POETS AND PANCAKES

BY: ASOKAMITRAN
Summary of Poets and Pancakes
Poets and Pancakes, written by Tamil writer Asokamitran, is
an account of his days in service at Gemini Studios in
Chennai. Set up in 1940, it was one of the most influential
film-producing organisations in India at that time. The job of
the writer was to cut out newspaper clippings on a wide range
of topics and save those in files. Although his job was
considered quite insignificant, he was well-informed about
everything and everyone at Gemini Studios. Poets and
Pancakes gives the reader a comprehensive description of
various characters at the studios. It talks about people’s
dreams, aspirations, failures, virtues and vices – making it a
perfect study of human behaviour and characters in the midst
of the film-producing world of India, in the twentieth century.
He also talks about his struggle as a writer during his tenure at
Gemini Studios. Poets and Pancakes Summary gives us an
insight into the author’s perspective of the world and society
around him in the 1900s. People’s actions and reactions at
Gemini Studios indicate the presence of a simple mindset and
blissful ignorance of deep political matters at that time.
The narrator talks about a popular make-up brand that was
used in the Gemini Studios – Pancake. The narrator reckons
that this particular brand of make-up might have been used by
prominent cinema actresses in India and abroad. The make-up
department of Gemini Studios was situated upstairs in a
building that was supposedly one of Robert Clive’s stables.
The make-up room looked like a hair-cutting salon with lights
at all angles on half a dozen mirrors. The lights were
incandescent, and the poet comments on the degree of heat the
people who sat for make-up were subjected to. The narrator
then talks about the ownership of the make-up department
chronologically. It was initially headed by a Bengali who was
succeeded by a Maharashtrian, a Dharwar Kannadiga, an
Andhra, a Madras Indian Christian, an Anglo-Burmese and
then by the local Tamils. The narrator lauds the early
conception of national integration at the make-up department
of Gemini Studios, which was later a prominent feature of the
programmes broadcasted by A.I.R. and Doordarshan.
The objective of the people who did make-up was to create a
distinguished appearance of the actor with an ample amount
of make-up, which the narrator found to be like the creation of
a ‘hideous crimson hued monster’. Those early days were
mostly about indoor shooting, and the make-up had to be
made ‘ugly’ to make the characters more presentable in the
movies, owing to the presence of numerous studio lights.
The make-up department followed a strict hierarchy. The
chief make-up man tended to the principal actor or actress.
His senior assistant tended to the ‘second hero’ and so on. The
make-up department even had an office boy who was the last
in the chain of hierarchy. This office boy used to put make-up
on the less significant actors – the ones who used to be part of
a large group of people in a crowd shooting. The narrator
mentions that the office boy of the make-up department was
often not actually a boy, but a forty-year-old man who had
entered the studios hoping to become a star actor or a top
screenwriter, director or lyrics writer. The office boy was a bit
of a poet, in fact.
The narrator was always intercepted by others owing to his
nature of work. Since he was mostly tearing newspaper
clippings, people thought that his work was of minimal
importance and would drop into his cubicle randomly to talk
to him about their worries and opinions. The office boy of the
make-up department frequently felt the necessity to enlighten
the narrator on how his literary talent was being wasted at a
place fit for only ‘barbers and perverts’. He also considered
Subbu, the number 2 at Gemini Studios, to be the driving
force of misery for his condition at the workplace.
According to the narrator, Subbu was a person who did not
get exposure to firmly established film producing companies
or studios at the beginning of his career. The narrator also
reckons that Subbu might not have had exposure to formal
education – at least not to the levels of the office boy of the
make-up department. But he was able to get a lead over Subbu
by virtue of his caste – a Brahmin. He might have had more
exposure to affluent situations and people. He was always
cheerful and frequently assigned work to everyone. The
narrator calls Subbu perfectly suited for films and admires his
spontaneity of thinking. He could come up with a variety of
solutions to any cinematic problem presented to him. Subbu
was also a poet and novelist, but his literary achievements
were overshadowed by his success in the film world. He was
also an amazing actor. He never aspired to be a lead actor but
really brought life to whatever secondary roles he played. He
genuinely cared for people, and his house was a permanent
residence for many relatives and acquaintances. Yet, Subbu
had enemies. It could be because of his seemingly close
relationship with The Boss or because of his nature as a
sycophant. But he never meant for good things to happen to
the office boy.
