Skip to main content

Summary of The Portrait of a Lady - Khushwant Singh

Image
By

THE PORTRAIT OF A LADY

 by Khuswant Singh

In this story, the author draws a pen portrait of his grandmother. He beautifully unfolds his relationship with her, while describing her appearance and daily activities.
Appearance of the grandmother
The author recalls his grandmother as a very old lady with a wrinkled face. She appeared so old that it was hard for him to believe that she had once been “young and pretty”. She was short, fat and a little stooped in appearance. The author remembers her moving about the house in “spotless white”, counting the beads of her rosary while her lips moved constantly in silent prayers. She was not “pretty” in the traditional sense, yet her serenity made her “beautiful”.
Initial years of togetherness: Life in the village
In the initial years of his life, the author lived with his grandmother in the village, sharing a good friendship. His grandmother used to wake him up in the morning and get him ready for the school. She would hand over to him the things he required in the school. After having thick, stale chappatis with butter and sugar for breakfast, they used to leave for school. The author's grandmother always accompanied him to school as it was attached to the temple. It was her habit to carry several stale chappatis for the village dogs, which they used to feed while returning from the school. The grandmother used to sit inside the temple reading holy books while the narrator learnt alphabets and prayers in the school.
Turning point of their friendship: Life in the city 
The ‘turning-point’ of their friendship came when they moved to the city to stay with the author’s parents. Though they shared the same room, his grandmother no longer accompanied him to the school since the author started going in a bus. As years rolled by, they “saw less of each other”. Meanwhile, as there were no dogs in the streets, she took to feeding the sparrows. Unlike the village school, the author was not taught about God and the scriptures which troubled  his grandmother. She did not believe in what was being taught at his school and was unhappy as she could not help him with his lessons. Moreover, she was disturbed at the idea of music lessons being given at school as she considered music to be unsuitable for gentlefolk. Her disapproval was conspicuous in her silence.
The grandmother combat's her loneliness by feeding the sparrows
When the author started going to the university he was given a room of his own. It resulted in a further gap between them. She accepted her loneliness and rarely spoke to anyone. All day long, she sat spinning the wheel and reciting her prayers. She relaxed for a short time, only in the afternoon, to feed the sparrows who came in large numbers. The bond and level of comfort they shared with her is evident in the fact that they perched even on her legs and head. She used to be at her happiest-self while feeding the sparrows.
Author leaves for higher studies
The author decided to go abroad for further studies. He was sure that his grandmother would be upset at his departure. On the contrary, she came to the railway station to see him off but did not show any emotion. She was absorbed in her prayers, telling the beads of her rosary. She silently kissed the author's forehead, which the author considered to be (supposedly) the last sign of their physical contact.
Author’s homecoming
On his return after five years, the author did not find any change in his grandmother. She was as old as ever and remained absorbed in her prayers. Even that day, the happiest moment for her was feeding the sparrows. In the evening, for the first time ever, she did not pray. She collected several ladies of the neighbourhood and sang songs related to the home-coming of the warriors. She had to be persuaded to stop singing in order to avoid overstraining. However, the next day she was taken ill.
Grandmother's death
Though diagnosed with a mild fever by the doctor, grandmother knew that her end was near. She decided to spend the last few hours of her life reciting prayers and telling her beads. Soon, her lips stopped moving and she died.
A silent tribute by the sparrows
The family went to make arrangements for the grandmother’s funeral. As they came with a stretcher, they stopped mid-way to find thousands of sparrows scattered around her dead body. The sparrows mourned the death of the grandmother in utter silence. They ignored the bread crumbs thrown at them by the author’s mother and flew away silently after the body was carried away for cremation. The bread-crumbs were swept away by the sweeper next morning.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Most Viewed Posts

Summary of The Enemy - Pearl S. Buck

By
THE ENEMY                                  - Pearl S. Buck Dr. Sadao – a surgeon and scientist Dr Sadao Hoki, a Japanese surgeon and scientist, lived with his wife Hana and two children on the Japanese sea-coast. His house was located on the sea-coast where he had spent his childhood. He was greatly influenced by his father whose chief concern was Sadao’s education. At the age of twenty-two, he was sent to America to study surgery and medicine. Sadao too, as an obedient son, fulfilled his father’s wishes and came back a famous surgeon and scientist to serve his nation and people. Although there was a war going on, he was not sent abroad with the troops for two reasons – he was perfecting a discovery on wounds and the old General might need him for an operation. Hana – a dedicated wife With his father’s consent, Dr. Sadao had a love marriage with Hana whom he met in America. They now had two children. Hana was a devoted wife and a sympathetic woman. She kept the
28 comments
Read more

