Unit-02 BONDS OF LOVE Chapter-04 Maternity

Textual Practice Questions and Answers

1. How did the Armenian refugees settle? 

They settled down in any way they could; the richest under tents and the others in the runied sheds. The majority of the refugees were sheltered under carpets held up at the four corners by sticks.

 2. Describe the life of the refugees in the camp. 

The men somehow found work, so their children had something to eat. They were not racked with hunger. 

3. Why couldn't Mikali earn even a penny? 

Mikali couldn't look for work because he bore on his back the burden of a new - born baby. 

4. Why was he chased away by his fellow Armenians? 

 He was chased away because the people were unable to bear the non-stop cry howls of the little baby which kept them awake at night. 

5. Mikali wandered like a 'lost soul'. Comment on the comparison.

 Mikali is compared to a' lost soul' because he wandered about carrying on his back the deafening burden of a new- born baby. He did not get help or protection from any source. He felt he was dying from lack of sleep and tiredness 

6. Why did the refugees wish that the child would Die?

Everybody listened to the child's howl with irritation. They had so many troubles of their own. So they wished the child would die. 

7-Notice how the women behaved. What do you think about their attitude?

 No woman in the camp came forward to help and protect the child. Really it is very sad and shameful that they should behave like this. 

8-What made Mikali go to the camp of the Anatolians?

Mikali could no longer bear the behaviour of his fellow refugees. He heard that there was a nursing mother in the Anatolian camp and hoped that she might take pity on the baby. He was full of hope. So he decided to go to the Anatolian camp. 

9-Mikali did not stop when the old women rose to ask him what he wanted because 

 a) he was very tired 

b) he heard the wailing of the infant 

c) he wanted to see the 'nursing mother.' 

d) he didn't like the women.

10. Why was Mikali happy? 

A lovely dark woman appeared with an infant asking if the kid was a girl or a boy. He thought that he would get some help from the woman and Mikali was happy. 

11. Why did the women give vent to cries of horror? 

 The baby's head had become enormous and the body thin. As the body had sucked only its thumb, it was swollen. So the women gave vent to cries of horror. 

12. Why did he feel immensely alone and lost? 

It was very difficult for Mikali to get food and shelter. He was turned away mercilessly wherever he went. Mikali could do nothing to help the baby who kept on wailing due to hunger. So he felt immensely alone and lost. 

13. Why did he sob? 

He would have to go sneaking about the streets, round cafe terraces, filching some half - eaten roll left on a plate, or else, rake about in the garbage for what a dog would not have eaten. Life seemed to him so full of horrors. So he sobbed desperately. 

14. In what way is the Chináman different from the refugees? 

Unlike the other refugees, the Chinaman was kind and helped Mikali in his sufferings 

15. Describe how the Chinaman's wife behaved when she saw Mikali with her husband. 

 When the Chinaman's wife saw her husband with Mikali, her face reddened and with a smile and utmost courtesy she welcomed them. 

16. What did the Chinaman's wife do when she saw the famished infant? 

She gave a cry of pity and then pressed the baby to her heart, giving it the breast.