Subbu was often seen with the boss in the attendance rolls, but
he was grouped under the Story Department, which had a
lawyer and an assembly of writers and poets. The lawyer was
there as a legal advisor, but many saw him as otherwise. The
narrator talks about an instance where the lawyer ended one
actress’s career. The lawyer often dressed differently from
others. He wore pants and ties and sometimes a coat. He
looked alone and helpless – like a man of logic lost in a world
of dreamers. One day The Boss closed down the Story
Department, and the lawyer lost his job.
Gemini Studios was a favourite place for poets. It had an
excellent mess that served good coffee throughout the day. It
was a period during the Congress rule, and most of the people
at the studios wore khadi and worshipped Gandhiji. They did
not have much inclination towards politics but went with the
flow. They were also against Communism – following the
norms of the contemporary political mindset of the majority.
These thoughts were vaguely prevalent only in the khadi-clad
poets of Gemini Studios. It was proved during the visit by
Frank Buchman’s Moral Re-Armament army. Two hundred
strong men presented two plays in a professional manner. The
messages of these plays were simple in nature but left a very
strong impression on the Tamil plays. For some years, all
Tamil plays had a scene of sunrise and sunset following one
of the plays presented by this army. The narrator learned after
a few years that it was a kind of counter-movement to
international Communism.
After some months, another guest arrived at Gemini Studios –
an English editor from London. The people at the studios
figured out that he was not the editor of any prominent
English newspaper like ‘The Manchester Guardian’ or ‘The
London Times.’ He gave a long speech at the studios that was
baffling to most and contained words like ‘democracy’ and
‘freedom’, here and there.
The narrator confesses that prose writing cannot be the true
pursuit of a genius. It is for those who are patient and
persistent and have faced rejection so many times that nothing
else can shatter their hearts. The narrator found the
announcement for a story contest organised by a British
periodical called the Encounter in The Hindu. The narrator
wanted to know about this periodical before sending his
manuscript. He found out that its editor was Stephen Spender
– the same editor who had come to Gemini Studios. He felt an
instant connection to Spender and was excited to send his
manuscript.
Years later, when the narrator was out of Gemini Studios and
did not have much money, he realised that anything that had a
reduced price attracted his attention. Once he found a pile of
low-priced books for students at fifty paise each in connection
with the 50th anniversary of the Russian Revolution. He
bought one book. It was named ‘The God That Failed’ and
authored by six eminent men of letters who talked about their
journey into Communism and their disillusioned return. As he
read the names of the authors, he found the name of Stephen
Spender – the poet who had visited Gemini Studios. The
narrator realised the cause of that baffling reaction to
Spender’s speech at Gemini Studios. The boss of Gemini
Studios did not have much to do with Spender’s poems as he
had to do with his views on Communism.
Conclusion of Poets and Pancakes
Poets and Pancakes Summary shows us the world of film-
making in earlier times in India. It talks about the presence of
an inclusive workforce that brought people together at Gemini
Studios from all over the country. The hierarchy and relation
between the colleagues portrayed are not different from the
present-day workplace dynamics of any place. It shows a
constant universal human psychology involved in work
environments. The thoughts and behaviours exhibited by
employees in a workplace are easily relatable to the ones
shown in the chapter. The political ignorance exhibited by the
employees at Gemini Studios is still a dominating feature of
any country. The next relatable thing is the writer’s struggle
for fame and recognition as a writer. The creative artist
always has to struggle before he gets to taste his success, and
every small connection to some renowned element of the field
feels like a happy jolt. The author was excited to find out that
he had seen Stephen Spender in real life – the editor and
writer of two literary works he had known about.

THE INTERVIEW
BY: CHRISTOPHER SILVESTER
The Interview by Christopher Silvester talks about the
importance of interviews and the role they play in
communicating the affairs of the contemporary world to us.
