The Portrait of a Lady Summary
Summary of The Portrait of a Lady – The chapter ‘The Portrait
of a Lady’ is the story of the author and his grandmother. The grandmother was
an old woman with a wrinkled face. The author had always seen her like this,
for the past twenty years. She appeared to be so old that he could not imagine
her being ‘young and pretty, someone who had a husband. She was short, fat, and
slightly bent. The author had seen his grandfather’s portrait- an old man with
a turban and a long white beard covering his chest. To the author, his
grandfather didn’t seem like a man who could have a wife and children, but
someone who could have lots of grandchildren. His grandmother used to move
around the house in ‘Spotless White’ with her one hand resting on her waist and
her other hand counting the beads of her rosary.
In the initial days, the author and his grandmother had a
good relationship. She used to wake him up and get him ready for school. She
used to pack the things required by him for the day and walked him to school
every day. She used to visit the temple that was attached to the school. She
had a routine of reading the scriptures. The author along with other children
sat on the verandah singing alphabets and morning prayers. They both used to
come back home together with stray dogs roaming around them as his grandmother
would carry the stale chapattis to feed them.
Soon, the parents of the author who went to the city to
settle in and called them. As they reached the city, his relationship with his
grandmother took a turn. Though they shared the room, there bond grew apart. He
started going to an English medium school, she no longer accompanied him to his
school, and there were no longer stray dogs who roamed around them while
walking back home. She, however, used to ask him about his day and what he had
learned. She didn’t understand anything as everything was in another language
which she could not understand. She didn’t approve of the new syllabus that he
was studying because she thought that they did not teach him about God and the
scriptures. They saw less of each other.
As the days passed, he grew older and soon went to the
university. He had his own room and this made their relationship sour. She
stopped talking to everyone and spent her whole day sitting at her spinning
wheel, reciting prayers and moving beads of the rosary with one hand. However,
she loved feeding sparrows in the verandah at dawn. Breaking bread into pieces
and feeding it to the birds was her daily routine. The birds would sit on her
legs, her head, some even on the shoulders.
Soon, the author decided to go abroad for further studies.
She came to the railway station to leave him off. She was not sentimental,
continuously recited her prayers, her mind lost in the prayers, and she kissed
him on the forehead. After five years, as he returnedhome, she was there, came
to pick him at the station, was still the same as she had been five years ago.
She clasped him within her arms and didn’t say a word. She still used to feed
her sparrows.
One day, she didn’t recite her prayers but instead collected
the women of the neighbourhood, got a drum and started singing. The next
morning, she was ill with mild fever. The doctor said that there was nothing to
worry about but she was sure that her end was near.
She didn’t want to waste her time talking to anyone in the
family anymore but spend her last hours in reciting her prayers laying on the
bed. She died and so her body lay on the bed, lifeless. As they prepared for
her funeral, they saw all the sparrows sitting in the verandah around her,
mourning her death.
The Portrait of a Lady Lesson Explanation
Passage: My grandmother, like everybody’s grandmother, was an
old woman. She had been old and wrinkled 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. My grandfather’s portrait hung above the
mantelpiece in the drawing-room. He wore a big turban and loose-fitting
clothes. His long, white beard covered the best part of his chest and he looked
at least a hundred years old. He did not look the sort of person who would have
a wife or children. He looked as if he could only have lots and lots of
grandchildren. As for my grandmother being young and pretty, the thought was
almost revolting. She often told us of the games she used to play as a child.
That seemed quite absurd and undignified on her part and we treated it like the
fables of the Prophets she used to tell us.
Word Meaning:
Wrinkled- having lines or folds
Portrait- painting or picture
Mantelpiece- a structure of wood, marble, or stone above and
around a fireplace.
the thought was almost revolting- it was very hard for the
author to believe
Revolting – unpleasant
Absurd – Illogical
Undignified- disrespectful
Fables- fictitious stories with a moral teaching
Prophets- saints
Explanation of the above passage: The author talks about his
grandmother. He had known her for the past twenty years and she had always been
old and wrinkled. He was told that she was once young and pretty and had a
husband. His grandfather’s portrait hung on the wall, in which he wore loose
fitted clothes, a turban and had a long, white- coloured beard that reached his
chest.
He also appeared very old and the author thought that he was
someone who could have many grandchildren but not a wife or children. The
author could never imagine that once his grandmother was young and pretty. He
could not connect to this idea.
