The Portrait of a Lady

Question 1:
The three phases of the author’s relationship with his grandmother before lie left else country to
study abroad.
Answer:
The three phases of the author’s relationship with his grandmother before he left the country to study
abroad are:

1. childhood – when he went to the village school and the grandmother helped him to get
ready and went to school with him.
2. boyhood – when he went to the city school in a bus. He shared a room with grandmother
but she could no longer help him in his studies.
3. early youth – when he went to the university and was given a room of him own. The
common link of friendship was snapped.

Question 2:
Three reasons why the author’s grandmother was disturbed when m started going to the city school.
Answer:
The three reasons why the author’s grandmother was disturbed when he started going to the city
school are:

1. She hated western Science and learning.

2. She was pained to know that there was no teaching of God and the scriptures there.
3. She was allergic to music. She thought it was not meant for decent people and
gentlefolk. It was the monopoly of prostitutes and beggars.

Question 3:
Three ways in which the author’s grandmother spent her days after he grew up.
Answer:
The three ways in which the author’s grandmother spent her days after he grew up are:

• She lived alone in her room as 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.

Question 4:
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 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.

Question 5:
The way in which the sparrows expressed their sorrow when the author’s grandmother died.
Answer:
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.

Talk to your partner about the following:

Question 1:
The author’s grandmother was a religious person. What are the different ways in which we come to
know this?
Answer:
The author’s grandmother was a deeply religious lady. We come to know this through the different
ways of her behaviour. 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 writer ready for school. She hoped that he would learn it by heart. She
didn’t like English school as there was no teaching of God and scriptures.
Even while spinning at her spinning-wheel she would recite prayers. Perhaps it was only once that she
forgot to say her prayers. It was on the evening prior to her death when she felt over excited while
celebrating the arrival of her grandson with songs and beatings of drum. She continued praying and
telling beads of her rosary till her last breath.

Question 2:
Describe the changing relationship between the author and his grandmother. Did their feelings for
each other change?
Answer:
During his boyhood, the author was completely dependent on his grandmother. She was a part of his
life. The turning point in their friendship came when they went to city. She could no longer accompany
him to school as he went there by bus. They shared the same room but she could not help him in his
studies. She would ask him what the teachers had taught. She did not believe in the things that were
taught at school. She was distressed that there was no teaching about God and the scriptures. She
felt offended that music was also being taught. She expressed her disapproval silently. After this she
rarely talked to him. When he went to university, he was given a room of his own. The common link of
friendship was snapped.
However their feelings for each other did not change. They still loved each other deeply. She went to
see the author off at the railway station when he was going abroad for higher studies. She showed no
emotion but kissed his forehead silently. The author valued this as perhaps the last sign of physical
contact between them. When the author returned after five years, she received him at the station. She
clasped him in her arms. In the evening she celebrated his homecoming by singing songs and beating
an old drum.

Question 3:
Would you agree that the author’s grandmother was a person strong in character? If yes, give
instances that show this.
Answer:
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.

Question 4:
Have you known someone like the author’s grandmother? Do you feel the same sense of loss with
regard to someone whom you have loved and lost?
Answer:
Yes, I have known my grandfather, who loved me deeply and looked after me. He had served in the
army before he retired as a colonel 20 years ago. When I was a school going kid, he was still active
and smart. He was fond of walking, jogging and playing outdoor games. He inspired us to get up early
in the morning. He believed that a healthy mind lives in a healthy body. He used to give us good
physical exercises followed by milk and nourishing food and then asked us to study for a while before
going to school. In the afternoon, he would enquire what we had been taught at the school. He would
help us in our home task and supervise our reading, writing and doing sums. He was gentle but firm.
He laid stress on good habits and character building. He passed away when I had gone abroad for
higher studies. I miss him a lot. A sense of loss fills me whenever I see his portrait on the wall. But his
cheerful looks remind me to take heart and fight the struggle of life.

Working with Words

I. Notice the following uses of the word ‘tell’ in the essay:

1. Her fingers were busy telling the beads of her rosary.

 2. I would tell her English words and little things of Western Science and learning.
3. At her age one could never tell.
4. She told us that her end was near.

Given below are four different senses of the word ‘tell’. Match the meaning to the uses listed above.

