Hornbill - Class 11th, Lesson - 1, The Portrait of a Lady - KHUSHWANT SINGH Glossary, Summary, Questions, And Answers Glossary - 1. mantle...
Hornbill - Class 11th,
Lesson - 1, The Portrait of a Lady - KHUSHWANT SINGH
Glossary, Summary, Questions, And Answers
Glossary -
1. mantlepiece - a fireplace.
2. the thought was almost revolting - too hard to believe.
3. fables - a short story.
4. hobbled - walking with pain.
5. stoop - to bend.
6. puckered - tightly gathered face because of age.
7. an expanse of pure white serenity - refers to a very peaceful and gentle personality.
8. monotonous - boring.
9. scriptures - a religious book.
10. growling - to make noise while barking.
11. a turning point - a time when an important change happens.
12. harlot - a prostitute.
13. accepted her seclusion with resignation - accepting loneliness without any complaint.
14. a veritable bedlam of chirrupings - a noise created by sparrows.
15. shooed - to drive somebody, something away.
16. clasped - to hold.
17. frivolous rebukes - scolding in a silly manner.
18. thumped - to hit.
19. the sagging skin of the dilapidated drum - the weak skin of an old drum.
20. pallor - to become pale.
21. shroud - outpouring or covering.
22. crumbs - small pieces.
23. corpse - a dead body.
Summary -
Khushwant Singh was an Indian author, lawyer, diplomat, journalist, and politician. His experience in the 1947 partition of India inspired him to write, "Train To Pakistan" in 1956, which became his most well-known novel.
The lesson, " The Portrait of a Lady" is written by famous Indian writer Khushwant Singh who has written a very famous and popular novel, "Train To Pakistan". In this lesson, he has portrayed the personality and character of his grandmother with very minute details and what kind of moral and spiritual values, she taught him. She was very close to the writer since his childhood and they shared a great emotional bonding. Starting from the morning, she used to wake him up, prepare him for school, make breakfast, and sing morning prayer, hoping that he would learn it, but the writer hardly bothered to learn. She used to come with him to school, feed the street dogs, visit the nearby temple, tell rosary beads, recite the prayers, spin the wheel, and feed the sparrows all along the day.
But as time passed they departed a little bit and when the writer went to abroad for higher studies, the distance between them increased. She was not happy with learning Western science, dance, and the English language. She always emphasized religious and spiritual values and one day she died while chanting the prayers and telling rosary beads. With the duration of time, she talked less with the writer, but from the lesson, we can conclude that the writer admired his grandmother to a great extent and a major part of his life was greatly involved and affected by her lively presence, and with her, all day activities she wanted to teach him the importance of spirituality, service to living creatures, values of religion and nationality in the life without using words or with lessor words and that was the real beauty of her character.
UNDERSTANDING THE TEXT:
1. The three phases of the author's relationship with his grandmother before he left the country to study abroad.
Ans - The author was having a great emotional bonding with his grandmother when they were living in the village. She used to wake him up in the morning, prepare him for school, and prepare breakfast for him.
When they went to live in the city, they shared the same room but interacted less because she was not happy with the methodology of the English medium school.
When he went up to University, the author was given his own room, and slowly with duration over time, they departed physically and mentally.
2. Three reasons why the author's grandmother was disturbed when he started going to the city school.
Ans -The author's grandmother was disturbed when he started going to the city school because,
1. She did not like subjects like English and Western science taught in the school.
2. She was distressed because there was no teaching of God and scriptures in the school.
3. She did not like the teaching of music in the school because she believed that it was the monopoly of prostitutes and beggars and not meant for gentlefolk like the author.
3. Three ways in which the author's grandmother spent her days after he grew up.
Ans - She started spending her day alone in her room and never talked to anyone. She spent her day spinning the wheel and reciting the prayers and started feeding the sparrows who were very familiar to her.
