How I taught My Grand mother to Read Question and Answers.

SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS (30-40 WORDS)Answer the following questions.

1.      The village was not easily accessible. How do we know this?

 Value points – no regular post, newspaper in the afternoon, no good transport,weekly magazine one day late.

2.      .What was Kashi Yatre?

Value points

–a popular serial in a magazine, story of an old lady, desire to go toholy city Kashi.

3.      .Why  is Kashi/ Varanasi specially significant for Hindus?

Value points

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believed to be abode of Lord Vishweshwara, worship, ultimate punya.

4.      Grandmother was a keen learner. Give two instances to prove this?

Value points

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listened carefully, could repeat the entire text by heart later, setdeadline for learning, succeeded.

5.      .Grandmother gave her teacher a gift. Who was her teacher? What did the gift signify?.

Value points

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Guru dakshina, expression of gratitude to teacher, her grand daughter who taught her to read.

6.      Write character-sketch of grandmother.

Answer: Sixty-two years old grandmother named Krishtakka lived in the erst era where girls education was not considered important. She never went to school and remained unlettered. She was married at a very tender age and had children. Later she became grandmother and had so much pleasure in cooking and feeding. Sometimes she regretted for not going to school.So, she made sure that her children and grand-children studied well. She was a dedicated home-maker and devoted all her youth to her family. She associated herself with the protagonist of the story 'Kashi Yatre' and believed that
actual practice of religion is to practice humaneness. She was very attached to her granddaughter, who read stories to her. She was perturbed when her granddaughter went to a wedding at a neighbouring village. She could not read out the weekly episode which made her determined to learn how to read herself.

She wanted to emerge from the quagmire of ignorance. Through her hard-work, sincerity, dedication and ardent desire she was able to read on her own. She thought that there is no age bar for learning. She also teaches us that real practice of religion is practicing humaneness.

7.       What made Triveni a popular writer?


Answer: Triveni, origanally Anusuya Shankar, was a popular Kannada writer. She was so
popular because:

1. Her style was easy to read and very convincing.
2. Her stories usually dealt with complex psychological problems with common people.
3. People associated themselves with the characters of the story.
4. The stories written by her are very interesting.

8.      Why did the grandmother depend on her granddaughter to know the story?

Answer: grandmother could not read or write. She lived in an era where girls education was not considered important. She never went to school and remained unlettered. So, she depended on her granddaughter to know the story.

9.       Pick out two sentences which state that the grandmother was desperate to know what happened in the story.

Answer: The two sentences that show that the grandmother was desperate to know about the story are:

1. “Every Wednesday, the magazine would come and I would read the next episode of this story to her. During that time, she would forget all her work and listen with the greatest concentration.”
2. "Many times, I rubbed my hands over the pages wishing they could understand what was written."

10.  Could the grandmother succeed in accomplishing her desire to read? How?

Answer: The grandmother asked her granddaughter to teach her Kannada alphabet. She had a great willingness for reading and a passion for acquiring knowledge. She wanted to be independent and emerge from the quagmire of ignorance. She was a keen student. Through her hard-work, sincerity, dedication and ardent desire she was able to read on her own.


11. Which of the following traits would be relevant to the character of the narrator's grandmother?
(i) determined
(ii) selfish
(iii) emotional
(iv) mean
Give reasons for your choice.

Answer: The grandmother was a determined and emotional lady. When she was unable to read
'Kashi Yatre', she felt very miserable and helpless. Although she cried for her helplessness, but at the same time, she took a decision to learn how to read. She wanted to emerge from the quagmire of ignorance.She not only did her homework with all her sincerity but also even used to read, repeat, write and recite. Due to her hard-work, sincerity, determination and dedication she achieved her goal.

12. How does Treveni’s Kashi Yatre reveal the social, cultural and religious side of our country ?

Ans:

• Triveni’s Kashi Yatre talks about an old lady who wants to visit Kashi.
• Hindu’s believe that  going to Kashi and worshipping Lord Vishweshwara as the ultimate punya.
• Later, when an Orphan girl needed money for her marriage, the old lady sacrificed all her savings and got the orphan girl married to her lover.
• The old lady finds the happiness of the young girl more important than her visit to Kashi.
• All these instances brings to light the social, cultural and religious side of our society(country).

