FLAMINGO - PROSE REMAINING

(In N.B = 1-5)

Ch 6 Poets and Pancakes Flamingo English

By Asokamitran

blew over: give a long, angry speech of criticism or accusation

was struck dumb: render speechless, as by surprise or shock

catapulted into: to shoot forth or launch

a coat of mail: an armoured coat made of chain mail, interlinked rings, or overlapping
metal plates

played into their hands: to act or behave so as to give an advantage to (an opponent).

the favourite haunt: a frequently visited place

heard a bell ringing: stirring an often indistinct memory

Page No: 59

Think As you Read

1. What does the writer mean by ‘the fiery misery’ of those subjected to make-up’?

Answer

-The heat produced by the lights in the make-up room brought about a lot of
discomfort to the actors in the make-up room.

-Hence the writer refers to this pain and trouble as ‘fiery misery’.

2. What is the example of national integration that the author refers to?
Answer

-The make-up division of the Gemini Studios was an example of national integration.

-According to the author, this is so because people from different regions and religious
groups worked together in the same department.

-The department was headed by a Bengali who was succeeded by a Maharashtrian.

-The other helpers included a Dharwar Kannadiga, an Andhra, a Madras Indian

Christian, an Anglo-Burmese and the local Tamils.

3. What work did the ‘office boy’ do in the Gemini Studios? Why did he join the
studios? Why was he disappointed?

Answer

-The office boy applies make-up on the players who played the crowd.

-On the days of crowd shooting, he would mix his paint in a big vessel and apply it
quickly and noisily on the faces of the players.

-He had joined the studios with the hope of becoming a star actor or a screen writer,
director or lyrics writer.

-He was disappointed because he failed and remained only an ‘office boy’.

4. Why did the author appear to be doing nothing at the studios?

Answer

-The author's duty was to cut out newspaper clippings on a wide variety of subjects
and store them in files.

-Many of these had to be written out in hand. The onlookers noticed him merely
tearing up newspapers.

-Hence to them he seemed to be doing next to nothing.

Page No: 61

1. Why was the office boy frustrated? Who did he show his anger on?

Answer

-The office boy was frustrated because despite getting a good opening, he remained
only an office boy.

-He had had a good formal education and would write poetry also. But his great
literary talent was being allowed to go waste.

-He showed his anger on Kothamangalam Subbu, the No. 2 at Gemini Studios.

2. Who was Subbu’s principal?

Answer

Mr. S.S Vasan, the founder of the Gemini Studios, was Subbu’s principal.

3. Subbu is described as a many-sided genius. List four of his special abilities.

Answer

-Four Special abilities of Subbu:

i) Subbu had the ability to look cheerful at all times.

(ii) His sense of loyalty made him turn his entire creativity to his principal's advantage:
Film-making was quite easy with Subbu around

(iii) He was literary inclined too-a poet and novelist. He was an amazing actor.

(iv) He had a charitable and loving nature.

4. Why was the legal adviser referred to as the opposite by others?

Answer

-The lawyer was in the Story Department. He was officially known as the legal adviser.

-However, his actions did nobody any good. He had unwittingly brought to an end the
career of a promising young actress.

-Hence he was referred to as the opposite by others.

5. What made the lawyer stand out from the others at Gemini Studios?

Answer

-The lawyer’s dress that he wore made him stand out from the others.

-He wore a pant, a tie and sometimes a coat also.

-Others put on a khadi dhoti with a slightly oversized and clumsily tailored white khadi
shirt, which looked like everyone’s uniform.

Page No: 64

1. Did the people at Gemini Studios have any particular political affiliations?

Answer

-Most of the people at Gemini Studios were followers of Gandhiji and wore khadi.

-Beyond khadi and wearing of khadi they did not have any particular political
affiliations. However, they were all against communism.

2. Why was the Moral Rearmament Army welcomed at the Studios?

Answer
-The Moral Rearmament Army was a kind of counter movement to international
communism.

-The Big Bosses of Madras like Mr. Vasan simply played into their hands. So the Moral
Rearmament Army was welcomed at the Gemini Studios.

