Too Bad

Too Bad!

—Isaac Asimov

Introduction

Dr Isaac Asimov was born in Russia but went to America with his parents when he was only three years old. He is a prolific writer and has produced a large number of books, both science fiction and non-fiction.

Too Bad! is a science fiction. The action is supposed to take place in the 22nd century. Wonderful robots have been made. Dr. Gregory Arnfeld designed a new type of robot. It is so designed that it can shrink and expand. It can be injected into human body. It can enter the blood stream and destroy cancerous cells. Its creator Dr. Arnfeld is suffering form inoperable cancer. He is first person to use this new technique. The technique was not without its dangers. The robot called Mike is injected in his body. It destroys every cancer cell. But there is the danger part. It can expand and kill the patient. Mike can think. It decides to shrink smaller still. It becomes as small as an election. Then it escapes into the outer space, expands and explodes. It sacrifices itself so that no harm comes to its creator

Summary

THE THREE LAWS OF ROBOTICS

1. A robot may not injure human beings. It can not allow a human being come to harm through its inaction.

2. A robot must obey orders given to it by humans except when they are against the First Law.

3. A robot must protect itself as long as it is not against the First or the Second Law.

The action of the story is supposed to take place in the 22nd Century Robotics has greatly advanced. Dr. Gregory Arnfeld has developed a new technique called miniaturization. According to this technique a robot is capable of shrinking and expanding without affecting its surroundings. It can be injected into human body and there it can destroy malignant cells like those of cancer.

Gregory Arnfeld had inoperable cancer. He could not live long. He refused to be treated by chemical or radiation therapy. He firmly believed that he could be treated by the miniaturisation technique. His robot Mike, that was designed for this purpose, could perfectly handle it. His wife Tertia Arnfeld had her doubts. She wanted him to use the other techniques and he could try Mike as the last resort. He had designed Mike in such a way that it could make itself smaller or larger at will without affecting its surroundings. Arnfeld was almost proud of it. He thought his greatest feat would be being successfully treated by a minirobot. He believed it would be a glorious experiment. Of course he admitted there was some risk involved. But there is some risk in every therapy.

Mrs. Arnfeld spoke to Louis Secundo, who was associated with miniaturization. Miniaturization was closely related to quantum mechanics. There is a strong element of the unpredictable. When Mike reduced to its required size there was a danger that it could suddenly begin unplanned expansion that would kill the patient. But he hoped such chance was not there. But chance could not be zero. Dr. Arnfeld was aware of this possibility. But he felt the experiment was worthwhile. There was another possibility too. It was that Mike became as tiny as an electron. Then a little effort on its part would send it flying into the outer space. It could re-expand. If it did, it would burst there without doing harm to anybody.

Mrs. Arnfeld went to see Mike. She had seen it when they were testing it. It remembered her. It greeted her. It assured her that it understood its task. It had to quickly destroy cancer cells in Dr. Arnfeld's body.

Johannes told her that the job could take hours, and every moment of those hours would increase the chance of re-expansion. But Mike assured her that it would do its best to prevent re-expansion.
There was the probability of something untoward. If a full and sudden re-expansion took place, it would blow up the entire operating room and kill every person in it. That is why the observation room was underground, and half a mile away. Mrs. Arnfeld had a grisly sense of assurance that if anything untoward happened, the three miniaturists who were working on the procedure would also die along with her husband. So they would be careful in protecting her husband's life.

Mrs. Arnfeld saw Mike grow smaller and disappear. They injected it into her husband's body. Mike started its action. Mrs. Arnfeld was mildly sedated and slept.

When the experiment had been successfully carried out, Johannes told her about it. But something unexpected had happened. Mrs. Arnfeld explained this to her husband after two days.

Her husband was free from all cancer cells. He wished to see Mike but it was not available. She told him that when it had cleaned up all the tissues, it had to undergo re-expansion. It was risky. Mike decided to make itself small till it was far less massive than an electron. It used his laser beam. The recoil sent it flying into outerspace with the speed of light. It exploded there without causing harm to anyone.

Mike had sacrificed itself to ensure the safety of its creator's life.

Dr. Arnfeld was not happy. He wished Mike were not destroyed. He wanted it for further work. Mrs. Arnfeld thought all that mattered was the safety of her husband's life. But he could not agree with her. He thought it was too bad that Mike had destroyed itself.