Christopher worked as a reporter for the Private Eye for 10
years. The Interview is an excerpt from his Penguin Book of
Interviews, An Anthology from 1859 to the Present Day. The
first part of the chapter talks about how interviews are
perceived by various people. He cites famous personalities to
exhibit different notions of interviews. He also advocates the
importance of interviews in the field of journalism, and how
they constitute important mediums of communication
between the public and contemporary events and people of
significance. The second part is an interview between famous
writer and academician Umberto Eco and reporter from The
Hindu, Mukund Padmanabhan. The Interview Summary gives
us insights into Umberto’s opinion on his writing career and
the reasons behind the success of his book – The Name of the
Rose.

The Interview Summary

Part I
The author calls the long-found ‘interview’ a commonplace
for journalism. Every literate person has read an interview at
some point in their lives. Several celebrities have been
interviewed in the past, and it is no surprise that different
people have different opinions about interviews. Some see
interviews as a source of truth while people like celebrities
consider themselves as victims of these interviews. They look
at interviews as an unwarranted intrusion in their lives. The
author compares their opinions on interviews to superstitious
beliefs. The author gives an example where people used to
believe in the earlier days that capturing a photograph meant
stealing people’s souls.
The author gives examples of famous personalities to exhibit
the differences in opinions about interviews. V.S. Naipul’s
opinion was that some people are wounded by interviews and
lose a part of themselves. Lewis Caroll, writer of the famous
‘Alice in Wonderland’ feared being lionised by interviews and
did not consent to give any. He felt satisfied and amused at
silencing all the interviewers. Rudyard Kipling regarded
interviews as immoral and considered them demeaning for a
respectable person. H.G. Wells, who considered interviewing
an unpleasant experience, was a frequent interviewee and had
also interviewed Joseph Stalin in the later years of his life.
Saul Bellow had once described interviews as thumbprints on
his windpipe.
The author, however, advocates the cause of interviews. He
calls an interview a ‘supremely serviceable medium of
communication’. He quotes Denis Brian to support his point.
Denis had claimed that interviews were the most vivid
impressions of contemporary people. Everything happening in
the present moment is conveyed to us through one man asking
questions to another. As a result of this, the interviewer holds
unprecedented power and influence.
Part II
This part is an excerpt from an interview between Umberto
Eco and Mukund Padmanabhan. Umberto Eco is a well-
known professor of semiotics from the University of Bologna
in Italy. The interviewer Mukund Padmanabhan worked for
The Hindu. Umberto’s works were limited to academic
pursuits till he started writing fiction. He achieved stardom in
1980 when his book The Name of The Rose was published.
The book sold more than 10 million copies.
Mukund starts the interview by quoting English novelist
David Lodge who had remarked that Umberto Eco was one
man capable of doing all things. Umberto replies that it is true
that he gives the impression that he is doing a lot of things but
is always convinced at the end that he is doing the same thing.
He elaborates that all his works ultimately represent his
philosophy of peace and non-violence. They are just a bunch
of ethical philosophical interests. Umberto also goes ahead to
reveal his secret that he works in the empty spaces of lives
which he calls interstices.
Next, Mukund comments on Umberto’s style of fiction
writing. He points out that Umberto’s style of writing fiction
is quite informal and playful in nature as compared to his
serious and dry style of academic writing. Umberto
reminisces about the presentation of his first Doctoral
Dissertation in Italy. One of the professors had commented on
the unique presentation by Umberto Eco. Instead of talking
about his hypotheses, and drawing conclusions by correcting
them, Umberto told the story of his research along with the
trials and errors involved in them. Umberto then discovered
that it was more functional to write scholarly books in the
form of narratives. This finally led him to start writing
narratives at the age of fifty. He talks about how his friend
Roland Barthes had always wanted to engage in creative
writing but could never do so. Umberto reveals that he never
felt this kind of frustration in life. He had started writing
narratives accidentally, and they satisfied his taste for
narration.
Interestingly, Umberto has written over forty academic
articles as compared to the minimal number of five fictional
novels. Mukun wanted to know if it bothered Umberto when
the majority recognised him as a novelist rather than an
academician. Umberto admitted that it did bother him because
he considered himself a university professor who writes
novels on Sundays. However, he acknowledges the fact that
he cannot hope to reach a big audience of 1 million readers by
just writing academic articles on semiotics. The next question
is on Umberto’s successful work – The Name of the Rose.