Summary of Evans Tries an O-level - Colin Dexter

By
EVANS TRIES AN O-LEVEL                                                 - Colin Dexter An unusual request from a prisoner In early March, the Secretary of the Examinations Board gets a call from the Governor of HM Prison in Oxford. The call is regarding a prisoner at Oxford Prison. The prisoner, James Roderick Evans, has been taking night classes in O-level German since last September and now aspires to write the exam to add to his education qualification. The Governor informs the Secretary that Evans is a congenital kleptomaniac but has a pleasant personality and no record of violence. As Evans is in a cell of his own, he can sit for his exam there itself. The call ends with the decision to get a parson from St. Mary Mags to invigilate and to keep the prisoner incommunicado during the exam. ‘Evans the Break’ – a bonafide test taker? Evans has escaped from the prison thrice before he came to Oxford Prison. For this reason, the prison officers call him ‘Evans the B
7 comments
Read more

Summary of Memories of Childhood - The Cutting of My Long Hair - Zitkala-Sa and We Too are Human Beings - Bama

By
MEMORIES OF CHILDHOOD This lesson presents the idea of marginalization from the perspective of two women, Zitkala-Sa and Bama, as they walk down the memory lane to the episodes that had significant influence on their lives. I. The Cutting of My Long Hair (Zitkala-Sa) The raucous cage The author narrates the incidents of the agonizing first day of her new boarding school life as a Native American. The day was bitterly cold and she was aghast to find herself amidst the chaos of the annoying loud noises of the ringing bell, clattering shoes and ceaseless murmuring in English, the language which was still “unknown” to her. In that new place, she fell prey to the European missionaries who were prejudiced and biased against the Native American clan. Caught in this strange new world, she yearned for her “lost freedom”. Discipline of the dining hall The ringing bell was an indication for breakfast. As Zitkala-Sa entered the room in a line with her Indian counterparts, who
7 comments
Read more

Summary of Indigo - Louis Fischer

By
INDIGO                              – Louis Fischer The author visits Sevagram Fischer visited Sevagram, the ashram of Gandhi, in 1942. There, Gandhi revealed the reason behind the decision to urge the departure of the British, in 1917. A Champaran peasant and his request In 1916, Gandhi attended the annual convention of the Indian National Congress in Lucknow. During the proceedings, an illiterate peasant, Rajkumar Shukla, approached Gandhi and requested him to visit his district. He was one of the sharecroppers of Champaran, who had come to appeal against the injustice of the landlord system in Bihar. The peasant accompanied Gandhi everywhere he went and unrelentingly begged him to ‘fix a date’ for his visit to Champaran. In due course, Gandhi, impressed by the determination and the woeful tale of the peasant, consented to his request and asked him to meet in Calcutta. Gandhi’s visit to Rajendra Prasad’s house At an appointed time, the duo boarded a train to Pa
6 comments
Read more

Summary of On the Face of It - Susan Hill

By
ON THE FACE OF IT                                   - Susan Hill Scene one Lonely Derry avoids people Fourteen-year-old Derry, in an attempt to hide from the hustle-bustle and yet unfriendly world, jumps over the wall to Mr. Lamb’s garden. Unaware of Mr. Lamb’s presence, Derry stumbles upon him and is dumbfounded as he expected the house as well the garden to be unoccupied. Derry has a distorted face, a side of which was burnt by acid, and this crushed his self-confidence. Unconcerned about the way he looked, Mr. Lamb easily starts a conversation with the boy. The friendly Mr. Lamb Mr. Lamb, even without knowing him or his name, considers Derry as a friend.  The play highlights how he kept the gate of the garden always open, welcoming everyone. His house did not have any curtains as he did not like “shutting things out, shutting things in”. While talking to Derry, he said, “what’s mine is anybody’s” which depicts that he did not mind sharing. The old man liked
17 comments
Read more