Word Meanings

Robotics = study of the use of robots; Conflict = opposition; Inoperable = that which cannot be operated; Strenuously = vigorously, forcefully; Radiation therapy = curing cancer etc. by sending out radioactive waves; Concerned = worried; Last resort = last recourse; Drenching = drowsing, sprinkling; Miniaturization = the process of shrinking or making smal Restore = build up again, renew; Privileged = having an advantage; Initiative = power of acting independently; Wearying = tiresome; Recurs = reappears; Quantum mechanics = concerning radiation of electrons; Unpredictable = unforeseeable, unexpected; Accelerated = with increased speed; Burst = explosion; Warrant = guarantee; Glitch = malfunction, fault; Statistical = concerning numerical facts; Neutrino = having zero mass and travelling at the speed of light; Neighbourhood = about, nearly; Gamma rays = penetrating, electro-magnetic rays; Astronomers = scientists who study heavenly bodies or outerspace; Adamantly = obstinately; Blanket blackout = complete secrecy; Predisposition = having an inherited inclination; Laboured = worked hard; Assiduously = diligently; Eventually = finally, consequently; First-name terms = very intimate friends; Neutral = showing no emotion; Bottom heavy = heavy at the bottom; Bulky = massive; Abdominal = in the middle; Anthropomorphism = having human attributes; Cramium = skull, head; Moronic = mentally deficient; Vestige = trace; Nucleus = the centre; Capillaries = small blood vessels; Grimace = frown; Monitoring = controlling; Random = without plan; Precise = exact; Lesions = injury; Undetectable = that cannot be found; Predicting = foretelling; Media = press, T.V. etc.; Niche = corner, assigned place; Grisly = grim; Condemned to death = sure to die; Cavalier = casual, careless; Imminent = certain, sure to happen; Discomposure = uneasiness; Prohibitively expensive = too expensive to make use of; Submarine = under the sea; Imprecise = inexact; Tissues = substance of the body; Sedated = induced with sleep; Faculties = natural capabilities; Buoyantly = cheerfully; Immune = safe, secure; Recoil = drawback, pushed back; Detected = discovered

Questions You May Be Asked

Q. 1 Give a detailed account of how Mike saved Dr. Gregory Arnfeld's life?

A.1 Dr. Gregory Arnfeld was the inventor of a minirobot that was capable of becoming smaller and smaller. The technique was called miniaturization. The minirobot could be injected in the patient's body. It was equipped with a laser gun. It could recognize cancer cells and destroy them with laser beams. Then it could be taken out of the patient's body. The technique was supposed to be almost risk-free. But it had not yet been tried. There was only one risk involved. The robot could re-expand uncontrollably. If it exploded inside the patient's body it could kill the patient.

Dr. Arnfeld had cancer. He wanted to make an experiment. He wanted that his mini-robot named Mike should be used to clean his body of the cancer cells.

Inspite of protests of his wife, Dr. Arnfeld became the first person by his own choice on which the experiment was made. Mike did his job magnificently. He killed every cancer cell in Dr. Arnfeld's blood stream. But now there was a chance for Mike to re-expand. If he expanded inside he could explode and kill Arnfeld. So he decided to become smaller and smaller till it was no bigger than an electron. Then he used his laser gun. It did not hurt anybody but its recoil sent Mike flying into the outspace at the speed of light. When it was thousands of kilometers away, it re-expanded and burst. Thus the minirobot made a supreme sacrifice to save his master.

Q.2 Do you think that Mike was almost like a human being? Justify your answer with reference from the story.

A.2 Mike was a robot but the technology had so advanced that the robot could reason like humans. Mike was designed to obey three principles of robotics, the First Law is that robot may not injure a human being, or through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm. The Second Law is that a robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where that would conflict with the First Law. The Third Law is that a robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

Mike was so human like that his maker Dr. Arnfeld did not like him to be called 'it'. He loved Mike dearly and would not like to see it come to any harm. He preferred to be saved by Mike rather than by any other therapy. When Mrs. Arnfeld saw Mike he immediately recognised her. He assured her that he knew his job well and would do it as best he could. He knew that he had to recognise every cancerous cells and destroy it.

Mike did his duty well. When he had done his job, there was every possibility of his re-expansion. Mike was aware of the danger. He knew that if he expanded he would explode in Dr. Arnfeld's body which would kill his master. Like a faithful servant he became smaller to save Arnfeld. He did not want to take any risk. So he sacrificed himself. It was like a human being. But in fact, Mike had no choice. A human being might have, or might have not acted the way Mike did. But Mike acted the way he did because he had to obey the First Law mechanically. He could not afford to let his master come to harm through his inaction. So he acted to save Arnfeld.

Lawley Road

Lawley Road

— R.K. Narayan

Introduction

R.K. Narayan is a well-known Indian writer in English. He was born in Chennai in October, 1906. He is well known for his writings about Malgudi. His novel Guide won him country's highest literary award.

Lawley Road is the story of a talkative man who gets huge a statue of Sir Lawley, a British Officer, free. He was to carry it from its place to his house at his own cost. But he found it was not as profitable a bargain as he believed it to be. With much difficulty he had the statue blasted, & carted to his house. Then it was discovered that Sir Lawley had been mistaken for another Lawley. This Sir Lawley was a good man. The talkative man was in trouble. People picketed his house and demanded the statue back. The talkative man was finally able to persuade the Chairman of the Municipality to buy the statue along with his house. This plan worked to the benefit of the Chairman and the talkative man.