Mukund finds it a wonder that the book which was on
metaphysics, theology and mediaeval history enjoyed such a
huge mass audience. Umberto explains that only journalists
and publishers are puzzled about this. They assume that
people do not like difficult reading experiences. If The Name
of the Rose sold between 10 and 15 million copies in a world
of 6 billion people, it meant that this particular number of
people did not like easy reading experiences.
As to the question about Umberto’s book being a success
because it dealt with a period of mediaeval history, the writer
calls the reason behind this a mystery. Umberto’s American
publisher loved the book but did not expect the book to sell
more than 3000 copies in a country like the U.S. where
nobody had seen a cathedral or studied Latin. However, the
book sold two or three million copies in the U.S.
Conclusion of The Interview
The interview Summary demonstrates that the public can
connect to its significant contemporary counterparts through
interviews conducted by journalists. Interviews not only help
us understand the interviewee’s point of view but also give us
new information and perspectives to think about. These facts
and perspectives can act as eye-openers for us and offer us
new food for thought. Umberto Eco reveals his secret of
working in empty spaces is a fresh outlook of looking at
things. He also proposes that not all people succumb to works
of easy reading, some enjoy a difficult reading experience too.

GOING PLACES
BY: AR BARTON
Summary of Going Places
Going Places by A.R. Barton is a short story about adolescent
daydreaming and fantasising. It outlines the story of Sophie, a
teenage girl with a wild imagination and unrealistic
expectations in life. She finds a confidant in her brother Geoff
and tells him about her meeting with a famous football player
named Danny Casey. Geoff does not believe her, nor does her
father. She gives more appealingly realistic descriptions of
Danny while talking to her brother hoping to gain his trust.
Her fantasy peaks when she tells Geoff that Danny has asked
her on a date. Since Geoff does not believe her, she decides to
prove everyone wrong. She goes to meet Danny only to
realise later that she has unreal expectations.
The story begins with a scene of Sophie and her friend Jansie
talking to each other while returning from school. Sophie is
telling Jansie about her plans to open a boutique after she
completes her schooling. She wants to become a famous
fashion designer like Mary Quant. Jansie, who is more
practical, is aware that they are supposed to join the biscuit
factory after their studies. She reminds Sophie that a boutique
would require a lot of money. She also explains to Sophie that
the latter’s plan to save money by working at a shop is not
feasible as it does not pay well, and Sophie’s dad wants his
daughter to work in a shop. Sophie considers being an actress
also – it pays more money.
Everyone in the family seems to know about Sophie’s
temperament. Back at home, her younger brother, Derek
mocks her unrealistic dreams of earning big money. The story
talks about her looking at her mother’s crooked back,
indicating a glimpse of the compassion and pain felt by
Sophie at her family’s poverty-struck conditions. Her brother
Geoff is an apprentice mechanic and travels to the far side of
the city every day for his work. He does not speak much, and
she feels jealous of his silence. She suspects Geoff to be well-
informed about places she does not know about. Sophie
reveals to Geoff that she met Danny Casey in the arcade.
Since Geoff does not believe her, she uses an animated
description of Danny to make her encounter sound realistic.
Geoff passes on this news about Danny Casey to his father at
the dinner table. Their father looks at Sophie disdainfully. He
knows Sophie is just up to one of her tricks of making up
stories. There is no way she would meet a famous football
player like Danny Casey. Her father and Geoff start talking
about football. Sophie interjects the conversation, saying
Danny told her he would buy a shop. Her father warns her that
she might get into serious trouble if she continues telling
people false stories.
Next, Sophie makes her brother promise not to tell anyone
that Danny Casey has asked to meet her. Her brother finds it
unbelievable. To make it more realistic, Sophie narrates how
she met Danny and asked him for his autograph for Derek.
But neither of them had a pen and paper. So, Danny asked
Sophie if she would like to meet him the following week for
the autograph. Geoff does not believe that the football player
would show up.
Sophie goes with her father and her brothers to watch a
football match that Danny is playing. Danny’s team wins, and
Sophie feels proud. She meets Jansie the following week and
is surprised to hear Jansie ask her about the meeting with
Danny. Geoff had told this news to Jansie’s brother Frank.
Sophie did not expect her brother to spill out her secrets like
this. As she talks to Jansie about this secret meeting, Sophie
learns that Geoff had not told Frank about the second meeting
that was going to take place between Sophie and Danny.