She used to tell him and his cousins about her childhood
memories like the games she used to play as a child. They found these stories
illogical and disrespectful because it was beyond their imagination to think
that grandmother was once a child and played such games.
They thought that her life’s stories were like the other
moral stories which she used to tell them.
Passage: She had always been short and fat and slightly bent.
Her face was a criss-cross of wrinkles running from everywhere to everywhere.
No, we were certain she had always been as we had known her. Old, so terribly
old that she could not have grown older, and had stayed at the same age for
twenty years. She could never have been pretty; but she was always beautiful.
She hobbled about the house in spotless white with one hand resting on her
waist to balance her stoop and the other telling the beads of her rosary. Her
silver locks were scattered untidily over her pale, puckered face, and her lips
constantly moved in inaudible prayer. Yes, she was beautiful. She was like the
winter landscape in the mountains, an expanse of pure white serenity breathing
peace and contentment.
Word Meaning:
Criss- cross – a pattern of intersecting straight lines
Hobbled – walked in an awkward way
spotless white – she wore clean, white coloured dresses
Stoop – bend one’s body forward
Rosary- a string of beads for keeping count of number of
chants made of a religious prayer
Locks- hair
Scattered – disorganized
Untidily – not neat
Puckered – a face contract into wrinkles
Inaudible- unable to be heard
Serenity – the state of being peaceful and calm
an expanse of pure white serenity – refers to the calm,
relaxed and peaceful character of the author’s grandmother
Contentment – a state of happiness and satisfaction
Explanation of the above passage: His grandmother was short,
fat, slightly bent in posture and her face had lots of wrinkles. She seemed so
old and she had been the same for the past twenty years. According to the
author, she was beautiful but not pretty.
She walked around the house in an awkward way, wearing
spotless white clothes with beads of the rosary hanging from one hand and the
other hand rested on her back for support. She had silver-colored hair which
was not neatly combed and was disorganized. She was constantly chanting
prayers. He compares her to the winter landscape in the mountains which has a
peaceful and calm feel. She was a live example of a pure, white, peace –
emitting entity.
Passage: My grandmother and I were good friends. My parents
left me with her when they went to live in the city and we were constantly
together. She used to wake me up in the morning and get me ready for school.
She said her morning prayer in a monotonous sing-song while she bathed and
dressed me in the hope that I would listen and get to know it by heart; I
listened because I loved her voice but never bothered to learn it. Then she
would fetch my wooden slate which she had already washed and plastered with
yellow chalk, a tiny earthen ink-pot and a red pen, tie them all in a bundle
and hand it to me.
After a breakfast of a thick, stale chapatti with a little
butter and sugar spread on it, we went to school. She carried several stale
chapattis with her for the village dogs.
Word Meaning:
Monotonous – dull and boring
Bothered- to be concerned
Fetch – go for and then bring back something for someone
Slate- a flat plate of slate formerly used for writing on in
schools
Plastered- covered with a layer of plaster
Earthen- made of baked or fired clay
Stale- no longer fresh
and pleasant to eat; hard, musty, or dry.
Explanation of the above passage: The author lived with her
in the village. They were good friends. His parents left him with her to settle
in the city. The author’s grandmother used to wake him up every morning and get
him ready for school. She would recite her morning prayers while she bathed and
dressed him up and he loved her voice but would not try to memorize a word of
what she spoke. She would make his things ready like a wooden slate, a tiny
earthen inkpot, and a red pen. He would eat a thick stale chapatti with butter
and sugar spread on it. They both used to walk to school and his grandmother
carried stale chapattis with her to feed the village dogs.
Passage: My grandmother always went to school with me because
the school was attached to the temple. The priest taught us the alphabet and morning
prayer. While the children sat in rows on either side of the verandah singing
the alphabet or the prayer in a chorus, my grandmother sat inside reading the
scriptures. When we had both finished, we would walk back together. This time
the village dogs would meet us at the temple door. They followed us to our home
growling and fighting with each other for the chapattis we threw to them. When
my parents were comfortably settled in the city, they sent for us.
That was a turning-point in our friendship. Although we
shared the same room, my grandmother no longer came to school with me. I used
to go to an English school in a motor bus. There were no dogs in the streets
and she took to feeding sparrows in the courtyard of our city house.
Word Meaning:
Scriptures – the sacred writings of a religion
Growling – making a low guttural sound in the throat
Courtyard- verandah
Explanation of the above passage: His grandmother would
accompany him to the school as the temple was attached to the school and she
used to visit the temple daily. On one side, he would sit on the verandah with
other children, would sing the alphabet and prayers in the chorus. On the other
hand, she would sit in the temple to read the scriptures. After finishing, they
would walk back home together.
