical was Stephen Spender, the poet who had come to Gemini Studios.

After his retirement, he came across a book titled, The God That Failed. It had six essays about failure of Communism. One of these essays was written by Spender. The mystery of Spender’s visit to Gemini Studios was cleared. Perhaps it had something to do with his anti-communist perspective.

Poets and Pancakes Main Characters in the Chapter

Asokamitran

The author of the narrative and an employee of Gemini Studio, Asokamitran’s work was to cut newspaper clippings, paste these and maintain a file of the same. The other stafflooked down on his job and believed themselves to be superior to him.

Office Boy

The office boy was not really a boy, but a grown-up man. He was forty years old. He was in charge of the crowd make-up. Though his job was an easy one, he considered himself to be a skilled artist. He had once aspired to be a star actor or a top screen writer. He blamed Subbu for his failure.

Kothamangalam Subbu

Kothamangalam Subbu was the No. 2 at Gemini Studios. Though he definitely came from a less advantaged background than the office boy, being a brahmin by birth had given him better exposure than the office boy. He had the ability to look cheerful at all times and his undivided loyalty was to Vasan, the principal of Gemini Studios. Extremely creative, Subbu directed all his talent to his principal’s advantage.

Though a brilliant actor, he was content playing secondary roles and usually performed better than the lead actors. Without a doubt, Subbu gave direction and definition to Gemini Studios during its golden years. Subbu was an extremely talented poet as well. Though capable of writing complex poetry, he deliberately chose to write in simple Tamil verse to enlighten the masses. Generous to the core, Subbu’s house was a permanent residence for dozens of near and distant relations, whom he fed and supported without a thought. Yet, even Subbu had enemies.

Legal Advisor

Like Subbu, the story department of Gemini Studios also had a lawyer, officially known as legal advisor, though better known for the opposite reasons. While every other member of the story department wore a khadi dhoti and white khadi shirt, the legal advisor wore pants and a tie, and sometimes an oversized coat. He is described as a man of cold logic in a crowd of dreamers. He was responsible for destroying the acting career of a highly talented actress, by his irresponsible behaviour.

Stephen Spender

Stephen Spender, an English poet, editor and a one-time communist, came to Gemini Studios and gave a speech. His lecture was about Communism on one side and about his struggles to establish as a poet on the other. The content of the speech and the accent of the poet left everyone utterly bewildered. The reason for his visit remained an unexplained mystery. Asokamitran later discovered that Stephen Spender was the editor of the British periodical, ‘Encounter’. When he accidentally chanced upon Spender’s essay on Communism in the book, ‘The God that Failed’, Asokamitran understood the connection between the English poet, Stephen Spender and the owner of Gemini Studios, S.S. Vasan.

Poets and Pancakes Summary Reference-to-Context Questions

Read the following extracts and answer the questions that follow.

1. They were all incandescent lights, so you can imagine the fiery misery of those subjected to make-up.The make-up department was first headed by a Bengali who became too big for a studio and left. He was succeeded by a Maharashtrian who was assisted by Dharwar Kannadiga, an Andhra, a Madras Indian Christian, an anglo- Burmese and the usual local Tamils. All this shows that there was a great deal of national integration long before A.I.R. and Doordarshan began broadcasting programmes on national integration.

a. Where were all these lights to be found?
Answer:
These lights were to be found in the make-up room of the Gemini Studios.

b. What was the name of the make-up material used by Gemini Studios?
Answer:
‘Pancake’ was the brand name of the make-up material that Gemini Studios used in vast quantities.

c. Explain: “fiery misery”.
Answer:
The heat emanated by all the incandescent lights made the make-up room very hot. Actors who had to put on make-up had to endure the misery of this fiery heat.

d. Why does the author say that there was a great deal of national integration here?
Answer:
People from different states of the country worked in complete harmony in this department. They were a Bengali, succeeded by a Maharashtrian, assisted by an Andhra, and sundry local Tamils.

2. He wasn’t exactly a ‘boy’; he was in his early forties, having entered the studios years ago in the hope of becoming a star actor or a top screen writer, director or lyrics writer. He was a bit of a poet.

a. Who was ‘he’?
Answer:
“He” was the office boy.

b. What had he aspired to become?
Answer:
He had hoped to become a star actor or a top screen writer, director or lyrics writer.

c. What was his role in Gemini Studios?
Answer:
Though a bit of a poet, the office boy’s work was to put make-up on the crowd players on the days that had crowd shooting.

d. Whom did he blame for his failure? Why?
Answer:
He blamed Kothamangalam Subbu.Though both started their careers in Gemini Studios at the same level, Subbu rose to become No. 2 at Gemini Studios while he remained an office boy in the make-up department.

3. Even in the matter of education, specially formal education, Subbu couldn’t have had an appreciable lead over our boy. But by virtue of being bom a Brahmin—a virtue, indeed! he must have had exposure to more affluent situations and people.

a. What was Subbu’s position in Gemini Studios?
Answer:
Subbu held the No.2 position in Gemini Studios.

b. Who does “our boy” refer to?
Answer:
It refers to the office boy, Subbu’s arch-rival.

c. What was Subbu’s advantage over “our boy”?
Answer:
Subbu’s advantage over the boy was by virtue of his birth, since he was born a Brahmin.

d. Name two ways in which Subbu’s ‘birth’ helped him.
Answer:
It gave him a greater exposure to an affluent society, with affluent situations and people.

4. It seemed against Subbu’s nature to be even conscious that he was feeding and supporting so many of them. Such a charitable and improvident man, and yet he had enemies!

a. Who were the people Subbu fed and supported?
Answer:
Subbu was extremely generous and large hearted. His house was apermanent residence for dozens of near and far relations and acquaintances.

b. Why did he do so?
Answer:
Charity and generosity was an integral part of nature. He was not even conscious that he was feeding and supporting so many people all the time.

c. Who do you think was Subhu’s enemy?
Answer:
Subbu’s enemy was the man the office boy who envied Subbu his success and popularity.

d. Why did Subbu have enemies?
Answer:
Subbu’s intimacy with the boss and his eagerness to say nice things in all situations made him appear like a sycophant. This made him enemies.

5. While every other member of the Department wore a kind of uniform- khadi dhoti with a slightly oversized and clumsily tailored white khadi shirt- the legal adviser wore pants and a tie and sometimes a coat that looked like a coat of mail. Often he looked alone and helpless—a man of cold logic in a crowd of dreamers—a neutral man in an assembly of Gandhiites and khadiites.

a. Which is the department referred to in the above passage?
Answer:
The department referred to is the story department.

b. How was the lawyer differently dressed?
Answer:
Unlike all other members of the department who khadi, the lawyer wore pants, a tie and an oversized coat.

c. What did it say about him?
Answer:
The lawyer’s attire isolated him from the others. He looked like a man of cold logic in a crowd of dreamers.

d. Why was the lawyer, a legal adviser, also known as the opposite?
Answer:
The lawyer was responsible for wrecking the career of brilliant actress when he recorded her outburst in the studios and played it back.The girl was so shocked that she could never overcome the trauma she experienced.

6. Most of them wore khadi and worshipped Gandhiji but beyond that they had not the faintest appreciation for political thought of any kind. Naturally they were all averse to the term ‘Communism’.

a. Who are “them”?
Answer:
Some of them were poets like Harindranath Chattopadhyaya and sundry other members of the Gemini Studios.

b. What was the role of the poets in Gemini Studios?
Answer:
Most of the time they radiated leisure, ie., were idling, which was an apparent pre¬requisite for poetry.

c. Why did they wear khadi and worship Gandhiji?
Answer:
Most of these people had no political awareness or ideology they expressed their nationalism by wearing khadi and worshipping Gandhiji.

d. Why were they averse to communism?
Answer:
For them, a Communist was a godless man with no love for parents or wife. He was ruthless and did not hesitate to kill his parents or children. His aim was to spread violence and unrest in society among innocent and ignorant people.