3. Name one example to show that Gemini Studios was influenced by the plays staged
by MRA.

Answer

-The plays staged by the MRA greatly influenced Madras and Tamil drama community.

-For some years almost all Tamil plays had a scene of sunrise and sunset in the manner
of ‘Jotham Valley’ with a bare stage, a white background curtain and a tune played on
the flute.

4. Who was the Boss of Gemini Studios?

Answer

Mr. S.S Vasan was the Boss of Gemini Studios.

5. What caused the lack of communication between the Englishman and the people at
Gemini Studios?

Answer

Most of the 600 odd people at Gemini Studios were Tamil speakers.

-The Englishman was addressing them in his own language-English. He had a peculiar
accent.

-Hence, there was a lack of communication between the Englishman and the people at
who could not follow what he was saying.
6. Why is the Englishman’s visit referred to as unexplained mystery?

Answer

-The Englishman’s visit to the Gemini Studios is referred to as an unexplained mystery

because no one could decipher his identity, whether he was a poet or an editor.

-Besides, when he spoke no one at the studio understood what he intended to say as
his accent was beyond their comprehension.

Page No: 65

1. Who was the English visitor to the studios?

Answer

-The English visitor to the Gemini Studios was Stephen Spender.

-He was the editor of The Encounter, a British Periodical, and a famous English poet,
essayist and novelist of the twentieth century.

2. How did the author discover who the English visitor to the studios was?

Answer

-Before investing money in participating in a short story contest organised by an

English periodical The Encounter, the author did a research on the magazine.

-He went to the British Council Library where, while going through an issue of that
periodical, he discovered that its editor was Stephen Spender, the poet that had once
visited the studio.

3. What does ‘The God that Failed’ refer to?

Answer
-'The God That Failed' was a compilation of six essays written by six eminent writers,
namely, Andre Gide, Richard Wright, Ignazio Silone, Arthur Koestler, Louis Fischer and
Stephen Spender.

-In each of the essays, the respective writers described “their journeys into
Communism and their disillusioned return”.

Page No: 66

Understanding the Text

1***

2. Why was Kothamangalam Subbu considered No. 2 in Gemini Studios?

Answer

-Kothamangalam Subbu succeeded in securing the place closest to The Boss by

means of flattery.

-He was not brilliant but a rather cheerful person and exceedingly loyal to The Boss.

-He offered solutions whenever The Boss was in a fix.

-Thus, the other employees considered him No.2 in Gemini Studios.

3. How does the author describe the incongruity of an English poet addressing the
audience at Gemini Studios?

Answer

-The English poet was addressing the Tamil audience at Gemini Studios in English with
a typical provincial accent.

-He was talking about the thrills and travails of an English poet to a dazed and silent
audience.
-This was the incongruity because his audience could not understand him at all.

4. What do you understand about the author’s literary inclinations from the account?

Answer

-The writer was a prose-writer. He wanted to send a short story for the short story
contest organised by a British periodical by the name 'The Encounter'.

Ch 7 The Interview English

By Christopher Silvester

1. What are some of the positive views on interviews?

Answer

-Interview, in the 130 years of its existence, has become an inherent part of
journalism.

-It is a useful means of communication that is, at times, considered to be an art,

serving as a source of truth.

-Denis Brian has stated that in today’s world we get to know “our contemporaries”
through their interviews.

2. Why do most celebrity writers despise being interviewed?

Answer

-Celebrity writers believe that interviews unduly interfere in their private lives. They
regard themselves as victims of interviews.

-They claim that the interview in some way ‘diminishes’ them, just like some ancient
cultures believed that a portrait of a person takes away his soul.
-Certain celebrities like V.S Naipaul have claimed that interviews leave them wounded,
while others like Rudyard Kipling have referred to it as a crime and an immoral act.

3. What is the belief in some primitive cultures about being photographed?

Answer

-Some primitive cultures believed that photographing a person is no less than stealing
his/her soul out of the body and rendering him incomplete and slighted.

4. What do you understand by the expression “thumbprints on his windpipe”?

Answer

-The expression means having been strangulated.