4. The odd way in which the author's grandmother behaved just before she died.
Ans - The author's grandmother behaved in a very peculiar way as she knew that her death was very near just before she died. In the morning she fell ill, stopped to pray, did not talk to anyone, and lay peacefully on her bed and started telling her rosary beads, and all of a sudden her lips and fingers became lifeless.
5. How the sparrows expressed their sorrow when the author's grandmother died.
Ans - When the author's grandmother died, the sparrows gathered around her, neither they chirped nor they made any movements, as usual, they used to do when the grandmother was alive. The author's mother gave them bits of bread but they completely ignored it. When the grandmother's body was carried away for the funeral, they also flew away. They showed their mourning exactly like human beings.
TALKING ABOUT THE TEXT:
1. The author's grandmother was a religious person. What are the different ways in which we come to know this?
Ans - There are many ways mentioned in the lesson that show the author's grandmother was a deeply religious lady. She used to sing the morning prayer when the author was getting ready for school, visit the temple, read religious sculptures, tell rosary beads, chant prayers, spin wheel, and feed sparrows, the birds, and the street dogs. She disliked Western science, English, and dance teaching in the author's school. She always emphasized that the author should learn and cultivate all the religious activities since his childhood.
2. Describe the changing relationship between the author and his grandmother. Did their feelings for each other change?
Ans - When the author was studying in the village school, his grandmother was associated entirely with the author, starting from morning making him wake up, singing morning prayer, making breakfast for him, and carrying him up to school but with the duration of time she got departed from him physically and mentally. She talked very little to him, she took over chanting and reciting the prayers but till her last breath they shared a strong emotional bonding, but maybe she was a little disappointed with the way, he persuaded his carrier.
3. Would you agree that the author's grandmother was a person strong in character? If yes give instances that show this.
Ans - Yes, She was a strong lady, she had her own principles and logic of life, and she was a religious and spiritual personality, having a strong affection and bonding with the author. When the author was studying in the city school, she did not like the way that was being taught in school, also when the author went abroad for higher studies she did not say anything but remained silent rather she accepted the bitter truth of their separation with a calmness, she accepted the reality for the wellbeing and future of the author and started giving more time in her daily activities. These incidents show us her great character.
4. Have you known someone like the author's grandmother? Do you feel the same sense of loss about someone whom you have loved and lost?
Ans - Yes, In my childhood, when I was studying in my village school, our neighbor was a priest in the nearby temple. We used to call him, "Brahmin Dada".I was very fascinated by his spiritual and religious personality. He used to perform all the rituals and cultural activities in the village, related to the different phases of life along with the morning and evening prayer in the temple. After the prayer he used to explain to all the kids gathered for the prayer including my brothers, the different tales about god, their morals, meaning, cause, and the result of performing different rituals. We used to listen to him very carefully and follow his instructions, at the same time he taught us the importance of education, religion, and spirituality. Today, he is no more, but I feel great loss after his departure because whatever he taught me, I still follow it, and every time I thank him for his selfless and moral teaching. His personality was exactly like the author's grandmother and I strongly believe that one must have blessings and teaching of such personalities in life.
THINKING ABOUT LANGUAGE -
1. Which language do you think the author and his grandmother used while talking to each other?
Ans - The author and his grandmother must be using the Punjabi language while talking to each other, and we can conclude it from the name of the author.
2. Which language do you use to talk to elderly relatives in your family?
Ans - Being born in the Maharashtrian family, I use the Marathi language to talk in the family, but sometimes I talk in Hindi and English too.
3. How would you say, "a dilapidated drum" in your language?
Ans - In my language, I would say, "a dilapidated drum" as, "Phata Purana dhol or dholak".
4. Can you think of a song or a poem in your language that talks of homecoming?
Ans - In Hindi, many popular songs talk of the homecoming of a soldier or a loved one person who is away for the sake of either the motherland or a family, such as, "Sandese Aate Hai", "Chhithi Aayi Hai "," Ghar Aa Ja Pardesi".
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