(a) make something known to someone in spoken or written words

(b) count while reciting
(c) be sure
(d) give information to somebody.
Answer:

II. Notice the different senses of the word ‘take’:

1. to take to something: to begin to do something as a habit

2. to take ill: suddenly become ill

Locate these phrases in the text and notice the way they are used.
Answer:
In the text, these phrases are used as under:

1. to take to: She took to feeding sparrows in the courtyard of our city house.
2. take ill: The next morning she was taken ill.

III. The word ‘hobble’ means to walk with difficulty because the legs and feet are in bad condition.
Tick the words in the box below that also refer to a manner of walking.

Answer:
The words referring to a manner of walking are:
shuffle, stride, waddle, swagger, trudge, slog.

IV. Notice these expressions in the text. Infer their meaning from the context

Answer:

• the thought was almost revolting: It was disgusting to think so.

• an expanse of pure white serenity: widespread clear and calm whiteness.
• a turning point: the time when an important change takes place.
• accepted her seclusion with resignation: calmly submitted to her loneliness.
• a veritable bedlam of chirrupings: real confusing noise caused by chirping.
• frivolous rebukes: light rebukes
• the sagging skins of the dilapidated drum: the loose skin of an old drum.
Noticing Form
Notice the form of the verbs highlighted in these sentences:

1. My grandmother was an old woman. She had been old and wrinked for the twenty years
that I had known her. People said that she had once been young and pretty
and had even had a husband, but that was hard to believe.
2. When we both had finished we would walk back together.
3. When I came back she would ask me what the teacher had taught me.
4. It was the first time since I had known her that she did not pray.
5. Thus sun was setting and had lit her room and verandah with a golden light.

These are examples of the past perfect forms of verbs. When we recount things in the distant past
we use this form.

Other examples for practice

Notice the form of verbs highlighted in these sentences:
Answer:

1. We understood the poem only when the teacher had explained it twice.
2. When the rain came, they had already reached their hotel.
3. We had worked together on that project for six months before she left me.
4. It was the first time since I had lived there that it began to snow.
5. The full moon was in the sky and had scattered its soft fight all around.

Short Answer Type Questions

Question 1:
How long had the narrator known his grandmother—old and wrinkled? What did people say? How did
the narrator react?
Answer:
The narrator had known his grandmother—old and wrinkled for the last twenty years. She was terribly
old. Perhaps she could not have looked older. People said that she had once been young and pretty.
They said that she even had a husband. The narrator found it hard to believe.

Question 2:
How did the narrator’s grandfather appear in the portrait?
Answer:
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.

Question 3:
Which thought about the grandmother was often revolting and for whom?
Answer:
The narrator’s grandmother was very old and wrinkled. She had stayed at this stage for the last
twenty years. People said that once she was young and pretty. The narrator couldn’t even imagine her
being young. So the thought was revolting to him.

Question 4:
Explain: “As for my grandmother being young and pretty, the thought was almost revolting”.
Answer:
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.

Question 5:
The narrator’s grandmother ‘could never have been pretty, but she was always beautiful’. Explain the
importance of the statement.
Answer:
She was terribly old to appear pretty. Her face was a criss-cross of wrinkles. She was short, fat and
slightly bent. She didn’t create any physical appeal or attraction. However, in her spotless white dress
and grey hair she was a picture of serenity, peace, sobriety and beauty.

Question 6:
Why was it hard for the author to believe that his grandmother was once young and pretty?
Answer:
She was quite an old lady. She had been old and wrinkled for more than two decades. It is said that
once she had been young and pretty. But it is hard to believe so.

Question 7:
The narrator’s grandmother looked like the ‘winter landscape in the mountains’. Comment.
Answer:
The grandmother was always dressed in spotless white. She had silvery hair. Her white locks spread
untidily over her pale and wrinkled face. She looked like an expanse of pure white serenity. The
stretch of snow over the mountains looks equally white and peaceful. So her silvery locks and white
dress made her look like the winter landscape in the mountains.

Question 8:
How did the narrator and his grandmother become good friends?
Answer:
During his childhood, the narrator stayed with his grandmother in the village. She was his constant
companion. She looked after him. She used to wake him up. She got him ready for school in the
morning. She would give him breakfast. She went to school with him.