Sophie goes to meet Danny at a spot by the canal. She used to
play there during her childhood. She considers it a perfect
place to meet someone without drawing attention. While she
waits for Danny, she imagines how the meeting will be.
Danny would appear from the shadows, and her reaction
would be that of excitement. After a while, she realises that
Danny will not come. Sophie goes into a state of worry and
despair – she would not be able to prove to Geoff or the others
that she is telling the truth about Danny. As she walks back
home, Sophie imagines how Geoff would be disappointed to
know that Danny had not come. She is glad to see her father’s
cycle outside the pub – she would not have to face her father.
On the way, she imagines Danny outside the Royce’s. She
visualises herself talking to Danny and asking for his
autograph. Sophie imagines Danny to be of the same height as
hers. She gives vivid descriptions of Danny’s appearance
according to her fantasies. Sophie pictures him acting coy and
awkward with genuine innocence. She sees the prodigy again
the following Saturday – displaying his excellent
sportsmanship at the game.
Going Places by A.R. Barton is a short story about adolescent
daydreaming and fantasising. It outlines the story of Sophie, a
teenage girl with a wild imagination and unrealistic
expectations in life. She finds a confidant in her brother Geoff
and tells him about her meeting with a famous football player
named Danny Casey. Geoff does not believe her, nor does her
father. She gives more appealingly realistic descriptions of
Danny while talking to her brother hoping to gain his trust.
Her fantasy peaks when she tells Geoff that Danny has asked
her on a date. Since Geoff does not believe her, she decides to
prove everyone wrong. She goes to meet Danny only to
realise later that she has unreal expectations.
 A ROADSIDE STAND
BY: ROBERT FROST
Summary of A Roadside Stand
A Roadside Stand is a poem written by American poet Robert
Frost to portray the miserable living conditions of
marginalised economic classes in the countryside. He puts the
owners of road stalls in the spotlight to talk about their plight.
They set up their small-scale businesses near the roads to sell
their small produce of vegetables and fruits. The city people
who pass by the roads in luxury cars do not want to spend
their money on the road vendors’ frugal products. The poor
roadside stall sellers desperately want to get a taste of some
city money. But the ones who stop, only ask for directions or
some gas for their [Link] poet looks at this behaviour
with disgust. A Roadside Stand poem summary is a critical
commentary on the social, economic and political conditions
imposed upon the country’s people that makes them stuck in
the vicious circle of poverty.
The first line of the poem indicates efforts taken up by a
roadside stall owner to renovate his stall. The poet refers to it
as a house to indicate its importance in the life of its owner.
While the look of the stall resembles that of a small house, it
is also the sole means of earning for its owner. The stall
owner looks desperately for some earnings – some cash, not
for some lowly donation of food that would barely satisfy one
meal. The poet says that the city money is mostly used for the
growth and development of cities, which in turn, helps the city
people become richer. The traffic that passes in front of the
stall on the road is ‘polished’ – expensive vehicles that are
owned by people from the city. It is sad to see that they never
bother to spare some money for the poor people in the
countryside.
Interestingly, the traffic does stop for a moment, but that is to
frown upon the meaningless art and haphazard graffiti drawn
on the walls; to gaze upon the wild berries put up for sale in
wooden quarts, to watch the golden-coloured squash with
silver warts on them; or just to admire the scenic beauty of the
place they have stopped by at momentarily. The poet talks in a
tone that is sympathetic to the miseries and cries of the poor
road stallers or other road vendors. He curtly asks the traffic
to simply move along if they do not want to spend their
money.
The poet points out that what is most hurting about this
experience is the despondency related to the lives of these
poor people. They set up their stalls outside the city to earn
some money – money that might help them better their lives.
They want to achieve that particular status of a comfortable
life that was promised to them by the movies. But, they are
restricted from achieving their goals by the politicians who
rule the place.
The poet gives us a picture of how poor people are ill-treated
by politicians. It is shown in the news that these poor people
will be brought out of their misery and relocated to good
villages with the assurance of economic development. They
would be placed near theatres and stores where they would
live comfortable lives. But, none of this happens, as
ironically, the politicians who promised them all these things
actually thrive on exploiting the poor rather than granting
them the chance of a good life, as promised. Instead, the
politicians create comfort and luxury for themselves and laze
around doing nothing but sleeping during the day and staying
awake at night – going completely against the natural way of
living. The poet is completely disgusted by the actions of
these politicians, as can be seen in the use of words like
‘greedy good-doers’ and ‘beneficent beasts of prey’ in the
ways he describes them.