The village dogs met them at the village door. They would
follow them to their home, growling and fighting with each other for the stale
chapatis that she fed them. When his parents got settled in the city, they
called them. That was the turning point of his friendship with his grandmother.
They shared the same room but she no longer would give him company to his
school. He started going to an English medium school and a motor bus would come
to pick and drop him. There were no dogs in the streets whom she could feed as
she did in the village. So, she started feeding sparrows in the verandah of
their house.
Passage: As the years rolled by we saw less of each other. For some time she continued to wake me up and get me ready for school. When I came back she would ask me what the teacher had taught me. I would tell her English words and little things of western science and learning, the law of gravity, Archimedes’ Principle, the world being round, etc. This made her unhappy. She could not help me with my lessons. She did not believe in the things they taught at the English school and was distressed that there was no teaching about God and the scriptures. One day I announced that we were being given music lessons. She was very disturbed. To her music had lewd associations. It was the monopoly of harlots and beggars and not meant for gentlefolk. She said nothing but her silence meant disapproval.
She rarely talked to me after that.
Word Meaning:
Years rolled by- time passed
Distressed – suffer from extremely sorrow, anxiety or pain
Lewd Association – Indecent or Obscene
Harlots – Prostitutes
Gentlefolk – People of noble birth
Explanation of the above passage: As the years passed in the
city, their interaction reduced. For some time, she continued to wake him up
and would get him ready for school. She would ask him what he had learned in
school that day. The scientific terminology and English words made her unhappy.
As she didn’t know the language, she could not help him with the lessons. As
his new school never taught him about God and religious scriptures, this made
her sad. She did not approve of such an education. When she came to know that
he was getting music lessons, it disturbed her. According to her, music was
indecent and it was an art for the beggars and prostitutes, and not for those
belonging to decent families. She didn’t like that he learned music, so, she stopped
talking to him.
Passage: When I went up to University, I was given a room of
my own. The common link of friendship was snapped. My grandmother accepted her
seclusion with resignation. She rarely left her spinning-wheel to talk to
anyone. From sunrise to sunset she sat by her wheel spinning and reciting
prayers. Only in the afternoon she relaxed for a while to feed the sparrows.
While she sat in the verandah breaking the bread into little bits, hundreds of
little birds collected round her creating a veritable bedlam of chirrupings.
Some came and perched on her legs, others on her shoulders. Some even sat on
her head. She smiled but never shooed them away. It used to be the happiest
half-hour of the day for her.
Word Meaning:
Snapped- break
suddenly and completely
Seclusion – the state of being private and away from the
people
accepted her seclusion with resignation- the grandmother
accepted a lonely life as she accepted the separation from her grandson without
objection
Spinning-wheel – a
household machine with a wheel attached to it for spinning yarn
A veritable bedlam of chirrupings – refers to the noise and
confusion caused by the chirrupings of the sparrows
Veritable – use to describe something which is very
interesting or unusual
Bedlam – confusion
Chirrupings – the noise of a small bird
Perched – alight or rest on something
Shooed – make a person or animal go away by shouting or
saying ‘shoo’
Explanation of the above passage: As the author went to
university, he had a room of his own. The common link of his friendship with
his grandmother that they had when they shared the same room, was changed now
and thus, his friendship with her ended. She became more private and spent her
whole day spinning wheel. From sunrise to sunset, she would sit and silently
recite her prayers. In the afternoon, she used to feed sparrows in the
verandah. Breaking the bread into small pieces, she would feed hundreds of
birds. The birds would gather around her, some sat near her, some on her legs,
some on her shoulders and few on her head. She never shooed them, but always
smiled. She was the happiest in that half an hour during the whole day.
Passage: When I decided to go abroad for further studies, I
was sure my grandmother would be upset. I would be away for five years, and at
her age one could never tell. But my grandmother could. She was not even
sentimental. She came to leave me at the railway station but did not talk or
show any emotion. Her lips moved in prayer, her mind was lost in prayer. Her fingers
were busy telling the beads of her rosary. Silently she kissed my forehead, and
when I left I cherished the moist imprint as perhaps the last sign of physical
contact between us. But that was not so. After five years I came back home and
was met by her at the station. She did not look a day older. She still had no
time for words, and while she clasped me in her arms I could hear her reciting
her prayers. Even on the first day of my arrival, her happiest moments were
with her sparrows whom she fed longer and with frivolous rebukes.