Summary

The story is told by the talkative man who lived in Malgudi and worked as a correspondent for an upcountry newspaper. In those days of the British Raj, the Magudi Municipality was almost non-existant. It did no service to the people. The town was dirty. Streets and drains were left to their own fate. Diseases appeared, ran their course and disappered without any credit to the Municipality. But when India won her freedom on 15th August 1947, the Municipality of Malgudi suddenly came into action. The streets and drains were cleaned. Flags were hoisted. The Independence Day was celebrated. The Chairman of Municipal Council was well pleased with himself for the successful celebration of the occasion.

The Talkative Man often reported the affairs of the Municipality in good light. He was a favourite of the Chairman and often went to see him.

About a week after the celebration of Independence Day, the Chairman was not happy. He wanted to do something more sensational and more patriotic. So he called a meeting of the Council and proposed to nationalise the names of streets, parks and localities. A few names like Mahatma Gandhi Road, Nehru Road and Netaji Subhash Bose Road were in great demand. The Councillors fellout for them. The result was that more than one street got the same name. This caused a lot of confusion. Letters often went to wrong places.

The Chairman was inspired to do something yet more grand. There was a statue of Sir Frederick Lawley in the Lawley Extension. The Extension was now called Gandhi Nagar. It was odd that it should continue to have Lawley's statue there. So the Council resolved to remove it from there.

But it was not an easy affair to remove it. The statue was about twenty feet high. It stood firmly on a solid pedestal of molten lead.

Tenders to remove it were invited. The lowest quotation stood at fifty thousand rupees. Municipality could not afford it.

So they offered it free to the Talkative Man provided he removed it at his own cost. The talkative man was happy. He hoped to make a good profit out of it. The statue weighed about three tons of metal. He hoped he could sell the metal and recover more than his cost. He hired men to hack it and coolies and bullock carts to cart it away. But the statue was too firm. So the talkative man had it blasted off its foundation. With a great difficulty he had it carted to his house in Kabir Street. He sent a long report about the removal of the statue to his paper.

Soon it was discovered that there had been a mistake of identity of Sir Frederick Lawley. Of course there had been a Sir Lawley during the time of Lord Warren Hastings. He was a cruel and ruthless tyrant. He had suppressed the people. But this Lawley, whose statue had been removed, had been a kind man. He was a friend of people. He had helped the people of Malgudi in many ways.

The Public was angry. They picketed the house of the talkative man where the statue lay supine. They demanded the statue back. They wanted to restore it to its original place.

The talkative man was not willing to part with the statue. He wanted the Municipality to pay him the money he had spent on bringing it to his house. A litigation started between the talkative man and the Municipal lawyer. The talkative man wanted to get rid of the statue in a respectable settlement.
The government asked the Municipality about the statue. It was feared that the Municipal Council would be dissolved and fresh elections would be held.

The talkative man was able to persuade the Chairman to buy the statue along with his house to convert it into a National Trust. The Chairman found it cheaper to buy the place than to contest a fresh election. He agreed to buy the house and turn it into a public park. He promised to call Kabir Street as Lawley Road. In this way the talkative man got rid of the statue and the Chairman was able to protect his position.

Word Meanings

Existence = presence; Ebbed and flowed = increased and decreased, water level in the drains rose and fell; Jubilation = celebration; Inspiration = stimulation; Hoisted = raised; Benignly = kindly; Epic = a story of bravery and adventure Bunting = decorative flags; Upcountry = towards the interior; Idealized = highly praised; Mark off = distinguished; Harangued = lectured; Nationalize = give a national status or name; Coronation = crowning of a king or a queen; Bothered = cared; Uprooted = removed completely; Transformation = total change; Feasible = possible; Wilderness = place of confusion; Gratified = satisfied, pleased; Unhaimously = with one voice; Resolved = decided; Sallied forth = rushed forward; Triumphantly = victoriously; Circumbulated = went round; Towered = rose high; Pedestal = foot-rest, base of the statue; Molten = melted; Vigorous = energetic, forceful; Topple down = make fall down; Satrap = governor, chieftain; Blasting up = exploding; Scourage = calamity, punishment; Craftiness = cunningness; Razed to the ground = destroyed completely; Subjugated, = kept under control, ruled; Countenanced = looked, met; Loitered = wandered abut; Derisively = contemptuously; Dangling = hanging loosely; Tyrant = cruel ruler; Shuddered = trembled; Ancestors = forefathers; Tenders = offers or etimates; Estimates = quotations of probable price; Dislodge = remove; Elaborate = worked out in detail; Hack = cut, saw; Slave-driver = lord of the slaves; Acquire = obtain, get; Dynamite = an explosive, gun powder; Cordoned off = separated; The Knight = the warrior, (here) Sir Frederic Lawley; Booty = prize, loot; Incessant = continuous; Inconvenient = difficult; Nightmare = frightening experience; Mounted j guard = acted as a sentinel, kept watch; Haughty = proud and short tempered; Imperialist = support of imperialism; Obstruction = hindrance; Tacking = attaching, enclosing; Agitation = unrest, disturbance; Misled I = misinformed; Pertained to = belong to, about, regarding; Irrigated = watered; Dissipating = wasting away; Despatches = reports; Reinstate -restore to the original condition; Sentiment = feelings, emotions; Black market = demanding a price higher than lawful; Infuriated = made angry; Picketed = surrounding and protesting; Prosecution = bring legal proceedings against someone; Repudiated = cast off, disown; Bewildering - confusing; Nuisance = trouble; Despairing = losing hope; Lapses = mistakes; Wailed = lamented; Gesture = action showing one's intention; Unique = matchless; Relieve = part with