-The interview is an assault on a person as it makes him/her so tense that he/she feels
as good as being choked.

5. Who, in today’s world, is our chief source of information about personalities?

Answer

-In modern times, the chief source of information on personalities is the interviewer
who, through his power and influence, gathers information and provides us with the
best possible information on the interviewees.

-He extracts everything significant through his questions for us.

Page No: 73

Understanding the Text

1. Do you think Umberto Eco likes being interviewed? Give reasons for your opinion.
Answer

-Yes, Umberto Eco, in all possibilities, likes being interviewed.

-He felt just at ease with the interviewer and answered all the questions fully and
patiently without showing any hurry.

- He stated his achievement in a very modest manner and explained his philosophical
views and interest clearly.

-He let the interviewer enter the secret about his craft with a loud laugh. Also, he
elaborated his approach which was unique.

-He was mannerly, warm and properly responsive as well.

2. How does Eco find the time to write so much?

Answer

-There are two factors that explain how Eco was able to write so much.

-In his own words, the life of every person has empty spaces- periods with no
important jobs.

-He says that he did most of his writing during these free intervals.

-Second, he explains that people wondered that he (Eco) had written so much on
various subjects. But the fact is that he was writing on the same lines and same
interests-peace, non-violence, etc.

-All his works were linked with the thread of common interests. It saves his time and he
could write a lot in a short period of time.

-That was the secret behind Eco’s prolific pen.

3. What was distinctive about Eco’s academic writing style?

Answer

-Umberto Eco's academic writing style is quite distinctive.

-It has a certain playful and personal quality about it.

-It is a marked departure from a regular academic style, which is usually

depersonalised and often dry and boring.

4. Did Umberto Eco consider himself a novelist first or an academic scholar?

Answer

-Umberto Eco considered himself an academic scholar first and a novelist later. -He
makes his preference clear by saying, "I consider myself a university professor who
writes novels on Sundays".

-On week days he attends academic conferences and does other scholarly, non-
fictional work.

5. What is the reason for the huge success of the novel, The Name of the Rose?

Answer

-'The Name of the Rose' is different sort of noveL

-It is quite serious noveL

-It is a detective story at one leveL But it also probes into metaphysics theology and
medieval history.

-The reasons for the success of the book, however, remain a mystery.

Ch 8 Going Places English

By A.R. Barton

1. Notice these expressions in the text. Infer their meanings from the context.

incongruity: quality of being unsuitable

prodigy: a young person endowed with exceptional qualities

chuffed: very pleased

solitary elm: a secluded tall tree

arcade: a passage or a walkway with shops and stalls on either side

amber glow: orange-yellow light of the lamp

wharf: a place beside the water bodies for loading or unloading of the ships

pangs of doubt: a sudden realization of uncertainty about something

Page No: 79

Think As you Read

1. Where was it most likely that the two girls would find work after school?

Answer

-The two girls, Sophie and Jansie, were already destined for a job in the biscuit factory
and it was likely that they would work there after school.

2. What were the options that Sophie was dreaming of? Why does Jansie discourage
her to have such dreams?

Answer

-Sophie dreamt of opening a boutique or becoming an actress or a fashion designer.

-She thought that she would be offered the position of a manager and that she would
work there till the time she saves enough money for her boutique.

-Keeping in mind their lower middle class family background, Jansie discourages
Sophie to have such dreams.

-Jansie is more realistic and practical in life, and hence, knows that big ambitions cost
heavy investments, something their working-class status could not afford.

3. Why did Sophie wriggle when Geoff told her father that she had met Danny Casey?

Answer

-Sophie knew her father well. He would be angry if he knew of her meeting with the
young Irish footballer, Danny Casey.

-She didn't tell him. When Geoff told his father about it, he became angry.

-He turned his head to look at her with disdain. Sophie wriggled where she was sitting
at the table.

4. Did Geoff believe what Sophie says about her meeting with Danny Casey?

Answer

-No, Geoff doesn't believe what Sophie says about her meeting with Danny Casey.