7. ………. they couldn’t have found a warmer host in India than the Gemini Studios. Someone called the group an international circus. They weren’t very good on the trapeze and their acquaintance with animals was only at the dinner table, but they presented two plays in a most professional manner.

a. Who were “they”?
Answer:
‘They’ were Frank Buchman’s Moral Rearmament army, a group of two hundred people, that visited Gemini Studios.

b. Why had they come to India?
Answer:
They presented two plays to counter-act the rising spread of international Communism.

c. Name the two plays they presented.
Answer:
The two plays were, jotham Valley’ and ‘The Forgotten Factor’.

d. How did they impact the Tamil drama community?
Answer:
The Tamil drama community was very impressed by their sets and costumes. For years, thereafter, all Tamil plays imitated their scenes of sunrise and sunset with a bare stage, a white background curtain and a tune played on the flute.

8. Then the poet spoke. He couldn’t have addressed a more dazed and silent audience— no one knew what he was talking about and his accent defeated any attempt to understand what he was saying. The whole thing lasted about an hour; then the poet left and we all dispersed in utter bafflement—what were we doing?

a. Who was the poet who spoke ?
Answer:
The speaker was Stephen Spender, English poet and editor.

b. Whom did the poet address?
Answer:
He addressed a dazed and silent audience consisting of the members of the Gemini Studios.

c. What caused the lack of communication between the poet and his audience?
Answer:
No one knew what he talked about and his accent was so heavy that as no one could understand what he said.

d. Why was the audience baffled?
Answer:
The poet spoke for an hour and left, leaving everyone utterly bewildered. No one had followed a word of what he spoke.They wondered why he had been brought to Gemini Studios at all.

We have decided to create the most comprehensive English Summary that will help students with learning and understanding. In this article, we have created A Legend Of The Northland Summary.

A Legend of the Northland Summary in English by Phoebe Cary

A Legend of the Northland by Phoebe Cary About the Poet

Poet Name	Phoebe Cary
Born	4 September 1822, Mount Healthy, Ohio, United States
Died	31 July 1871, Newport, Rhode Island, United States
Nationality	American
Genre	prose
Siblings	Alice Cary

A Legend of the Northland Introduction to the Chapter

A Legend of the Northland is based on a story from the Old Testament in the Bible. In the ballad, Phoebe Cary reminds us what happens when we cannot bring ourselves to share with those in need. The legend, which is set in the snow-covered polar region of is quite famous and has been passed on through generations. The poet doesn’t believe in the authenticity of the story but yet is tempted to share the story because of the moral it teaches. Mythological stories may not relate to reality but they always carry a good message and that is why the poet is narrating the story.

A Legend of the Northland is a ballad. A ballad is a song narrating a story in short stanzas. Ballads are a part of folk culture or popular culture and are passed on orally from one generation to the next.

A Legend of the Northland Summary in English

The poem A Legend of the Northland is a legend about an old lady who angered Saint Peter because of her greed.

This is a legend of Northland where the days are short and the nights so long and chilly and it is difficult to sleep through them. In this part of the world reindeers are used to pull sledges on snows and the children have to be kept warm in fur clothes. In this region people tell of a strange story which I don’t believe can be true but one must listen to it as it has a moral to teach us all.

Once, when St. Peter was living in the world, and he went about preaching from place to place, he reached the door of a cottage. He saw a woman making cakes and baking them. He was tired and hungry as he had fasted the whole day. So, he asked her for one of her cakes.

The woman, who was miserly, felt the cake that she was baking was too big to be given away in charity, so she kneaded the dough again and made a still smaller one but did not have the heart to give it away either. She finally took a very small ball of dough and made a cake which was as thin as wafer but decided not to give that away as well.

She said that the cakes that seemed too small to fill her own stomach, appeared too large to be given away. So she stored them on the shelf. St. Peter, who was fainting with hunger, became angry with the old woman. He told her that she was too selfish to not fit to live in human form and enjoy food and warmth. He cursed her and transformed her into a woodpecker who has to bore in hard and dry wood to get its scanty food. Because she was wearing a red cap on her head, the colour of the woodpecker’s head is also red. Since the rest of the clothes were burnt in the chimney, the rest of the body is black. She can be seen boring in the trees for food all day.

A Legend of the Northland Theme

The theme of A Legend of the Northland is that greed and selfishness can annoy even a saint.

Long long ago, there lived an old lady in Northland. One day Saint Peter, while preaching round the world, reached her door. She was baking cakes on her hearth. St. Peter, who was fainting with hunger, asked the lady to give him a piece of cake. The selfish lady tried to make a tiny cake for him. But as it was baking, she found it too large to be given away. She tried baking two more times but even the smallest of cakes seemed too large to her. Such greedy behaviour of the lady annoyed the hungry saint. He cursed her saying that she was far too selfish to be a human, to have food, shelter and fire to keep her warm. Thus, she was transformed into a woodpecker. All her clothes except her scarlet cap were burnt black as she went up the chimney and flew out of the top. The old woman can still be seen in the forest, boring into the wood for food.

A Legend of the Northland Tone

The poet, though she declines all responsibility about the truth of the story, yet narrates it because she wishes to convey the message of generosity and kindness. Her tone is preachy and sanctimonious as she narrates the story. Though she claims she does not believe in the authenticity of the story, she ends on a warning note when she says the old woman may still be seen boring into wood for food.

A Legend of the Northland Message

The poem A Legend of the Northland is a legend, or an old traditional and popular story that is told to the children of the Northland. Though it is considered to be historical, but its authenticity is not attested. It is a “curious” and conventional story with a supernatural element present at the end of the tale. The main objective of such poems or folktales is to convey a message or teach some values. In A Legend of the Northland the poet tells us that we should not be greedy or selfish and must always be ready to help those in need. The poet seems to be warning people who are selfish that they may be punished, and that the punishment may be very severe, for the old woman is still seen boring into wood for food.

A Legend of the Northland Title

The poem has an apt title. A legend is an old traditional and popular story that is told to convey a message or teach some values. This legend, which is a foltale from Northland, teaches the lesson of kindness and generosity.

A Legend of the Northland Setting

The poem is set in Northland or the cold polar region of the North, including Greenland, northern Europe and Siberia. She says that in this region the days are short, and nights are long. When the snow falls, the people heretie reindeer to their sledges and go sledging. Because of the cold, children are made to wear heavy woollen clothes that cover them up fully and make them look like bear cubs.

A Legend of the Northland Literary Devices

Enjambment is when a sentence, phrase, or thought does not end with the line of poetry. Rather, it carries over to the next line.

Example: He came to the door of a cottage,
In travelling round the earth,
Where a little woman was making cakes,
And baking them on the hearth;

Imagery

Imagery is a poetic device wherein the author uses words or phrases that appeal to any of the senses or any combination of senses to create “mental images” for the reader. Imagery helps the reader to visualize more realistically the author’s writings. Imagery is not limited to only visual sensations, but also refers to igniting kinesthetic, olfactory, tactile, gustatory, thermal and auditory sensations as well.

In A Legend of the Northland we find sensory imagery that includes vision, taste, and sound as Saint Peter approaches the cottage and sees the old woman baking the cakes, then turns the woman into a woodpecker that can be heard tapping tapping on a tree.

Rhyme Scheme

Rhyme scheme refers to the order in which particular words at the end of each line rhyme. The first end sound is represented as the letter “a”, the second is “b”, and so on. If the alternate words rhyme, it is an “a-b-a-b” rhyme scheme, which means “a” is the rhyme for the lines 1 and 3 and “b” is the rhyme affected in the lines 2 and 4.
Example: “Away, away in the Northland, (a)
Where the hours of the day are few, (b)
And the nights are so long in winter (c)
That they cannot sleep them through.” (b)

Imperfect Rhyme, also known as ‘partial’, ‘near’ or ‘slant rhyme’, occurs when a: poet deliberately changes the spelling or pronunciation of word so that it rhymes with the last word of another line in the stanza. Use of imperfect rhyme is fairly common in folk poetry.

Example: Where they harness the swift reindeer
To the sledges, when it snows;
And the children look like bear’s cubs
In their funny, furry clothes:

A Legend of the Northland Summary Questions and Answers

Question 1.
What is a legend? Why is this is called a legend?
Answer:
A legend is a very old story from ancient times, which may not always be true, and one that people tell about a famous event or person. A legend often teaches a lesson. This poem is called a legend because it tells an old story of Northland. This is the story of an old greedy woman who angered St. Peter and was turned into a woodpecker because of her greed, and the poet herself says, ‘I don’t believe it is true’.