The poet is deeply saddened by the innocent longings of the
road vendors for some luck at earning money. The long wait
of the poor vendors for the sound of an approaching customer
– a squeal of brakes or the sound of a stopping car seem like a
vain wish to the poet. Out of the thousand cars that pass by,
one might stop beside a stall to make a turn or to ask for
directions. Sometimes cars stop to ask if they could buy some
gas. The poet interprets this action as an example of harsh
ignorance and lack of sympathy toward the road vendors.
How could these people in cars possibly buy gas from
someone who has nothing?
The much-needed forms of development and fulfilment of
aspirations have never been found in the country. The poor
people who stay here live with a constant lack of resources
and necessities. They are unable to reach the levels of comfort
and sophistication of people in the cities. The poet draws a
sharp line of contrast between the people from the country and
the people from the cities. The poor simply are not able to
turn their fate around.
The poet ponders if putting an end to the poor people’s lives
would really take them out of their misery. He considers the
concept of mercy-killing desperately as a viable solution to
this eternal problem of poverty and pain. After an enraged
moment of intense pain and agony for these people from the
country, the poet returns to a sane state. He wonders how he
would feel if someone offered to kill him to put him out of his
misery.
Conclusion of A Roadside Stand
A Roadside Stand poem summary shows how a mindset for
relentless development and higher standards of living in cities
impacts the poor people living in the country. The poor
become victims of the economic and political systems
endorsed by the city administration. We can study this
through the poet’s strong sympathetic stand towards the
country people and his offensive rebukes directed towards the
city people who pass by the road.

ON THE FACE OF IT
BY: SUSAN HILL
Summary of On the Face of It
On the Face of It is a play written by English novelist and
playwright Susan Hill. This play talks about a young boy
named Derek who is embarrassed and troubled by people
commenting and talking about his face because it is half burnt
by acid. Derek does not like his name and prefers to be called
Derry. The play has used the name Derry for the character and
also throughout all dialogues written in it. Another character
named Mr Lamb tries to show him how to accept his flaws as
a part of his life. He advises Derry to pay no heed to people’s
conversations and reactions towards his face and focus on
using his abilities to the best of his potential and achieving
success in life
Derry enters an isolated garden and walks cautiously around
it. A while later, to Derry’s surprise, he finds the garden is
owned by Mr Lamb, who strikes up a conversation with him.
Derry plans to leave immediately when Mr Lamb informs him
that everyone is welcome in his garden and that Derry looks
mature enough not to steal anything from his garden. Derry
explains to Mr Lamb that he is not scared of him. Instead, it
was other people who were always frightened of him.
Mr Lamb finds this unusual and asks Derry why he feels this
way. Derry says that it does not matter what people say; he
can easily figure out what they think of his face. He believes
that people find his face ugly. He tells Mr Lamb that even he
finds his face ugly when he looks in the mirror. Mr Lamb
does not say much about it and starts talking about plucking
crab apples to make jelly. Derry assumes that Mr Lamb is just
trying to change the topic of conversation as other people do.
He asks Mr Lamb to question him about his condition and
stop pretending there is nothing wrong with his face.
Mr Lamb tries to guess the cause behind his burnt face. Derry
reveals that one side of his face was burnt due to exposure to
acid, and it will remain the same forever. Derry finds Mr
Lamb’s composed reaction to this piece of information a bit
odd. He asks Mr Lamb astonishingly if he is not interested in
it. The latter reasons that everything created by God is
interesting. Every living thing is the same no matter what. Mr
Lamb talks about how he has a tin leg and kids call him
‘Lamey-Lamb’. Some people notice and talk about his tin leg,
while some do not. But it does not bother him. Mr Lamb tries
to compare this phenomenon to the fairy tale of ‘Beauty and
the Beast’.