Question 9:
Why could the grandmother not walk straight? How would she move about the house?
Answer:
The grandmother was short and fat. She was also slightly bent. She put one hand on her waist to
support the stoop. She could not walk straight. She walked like a lame person. She limped or hobbled
about while moving.

Question 10:
Describe how the grandmother spent her time while the narrator sat inside the village school.
Answer:
The grandmother went to the school with the narrator. The school was attached to the temple. The
narrator would learn alphabet and morning prayer at school. The grandmother would sit inside the
temple. There she would read holy books. Thus she spent her time before they came back together.

Question 11:
Grandmother has been portrayed as a very religious lady. What details in the story create this
impression?
Answer:
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.

Long Answer Type Questions

Question 1:
Describe the friendship ‘between Khushwant Singh and his grandmother.
Answer:
Khushwant Singh’s grandmother was closely involved in bringing him up when the author lived with
her in the village during his early life. She used to wake him up early in the morning. While bathing and
dressing him, she sang her prayers. She hoped that the young boy would learn it by heart. She then
gave him breakfast—a stale chapatti with butter and sugar. Then they would go together to the
temple school. While the author learnt his lesson, the grandmother would read holy books. They
returned home together.
A turning point came in their friendship when his parents called them to city. Although they shared a
room, she could not help him much. She hated music, Science and Western education. The common
link of their friendship was gradually snapped.
Question 2:
What image of the grandmother emerges from ‘The Portrait of a Lady’?
Answer:
Khushwant Singh’s grandmother has been portrayed as a very old lady. She was short statured, fat
and slightly bent. Her face was wrinkled and she was always dressed in spotless white clothes. 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 the temple and read the scriptures.
The grandmother was a kind lady. She used to feed dogs in the village. In the city she took to feeding
the sparrows. She had great affection for her grandson. She looked after him in the village. She could
not adjust herself to the Western way of life, Science and English education. She hated music and
was distressed to know that there was no teaching about God and holy books at Khushwant’s new
English school. On the whole, she was a nice, kind-hearted and religious lady.

Question 3:
Write a character sketch of the author’s grandmother by using following words: affectionate, caring,
kind and benevolent, religious, a strong woman.
Answer:
Khushwant Singh’s grandmother was a very old lady. She was short, fat and slightly bent. Her face
was wrinkled. She had white hair. She was very affectionate. She was closely involved in bringing up
the author. The two lived in the village. She was a caring grandmother. She would wake him early in
the morning and get him ready for school. She served him breakfast and took him to school. She
waited for him in the temple. She prayed while he studied. She returned with him.
She was kind and benevolent. She used to feed dogs in the village. In the city she took to feeding the
sparrows. 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 the temple and read the scriptures.
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. She was distressed to know that there was no teaching
about God and holy books at Khushwant’s new English school. On the whole, she was a nice,
affectionate, kind hearted and religious lady.

Question 4:
The grandmother herself was not formally educated but was serious about the author’s education.
How does the text support this?
Answer:
The grandmother was quite serious about the author’s education. She woke him up in the morning
and got him ready for school. She washed his wooden slate. She plastered it with yellow chalk. She
tied his earthen ink-pot and reed pen into a bundle. She took him to school. He studied in school. She
waited for him in the temple reading scriptures.
In the city, the author went to an English school in a motor bus. When he came back she would ask
him what the teacher had taught him. She could not help him with his lessons. She did not believe in
the things taught at the English school. She was distressed to learn that her grandson was being
taught music. She considered it unfit for gentle folk.

Question 5:
Gradually the author and the grandmother saw less of each other and their friendship was broken.
Was the distancing in the relationship deliberate or due to demand of the situation?
Answer:
During his boyhood, grandmother was a part of his life. He was completely dependent on her. The
turning point in their friendship came when they went to city. Now, he went to school by bus. She no
longer accompanied him. As the years rolled by they saw less of each other. For sometime she
continued to wake him up and got him ready for school. When he came back she would ask him what
the teachers had taught. She did not believe in the things that were taught at school. She was
distressed that there was no teaching about God and the scriptures. She felt offended that music was
also being taught. She expressed her disapproval silently.
After this she rarely talked to him. When he went up to university, he was given a room of his own.
The common link of friendship was snapped. Now she spent most of her time at the spinning wheel.
Thus we find that the distancing in the relationship was due to demand of situation. The graph of life
never follows a straight line.