THE PORTRAIT OF A LADY (QUESTIONS & ANSWERS)
THE PORTRAIT OF A LADY
(Questions & Answers)
1. The three phases of the author’s relationship with his grandmother before lie left else country to study abroad.
Answers:
- Childhood – He attended the village school, and his grandmother would help him get ready each morning, accompanying him to school.
- Boyhood – He started attending the city school, traveling by bus. Though he still shared a room with his grandmother, she could no longer assist with his studies.
- Early youth – He moved to the university and was given a room of his own. The bond of companionship with his grandmother gradually faded.
Answer:
- She despised Western science and education.
- There was a feeling of deep discomfort knowing the west lacked teachings about God and the scriptures.
- Music, to her, was equally abhorrent—she believed it had no place among respectable or refined individuals, viewing it as the domain of beggars and courtesans.
3. What are the three ways in which the author’s grandmother spent her days after he grew up?
Answers:
- She lived alone, having quietly embraced her solitude.
- Each day, she sat at her spinning wheel, murmuring prayers under her breath.
- In the afternoons, she spent half an hour feeding the sparrows
4. What are the odd ways in which the author’s grandmother behaved just before she died?
Answer:
Just before her death, the author’s grandmother refused to speak to them. Having neglected her prayers the night before, too absorbed in singing homecoming songs and beating the drum, she was determined not to waste another moment. She ignored their pleas, lying peacefully in bed, her fingers moving over the beads as she whispered her prayers.
5. What are the ways in which the sparrows expressed their sorrow when the author’s grandmother died?
Answer:
Thousands of sparrows gathered silently around the lifeless body of the author’s grandmother, their usual chirping absent. When the author’s mother scattered bread crumbs for them, they showed no interest. The moment the grandmother’s body was taken away, the sparrows quietly flew off, as if they, too, were mourning her loss.
6. The author’s grandmother was a religious person. What are the different ways in which we come to know this?
Answers:
The author’s grandmother was deeply religious, a fact evident in her daily habits and actions. Every morning, she visited the temple and immersed herself in reading scriptures. At home, she constantly murmured inaudible prayers while her fingers moved rhythmically over the beads of her rosary. As she helped the author prepare for school, she would chant prayers in a sing-song manner, hoping he would memorize them. She disapproved of his English school because it lacked teachings about God and sacred texts.
Even while working at her spinning wheel, she continued her recitations. The only time she may have missed her prayers was on the evening before her death, when she became unusually excited, celebrating her grandson’s arrival with songs and drumming. Yet, until her final breath, she prayed and counted her rosary beads.
7. Describe the changing relationship between the author and his grandmother. Did their feelings for each other change?
Answer:
During his childhood, the author was deeply reliant on his grandmother, who was an integral part of his life. Their close bond began to shift when they moved to the city. She could no longer accompany him to school, as he now took the bus. Though they still shared the same room, she couldn't assist him with his studies. She often asked about what he learned, but she was disillusioned by the subjects taught at school, especially the absence of lessons about God and the scriptures. Music lessons, in particular, troubled her, and though she didn’t voice her disapproval openly, her silence spoke volumes. From that point on, their conversations grew fewer.
When the author went off to university, he was given his own room, severing the shared space that had once been the heart of their friendship. Though the closeness of their bond had faded, the love between them remained unchanged. Before the author left for higher studies abroad, his grandmother saw him off at the railway station. She didn’t show any outward emotion but silently kissed his forehead, a gesture the author cherished as possibly their last physical connection. Upon his return five years later, she greeted him at the station, holding him tightly in her arms. That evening, in her joy, she celebrated by singing and beating an old drum, marking his homecoming with heartfelt warmth.
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