-First, he looks round in disbelief and says, "It can't be true". Again he says, "I don't
believe it."

-Sophie then narrates how Danny Casey came and stood beside her.

-Geoff asks her, "What does he look like?''

-So, he doesn't seem to be convinced that Sophie met Danny Casey.

5. Does her father believe her story?

Answer

-Sophie's father does not believe her story and he warns her that her "wild stories"
might land her into trouble.
6. How does Sophie include her brother Geoff in her fantasy of future?

Answer

-Sophie was jealous of the fact that her brother had access to the world outside. -She
fantasises about going to these places with him some day in the future wearing a
yellow dress.

-She fantasises that the world would rise to greet them.

7. Which country did Danny Casey play for?

Answer

-Danny Casey played football for Ireland.

Page No: 85

1. Why didn’t Sophie want Jansie to know about her story with Danny?

Answer

-Sophie didn't want Jansie to know about her encounter with Danny because she
feared that Jansie would spread her story to the whole neighbourhood.

2. Did Sophie really meet Danny Casey?

Answer

-Sophie did not meet Danny Casey in reality.

-She made up the story of her encounter with Danny Casey only to seek the attention
her brother, Geoff.

3. Which was the only occasion when she got to see Danny Casey in person?
Answer

-The only occasion when Sophie got to see Danny Casey in person was when the
family went to watch United on Saturday.

-Sophie, her father and little Derek went down near the goal. Geoff went with his
mates higher up.

-United won two-nil. Her idol Casey drove in the second goal.

-She saw the Irish genius going round two big defenders on the edge of penalty area.

-He beat the hesitant goal keeper from a dozen yards. Sophie glowed with pride.

Understanding the Text

1. Sophie and Jansie were class-mates and friends. What were the differences between
them that show up in the story?

Answer

-Sophie and Jansie were different from each other.

-Sophie was a dreamer who enjoyed creating her own fantasy world using her
imagination.

-She showed an urge to transcend her working-class status and attain sophistication
by pursuing the ambition of a fashion designer or an actress.

-Jansie, on the other hand, was more practical and realistic than Sophie.

-She tried to pull Sophie back to reality, but all in vain.

-Jansie's sensibility and maturity are evident in her attempt to remind her friend that
they were earmarked for the biscuit factory, and expensive dreams were inappropriate
to their financial status.

2. How would you describe the character and temperament of Sophie’s father?

Answer
-Sophie’s father has a plumpy face looking grimy and sweaty.

-He doesn't seem to be a soft or sophisticated man.

-Sophie fears his agressive manliness. He is a realist and does not believe in his
daughter's wild stories.

-He loves watching football. He hopes young Casey will be as good as Tom Finney.

-He wishes that the young footballer keeps away from all distractions. He shouts
instructions to Casey at the playground.

-When the Irish genius , beats the hesitant goal keeper, Sophie's father screams with
joy and pride. He goes to a pub to celebrate the victory.

3. Why did Sophie like her brother Geoff more than any other person? From her
perspective, what did he symbolise?

Answer

-Sophie liked her brother, Geoff, more than anybody else because he was not in the
habit of talking much and remained lost in his own thoughts.

-She envied his silence and thought that he had access to an unknown world. -She
wanted to be a part of that world where she fancied herself wearing glamorous
clothes and being welcomed by everyone.

-For Sophie, Geoff symbolised liberty from the monotonous and colourless life they
had been living.

4. What socio-economic background did Sophie belong to? What are the indicators of
her family’s financial status?

Answer

-Sophie belongs to a lower middle class socio-economic background.

-She lives in a small house with her parents and two brothers, Derek and Geoff. -When
she returns home after school, she feels choked with the steam of the stove and is
disgusted with the dirty dishes piled in a corner.

-Her mother's back has become stooped and bent by handling all the household
chores and responsibilities on her own.

-Her father is a hard labourer and her elder brother, Geoff, works as an apprentice
mechanic in a garage situated far away from his house.

-Her family wants Sophie to join work immediately after her school.

-These are some of the indicators of Sophie's family's financial status.