13. When did the grandmother realise the worth and value of being literate?

Ans:

• The grandmother was found of listening to the weekly episode of the novel “Kashi Yatre”.
• Once her granddaughter, who used to read it to her, had been away.
• The serial came and the grandmother being illiterate couldn’t read it.
• She felt depended and sad, after that she realises the worth and value of being literate.

14. What made Treveni, a very popular writer in the Kannada language

Ans:

• Triveni was a prolific writer in Kannada Language, because of all her wonderful creations.
• Her style of writing was easy to read and convincing.
• Her stories dealt with the lives of ordinary people and their psychological problems.
• These touched the heart of the people (readers).
• It revealed their emotional side of life and their self realisation.

15.    Write the character sketch of the grandmother from the story ‘How I taught My Grandmother To Read’.

Answer:

Sudha Murthy’s ‘How I Taught My Grandmother To Read’ is the story of transformation of her grandmother who depends upon the granddaughter for reading her favourite novel ‘Kashi Yatre’ to becoming an independent reader.

Krishatkka is the grandmother who could not get education because of the death of her mother in her young age. Also, educating a girl was not considered essential. She accepted the fate and continued to be happy with the family. She adjusted herself with the circumstances. She likes kids and her family.

Grandmother is a religious person. She goes to temple and shares the religious story ‘Kashi Yatre’ with her friends. She is also interested to go on a pilgrimage at Kashi. She is a very determined person. She decides to be an independent reader and also decides the deadlines for her task. She is not money minded because she is not more concerned about money but about being independent. She is very emotional. When she could not find anyone to read Kashi Yatre, she cries a lot. She also cries when she talks with the writer about her inability to read the novel. Kshitakka is a good student as she can grasp the things very quickly. She also respect her teacher (her granddaughter) by touching her feet.

16.    Make a list of qualities of the two characters of this story.

Sudha Murthy (the narrator):

-      Caring

-      Understanding

-      Respect

Grandmother:

-      Determined

-      Adjusting with the situation

-      Respect

-      Practical

-      Religious and cultured

-       Emotional

17.    Why did the grandmother think of learning to read and write at the age of sixty-two?

Grandmother realised the importance of education in her granddaughter’s absence. She had been unable to read the latest episode of ‘Kashi Yatre’. She felt helpless at her inability to read. She had depended on her granddaughter but then she decided to learn the alphabet and become self-reliant.

18.    Why was ‘Kashi Yatre’ grandmother’s favourite novel ? Give two reasons to support your answer.

‘Kashi Yatre’ was grandmother’s favourite novel as she identified herself with the novel’s protagonist, who never went to school and her ardent desire was to go to Kashi which was believed to be the ultimate punya.

19.    What is described in the novel, ‘Kashi Yatre’ ?

‘Kashi Yatre’ was the story of an old woman who wished to visit Kashi and worship Lord Vishweshwara. She was a devout woman who wished to perform the ultimate act of Punya. But, she chooses to help an orphan girl with her savings and believes it is more important than going to Kashi.

20.    What were the obstacles the grandmother faced when she was a young girl?

The grandmother lost her mother when she was very young. She had nobody to look after her and guide her. She never went to school and got married at a very young age. Then, she had children and became busy.

21.    Grandmother gave a gift to her granddaughter. What was that and why did she give it?

Grandmother gave a frock material to the granddaughter. It was a mark of affection, love and respect. Her granddaughter had taken on the role of a teacher and had patiently taught her to read. Grandmother wanted to show her gratitude and also wanted to please the little girl who was now her teacher.

22.    How does Krishtakka justify the touching of her granddaughter’s feet ?

Krishtaka justifies the touching of her granddaughter’s feet as a gesture to show respect and gratitude to the latter, who though her granddaughter, was her teacher in the first place. To validate her action, she even makes a mention of the scriptures where it is written that a teacher should be respected irrespective of the gender and age.

LONG ANSWE TYPE QUESTIONS (80-100 WORDS)Answer the following questions.

1.Imagine that you are the writer. How did you feel when your grandmother touchedyour feet? Record your thoughts and emotions in the form of a diary entry.

Value points

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 taken aback, contrary to custom, understood grandma’s sentiment.

2.Grandmother is on her death bed. In her last moments, she writes a letter to hergranddaughter, thanking her for changing her life. She also asks her to carryforward the mission of imparting knowledge, so that other lives may be touched theway hers was. Write a letter that you think grandmother must have written.