Derry reminds Mr Lamb that he has heard about this tale in
which a girl’s kiss turns a monstrous beast into a handsome
prince. But in his case, he remains a monster. His mother only
kissed him on the unburnt side of his face. He fears that no
one would like him or look at him. Mr Lamb contradicts this
by saying that Derry might not have a whole face, but the
world has one, which is to be looked at. Talking about Mr
Lamb’s tin leg during winters, Derry reveals how he has been
told of the blind, deaf and dumb who were worse off than
him; how people he has heard people whisper nasty things
about him to each other. Mr Lamb advises him to stop
listening to what people say about him.
Derry does not like to see people being scared of him. Mr
Lamb tells the story of a man who was so scared of anything
wrong happening to him that he stopped going out of the
house but was killed, nonetheless, by a picture frame that fell
on him. Mr Lamb explains to Derry that his hatred of people
could do more harm than what acid had done to his face.
Derry likes Mr Lamb’s house and garden and expresses his
desire to return to the place some other time. Mr Lamb
welcomes this proposal gladly and warns him that he might
meet plenty of other people also who are his friends. He could
make friends with them because he was not scared of them
and vice versa. Derry wants to help Mr Lamb with plucking
the crab apples. He is worried about his family not knowing
his whereabouts. So, he rushes home to inform his mother and
promises Mr lamb to return soon. Meanwhile, we see that Mr
Lamb thinks aloud to himself about no one ever returning
back.
At home, Derry’s mother refuses to send Derry again to Mr
Lamb’s. Derry retaliates by saying that he likes Mr Lamb’s
house and wants to go there to think about things. His mother
refuses again, and Derry expresses his hatred towards his
home. He runs away from his house, saying that if he does not
go to Mr Lamb’s, he will never be able to go anywhere, and
finally reaches Mr Lamb’s garden to find him dead under an
apple tree.
Conclusion of On the Face of It
Summary of On the Face of It teaches us critical morale – to
accept ourselves for whatever we are. The advice given by an
experienced and wise man like Mr Lamb boosts Derry’s self-
esteem and inspires him to start working on himself anew.
Towards the end of the play, we can see that Derry wants to
help Mr Lamb with plucking apples. He also has some more
positive vibes towards socialising – as we can see, Derry
harbours a desire to return to Mr Lamb’s garden again for a
visit sometime. Derry finally realises the worth of living a
positive and fruitful life, but the death of Mr Lamb is an
unfortunate incident. He played a very small but powerful role
in Derry’s life. He gave a new meaning to his existence.

MEMORIES OF CHILDHOOD
BY: ZITKALA-SA AND BAMA
Summary of Memories of Childhood
Memories of Childhood is a collection of two
autobiographical episodes written by Native American writer
Zitkala – Sa and Tamil writer Bama. Both these writers
belong to marginalised communities and talk about their
experiences of discrimination in their childhood. Zitkala – Sa
relates how she was taken away from her mother to be
introduced into a school run by white Americans. She
remembers her first day at Carlisle Indian school when the
people who run the school force her to cut her hair. She feels
anguish and helplessness as she is completely opposed to that
action. Long hair is considered a symbol of courage and well-
being in her culture. The other autobiographical episode is
written by Bama who learns about the social injustice
imposed upon her community through the practice of
untouchability. A simple funny event that she experiences
turns out to be an ugly form of discrimination.
The Cutting of My Long Hair
Zitkala – Sa narrates the experience of her first day at school,
which is a residential establishment. It is winter when she first
joins the school. On her very first day, the bell rang loudly for
breakfast, and there was a constant clamour of noises around
her. She found the noises annoying, and her soul craved to be
free, but it was all in vain. The blanket she wore was stripped
down off her, and she was made to join a line of girls going to
the dining room. A pale-faced woman followed the line. The
girls were made to wear stiff shoes and tight dresses. The
smaller girls wore sleeved aprons and had shingled hair. The
narrator felt that the girls were immodestly dressed, but they
did not care about it at all.
As they entered the dining room, three boys entered through
an opposite door. The narrator observed that a small bell was
tapped, and the three boys drew chairs from under the dining
table. The narrator imitated them only to find out that the rest
were still standing. She started to rise when a second bell
rang, and everyone else took out their chairs from under the
table. As they sat at the table, the narrator turned to look at a
man who was talking. However, when she felt the gaze of a
pale-faced woman upon her, she lowered her eyes. Everyone
at the table hung their heads over their plates at the table. A
third bell rang, and everyone picked up their knives and forks
to eat. The narrator felt like crying but did not dare to.