Questions You May Be Asked

Q.1 What impression do you get about the Chairman of the Municipal Council for your reading of Lawley Road? Substantiate your answer with reference from the story?

A.1. The Chairman of the Municipal Council was a self-centred and selfish person. Whatever he did he had some axe to grind. He was indifferent to the plight of the town of which he was the Chairman. The drains and streets were never cleaned. The garbage was blown about by the winds. Diseases came and went but he never bothered to take any preventive or curative measures. During the war he had supplied blankets to the army and made huge profits. He knew the power of money. He used this power to get himself elected as the Chairman of the Municipality.

But he wanted to prove that he was a great patriot. So he had the names of streets and other place nationalized. In the same fervour he decided to remove the statue of Sir Frederick Lawley which he considered was a symbol of British Raj. But when there were protests he was greatly disturbed. It was pointed out by historians that this Sir Lawley was a different person. He was a benevolent person who ^ befriended Indians and tried to help them. There was a demand for restoration of the statue to its original glory. There was every chance of dissolution of the Municipal Council. The Chairman did not want to contest an election too soon. He found it cheaper to raise a park in memory of Sir Lawley and erect his statue there. Thus he made a political move to safeguard his position and to be called a true nationalist.

Q.2 Some critics felt that the person who gained most from the statue of Sir Lawley was the talkative man. Do you agree with their assessment? Discuss your answer with the help of textual details.

A.2 In the heat of nationalism, the Chairman decided to remove the statue of Sir Lawley from the Lawley Extension which was renamed Gandhi Nagar. He took it for granted that Sir Lawley had been a cruel person, & his statue was a black symbol of British imperialism. Tenders were invited and the lowest estimate stood at fifty thousand rupees. The Municipality could not afford such a high price for it. So it offered the statue to the talkative man free provided he removed it at his cost.

He hired men and had the statue carted to his house. Indeed it was very tiring and costly affair. He lost hope of making profit out of it, Then it was found that Sir Lawley had been a good and kind man, So the talkative man was asked to surrender the statue. But he wanted to be reimbersed at least the money he had spent on removing it to his house. He got deep into litigation. He was greatly worried. But he was relieved when the government asked for explanations from the Chairman regarding the statue. The talkative man was able to persuade the Chairman to buy the statue and his house and to convert it into a national monument. In this way he was able to get rid of the statue, and get a good price for his house, He was free from worries. He gained the most out of statue of Sir Lawley.

O.3 Recount in you own words the circumstances leading to the removal of the statue of Sir Lawley and its subsequent installation.

Ans. In the wake of independence, there was a wave of nationalisation of names of streets and other public places. In Malgudi the Lawley Extension was renamed Gandhi Nagar. There was a statue of a British Officer, Sir Frederick Lawley. Nobody ever cared to know who Sir Frederick Lawley was. But the Chairman of the Municipal Council decided to remove this symbol of British Raj. He believed that Sir Lawley was a cruel tyrant who had ruthlessly oppressed Indians, It was a huge and heavy statue. Its removal was a costly affair. So the talkative man was permitted to take away the statue free of cost. The statue was removed and carted away with much difficulty. The talkative man sent a report about the removal of the statue in one of the newspapers.

There was a series of protests from historians and other people. It was said that this Sir Lawley had been a good and kind man. He had done many good turns to the people of Malgudi. He was a friend of India. There were public protests. There was a demand for its reinstallation. It was a task more difficult and more expensive to install it in its original place. The government also demanded a report about the statue. It was feared that there would be fresh elections. The Chairman found it cheaper to buy the statue and the house of the talkative man than to contest election. He declared that Sir Lawley would be reinstalled in a new place in Kabir Street which was re­named Lawley Road. In this way Sir Lawley was re-installed and the Chairman regained his lost prestige.

