‘The Portrait of a Lady’ Extra Important Questions Class 11 English Core: The questions given here include those selected from Previous Board Exams as well as new questions. So, enjoy free learning here and contact us for any doubts and queries.
The Portrait of a Lady Extra Questions
Q. What is the significance of sparrows in grandmothers’ life? [KVS 2017]
Ans. When grandmother shifted to the city, she spent half an hour everyday feeding the sparrows. The birds became very friendly with her and came every day in the verandah of her house. It was the happiest hour of the day. When she died after her short illness, hundreds of sparrows flew in the verandah and sat near her body. They were quiet and not chirping. They even ignored the bread crumbs given by the author’s mother. In this way they expressed their grief and their bonding with the grandmother.
Q. Grandmother never complained about anything. Her patience was beyond any measure. Mention any two instances. [KVS 2016]
Ans. Two instances that show the grandmother’s patience are:
(a) When she fed the sparrows, the birds used to sit on her head but she never shooed them away.
(b) She did not become upset when the author went abroad for higher education. She accepted the decision in a calm and composed manner
Q. Mention the three phases of the author’s relationship with his grandmother before he left the country to study abroad. (DDE 2014)
Ans. There was a great understanding between the author and his grandmother when they lived in a village but the thread was snapped when
Q. What stories of the grandmother did the author treat as ‘Fables’ of the Prophets? Why? (2014)
Ans. The author treated the stories of grandmother’s youth and beauty as fables as he had always seen her old and he found it hard to accept that she could once be pretty and young.
Q. Draw a character sketch of Khushwant Singh’s grandmother as portrayed by him in the lesson ‘The Portrait of a Lady’. (NCT, 2007)
Ans. The narrator’s grandmother was a true picture of love, affection and care. She had all those virtues which grandmother’s generally have for their grandsons. She was highly religious but a
conservative lady. The grandmother presented a picture of peace and contentment. Her spotless white dress and her silver white hair gave her spiritual beauty.
The grandmother was not physically very attractive. She had deep love and affection for her grandson. She got him ready for school. She accompanied him to his school and came back home with him. She was a very religious lady. She was always telling the beads of her rosary.
She had compassion even for animals and birds. She fed the village dogs. She took to feeding the sparrows in the city. But the grandmother was a conservative lady. She didn’t like the English language and Science. She hated music. She associated music with prostitutes and beggars.
Q. Mention the odd way in which the author’s grandmother behaved just before she died. (MSE, 2008)
Ans. Before she died, a change came over her. She collected the women of the neighbourhood, took a broken drum and sang of the home-coming of the warriors the whole day. She did not pray that day which used to be her daily routine.
Q. The author’s grandmother was a religious person. Give three instances to substantiate. (KVS, 2016, 2007)
Ans. The author’s grandmother used to read religious scriptures sitting in the temple. She said morning prayers in a sing song manner while she bathed and dressed the author for the school. She would go to the temple with the author. When they moved to the city, she would always chant the prayers and was always busy telling the beads of her rosary the beads. Thus, from these incidents we can say that the author’s grandmother was a religious person.
