Portrait of a Lady Flashcards
The three phases of the author’s relationship with his grandmother before lie left else country to study abroad.
When the author was young, his parents who had gone to settle in the city left him in-care of his grandmother in the village. In village, the author and grandmother were always together. Author’s grandmother bathed and dressed him for school. They both went to school together and even came back together.
However, this stage came to an end when author’s parents invited them to live with them in the city. Even though grandma continued helping author dress up for school, she could no longer go with him to the school as he went by school bus and she could no longer help him with his lessons as they were all related to Western Sciences.
When the author started going to university, he got a room of his own and the common-link between them snapped. Grandmother was now all alone. She accepted her seclusion and prayed day-and-night.
Three reasons why the author’s grandmother was disturbed when m started going to the city school.
She hated western Science and learning.
She was pained to know that there was no teaching of God and the scriptures there.
She was allergic to music. She thought it was not meant for decent people and gentlefolk. It was the monopoly of prostitutes and beggars.
Three ways in which the author’s grandmother spent her days after he grew up.
The author’s grandmother “accepted her seclusion with resignation”. She spent her days of loneliness by engaging herself in the wheel-spinning activity, reciting prayers and feeding the sparrows for half an hour in the afternoon.
The odd ways in which the author’s grandmother behaved just before she died.
Just before her death, the author’s grandmother refused to talk to them. Since she
had omitted to pray the previous night while she was singing songs of homecoming and beating the drum, she was not going to waste any more time. She ignored their protests. She lay peacefully in bed praying and telling beads.
The way in which the sparrows expressed their sorrow when the author’s grandmother died.
Thousands of sparrows sat silently surrounding the dead body of the author’s grandmother. There was no chirruping. The author’s mother threw some crumbs of bread to them. They took no notice of them. As soon as the grandmother’s corpse was carried off, they flew away quietly. Thus the sparrows expressed their sorrow.
Would you agree that the author’s grandmother was a person strong in character? If yes, give instances that show this
Yes, I agree that the author’s grandmother was a person strong in character. She was a strong woman with strong beliefs. Although she was not formally educated, she was serious about the author’s education. She could not adjust herself to the western way of life, Science and English education. She hated music and disapproved of its teaching in school.
She was a deeply religious lady. Her lips were always moving in a silent prayer. She was always telling the beads of her rosary. She went to temple daily and read the scriptures. She was distressed to know that there was no teaching about God and holy books at Khushwant’s new English school.
She was a kind lady She used to feed dogs in the village. In the city she took to feeding sparrows. Although old in years and weak in body she had strength of mind. Just before her death, she refused to talk to the members of the family as she did not want to waste her time. She wanted to make up for the time last evening when she had not prayed to God. She lay peacefully in bed saying prayers and telling the beads of her rosary till she breathed her last.
How did the narrator’s grandfather appear in the portrait?
His grandfather looked very old. He had a long white beard. His clothes were loose fitting. He wore a big turban. He looked too old to have a wife or children. He looked at least a hundred years old. He could have only lots and lots of grandchildren.
Explain: “As for my grandmother being young and pretty, the thought was almost revolting”.
The narrator’s grandmother was terribly old. She could not appear young and beautiful. Her face was a criss-cross of wrinkles. She was short, fat and slightly bent. The very idea of her being young and pretty did not appeal to the mind.
Grandmother has been portrayed as a very religious lady. What details in the story create this impression?
She visited the temple every morning and read scriptures. At home she always mumbled inaudible prayer and kept telling the beads of rosary. She would repeat prayers in a sing-song manner while getting the narrator ready for school. All these details create the impression that she was a religious lady.
What was the happiest moment of the day for the grandmother?
The happiest half-hour of her day used to be the time when grandmother fed the sparrows. She would sit in the verandah breaking the bread into little bits. The sparrows would collect around her. They chirped noisily. Some perched on her legs and shoulders. Some even sat on her head. She relished this game. She never shooed them away.
What was the “last sign” of physical contact between the author and the grandmother? Why did the author think that to be the last physical contact?
The grandmother, kissed Khushwant Singh on his forehead. The author thought that this was perhaps the last sign of physical contact between them. He was going away for five years. She was extremely old and at her age one could never tell whether she would be alive for long.
Everybody including the sparrows mourned grandmother’s death. Elaborate.
The old grandmother died peacefully. The members of the author’s family mourned her death. Thousands of sparrows came and sat silently in the courtyard and the verandah where grandmother lay dead and wrapped in a red shroud. They took no notice of the bread crumbs thrown to them. They flew away quietly the moment grandmother’s corpse was carried off.