The Seventh Pullet

The Seventh Pullet

—H.H. Munro

Introduction

Hector Hugh Munro was born in Burma (now Myanmar) in 1870. His mother died when he was only three years old. He joined the military Police in Burma. Then he resigned and went to England. Many of his stories reflect some unpleasant experiences of his life. They are known for his darkly humorous satires.

The Seventh Pullet is an amusing story. Blenkinthrope finds his life dull and monotonous. He tells his fellow workers about an enormous potato he has grown in his garden. But nobody listens to him. His friend Gorworth tells him that everyone's life is drab and dull. Stories about enormous potatoes and oversized fish do not excite people. He must invent some interesting and strange incidents to capture people's attention. Blenkinthrope invents stories, and becomes instantly popular. But nemesis soon overtakes him. His wife dies because, as she rightly feared, she was able to work on the card game known as Death's Head Patience. Her mother and a great aunt had died soon after they had worked out the game. Inspite of the tragedy, Blenkinthrope realises that something real and amazing has happened in his life. The Death's Head Patience has killed three persons his family. He writes an account of the history of the tragedy for the papers. But it is not printed. People do not give credence to his story. They think it is a yarn. They believe that his wife has died of a heart attack. That is the irony.

Summary

Blenkinthrope and Gorworth were two friends. Blenkinthrope was sad because his life was drab. Nothing exciting or interesting ever happened his life. He tried to engage people in conversations which he believed was about things interesting. But no one cared to listen to him. For example, he had grown an enormous potato in his garden. It weighed two pounds. He tried to tell other people about it. But no one took any interest in it. He resentfully spoke about his life to Gorworth.

Gorworth told him that the fault did not lie with him. It lay in his tab about the potato. Other people's life was as dull and uninteresting as his People were not interested in oversized potatoes and fishes. They wanted to hear about something dramatic and thrilling that had happened to the narrator himself or to someone in his family. If he told them about some exciting experiences, they would listen to him, and would be proud of their acquaintance with him. Gorworth suggested that people would excitedly talk about him if he told them something like two of his fingers were clawed by a lobster he was carrying home for supper, and that the doctor said that the whole of his hand would be amputated. Such a talk was of high order. People couldn't talk about his potato like this.

But Blenkinthrope said he could not speak of such things because they did not happen to him. Gorworth advised him that if such things did not happen to him, he could invent them. He gave him an example. He said he could say that a snake got into his poultry. He mesmerised six pullets with his dreadfully glittering eyes. Then he bit the helpless victims. But the seventh pullet was of French sort. Its eyes were covered with feathers. So it was not mesmerized. It could only see something wriggling on the floor. It pounced on the snake and pecked him to death.

At first Blenkinthrope felt that he could not act on his friend's advice because such thing did not happen to him. But he was busy thinking about it. Soon a story, with minute details began to take shape in his mind.

Next morning when he took his seat in the railway carriage with his colleagues, he told them the story. They were fascinated. They listened to him with rapt attention. They admired him. His story appeared in a poultry paper, and then in a daily newspaper. He was accepted the Munchausen of the group. He began to invent stories about his family. But soon Nemesis overtook him.

One evening Blenkinthrope found his wife sitting with a pack of cards. He thought she was playing patience game. But she told him that she was at the Death's Head patience. It was most difficult to get it out. But she was frightened too. Her mother and her great aunt had each got it out only once. Both of them had died soon after. She believed that if she ever got it out, she too would die like them. Still she continued to concetrate on it and sought Blenkinthrope's help. Blenkinthrope suggested the solution and his wife got it out. She was deeply excited and died soon after.

Inspite of the tragedy, Blenkinthrope could see that something really sensational had at last come into his life. He now wrote out a complete story entitled 'The Death's Head Patience: Card game that justified its sinister name in three generations'. He sent the story to Essex Vedette and a halfpenny daily. But his ambition to see them in print was not realised. They believed that Blenkinthrope was spinning a yarn. They believed that his wife had died of heart attack while he was attributing her death to her presentiment regarding the cardgame. His reputation as a romancer stood in his way. Blenkinthrope stopped travelling with his old companions. He travelled by an earlier train and told people his stories. He was no longer looked upon as the proud owner of the seventh pullet.