To make matters worse, the narrator’s friend Judewin
informed her about a plan to cut their long, heavy hair. The
narrator’s mother had taught her that only unskilled warriors
whom the enemy captured were subjected to their hair
shingles by the enemy. In the narrator’s culture, short hair was
worn by mourners and shingled hair by cowards. The narrator
rebelled when Judewin told her they would have to submit to
having haircuts as the people running the school were strong.
The narrator escaped from the room when no one was looking
and entered a room with three beds in it. She hid under a bed.
She shuddered with fear whenever she heard footsteps nearby.
Everyone, including her friend, Judewin, was looking for her.
Finally, when she was found under the bed, the narrator
remembers being dragged out despite her vehement
resistance. She was carried downstairs and tied securely to a
chair. She cried until she felt the scissors cutting one of her
thick braids. She lost her spirit after that. The narrator recalls
facing numerous indignities after being taken away from her
mother. She cried for her mother as her hair was cut, but no
one listened to her as she was similar to one of the many little
animals driven by a herder.
We Too are Human Beings
Bama narrates her experience growing up as a child in her
native place. She cites an event that took place when she was
three years old. People at that time did not discuss
untouchability openly. The narrator used to walk back from
school every day. The narrator enjoyed her walk so much that
she covered the distance in thirty minutes, which could
actually be covered in ten minutes. She used to find delight in
watching every small establishment and event on her way
home from school. There were shops, street vendors, political
gatherings, etc. The narrator was mesmerised by the sight of
these things.
One day the narrator was returning home from school as
usual. When she reached her street, she saw that a threshing
floor was set up, and the landlord was watching over the work
done by his men. The people working on the threshing floor
belonged to the narrator’s community. The narrator was
enjoying the view of these activities when she noticed an elder
from her community carrying a small packet funnily. The man
carefully held the strings of the packet without touching it.
She guessed the packet would have some vadai or green
banana bhajji. She reasoned that the package could come
undone and the food might fall if it was carried that way. The
whole act looked silly to her. The man approached the
landlord and offered him the package cupped in his hands.
The landlord then took it out of the man’s hand and started
eating the vadais.
The narrator went home and told the humorous story to her
brother. However, her brother did not find the story funny and
explained to her that the landlord and his likes were
considered upper-caste people. Since touching people who
belonged to Bama’s community could pollute the upper caste
people, that is why the elderly man had to carry the packet by
its strings. The narrator was infuriated to hear this and did not
find the incident funny anymore. The food was first wrapped
in a banana leaf followed by the wrapping paper. She could
not believe how food wrapped under two layers could look
disgusting to someone. She felt so angry that she wanted to go
and touch those vadais herself.
The narrator wondered if it was the money that these upper
caste people had that made them behave this way. She felt that
people from her community should never run errands for the
upper caste people. They should just do their work, collect
their salaries and leave it at that.
When the narrator’s elder brother, who studied at a university,
returned home for the holidays, he often went to the library in
the nearby village to borrow books. One day, he was walking
along the banks of an irrigation tank when one of the
landlord’s men came behind him and enquired about him. The
man first asked his name and then the street where he lived to
determine his caste. The narrator’s brother explained to her
that because they were born in this community of
untouchables, they were deprived of dignity and respect. The
only way to counter that was to educate themselves. That way,
they would receive recognition and people would engage in
meaningful relationships with them.
The words that her brother spoke that day made a profound
impact on the narrator’s mind. She studied very hard and
stood first in her class. As a result, many people became her
friends.
Conclusion of Memories of Childhood
Summary of Memories of Childhood demonstrates how
discrimination can scar people’s minds when exposed to it at a
very early age. It robs the opportunity to have a happy
childhood for children from marginalised communities. We
can see how Zitkala – Sa faced gender discrimination on her
first day at her school during breakfast when the boys were
permitted to sit down first. She experienced a bigger kind of
discrimination – racial when regardless of her cultural values,
her hair was cut by the school authorities. This act was a
direct attack on her identity and cultural values. The second
author Bama faces discrimination based on her caste. As an
innocent child, she felt completely disgusted to learn that
people could be so inhumane towards others only because
they considered themselves superior to them.