Word Meaning:
Sentimental – a feeling of nostaglia, sadness or tenderness;
an emotional feeling
Beads – a small piece of glass or stone threaded with others
to make a rosary or necklace
Cherished – hold something dear
Moist- wet
Imprint – impression or stamp
Clasped – hold tightly
Frivolous – not having any serious purpose, light-hearted
Rebuke – disapproval of something or someone
frivolous rebukes – light hearted scoldings
Explanation of the above passage: When the author decided to
go abroad for further studies, he believed it would be the last time he would
see her as he would be gone for five long years. As they all reached the
station, she held him tightly and kissed his forehead. He thought it was the
last physical contact with her. The wet impression of her hand was dear to him.
She was not sentimental at all. When he came back after five years, she came to
meet him at the station. She looked just the way she did five years ago, not a
day older. She held him again in her arms and was still reciting her prayers.
He noticed on the first day of his arrival that only sparrows
would make her happy.
Passage: In the evening a change came over her. She did not
pray. She collected the women of the neighbourhood, got an old drum and started
to sing. For several hours she thumped the sagging skins of the dilapidated
drum and sang of the home-coming of warriors. We had to persuade her to stop to
avoid overstraining. That was the first time since I had known her that she did
not pray. The next morning she was taken ill. It was a mild fever and the
doctor told us that it would go. But my grandmother thought differently. She
told us that her end was near. She said that, since only a few hours before the
close of the last chapter of her life she had omitted to pray, she was not
going to waste any more time talking to us.
Word Meaning:
Thumped- hit
Sagging – sinking downwards
Dilapidated – in a state of despair or ruin
the sagging skins of the dilapidated drum- The loose surface
of the worn out drum
Persuade – to talk someone into doing something, requeste
Overstraining- overdoing something
Omitted – leave out or exclude something
Explanation of the above passage: An evening, she didn’t
follow her regular routine of praying. She collected a few women from the
neighbourhood, got a drum and started singing with them. She thumped the ruined
part of the drum and sang along. The whole family persuaded her to stop as she
might get ill due to exhaustation. The next morning, she fell ill. It was a
mild fever. The doctors told them that it would go away but she took it
differently. According to her, she would die soon as her end was near. She
started chanting prayers as she didn’t want to waste her last hours in talking
to anyone.
Passage: We protested. But she ignored our protests. She lay
peacefully in bed praying and telling her beads. Even before we could suspect,
her lips stopped moving and the rosary fell from her lifeless fingers. A
peaceful pallor spread on her face and we knew that she was dead.
Word Meaning:
Protested – express an objection against something or someone
Pallor – an unhealthy pale appearance
Explanation of the above passage: The family protested, tried
to stop her but she lay peacefully on her bed, chanting prayers and doing her
beads. Suddenly, she stopped and the rosary fell from her lifeless fingers. A
calm, pale appearance spread on her face and she was dead.
Passage: We lifted her off the bed and, as is customary, laid
her on the ground and covered her with a red shroud. After a few hours of
mourning we left her alone to make arrangements for her funeral. In the evening
we went to her room with a crude stretcher to take her to be cremated. The sun
was setting and had lit her room and verandah with a blaze of golden light. We
stopped half-way in the courtyard.
All over the verandah and in her room right up to where she
lay dead and stiff wrapped in the red shroud, thousands of sparrows sat
scattered on the floor. There was no chirruping. We felt sorry for the birds
and my mother fetched some bread for them. She broke it into little crumbs, the
way my grandmother used to, and threw it to them. The sparrows took no notice
of the bread. When we carried my grandmother’s corpse off, they flew away
quietly. Next morning the sweeper swept the bread crumbs into the dustbin.
Word Meaning:
Customary – traditional
Crude – in a natural state, roughly made
Cremated – dispose of or burn a body after it is dead
Blaze – a very large burning fire
Shroud – a piece of cloth used to wrap a dead person
Corpse- dead body
Explanation of the above passage: The family lifted her from
the bed, laid her on the ground and wrapped her with a red- coloured cloth.
Thousands of sparrows sat silently near her. The author’s mother fetched some
bread for the birds but they didn’t eat any. They flew away later as the family
carried the dead body. The sweeper removed the crumbs the next morning. The
birds were so sensitive. They did not want to eat bread but were mourning the
death of the one who had fed them for so many days