Word Meanings

Daily grind = daily routine, day-to-day work; Resentfully = indignantly; Arrested = checked; Wax = grow, increase; Piquant = lively, interesting; Acquaintances = persons know; Intimately = closely; Clawed = torn with a claw; Licensed = permitted; Unscrupulous = unprincipled; Snappishly = angrily; Pullets = poultry birds; Mesmerizing = enchanting; Absorbed = engrossed; Dominant = upper most, market; Unscrupulous = unprincipled dishonest; Deferred = submitted; Whacking = enormous, large; Loft = attic; Enormity = gross offence; Swoop = sudden attack; Chorus = all together; Glittering = shining; Diffidence = shyness; Depravity = wickedness; Mop = bundle; Pecked = struck with beak; Recounting = telling; Stoat = ermine; Grouse = complaint; Reprehensible. = not good; Person of consequence = important person; Numerous = many; Contrivance = device, plot; Vipers = venomous snake; Peregrine = a bird of prey of falcon family; Ethical standpoint = moral view; Customary = usual; Pictures queness = vividness; Neophyte = new converts; Discretion = prudence; Subdued = low, restrained; Swordstick = hollow walking stick concealing a blade of sword; Spattering = splashing; Assassination = killing; Charwoman = woman who does cleaning; Chronic = old; Intemperance = immoderation; Tacitly = implied but not spoken; Munchausen = hero of a series of adventures in a book by a German writer. He exaggerated his deeds of bravery; Credulity = believing easily; Ingenious = inventive; Whined = complained; Scrutinizing = studying; Concentration = complete attention; Coincidence = happening of two events at the same time by chance; Gave me such a turn = gave me a nervous shock; Bereavement = mourning, loss; Obtruded = thrust forward unduly; Presentiment = apprehension; Condensed = abridged

Questions You May Be Asked

Q.1 What was Blenkinthrope's complaint & what did he do about it?

A.1 Blenkinthrope complained about his monotonous & drab life. He was resentful because nothing interesting or exciting ever happened in his life. If there was something which he considered exciting, & tried to share it with his companions, no one ever cared to listen to him. For instance, he had grown an over-sized potato in his garden. He tried to tell about it to others. But no one was interested. Blenkinthrope told all this to his friend Gorworth who suggested that he should try to tell people some strange & spicy incidents that happened to him personally, or to anyone of his family. People's own life was so dull, that they craved to hear about such exciting & sensational things. He also suggested to Blenkinthrope some stories which he could tell others. His advice was that if something did not happen to him, he should invent it. Blenkinthrope invented stories. He told how a snake got into his poultry, hypnotized six pullets and then killed them. But the seventh pullet killed the snake. It was not hypnotized because it could not see snake's glittering eyes. His story was remarkably received. People liked to hear his stories. He invented ever new stories, to meet the demand of his companions. Soon he was tacitly accepted as Munchausen of the group.

Q.2 Describe the events that led to the death of Blenkinthrope's wife.

Ans. Blenkinthrope wife was fond of playing the cardgame called patience-game. One evening, when Blenkinthrope came home he found his wife completely engrossed in her cards. She told her husband that it was the Death's Head patience she was playing. It was the most difficult game and she had never got it out. Indeed she was even scared of doing it. She was afraid that if she were ever able to get it out, she would die. Her fears were not entirely unfounded. He mother too had similar fears. She could get it out once, and died of excitement soon after. Her great aunt too had got it out only once and had died the same night.

Blenkinthrope advised her that if she had such fears she should not try to get it out. But his wife continued trying nevethless. When Blenkinthrope came into the room again, his wife was still at it. She said she was excited because she felt she had almost done it. There was only one hitch. It was the five of diamonds. Blenkinthrope looked at her cards and suggested to move the eight clubs on the open nine. Then she could move the five onto the six. His wife was overjoyed. She followed his suggestion and got the Death's Head patience out.

But her presentiment proved to be true. Like her mother, she too died immediately.

Q.3 Discuss the irony of the story.

Ans. Blenkinthrope's life was monotonous and commonplace. Nothing of interest, ever happened in his life. He could never engage the attention of his companions because he could tell nothing but plain facts in a plain manner.

His friend, Gorworth suggested to him that if something unusual did not happen in his life, he should try to invent it. He gave him practical suggestion also, Blenkinthrope did not believe his friend. He did not even believe that he would ever be able to do it. But his mind was busy in giving shape to stories. His stories were instant succeess. His account appeared in newspapers. His companions demanded more marvels. He worked hard and invented ever-new stories. His companions tacitly accepted him the greatest romancer, an inventor of exaggerated and exciting fiction. But then came the Nemesis.

Blenkinthrope's wife died because she had the presentiment that if she ever succeeded at the cardgame knows as the Death's Head patience, she would die. Her mother and her great aunt had died soon after they had got it out.

Inspite of the tragedy, Blenkinthrope realised that something really interesting and extraordinary had happened in his life. His mind began to work at the story. He wrote the story. He attributed the cause of his wife's death to the Death's Head patience, the card game had claimed the third person in his family. Bue the irony was that his friends were not convinced.They accused him of wanting to gain widespread publicity even in his bereavement. They believed his wife had died of heart failure, and not in a sensational manner as Blenkinthrope had tried to put it.