Question 2.
Where does this legend belong to and what kind of country is it?
Answer:
The legend belongs to the “Northland”, an area that could refer to any of the extremely cold countries in the Earth’s north polar region, such as Greenland, the northern regions of Russia—Siberia, or the Scandinavian countries – Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland and Finland. It is a cold place where days are short and the nights are long.

Question 3.
Why does the poet say that the hours of the day are few?
Answer:
In the poem, the poet says the legend is told Northland. The Northland is a cold snow-covered region near the North Pole. Here the days are shorter and the nights are longer. As a result there are very few hours in a day.

Question 4.
Why are the People unable to sleep through the night?
Answer:
The people are unable to sleep through the night because the nights are very long and very cold.

Question 5.
‘And the children look like bear’s cubs.’ What have the children been compared to? Why?
Answer:
Northland is a cold place so the children have to wear funny furry dresses to protect themselves from cold. These dresses make them look like bear cubs.

Question 6.
What does the poet tell us about the story she is about to narrate? Why does she want to tell the tale?
Answer:
The poet says that she is going to tell a strange tale told by the people of Northlands. She admits that thoughthe story may not be true, still she wants to tell the story because it contains an lesson in generosity and philanthropy. She wants the readers to learn a lesson from the poem.

Question 7.
Who came to the woman’s house and what did he ask for?
Answer:
Saint Peter, while preaching round the world, reached the woman’s door. He had been travelling the whole day and was tired and hungry. When Saint Peter saw the woman making cakes, he asked her for one of her large store of cakes.

Question 8.
Why was Saint Peter tired and hungry?
Answer:
Saint Peter was an apostle of Jesus Christ. He travelled around the land, preaching the message of Christ. During the course of his journey, sometimes, he did not get food and water. Besides, he had to observe fasts also. This often left him tired and hungry.

Question 9.
What did Saint Peter ask the woman for? What was the woman’s reaction?
Answer:
Saint Peter asked the old lady for a cake from her store of cakes. The woman, who was very greedy, did not wish to part with her cakes as she felt they were too large to be given away. So she made a small cake for him, but, that too, seemed to her too big to be given away. In the end, she made a very small and thin cake. But she did not give even that cake to St. Peter and she put it away on the shelf.

Question 10.
Why did the woman bake a little cake?
Answer:
The woman in the poem has been shown as being highly stingy, miserly, greedy and mean by nature. Whenever she picked up a cake to give it away, it appeared to be too large to give away. Hence, she baked a ‘ very small cake for Saint Peter that was as thin as a wafer.

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

The Tiger King Summary in English by Kalki

The Tiger King by Kalki About the Author

Kalki is the pen-name of Ramaswamy Aiyer Krishnamurthy (9 September 1899 – 5 December 1954). He was a Tamil writer, journalist, poet, critic and Freedom Movement activist. His writings include over 120 short stories, 10 novelettes, five novels, three historical romances, editorials and political writings and hundreds of films and music reviews. Kalki received the Sangeetha Kalasikhami award conferred on him by the Indian Fine Arts Society in 1953. On the occasion of the centenary celebrations, a postage stamp was released in his honour. His works were nationalised by the government of Tamil Nadu.

Author Name	Kalki Krishnamurthy
Born	9 September 1899, Manalmedu
Died	5 December 1954, Chennai
Movies	Ponniyin Selvan, Thyaga Bhoomi, Kalvanin Kadhali, Parthiban Kanavu, Meera, Tananam Tananam, Ponvayal
Short stories	Tiger King, Otrai Roja, Tharkolai, Amara Vazhvu

The Tiger King Introduction to the Chapter

The story revolves around a King whose death at the hands of a tiger had been foretold by astrologers, when he was born. He tries to reverse the fate spelled out for him and the author uses thinly-veiled satire to walk the reader through the King’s attempts, which later prove futile, in a manner that makes the readers laugh.

The Tiger King Theme

The chapter, ‘The Tiger King’ is a story about the transience of life and power. The chapter is a satire on the pride and stubborness of those people who are in power. The author in the story tells about the days of autocratic and eccentric kings. These kings fear the British as they lived under the thumb rule of British.

The Tiger King Summary in English

When Maharaja Jilani Jung Jung Bahadur was born, the astrologers had foretold that one day, the king would have to die. Suddenly, the ten-day-old prince started speaking; he told them that all those who were born would have to die one day.

He asked them to tell the manner of his death. Everyone stood stunned as an infant born just ten days ago was talking in such a manner. The chief astrologer told the Prince that he was born in the hour of the bull. As bull and tiger were enemies, therefore, his death would come from a tiger.

The Maharaja grew stronger and took to tiger hunting. He was overjoyed when he killed the first tiger. When he fold the chief astrologer about it, the chief astrologer told him that he may kill 99 tigers, but he must be careful with the hundredth one. In ten years,he killed 70 tigers. He banned the killing of tigers in Pratibandapuram. The tiger population became’extinct at Pratibandapuram. So the Maharaja married into a royal family in a state where tiger population was high. Thus, he killed 99 tigers but one was still left. There was no sign of tigers anywhere. Maharaja could not bear this any more.

He raised the land tax and also dismissed some of his men. Later, a tiger was brought for the Maharaja. Maharaja took his men for hunting. He shot the tiger but missed it. Since the tiger fainted on hearing the shot, the Maharaja did not realise that he had not killed the tiger. Maharaja’s men knew it but they feared that if they tell it to Maharaja, then they may lose their job, so they killed the tiger. But the Maharaja did not know that he still had one tiger left to kill. Free from the threat of imminent death, the Maharaja had now decided to celebrate his three-year-old son’s birthday.

He gifted him a wooden tiger. The tiger was made by an unskilled man. Its surface was rough, as a result, a splinter pierced into Maharaja’s hand. The infection spread into his whole hand and the Maharaja died.

Thus, ironically, the fateful hundredth tiger, though a wooden one, was the cause of the Maharaja’s death and proved the prediction of the astrologer correct.

The Tiger King Main Characters in the Chapter

The King

The Maharaja of Pratibandapuram was a brave, resolute, determined, courageous and a firm ruler of his state but lacked worldly wisdom. He was only ten-day-old, when he challenged the prediction of the astrologers. He grew up to be a tall, sturdy, brave and strong man. He became the King of his state at the age of twenty. He was determined to fulfil his pledge.

The Tiger King Summary Questions and Answers

Question 1.
When did the Tiger King stand in danger of losing his kingdom? How was he able to avert the danger?
Answer:
Tiger King, to disprove the astrologer’s prediction, started to hunt and kill tigers. He also banned tiger hunting by anyone except the Maharaja. Anyone who disobeyed him was punished and all his wealth and property was confiscated. A British high-ranking officer wished to hunt tigers. The Maharaja told that the officer could hunt any other animal except the tiger. The British officer’s secretary wanted the Maharaja to allow the British officer to take a photograph of himself holding a gun and standing over a tiger’s , carcass. The Maharaja refused permission because he did not want anybody to kill a tiger. At this, the Maharaja stood in danger of losing his kingdom. Hence, he offered a bribe of 50 diamond rings worth three lakhs, to the wife of the British officer. By this act, the Maharaja was able to avert the danger.

Question 2.
What did the British officer’s secretary tell the Maharaja? Why did the Maharaja refuse permission?
Answer:
The British officer’s secretary told the Maharaja to allow him to shoot the tigers in his kingdom. But the Maharaja did not allow him because he thought that the number of tigers would decrease and he would not be able to complete the desired number.

Question 3.
Why, do you think, was the Maharaja in danger of losing his throne?
Answer:
A high-ranking British official came to the state. He desired to hunt tigers. The Maharaja did not give permission. The officer sent a word to get himself photographed holding a gun beside a tiger’s dead body. However, the Maharaja refused even that. As the Maharaja had prevented a British officer from fulfilling his desire, he was in danger of losing his kingdom.

