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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Khuswant Singh [1915-2014]
Khuswant Singh was an Indian author, lawyer, diplomat, journalist and politician. Born in Punjab, Khushwant Singh was educated in Modern School, New Delhi, St. Stephen's College, and graduated from Government College, Lahore. He earned an L.L.B. from King's College London and was called to the bar at the London Inner Temple. He wrote many novels and short stories – ‘The voice of God and other stories’, ‘The mark of Vishnu and other stories’.
1. What does Khushwant Singh describe in ‘The portrait of a lady’
Khuswant singh draws a pen picture of his grandmother. He describes how he spent his childhood with her in the village then he describes the changes that came in their relationship when they moved to the city. Ultimately he describes the touching scene of her death.
2. The three phases of the author’s relationship with his grandmother before he left the country to study abroad.
The first phase was the author’s early childhood. During this phase he lived with his grandmother in his village. His grandmother took care of him from waking him up, getting him ready to accompanying him to school. Both shared a close and friendly relationship.
The second phase was when they both moved to the city to live with the author’s parents. This was a turning point in their relationship because now they shared less of each other’s daily activities.
The third phase was the time the author joined university. He was given a room of his own and the common link of their friendship snapped. The grandmother turns to her wheel spinning and reciting prayers all day long. She accepts her seclusion with silence.
3. Three reasons why the author’s grandmother was disturbed when he started going to the city school.
She lived alone in her room and she had accepted her loneliness quietly. She sat at her spinning wheel reciting prayers. In the afternoon she would feed the sparrows for half an hour.
5. The ways in which the sparrows expressed their sorrow when the author’s grandmother died.
The author’s grandmother was a religious lady with a kind heart. Her one hand was always busy in telling the beads of rosary and lips constantly moved in an inaudible prayer. She used to get up early in the morning and always did her morning prayers in a “monotonous sing-song”. Every day she went along with the author to his school and while the author was doing the lessons in his school she sat in a temple and read the scriptures.
Later when they moved to the city the grandmother was unhappy that there was no religious teaching at school. Before dying she stopped talking to her family members and turned to prayers and telling the beads.
8. Describe the changing relationship between the author and his grandmother. Did their feelings for each other change?
In their early days they shared a strong bond. She would get him ready for school, accompany him and would come back from school with him later in the day. She would help him with his studies and would teach him prayers by singing in a monotonous tone every morning.
When they moved to the city their relationship changed because they saw less of each other. The author was busy going to school. The grandmother no longer accompanied him to school and could not help him with the lessons. Later when the author went to the university and went abroad for higher studies the common link of friendship snapped. The grandmother spent time on her spinning wheel the whole day and chanting her prayers. She accepted her seclusion.
No, their feeling for each other did not change but during the time a distance developed between them. The grandmother had a strong will while she waited for the return of her grandson.
9. Would you agree that the author’s grandmother was a person strong in character? Give instances from the story.
Yes, the grandmother was a strong person in character. She had her own thoughts about schools and their teachings. She considered learning scriptures a better thing than studying science and English. When the author went to the university she accepted her seclusion and she would spin the wheel, chant prayers and feed bread crumbs to the sparrows.
Grandmother had a strong will while she waited for her grandson to return back home, when the author returned from abroad after receiving him in the evening she sang the homecoming of the warriors for hours and didn’t stop even when her family tried a million times.
During her last hours she did not want to waste any time taking to anyone so she lay silently on her bed and chanted her prayers till she died.
10. Why did the narrator’s grandmother give the impression of ‘winter landscape in the mountains’.
The grandmother used to wear spotless white clothes, she had silvery hair, white all over. She looked like the winter landscape in the mountains covered with snow. She recited her prayers all the time, she had a serene expression on her face which was like the peaceful white mountains.
11. It really pained the grandmother that the schools did not teach anything about God and scriptures. Should moral education be taught in schools?
Our present education has miserably failed to uplift the student’s moral and ethical values. We require religion and morality to keep men as civilized human beings. We are raising the standards of living but not the standard of life. Performance of duty, consideration for fellowmen and compassion has taken a back seat. The crisis of character looms at large. Our lofty civilization is becoming hollow because it lacks moral values and character. Value education is the need of the hour.
12. What could the narrator not believe about his grandparents?
It was almost unbelievable that the author’s grandfather ever had a wife and children. He looked as if he could have only lots of grandchildren. In case of the author’s grandmother, it was difficult to imagine or believe that she too once used to play as a child, that she was ever young and pretty or that she too had a husband.
Uses of the word ‘Tell’ in the story
Khuswant singh draws a pen picture of his grandmother. He describes how he spent his childhood with her in the village then he describes the changes that came in their relationship when they moved to the city. Ultimately he describes the touching scene of her death.
2. The three phases of the author’s relationship with his grandmother before he left the country to study abroad.
The first phase was the author’s early childhood. During this phase he lived with his grandmother in his village. His grandmother took care of him from waking him up, getting him ready to accompanying him to school. Both shared a close and friendly relationship.
The second phase was when they both moved to the city to live with the author’s parents. This was a turning point in their relationship because now they shared less of each other’s daily activities.
The third phase was the time the author joined university. He was given a room of his own and the common link of their friendship snapped. The grandmother turns to her wheel spinning and reciting prayers all day long. She accepts her seclusion with silence.
3. Three reasons why the author’s grandmother was disturbed when he started going to the city school.
The grandmother hated western sciences and learning English. Moreover she was unhappy because she could not help the author with his lessons. Secondly she was pained to know that there was no teaching of God and the scriptures in his school. Thirdly the grandmother did not like western music she thought the music was not meant for descent people and gentle folks. It was the monopoly of prostitutes and beggars.