Q.4 What is the significance of the title of the story? Write a detailed answer.

Ans. the seventh pullet plays a crucial role in the life of the chief character in the story. Blenkinthrope found life dull & drab. Nobody cared to listen to his great achievement of growing a two-pound potato in his garden. His friends Gorworth told him that stories of growing oversized potatoes & catching large fresh water fish did not interest people. They wanted to hear about some strange and exciting experiences. He advised him that if he did not have an actual experience, he could invent one. When Blenkinthrope narrated the story of how a snake mesmerized six pullets in his poultry and killed them, his companions were as spell bound as the pullets themselves.

But when he told them how the seventh pullet killed the snake, Blenkinthrope earned the reputation of a great story teller. People did not believe that he had told a true story. But they found it thrilling and entertaining. His stories were always in demand. He had to tell more stories to entertain his friends. The seventh pullet was a turning point in his life. His life was no longer dull. But this reputation cost him heavily. When his wife died of Death's Head patience, he tried to get it printed, But nobody believed it was a true story. They thought Blenkinthrope was trying to cash on his wife's death. So it was bad. No one ever liked him for it. His life became as dull as ever. So the seventh pullet played the crucial role in his life. The story of the death of his wife proved to be the seventh pullet in his life. It put an end to his success.

Most Beautiful

Most Beautiful

—Ruskin Bond

Introduction

Ruskin Bond is recognised as the best Indian writer in English today He was honoured by Sahitya Academy of India in 1993. He was born o British parents in Kasauli, Hirnachal Pradesh. He was educated at Shimla He has lived in Mussoorie for the last three decades. He loves the Himalaya and the people living in the hills which are a source of inspiration of his short stories.

Most Beautiful is a story about a retarded and deformed boy. He is teased and tormented by the heartless urchins of the city. The narrator takes pity on the boy. He gives him sympathy and love. In the story Bond brings out the boy's bitterness at his own deficiencies and society's indifference towards him.

Summary

In the bazaar of the big, crowded city the narrator saw a boy being teased by urchins. He had his sympathy with the boy but he did not interfere till the boy was hit by a stone pelted by one of the mischief mongers. The urchins dispersed when the narrator interfered.

The boy's name was Suresh. He was about thirteen. He was small with short and stumpy bowed legs. He had a small chest, and made incoherent noises. He was bleeding a little. The narrator wanted to lead him safely to his house. The boy could not tell him where he lived. The narrator accompanied the boy who at last stopped in front of a house. The narrator presumed it to be his house and knocked on the door. A young woman of about 35 opened the door. She was Suresh's mother. As soon as Suresh saw her, he threw his arms around her neck. He burst into tears giving vent to his pent up emotions.

Suresh's mother thanked the narrator and asked him into the house, She told him that Suresh was her only son. She loved him but her husband was disappointed in him. She asked him if he thought that Suresh was very ugly. The narrator gave a philosophical answer. He said beauty and ugliness were relative words. They meant different things to different people. Nothing was absolute in the world except death and birth.

While they were talking, her husband came there. He curtly thanked the narrator for bringing the boy home. Apparently he was indifferent to his son. When the narrator left the house, she asked him to visit again. No one except the narrator had treated the boy as a normal human being. He had given the boy love and sympathy which he craved for.

After a week the narrator went to Suresh's house again. The narrator took the boy for a walk in the field outside the city Suresh saw things that he had never seen before. He saw a group of hermaphrodite musicians. These masculine-looking people dressed in women's clothes and wearing jewellery looked odd to Suresh. He laughed.

The narrator taught him how to swim in stream. Many things, strange and new, aroused Suresh's curiosity.

One day they were coming back from their walk. A kid followed them. It had lost its herd. Suresh took it home. For the next few days he was always with the kid. He fed it and played with it. The kid looked attractive and everyone admired it. Suresh began to feel that people found the kid more handsome than him. He became jealous of it and killed it.

When the narrator visited Suresh's house next, Suresh's mother was very upset because not only Suresh had killed the kid but he had no regrets. Later the narrator took Suresh for a walk to the bank of the stream. He asked Suresh if he had enjoyed killing the kids. He smiled and nodded his head.

Then he took a pen-knife from his pocket, bared his belly, and wanted the narrator to stab him. The narrator took the knife from Suresh and threw it into the stream.

After a few weeks the narrator received an offer of a job in Delhi. He decided to take it. He went to Suresh's house to say goodbye to him and his mother. She was disappointed but Suresh was apparently indifferent. The narrator felt hurt because their friendship seemed to mean nothing to Suresh. He appeared to treat the narrator as if he too was one of these outsiders who tormented him.

The narrator's train was at eight o'clock in the evening. He found a seat near a window in a third-class compartment. The train was about to move when he saw Suresh at the platform looking for him. The narrator called to him.