Question 4.
What led the Maharaja to start out on a tiger hunt?
Answer:
When the Maharaja of Pratibandapuram was born, an astrologer predicted that his death would be caused by a tiger. So the Maharaja started out on a tiger hunt.

Question 5.
What was the astrologer’s reaction, when the Maharaja told him that he had killed his first tiger?
Answer:
On being told that the Maharaja had killed his first tiger, the astrologer announced that he could kill ninety-nine tigers, but he must be very careful with the hundredth one.

Question 6.
How does the hundredth tiger take its final revenge upon the Tiger King?
Answer:
Few days after killing the hundredth tiger, the Maharaja gifted a wooden tiger to his son on his third birthday. A tiny splinter on the surface of the wooden tiger pierced the Maharaja’s right hand, leading to a sore, followed by the Maharaja’s death. Hence, the hundredth tiger took its final revenge upon the Tiger King.

Question 7.
Why did the Maharaja decide to get married?
Answer:
As the Maharaja occupied the throne at the age of twenty, he went on a tiger hunting campaign. He was excited to kill his first tiger, and within ten years, he killed seventy tigers. Soon, tigers became extinct in his own state. So he decided to get married to the . royal family of a state that had a large number of tigers.

Question 8.
Why was the Maharaja so anxious to kill the hundredth tiger?
Answer:
The Maharaja had killed ninety-nine tigers. If he could kill just one more tiger, he would have no fear left. Then he could give up tiger hunting altogether. Moreover, he had to be extremely careful with the last tiger.

Question 9.
What sort of hunts did the Maharaja offer to organise for the high-ranking British officer? What trait of the officer does it reveal?
Answer:
For the high-ranking British officer, the Maharaja was prepared to organise any other hunt—a boar hunt, a mouse hunt, a mosquito hunt. But a tiger hunt was impossible. The officer was a big show-off. He actually did not wish to hunt or kill the tiger himself, he just wanted to be photographed with a gun in his hand, standing over a dead tiger.

Question 10.
Why was it a celebration time for all the tigers inhabiting Pratibandapuram?
Answer:
It was a celebration time for all the tigers inhabiting Pratibandapuram because the ,Maharaja banned tiger hunting in the state. Except the Maharaja, no one was allowed to hunt tigers. It was proclaimed that if anyone was found hunting a tiger, all his property and wealth would be seized.

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

Mirror Summary in English by Sylvia Plath

Mirror Summary in English

This poem explores the relationship that we have with truth, particularly the truth about ourselves.

In the first verse, Plath imagines the thoughts of a mirror, chosen because it is an object we all turn to in search of a kind of truth. It is presented as objective—’exact’ and without ‘preconceptions’, swallowing whatever it sees without a second thought, ‘unmisted by love or dislike’. The mirror is, it is at pains to point out that it is, ‘not cruel, only truthful’—but truth itself is cruel for human beings, and we turn away from it, presenting our backs to those mirrors that offer to show us the unbiased truth.

In the second verse, the mirror is replaced by the lake, something else into which humans have traditionally gazed into, in search of their own reflection. Plath presents us with a woman ‘searching the mirror’s reaches for what she really is’, but the figure cannot bear the truth she finds, and turns her back on it in favour of ‘those liars, the candles or the moon’, both images traditionally associated with romance. Yet we cannot live without knowing the reality about ourselves, even if what we find upsets us. So each morning the woman is back, even though it is only to cry and wring her hands at what she sees. To know the truth is torture, and yet we continue to torture ourselves.

What makes the poem particularly striking is the viewpoint Plath adopts—she writes as the mirror itself. This brings an added poignancy to this poem about isolation, the only person more lonely than the receiver of bad news is its bearer, perhaps. The mirror’s life is an unfulfilled one, it can do no more than ‘meditate on the opposite wall’, and even the dignity of the word ‘meditate’ is undermined by its object, a wall painted ‘pink, with speckles’. Throughout the poem, it is the mirror which meditates, which has hidden reaches, which has a heart and behaves ‘faithfully’.

But the woman ‘comes and goes . . . day after day’. She merely ‘rewards (it) with tears and an agitation of hands’, turning her back on it and yet unable to stay away, returning every morning to replace the darkness. The relationship between the mirror and the woman is evidently a complex one—they need each other, and yet cause each other pain, too.

In this poem, Plath—who committed suicide less than 18 months later—adopts the mirror’s viewpoint in order to explore her ambivalent feelings about herself. ‘Mirror’ juxtaposes images of love and cruelty, truth and dislike, flickering light and darkness. One minute the mirror is ‘a little god’, the next it is needy and alone. It longs to be loved and yet it is in the woman’s suffering, her ‘tears’ and ‘agitation’, that it receives what it calls a ‘reward’. Ahead lies a terrible future for the woman. The description of herself as a ‘terrible fish’—a cold and emotionless woman—rises to torture Sylvia Plath.

Mirror 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. When the mirror is being described as being ‘unmisted by love or dislike ’ we understand that the mirror is
(i) not misted
(ii) not prejudiced
(iii) has four angles
(iv) is silver in colour
Answer:
(ii) not prejudiced

b. The other word for‘contemplation’is ………….
(i) contempt
(ii) meditation
(iii) mediation
(iv) Thoughtful

c When the mirror says ‘it has no preconceptions ’ it means that:
(i) it reflects back an image objectively
(ii) it modifies an image as it reflects it
(iii) it beautifies an image as it reflects it
(iv) it gives a biased view of a person/object

d. The mirror has been called ‘a four-cornered god’ because:
(i) it is square shaped
(ii) like God it watches you unbiased andfair from all four angles
(iii) it reflects back all that it sees
(iv) it never stops reflecting

e. The ‘speckles’ refer to:
(i) a pink object
(ii) the opposite wall which has spots on it
(iii) a person with pink pimples
(iv) pink spots in general
Answer:
(ii) the opposite wall which has spots on it

f. The phrase ‘agitation of the hand’ suggests that the person is:
(i) very ill
(ii) very upset
(iii) very angry
(iv) very happy
Answer:
(ii) very upset

g. By saying ‘Now I am a lake ’ the narrator wants to show that:
(i) the poem is not only about external beauty but also the inside of a person
(ii) the lake can also reflect surfaces
(iii) the depth of the lake is important
(iv) the lake does not show as exact an image as a mirror *
Answer:
(ii) the lake can also reflect surfaces

Question 2.
Answer the following questions briefly

a. What is the poetic device used when the mirror says ‘I swallow ’?
Answer:
The poetic device used is personification. Like a person swallows food and chews upon it, the mirror takes in the image of a person and thinks about it.

b. How does the mirror usually pass its time?
Answer:
The one-dimensional mirror spends the entire day gazing at the wall on the opposite side and faithfully reproduces its colours and design until darkness supervenes or faces intrude.

c. What disturbs the mirror’s contemplation of the opposite wall?
Answer:
The mirror’s contemplation of the opposite wall is disturbed by the darkness that makes it impossible for the mirror to gaze at the opposite wall. Sometimes a person comes and stands in front of the mirror and the mirror cannot gaze at the opposite wall.

d. Why does the mirror appear to be a lake in the second stanza? What aspect of the mirror do you think is being referred to here?
Answer:
In the second stanza the mirror appears to be a lake. The difference between a lake and a mirror is that the lake is not ‘silver and exact’ like a mirror and it has more depth. The lake is a symbol for the private, hidden self. It shows that which society cannot see.

e. What is the woman searching for in the depths of the lake?
Answer:
The woman is looking into herself to see what she really is. She is searching for her private, hidden self. It is a side of her which society cannot see, but it is the truth which she knows about herself.

f. How does the narrator convey the fact that the woman looking at her reflection in the lake is deeply distressed?
Answer:
The woman is agitated. She wrings her hands in distress and then when she cannot bear the truth, she turns her back on it in favour of ‘those liars, the candles or the moon’, who soften the harsh edges.

g. What makes the woman start crying?
Answer:
The woman looks into the lake and sees she is ageing. She looks at her own reflection with loathing as she sees less and less of the young girl and more of the old woman. The rising of the ‘terrible fish’ refers to the aged woman whose skin is turning ugly. It also refers to the woman’s self-loathing as she considers herself unworthy of being loved. This makes her cry.

h. What do you think the ‘terrible fish ’ in the last line symbolizes? What is the poetic device used here?
Answer:
The terribly ugly fish rising towards her is the fear of aging that rises from the depths of her repressed mind. It is a sad, angered and emotionless woman at the end who comes to the realisation that one day, she will grow terribly old and die. It also symbolises the woman’s self-loathing and perception of herself as being incapable of loving and as cold as a fish. The poetic device used here is symbolism.