4. Three ways in which the author’s grandmother spent her days after he grew up. She lived alone in her room and she had accepted her loneliness quietly. She sat at her spinning wheel reciting prayers. In the afternoon she would feed the sparrows for half an hour.
5. The ways 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 but 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.
6. The odd ways in which the grandmother behaved just before she died. The grandmother omitted to pray and she collected the women of the neighborhood, got an old drum and started to sing. Next day she became ill and did not want to waste any more time talking to her family members. She laid herself peacefully in bed praying and telling her beads. Even before anyone could suspect her lips stopped moving and the rosary fell from her lifeless fingers.
7. The author’s grandmother was a religious woman. What are the different ways in which we come to know about this? The author’s grandmother was a religious lady with a kind heart. Her one hand was always busy in telling the beads of rosary and lips constantly moved in an inaudible prayer. She used to get up early in the morning and always did her morning prayers in a “monotonous sing-song”. Every day she went along with the author to his school and while the author was doing the lessons in his school she sat in a temple and read the scriptures.
Later when they moved to the city the grandmother was unhappy that there was no religious teaching at school. Before dying she stopped talking to her family members and turned to prayers and telling the beads.
8. Describe the changing relationship between the author and his grandmother. Did their feelings for each other change?
In their early days they shared a strong bond. She would get him ready for school, accompany him and would come back from school with him later in the day. She would help him with his studies and would teach him prayers by singing in a monotonous tone every morning.
When they moved to the city their relationship changed because they saw less of each other. The author was busy going to school. The grandmother no longer accompanied him to school and could not help him with the lessons. Later when the author went to the university and went abroad for higher studies the common link of friendship snapped. The grandmother spent time on her spinning wheel the whole day and chanting her prayers. She accepted her seclusion.
No, their feeling for each other did not change but during the time a distance developed between them. The grandmother had a strong will while she waited for the return of her grandson.
9. Would you agree that the author’s grandmother was a person strong in character? Give instances from the story.
Yes, the grandmother was a strong person in character. She had her own thoughts about schools and their teachings. She considered learning scriptures a better thing than studying science and English. When the author went to the university she accepted her seclusion and she would spin the wheel, chant prayers and feed bread crumbs to the sparrows.
Grandmother had a strong will while she waited for her grandson to return back home, when the author returned from abroad after receiving him in the evening she sang the homecoming of the warriors for hours and didn’t stop even when her family tried a million times.
During her last hours she did not want to waste any time taking to anyone so she lay silently on her bed and chanted her prayers till she died.
10. Why did the narrator’s grandmother give the impression of ‘winter landscape in the mountains’.
The grandmother used to wear spotless white clothes, she had silvery hair, white all over. She looked like the winter landscape in the mountains covered with snow. She recited her prayers all the time, she had a serene expression on her face which was like the peaceful white mountains.
11. It really pained the grandmother that the schools did not teach anything about God and scriptures. Should moral education be taught in schools?
Our present education has miserably failed to uplift the student’s moral and ethical values. We require religion and morality to keep men as civilized human beings. We are raising the standards of living but not the standard of life. Performance of duty, consideration for fellowmen and compassion has taken a back seat. The crisis of character looms at large. Our lofty civilization is becoming hollow because it lacks moral values and character. Value education is the need of the hour.
12. What could the narrator not believe about his grandparents?
It was almost unbelievable that the author’s grandfather ever had a wife and children. He looked as if he could have only lots of grandchildren. In case of the author’s grandmother, it was difficult to imagine or believe that she too once used to play as a child, that she was ever young and pretty or that she too had a husband.
Uses of the word ‘Tell’ in the story
1. Her fingers were busy telling the beads of her rosary - count while reciting
2. I would tell her English words and little things of western science and learning - Making something known to someone in spoken or written words.
3. At her age one could never tell - one could not be sure
4. She told us that her end was near - Give information to somebody.
2. I would tell her English words and little things of western science and learning - Making something known to someone in spoken or written words.
3. At her age one could never tell - one could not be sure
4. She told us that her end was near - Give information to somebody.
Word meanings
- Mantle piece - a shelf above the fire place.
- Absurd - unreasonable
- Hobbled - walk in an awkward way, because of pain. [Words synonyms of hobble - waddle, stride, swagger, slog, trudge]
- Silver locks - grey hair
- Puckered face - wrinkled face
- Sing song- always singing in the same tone.
- Growling - making a low guttural sound.
- Lewd - indecent
- Harlots - prostitute
- Perched - sat
- Clasped - hold, grasp tightly.
- Thumped - strike heavily especially with the fist.
- Pallor - an unhealthy pale appearance.
- The thought was almost revolting - hard to believe.
- She was like the winter landscape in the mountains - grandmother used to wear spotless white clothes and had silvery hair white all over it also refers to the grandmother’s calm and serene personality as a sight of the snow covered mountains or landscape.
- A turning point - it refers to the point where the author’s relationship with the grandmother changed drastically after they. Moved to the city.
- Accepted her seclusion with resignation - This shows the author’s grandmother’s passive seclusion, gradually she loses touch with her grandson.
- A veritable bedlam of chirruping - it refers to the noise, confusion and chaos caused by the chirruping of sparrows that scattered and perched around the grandmother.
- Frivolous rebukes - driving them away in a very affectionate way.
- The sagging skins of the dilapidated drum - it points out the shabby and deteriorated condition of the drum.
on the first day after the return of author from abroad, why did the grandmother feed the sparrow longer than usual and with frivolous rebukes
ReplyDeleteThe grandmother fed her sparrows longer than usual because the day the author returned from abroad was her happiest moments. She expressed her happiness by spending more time with the sparrows. This story reveals that the feelings for each other (grandmother and the author) remained unchanged. During the time when the author was abroad a distance developed between them. But the grandmother was strong willed she waited for her grandson to return back home.
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