Suresh hobbled toward him. The train had started to move. The narrator shouted to him, "I'll be back next year."

Suresh waved toward him but stumbled against someone's bedding.

Word Meanings

Claustrophobic = concerning morbid dread of confined spaces;
Congested = crowded;
Tormenting = torturing;
Retarded = backward;
Jeering = jibing, taunting;
Attitude = posture;
Pitted = pocked, scarred;
Gibberish = meaningless speech;
Out of reach = out of range, beyond reach;
In high spirits = full of enthusiasm;
Observer = onlooker; Discretion I = prudence, freedom of act;
Scattered = dispersed;
Clouting = hitting with hand;
Mumbled = spoke indistinctly;
Incoherent = indistinct; difficult to make out;
Presumed = took for granted;
Strikingly = remarkably;
Haunches = buttocks;
Bow legs = curved or crooked legs;
Grotesque = comical, distorted;
Posture = position of body;
Thrusting = pushing;
Squatted down = sat down on heels;
Slink = moved away stealthily;
Curtly = rudely;
Preoccupied = obsessed;
Resigned = gave up;
Deformed = distorted;
Indifference = disinterestedness;
Mentor = teacher, adviser;
Stuffed = filled;
Gobbling = eating hastily;
Morose = sad, unhappy; I
Uncommunicative = not inclined to speak;
Slipped = left unnoticed; I
Thumped = beat heavily and noisily;
Consented = agreed;
Set off = started I to go;
Awkward = clumsy; Squabbling = quarrelling noisily;
Wallowing = I rolling;
Hermaphrodite = having characteristics of both male and female I sexes;
Gaunt = lean;
Rouge = red powder to colour cheeks;
Mascara = cosmetic for darkening eyebrows or eye lashes;
Deriding = ridiculing, scoffing;
Sub-tropical = regions bordering on the tropics;
Beckoned = I called;
Misshapen = deformed;
Waded = walked through water;
Afloat = keep floating;
Spluttered = spoke quickly and angrily;
Circumspection = prudence;
Squat = thick and short;
One-dimensional = having only one I side;
Tripping = jumping and skipping;
Persisted = continued;
Obsession I = complete domination of the mind by one idea;
Resentment = bitterness, I indignation;
Relieved = released from anxiety;
Anxiously = worriedly, I eagerly;
Shrugged = raised with a jerk;
Vigorously = violently, rapidly; I
Untrammeled = uncontrolled;
Primitive = uncivilized;
Undisguised = naked;
Restraints = checks;
Remorse = compunction, regret;
Conspired I = made a secret plan;
Unpredictable = unfareseable; difficult to anticipate;
Displayed = showed;
Scuffle = confused, struggle;
Hobbling = limp along;
Run the gauntlet = undergo unpleasant experiences;
Stumbled = tripped;
Frantic = agitated;
Gesture = movement to convey meaning

Questions You May Be Asked.

1. Explain the significance of the title of story.

The title of the story is 'Most Beautiful'. But who is the most beautiful? In fact there is no one who is beautiful in the ordinary meaning word. The story revolves round the retarded boy Suresh. He is not only mentally retarded but physically misshapened also. His legs are short and his arms are long. His chest is thin. His face is pocked. He looks ape-like. The narrator comes in contact with him only by chance. He feels deep sympathy for the helpless boy. Gradually their friendship grows. When Suresh's mother asks the narrator if Suresh is ugly, he replies that beauty and ugliness are not absolute. We can not define beauty and cannot tell who is the most beautiful. Every mother thinks her child is the most beautiful. Suresh proves to be most beautiful in the heartless town. When the narrator is leaving for Delhi, Suresh takes a hazardous journey to the railway station. He goes through the crowded bazaar and risks being tormented by the bazaar boys. Though he cannot express his love in words towards the narrator, his action speaks louder than words. The narrator finds him most beautiful and promises to come to see him again next year.


2. Comment on the relationship between the boy and the author. Apparently there is nothing common between Suresh and the author. Suresh is a retarded boy, and suffers from speech-defect. The author is a grown up person and writer.

The author was pained to see the retarded boy being tormented by the heartless boys in the bazaar. He rescued him. Since then their friendship began to grow. The narrator took the boy for walk in the open country-side. The boy saw things that he had never seen before. He saw trees, birds and animals. He also found a kid but later he killed it out of jealousy. But Suresh was ever unpredictable. The author was going to Delhi and he went to meet Suresh before he left. But Suresh was incommunicative, cold and distant. The author was hurt because their many weeks long friendship appeared to mean nothing to Suresh. But Suresh really loved him. He hobbled to the railway station to say goodbye to the narrator. The narrator's sympathy for the boy was complete, and the boy got the love he had got from nobody else. This was the foundation of their relationship.