Question 3.
Read the given lines and answer the questions that follow by ticking the correct choice:

A woman bends over me,
Searching my reaches for what she really is.
Then she turns to those liars, the candles or the moon.

a. What is the woman bending over?
(i) the mirror
(ii) the lake
(iii) the opposite wall
(iv) the moon and the candles
Answer:
(ii) the lake

b. Why have the candles and the moon been called ‘liars ’?
(i) because they make people beautiful
(ii) they hide the blemishes of people with their soft light
(iii) they hide the blemishes and make people look beautiful in their soft glow
(iv) they can’t talk
Answer:
(ii) they hide the blemishes of people with their soft light

c. Why does she turn to them in spite of calling them ‘liars ’?
(i) the reality is too harsh for her to bear
(ii) she is desperately looking for someone to comfort her
(iii) she wants to be told that she is still beautiful
(iv) she can hide her signs of graying in their light
Answer:
(i) the reality is too harsh for her to bear

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

Virtually True Summary in English by Paul Stewart

Virtually True Summary in English

The story is about the world inside psycho-drive computer games which are played by the power of the mind and can be quite dangerous if someone gets trapped inside one of the games. The memory of Sebastian Shultz gets trapped inside his laptop when his head bangs against his laptop during an accident. He slips into a coma with little hope of survival. Another boy, Michael stumbles upon Sebastian while playing one of the games called Wildwest.

Sebastian appears dressed as a sheriff and tries to escape from the game but is shot at by one of the men and the game ends. Michael finds himself outside the game and receives a plea of help from Sebastian to help him by playing another game—Dragonquest.

Michael responds by entering the game and finds that the game entails that he save a princess called Aurora who is trapped in a tower guarded by a dragon. But before he can save the princess he once again meets Sebastian dressed as a knight who calls out to him to help him escape from the game. The game ends before he is able to save Sebastian, who is eaten up by the dragon. The next day he again receives a message from Sebastian asking for help. He now asks him to try and save him through the game, Jailbreak. Michael responds by entering the game but once again fails to rescue him.

Finally Sebastian sends him a message to try for the last time and play the game, Warzone. This time Michael is able to rescue Sebastian at the last moment. Simultaneously, he gets to read the news of the miraculous recovery of Sebastian in the hospital. This leaves Michael wondering how real the virtual world of computer games is.

Virtually True Summary Questions and Answers

Question 1.
According to the newspaper, what had happened to Sebastian Shultz?
Answer:
Sebastian Shultz had been in a coma from which the doctors feared he would never recover but he had come out of the coma. .

Question 2.
‘Dad’s nutty about computers.’ What evidence is there to support this statement?
Answer:
The narrator says so because his father had all the latest computer accessories as well as a computer which could do a variety of things. Also, he couldn’t resist the new gadgets and gizmos that came on the market.

Question 3.
In what way did the second game seem very real?
Answer:
The narrator enjoyed it because the big screen with the loud volume made him feel like he was inside the game, battling it out.

Question 4.
The last game has tanks, jeeps, helicopters, guns and headings would you put this and the other games under?
Answer:
The games can be categorised as psycho-drive.

Question 5.
What was Michael’s theory about how Sebastian had entered the games?
Answer:
According to the narrator, Sebastian’s memory had somehow got stored in the disk containing the games. These disks had been stolen from the Shultz’ house and they had found their way to the Computer Fair from where the narrator’s father had bought them for him.

Question 6.
Read these lines from the story, then answer the questions.

(a) ‘That was my idea ’ said Sebastian excitedly. ’ If only it would go a big faster.
(i) Where was Sebastian when he spoke these word?
He was in the game, ‘Jailbreak’.

(ii) What was his idea, and what was he referring to ?
His idea was to rescue Sebastian using a helicopter.

(iii) Was the idea a good one, and did it eventually succeed? How?
The idea turned out to be a good one. They used it in the game, ‘Warzone’ and Sebastian tumbled into the helicopter when the tank crashed into the jeep; the narrator then pulled him up.

Question 7.
Answer the following questions briefly.

a. Why did the news of the ‘miracle recovery ’ shock Michael?
Answer:
It shocked Michael because according to the report, Sebastian had been in coma for the past six weeks, yet during this time had appeared in Michael’s games and asked him for his help in escaping from one game or the other that were stored inside the CD.

b. Michael’s meeting with Sebastian Shultz had been a chance meeting. Where had it taken place and how?
Answer:
The meeting took place inside the game ‘Wildwest’ when Sebastian had entered the game as the second Sheriff and asked Michael to follow him.

c. What kind of computers fascinated Michael and his dad? Why?
Answer:
They were fascinated by the Pentium Mhz processor with 256 RAM, a 1.2 GB hard drive and 167 speed CD Rom. It could do anything—play, paint, play music, create displays, etc.

d. Describe the first place where Michael was virtually transported.
Answer:
Michael was transported into a dusty town in the Wild West, into a saloon filled with hostile looking men.

e. What help did Sebastian Shultz ask Michael for? How did he convey this message?
Answer:
Sebastian told Michael that he was stuck inside the computer and asked him to rescue him by trying to play the game ‘Dragonquest’. He sent the message through the printer.

f. Why did Michael fail in rescuing Sebastian Shultz the first time?
Answer:
Michael failed because the game ended and Shultz appeared to have been shot by the men following them in the game ‘Wildwest’.

g. The second attempt to rescue Sebastian Shultz too was disastrous. Give reasons.
Answer:
In the second attempt, Michael found himself having to rescue Aurora the fair princess from a fire-breathing dragon. Though Sebastian once again tried, he was not quick enough to escape from the clutches of the dragon.

h. How had Sebastian Shultz entered the games?
Answer:
Michael felt that Sebastian’s memory had been saved in the computer when he had banged his head on it during the accident and had entered the games.

i. How was Sebastian Shultz’s memory stored on Michael’s disk? Did Michael discover that?
Answer:
Michael discovered it. According to the narrator, Sebastian’s memory had somehow got stored in the disk containing the games. These disks had been stolen from the Shultz’ house and they had found their way to the Computer Fair from where the narrator’s father had bought them for him.

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

Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers Summary in English by Adrienne Rich

Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers Poem by Adrienne Rich About the Poet

Adrienne C. Rich (May 16, 1929 – March 27, 2012) was born in Baltimore. She was an American poet, essayist and feminist. She was known as “one of the most widely read and influential poets of the second half of the 20th century”, and was credited with bringing “the oppression of women to the forefront of poetic discourse.” She published twenty-five volumes of poetry, three collections of essays and more than half a dozen other writings.

Rich’s prose collections are widely acclaimed for their erudite, lucid, and poetic treatment of politics, feminism, history, racism and many other topics.

Poet Name	Adrienne Rich
Born	16 May 1929, Baltimore, Maryland, United States
Died	27 March 2012, Santa Cruz, California, United States
Education	Radcliffe College a women’s liberal arts college in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Awards	National Book Award for Poetry, Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize

Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers Introduction to the Poem

The poem, Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers’ addresses the constraints of married life that a woman experiences. The protagonist of the poem, Aunt Jennifer represents women all over the world, particularly the women in America, during the 1950s. She represents the kind of women who were caught under the oppressive hand of a patriarchal society. The poet, Adrienne Rich through the simple lines of the poem, delineates a woman’s struggles with expression and rebellion. The three quatrains (four lined stanza) expose the desolating effects of patriarchy.

In the first stanza, the poet first introduces us to Aunt Jennifer’s dreams. In the second stanza, we are introduced to the reality of Aunt Jennifer’s world. The third stanza is a narrative of the future.

Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers Theme

The poem revolves around the desires and the depressingly harsh realities of Aunt Jennifer’s existence, using sharp contrasts between the tigers and herself. The tigers appear to be in sharp contrast to her personality. The tiger’s actions are smooth, uninhibited and robust. Aunt Jennifer, on the other hand, has great trouble even to embroider because her movements are so weak. Aunt Jennifer is evidently a lonely, pained old woman plagued by anxiety. The reason for her miserable plight is the oppressive patriarchal family system, wherein the whole soul of the family is the male and it is he, who dominates the scene. She creates an alternative world of freedom—a world that she longs for.

Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers Summary in English

In this feminist poem, which is critical of the male world, Aunt Jennifer creates an alternate world of freedom in her art. The tigers of Aunt Jennifer’s stitchings are representative of her desire of a free spirit, emphasising the fact that she pines for freedom from her burdensome husband.

The first stanza opens with Aunt Jennifer’s visual tapestry of tigers who are fearless of their environment. “Bright topaz denizens of a world of green” – evoke an image that these tigers are unafraid of other beings in the jungle. Here, ‘bright’ signifies their powerful and radiant persona. There is a sense of certainty and confidence in the way these tigers move as can be seen in the line – “They pace in sleek chivalric certainty”.

In the second stanza, the reality of Aunt Jennifer is revealed as she is feeble, weak and enslaved, very much the opposite of the tigers she was knitting. Her physical and mental trauma is depicted in the line – “find even the ivory needle hard to pull”. Even though a wedding ring doesn’t weigh much, “the massive weight of uncle’s wedding band, sits heavily upon Aunt Jennifer’s hand” signifies the amount of dominance her husband has exercised over her. This also means that her inner free spirit has been jailed by the patriarchal society.

The last stanza starts on a creepy note about Aunt Jennifer’s death. Even her death wouldn’t free her from the ordeals she went through which can be seen in “When Aunt is dead, her terrified hands will lie still ringed with ordeals she was mastered by”. But her art work which was her escape route or in a way, her inner sense of freedom, will stay forever, proud and unafraid.

Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers Summary Reference-to-Context Questions

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

1. Aunt Jennifer’s tigers prance across a screen,
Bright topaz denizens of a world of green.
They do not fear the men beneath the tree;
They pace in sleek chivalric certainty.

a. How are Aunt Jennifer’s tigers described?
Answer:
They are chivalric, brave and fearless. They have self-confidence.

b. Why are they described as denizens of a world of green?
Answer:
It means the tigers are in their habitat and they are known for their strength and attitude.

c. Why are they not afraid of the men?
Answer:
They are not afraid of the men because they are strong, brave and fearless.

d. Mention the poetic device used in the last line.
Answer:
Alliteration e.g., ‘chivalric certainty’

2. Aunt Jennifer’s fingers fluttering through her wool
Find even the ivory needle hard to pull.
The massive weight of Uncle’s wedding band
Sits heavily upon Aunt Jennifer’s hand.

a. What does the first line of this extract tell us about Aunt Jennifer?
Answer:
Aunt Jennifer feels so nervous, fearful and terrified of her male counterpart that even while weaving the tapestry, her hands shake and flutter. She is a victim of gender oppression at the hands of her husband.

b. Why is it so hard for her to pull the ivory needle?
Answer:
She finds it very hard to pull a light-weight ivory needle because while she is creating her work of art, which is a creation of her desires and feelings, she feels fearful of the uncle. She finds it more hard to pull because of the mental suppression and not because of physical weakness.

c. Explain, ‘massive weight of Uncle’s wedding band’?
Answer:
This expression is symbolic of male authority and power. Matrimony seems to bind the woman physically as well as mentally. The wedding band was a burden for her as she was not getting enough freedom to express herself because of the domestic responsibilities . and restrictions put on her as a woman.

d. What is suggested in the third line of the extract?
Answer:
It suggests the weight of the relationship. The image is suggestive and the wedding band is symbolic of an unbreakable bond that weighs her down.

3. When Aunt is dead, her terrified hands will lie
Still ringed with ordeals she was mastered by.
The tigers in the panel that she made
Will go on prancing, proud and unafraid.

a. Why are Aunt Jennifer’s hands ‘terrified’?
Answer:
Aunt Jennifer has been enslaved by the wedding ring. After undergoing the harsh and bitter experiences of her married life, she feels weak and shaken.

b. What is Aunt Jennifer’s death symbolic of? Is the society anyway affected by her death?
Answer:
Her death is symbolic of her complete submission to the suppression. The male-dominated society seems to show no concern for Aunt Jennifer’s suffering, or even her death. The society seems in no way affected by it.

c. What does ‘ringed with ordeals’ imply?
Answer:
‘Ringed with ordeals’ refers to the wedding band. Ring here symbolises handcuff which enslaves her all her life and makes her a frightened and scared soul.

d. How will the tigers behave after her death?
Answer:
The tigers will go on prancing proud and unafraid.

We have decided to create the most comprehensive English Summary that will help students with learning and understanding. In this article, we are explaining a roadside stand summary.

A Roadside Stand Summary in English by Robert Frost

A Roadside Stand Poem by Robert Frost About the Poet

One of the America’s foremost poets of the twentieth century, Robert Frost was born in San Francisco and lived there till the age of eleven. When he was just eleven, he moved to England. In 1911, due to some circumstances, he sold his farm in Derry, New Hampshire and moved with his family to England. Here, he met and received the support of Ezra Pound.

Frost received four Pulitzer prizes and Prizes like Bollinger Poetry Prize (1963). Robert Frost’s (1874¬1963) best works include ‘Birches’, ‘Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening’, ‘Mending Walls’, and ‘The Road Not Taken’.

Poet Name	Robert Frost
Born	26 March 1874, San Francisco, California, United States
Died	29 January 1963, Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Poems	The Road Not Taken
Awards	Robert Frost Medal, Pulitzer Prize for Poetry

A Roadside Stand Introduction to the Poem

Robert Lee Frost was an American poet who lived from 1874 to 1963. His simple style of writing, I realistic depiction of rural life and constant reference to nature made him one of the most influential : poets in American history. His most famous poems include ‘Mending Wall’, ‘Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening’ and ‘Birches’.He received the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry four times.

A Roadside Stand Theme

The poem, ‘The Roadside Stand’ is Robert Frost’s scathing criticism of an unequal society where there is a huge division between the rich and the poor, the haves and the have-nots, owing to the inequitous distribution of wealth. The poem depicts, with clarity, the plight of the poor and the complex dynamics of their existence. It also focuses on the unfortunate fact that the unequal progress and development between cities and villages have led to the feelings of distress and unhappiness in the rural people.

A Roadside Stand Summary in English

The poem “A Roadside Stand”, composed by Robert Frost is about a farmer who puts a little new shed in front of his house on the edge of a road. Several thousands of cars speed past it. He desires to sell wild berries, squash and other products. He does not like charity. He tries to sell his products for money. He believes that money can give him a better lifestyle as he saw in the movies. However, his hopes are never fulfilled. People in cars go past without even giving a cursory look at his stall. And if few of them happen to look at it, they see how the letters N and S had been turned wrong. They believe that such badly painted signs spoil the beauty of the countryside.

Nevertheless, a few cars did stop. One of them desired to take a U-turn. It came into the farmer’s yard and spoiled the grass. Another car stopped to know the way. And one of them stopped as it needed petrol, though it was quite evident that the farmer did not sell petrol.

The poor village people had little earning. They have not seen much money. They lead a life of poverty. It is known that some good-doers plan to remove their poverty. They aimed to buy their property on the roadside to build theatres and stores. They plan to shift the villagers into the village huddled together. They wished to teach them the ways that could change their good and healthy habits. They even aimed to teach them to sleep during day time. The ‘greedy good-doers’ and ‘beneficent beasts of prey’ desired to force the benefits on the poor village people and befool them.

The poet feels quite miserable at the pitiable sufferings of the poor village folk. He even had a childish desire for all the poor to be done away with at one stroke to end their pain. But he knew that it is childish and vain. So, he desires that someone relieves him of his pain by killing him.

