1.What is a ‘belfry’?
Ans: Belfry is a bell-tower.
2. Why was Annan not amused by Bama’s story?
Ans: When Bama told the story of a dait person which was a matter of joy to little Bama, Annan could not be pleased. The irony here is that Annan was well acquainted with the system of untouchability that prevailed in Socheti.
3.Why did Zitkala-Sa dfeel like sinking to the floor?
Ans: Because she was stripped of tier shawl ehich she felt was immodest.
4. Who was Zitkkala Sa’s Friend?
Ans: Judewin was Zitkata-Sa’s friend.
5. How did Zitkala Sa feel uncomfortable in the dining room?
Ans: The narrator, Jitkala- shai, felt uncomfortable. When the bell rang, she pulled out her chair and sat down. But others did not. She felt confused. When the second bell rang, everyone was seated. The narrator noticed that she was being watched intently by a pale woman so she felt quite uncomfortable in the dining room.
6. What is the message of the first episode, ‘The Cutting of My Long Hair’?
Ans: The episode depicts racism in American society. White people in the United States tried to impose their own traditions and lifestyles on the Native American Indians. They did not think that the local people were against accepting a new custom forced upon them. This hurt their feelings and dignity.
7.What did Annan say about the community to Bama the narrator?
Ans: Annan told Bama that they were ‘lower castes’ People from this community were treated with hatred and hated by the higher cats. Thus they were treated badly. He also said that when members of these lower castes are able to achieve higher performance, people will come to them of their own free will and only then can people’s attitudes towards the lower castes change.
8. How did Zitkala-Sa hide herself? Did she succeed?
Ans: Zitkala -cha went to a large room and hid it under a bed. But her excited there proved invalid. The men saw the bed open and found her from her hiding place. She was then dragged long up the stairs and fast bound to a chair and loudly shingled her long hair.
9. Bama’s experience is that of a victim of the caste system. What kind of discrimination does Zitkala Sa’s experience depict? What are their responses to their respective situations?
Ans: Memories of Childhood contains two biographical volumes of two women, one by a Native American woman and the other by an Indian Tamil Dalit woman. Both women belong to two different cultures but the theme of both accounts is almost the same and that is racism.
Thjer Native American woman in her account of how Jitkala Cha Portes was a victim of class differences. The Americans treated the natives with their moreover sense of superiority. They tried to impose their cultural traditions and desires on the ways of others. They and thus hurt Native Americans’ sense of dignity and respect. The narrator’s hair was cut without any respect for her feelings. She was forced to sit in a chair, she was tied to it and her long hair was cut off. She rebelled until she repressed. There was no one to comfort her.
Similarly, another girl named Bama faced caste discrimination in Indian society. One day, Wehill returned from school to find that a person could not touch a package. The girl found this disgusting. She rebelled and the study well determined that race did not determine a person’s ability.
Thus, in childhood, both women experienced social injustice due to class discrimination.
10. The two accounts that you read above are based in two distant cultures. What is the commonality of theme found in both of them?
or
Discuss the forms of discrimination projected in narrations of Zitkal- Sa and Bama.
Ans: Memories of Childhood contains two biographical volumes of two women, one by a Native American woman and the other by an Indian Tamil Dalit woman. Both women belong to two distinct culturals but the theme of both accounts is almost identical and that is racism.
Jitkal, a Native American woman, in her account of how she was a victim of class differences. The Americans treated the natives with their overwhelming sense of superiority. They tried to impose their cultural traditions and desires on the ways of others. They made children behave after their customs and hurt Native Americans’ sense of dignity and respect. The narrator’s hair was cut without any respect for her feelings. She was forced to sit in a chair, she was tied to it and her long hair was cut off. She rebelled until she repressed. There was no one to comfort her.
Similarly, another girl named Bama faced caste discrimination in Indian society. Retuning from school one day, she saw a person noting packets on a string so he couldn’t touch it. The girl found this disgusting. She rebelled and was well prepared to show that race did not determine a person’s ability.
Thus both the women in their childhood were the victims of social injustice.
Type By: Suman Bora