A Roadside Stand Summary Reference-to-Context Questions

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

1. The little old house was out with a little new shed
In front at the edge of the road where the traffic sped,
A roadside stand that too pathetically pled,

a. Where had the little new shed been put up and why ?
Answer:
A poor farmer had put up the shed at the edge of the road.

b. What imagery does the first line create?
Answer:
It creates the imagery of an impoverished farmer’s home and a roadside stand that he has set up.

c. Where is the shed set up?
Answer:
“file little new shed is set up in front of his house which is on the edge of the road.

d. What is the poetic device used in the third line?
Answer:
Personification has been used in the third line. The shed has been personified. It pleads pathetically for some extra cash flow.

2. It would not be fair to say for a dole of bread,
But for some of the money, the cash, whose flow supports
The flower of cities from sinking and withering faint.

a. Why does the peasant not want bread?
Answer:
The poet stresses that the peasant does not want bread or the basic amenities of life but a source of alternate income, apart from his trade.

b. What does the peasant yearn for?
Answer:
The peasant yearns for some of the city money to sustain him better, and liberate him from his hand-to-mouth existence.

c. How does money sustain cities?
Answer:
Money in the cities, always in excess, brings luxurious benefits.

d. Explain: ‘flower of cities’.
Answer:
This is a metaphor. Just as flowers are kept from withering with extra care and nurturing, similarly, extra cash flow helps cities to bloom and flourish.

3. The polished traffic passed with a mind ahead,
Or if ever aside a moment, then out of sorts
At having the landscape marred with the artless paint

a. Explain the poetic device in ‘The polished traffic’.
Answer:
‘The polished traffic’ is a transferred epithet that depicts the sophisticated, urban city- dwellers.

b. Why are their minds ahead?
Answer:
The urban rich have their minds preoccupied with their own lives and its related problems.

c. How do they react to the presence of the stand?
Answer:
They are indifferent to the presence of the roadside stand, if ever they chance to look at it.

d. Why do they feel out of sorts?
Answer:
The presence of the roadside stand annoys them as they feel that it mars the beauty of the landscape.

4. Of signs that with N turned wrong and S turned wrong
Offered for sale wild berries in wooden quarts,
Or crook-necked golden squash with silver warts,
Or beauty rest in a beautiful mountain scene,

a. What do N and S turned wrong symbolise?
Answer:
These inelegantly painted signposts and other rustic signs are a source of annoyance to the urban rich.

b. What does the stand sell?
Answer:
It sells some home-grown produce like wild berries, crook-necked golden squash with silver warts and amateur paintings of the mountain scene.

c. Explain: ‘beauty rest in a mountain scene’.
Answer:
This probably refers to a scenic painting made by the inhabitants of the roadside stand, to sell to the rich people.

d. What qualities of the offered articles make them unfit for sale?
Answer:
The articles for sale at the roadside stand are wild and lack the polish of similar articles available in the cities. Thus, they hold no appeal for the urban rich who drive past.

5. You have the money, but if you want to be mean,
Why keep your money (this crossly) and go along.
The hurt to the scenery wouldn’t be my complaint
So much as the trusting sorrow of what is unsaid:

a. How do the rich behave meanly with the poor?
Answer:
When the rich city people refuse to buy anything from the roadside stand, the poor peasant feel dejected and angry. They ask the city men to keep all their money with themselves and leave.

b. Explain, ‘trusting sorrow’.
Answer:
‘Trusting sorrow’ is a metaphor that refers to the fact that the peasants set up their shed trusting that their wares will attract the city folks to buy their products and thus, provide additional income. However, they are filled with sorrow when no one shows interest.

c. What is the poet’s complaint?
Answer:
The rich have hollow complaints such as hurt to the scenery. They are unable to understand the concerns of the poor and their core level struggles.

d. What is ‘left unsaid’?
Answer:
The poor wait in hope expecting the rich to fulfill their promises. Gradually, their hopes give way to the bitter realisation that the promises of the rich are not meant to be fulfilled.

6. Here far from the city we make our roadside stand
And ask for some city money to feel in hand
To try if it will not make our being expand,
And give us the life of the moving-pictures’ promise
That the party in power is said to be keeping from us.

a. What is ‘city money’?
Answer:
Using light satire, Robert Frost criticises the political party in power for preventing the peasants from enjoying the lifestyle like that of the city-dwellers.

b. What do the peasants want from the rich?
Answer:
The poet stresses that the peasants want the generosity of the rich. They want promises fulfilled in order to have some extra cash to alleviate their suffering as promised by movies and political parties.

C. Why is feeling money in hand important?
Answer:
it is important for the farmers to have the promised money in hand, instead of the empty and false promises of the politicians.

d. Explain: ‘our being expand’.
Answer:
The extra inflow of cash would help improve the quality of the lives of the poor peasants.

7. It is in the news that all these pitiful kin
Are to be bought out and mercifully gathered in
To live in villages, next to the theatre and the store,
Where they won’t have to think for themselves anymore,

a. Who are the ‘pitiful kin’?
Answer:
Pitiful kin refers to the poor farmers living in rustic farmlands.

b. Who is buying them out and why?
Answer:
Real estate agents buy them out and force farmers from villages to cities, promising riches. It benefits them temporarily, but the bulk of the benefit goes to these unscrupulous agents.

c. What is the good news for the poor?
Answer:
The good news for the poor is that the government is planning to relocate them, as part of a welfare scheme for the poor.

d. Why are they to be placed next to the theatre and the stores?
Answer:
Cunning and manipulative politicians relocate them next to the theatre and the stores to make them dependent and unable to think for themselves.

8. While greedy good-doers, beneficent beasts of prey,
Swarm over their lives enforcing benefits
That are calculated to soothe them out of their wits,
And by teaching them how to sleep they sleep all day,
Destroy their sleeping at night the ancient way.

a. Explain: ‘greedy good-doers, beneficent beasts of prey’.
Answer:
Greedy good-doers are apparent benefactors but actually ‘beasts of prey’ exploit the innocent village folk by giving them a short term sense of security

b. Who are these people?
Answer:
The greedy good-doers and beneficient beasts are the civic authorities, real estate agents who make the poor complacent and lull them into a false sense of security.

c. Name the poetic devices used in the first line.
Answer:
‘Greedy good-doers’ and ‘beneficent beasts of prey’ are both oxymorons. Alliteration has also been used in the first line.

d. How do ‘they’ destroy the poor?
Answer:
The brokers and estate agents promise farmers’ benefits, so that the farmers will not have to think for themselves as they will not be needy. Now sluggish, farmers will sleep all day, thereby losing their sleep by night.

9. Sometimes I feel myself I can hardly bear
The thought of so much childish longing in vain,
The sadness that lurks near the open window there,
That waits all day in almost open prayer
For the squeal of brakes, the sound of a stopping car,

a. What can the poet not bear?
Answer:
The interminable wait of the farmer for prospective customers, distresses the poet.

b. What is ‘childish longing’? Why is it in vain?
Answer:
The poor people’s futile expectation for city money has been compared to children longing for things beyond their reach. It is in vain as the rich are too self-absorbed and hard-hearted to help them.

c. Explain the poetic device used in the third line.
Answer:
Sadness has been personified, as it lies in wait, near the open window, desperately praying for a customer to appear.

d. What does it pray for?
Answer:
The personification is sustained as sadness prays for a city-dweller to stop by, and at least, enquire about the prices of the farmer’s wares.

10. Of all the thousand selfish cars that pass,
Just one to enquire what a farmer’s prices are.
And one did stop, but only to plow up grass
In using the yard to back and turn around;
And another to ask the way to where it was bound;
And another to ask could they sell it a gallon of gas
They couldn’t (this crossly); they had none, didn’t it see?

a. Explain: ‘selfish cars’.
Answer:
This is a transferred epithet. The people sitting in the cars are selfish as no one has charity as motive as they stop by.

b. Name the reasons for which the cars stop occasionally.
Answer:
The cars stop either to reverse, or to ask for directions or to ask if they could buy a gallon of gas.

c. What is the queer demand of the city folk?
Answer:
The insensitive city people ask if the roadside stand sold a gallon of gas, knowing fully well that gas was well beyond their means.

d. What makes the people at the roadside stand ‘cross’?
Answer:
With every passing car that stops, the farmer’s hope rises, only to be disappointed. None of them seem to want what he has to offer. This makes the people at the roadside stand cross.

11. No, in country money, the country scale of gain
The requisite lift of spirit has never been found,
Or so the voice of the country seems to complain,

a. What is country money?
Answer:
Country money is the meagre income and the meagre profit that the poor farmers make. In no way does it compare with the affluence of the rich in cities.

b. How has the country scale of gain helped the farmers?
Answer:
It has not freed them from their poverty. It has not provided them with the extra cash that is required to improve the quality of their lives.

c. How does money provide ‘the requisite lift of spirit’?
Answer:
Money is a very important factor in modern living. It provides confidence and gives an additional lift to one’s spirit.

d. What is the complaint of the villagers?
Answer:
No matter how hard the villagers try, they can never make as much money as their counterparts in the city. Thus, they never have the money to enjoy the luxuries that the city people have.

12. I can’t help owning the great relief it would be
To put these people at one stroke out of their pain.
And then next day as I come back into the sane,
I wonder how I should like you to come to me
And offer to put me gently out of my pain.

a. What kind of relief does the poet visualise for the poor?
Answer:
Frustrated by the helplessness of the villagers, Frost offers to end the lives of the poor at one stroke and liberate them from their grief and pain.

b. What makes him change his mind?
Answer:
Thankfully, common sense prevails before he has taken the thought too far. Sanity returns to him the day after he has had this thought.

c. What is the truth that he realises?
Answer:
When Frost wonders how he might feel when someone found him in pain and decided that death was the best option for him, he realises the futility of his earlier thought.

d. What is the poet’s pain?
Answer:
The poet’s pain is the iniquitous divide between the rich and the poor, the interminable wait that the poor must endure for their misery to be addressed and their suffering to end.

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

Patol Babu Summary in English by Satyajit Ray

Patol Babu Summary in English

Sitalakanto Ray, or Patol Babu, had lost his clerical post with Hudson and Kimberley in Calcutta due to the cost-cutting measures during the war more than ten years ago. Since then, he had tried a number of different jobs, from running a store, to becoming an insurance salesman. However, he was not able to settle into any of these endeavours and was in great need of money.

One day, his neighbour, Nishikanto Babu, introduced him to Naresh Dutt. Naresh was part of the Production department of a new movie and asked Patol Babu to do a small role in the movie. This offer made Patol Babu recall his younger days, when he had a settled job at Kanchrapara. In those days, he was a regular actor in the Jatras, amateur theatricals and plays put up by the club in his neighbourhood. His talent was appreciated and his name often appeared on the handbills advertising the performances. In fact, people often watched the plays just for his performance. In recent years, however, he was too busy trying to earn a living and had to give up his love for the stage.

When Patol Babu reached the scene of the shooting outside Faraday House, he observed all the activity on the sets, but was anxious about his role and wanted to know what his lines would be.

When Naresh Dutt told him that he had to walk to a certain point, bump into the hero Chanchal Kumar and say a single word, ‘Oh,’ Patol Babu was initially disappointed. But he recalled his mentor Mr Pakrashi telling him that it was not the size of the role, but what you give to it that matters. So he started practicing various ways of saying the word, trying to mix 60 parts of irritation with 40 of surprise.

When the time came for the shot, he suggested that he should hold a newspaper, which the director agreed to. He was also given a moustache for the role. Finally, he performed a most impressive shot which did not require any retakes. However, while waiting for Naresh Dutt to pay him for his role, Patol Babu realised that the creative satisfaction that he had got from this small performance was far more important than the money that he would have earned. He quietly went away from there.

Patol Babu Summary Questions and Answers

Question 1.
Answer the following questions briefly

a. What was the news that Nishikanto Ghosh gave Patol Babu?
Answer:
Nishikanto Babu’s youngest brother-in-law was in the film industry and he was looking for an actor for a film they were shooting. He had described the character to Nishikanto Babu who had felt that Patol Babu was just right for the role. So he had given him Patol Babu’s address.

b. How did Patol Babu react? Why?
Answer:
It shocked and excited Patol Babu because it was most unexpected.

c. Why had Patol Babu lost his first job in Calcutta?
Answer:
Patol Babu had lost his first job in Calcutta as a result of retrenchment during the War.

d. How does Patol Babu reconcile to the dialogue given to him?
Answer:
No, Patol Babu was not impressed with his dialogue because he felt the people were pulling his leg when he looked at his dialogue. But, then he was reminded of his mentor’s words who sai never to take any role lightly.

e. Who was Mr. Pakrashi? How do his words help Patol Babu in enacting his role?
Answer:
Patol Babu was reminded of the advice given to him by his mentor Gogon Pakrashi who had told him never to consider any role below his dignity and to give it his best, whatever the length of his role might be. He had also said that each word spoken in a play was like a fruit in a tree. Not everyone in the audience could access it but it is up to the actor to know how to deliver the essence of those lines to his audience.

f. How do we know that Patol Babu was a meticulous man?
Answer:
Even though he had got only one word to say in the role of a pedestrian, Patol Babu spent his time waiting for his shot in a quiet little side street rehearsing how he would react and how he would portray the expressions of pain and surprise on his face. In order to check his performance, he rehearsed in front of a large glass window.

g. Why did Mr. Mullick turn down Patol Babu’s request for a rehearsal?
Answer:
Probably because it was not a very important or difficult a scene and most importantly because there was a cloud approaching the sun and he wanted to shoot the scene in sunlight.

h. What were the special touches that Patol Babu gave to his role to make it more authentic?
Answer:
Patol Babu asked the director if he could act as if he was reading a newspaper when the collision took place. He also had planned to express 60 percent irritation and 40 percent surprise through his one-word dialogue.

Question 2.
Discuss the following questions in detail and write the answers in your notebooks:

a. ‘I hope the part calls for some dialogue? ’ Who says this? Why does he /she ask this question?
Answer:
Patol Babu says this to Naresh Dutt. He asks this question to find out more about his role and if it is a significant one. Of course, only a role with some dialogue would count as a meaty role which is why he wanted to know. Naresh tells him that he obviously has dialogue or if it were some part of a passer-by, he would have just picked someone off the road.

b. ‘Were these people pulling his legs? Was the whole thing a gigantic hoax? A meek, harmless man like him, and they had to drag him into the middle of the city to make a laughing stock out of him. How could anyone be so cruel? ’ Why does Patol Babu have these thoughts?
Answer:
Patol Babu has these thoughts after Sosonko gave him his lines which consisted of only one word, ‘Oh’. He believes it to be humiliating to have been asked to come here all the way from his home simply to utter one dialogue. He feels that it isn’t a significant role at all and that the crowd that has gathered would simply laugh at him.

He feels belittled and that the crew including Naresh were cruel to have done this. This is majorly because he feels massive disappointment

Question 3.
Here are some lines from the lesson. What do they tell us about Patol Babu’s character? You may take help from the words given in the table below or find some of your own from the dictionary. The first one has been done for you.

a. That an offer to act in a film could come to a 52-year-old nonentity like him was beyond his wildest dreams. ……………….
Answer:
unassuming; modest

b. Indeed, there was a time when people bought tickets especially to see him ……………
Answer:
Talented; actor

c. ‘I was with Hudson and Kimberley for nine years and wasn’t late for a single day.’ ………………..
Answer:
diligent

d. It didn 7 matter if the part was small, but, if he had to make the most of it, he had to learn his lines beforehand. How small he wouldfeel if he muffed in the presence of so many people ………………..
Answer:
Hard-working; proud

e. Patol Babu cleared his throat and started enunciating the syllable in various ways. Along with that he worked out how he would react physically when the collision took place—How his features would be twisted in pain, how he would fling out his arms, how his body would crouch to express pain and surprise—all these he performed in various ways in front of a large glass window ……………..
Answer:
Passionate; meticulous

f. It is true that he needed money very badly, but what was twenty rupees when measured against the intense satisfaction of a small job done with perfection and dedication? ………………….
Answer:
Integrity; passionate