The Portrait of a Lady class 11 questions with answers, Class 11 SCERT Solutions are aligned with the latest CBSE curriculum and cover all questions from the Assam Board SCERT textbooks. Access the detailed solutions provided here to gain a strong understanding of the subject. You can find the Class 11 English Snapshots Solutions in page format. Utilize these resources during your practice to score well in your exams.
The Portrait of a Lady Class 11 Questions with Answers
The Portrait of a Lady class 11 Q1: The three phases of the author’s relationship with his grandmother before lie left else country to study abroad.
Answer: The three phases of the author’s relationship with his grandmother before he left the country to study abroad are:
childhood – when he went to the village school and the grandmother helped him to get ready and went to school with him.
boyhood – when he went to the city school in a bus. He shared a room with his grandmother but she could no longer help him in his studies.
early youth – when he went to the university and was given a room of him own. The common link of friendship was snapped.
The Portrait of a Lady class 11 Q2: Three reasons why the author’s grandmother was disturbed when he started going to the city school.
Answer: The three reasons why the author’s grandmother was disturbed when he started going to the city school are:
I)She hated Western science and learning.
ii)She was pained to know that there was no teaching of God and the scriptures there.
iii)She was allergic to music. She thought it was not meant for decent people and gentlefolk. It was the monopoly of prostitutes and beggars.
The Portrait of a Lady class 11 Q3: Three ways in which the author’s grandmother spent her days after he grew up.
Answer:
The three ways in which the author’s grandmother spent her days after he grew up are:
i)She lived alone in her room as she had accepted her loneliness quietly.
ii)She sat at her spinning wheel reciting prayers.
iii)In the afternoon, she would feed the sparrows for half an hour.
The Portrait of a Lady class 11 Q4: The odd ways in which the author’s grandmother behaved just before she died.
Answer:
Just before her death, the author’s grandmother refused to talk to them. Since she
had omitted to pray the previous night while she was singing songs of homecoming and beating the drum, she was not going to waste any more time. She ignored their protests. She lay peacefully in bed praying and telling beads.
The Portrait of a Lady class 11 Q5: The way in which the sparrows expressed their sorrow when the author’s grandmother died.
Answer:
Thousands of sparrows sat silently surrounding the dead body of the author’s grandmother. There was no chirruping. The author’s mother threw some crumbs of bread to them. They took no notice of them. As soon as the grandmother’s corpse was carried off, they flew away quietly. Thus the sparrows expressed their sorrow.
The Portrait of a Lady Talking About the Text
Talk to your partner about the following:
The Portrait of a Lady class 11 Q6: The author’s grandmother was a religious person. What are the different ways in which we come to know this?
Answers:
The author’s grandmother was deeply religious, evident from her daily temple visits, scripture reading, and constant prayer rituals at home. She recited prayers while preparing the author for school and disapproved of English schools for lacking religious teachings. Even while spinning, she prayed, though, for a short time, she forgot to say her prayers on the eve of her death while celebrating her grandson’s arrival. She continued her prayers and rosary until her last breath.
The Portrait of a Lady class 11
Question 2:
Describe the changing relationship between the author and his grandmother. Did their feelings for each other change?
Answers: During his boyhood, the author depended a lot on his grandmother, who was very involved in his life. Their relationship changed when they moved to the city. She couldn’t take him to school anymore or help with his studies, and she didn’t agree with what was taught there. She was upset by the lack of religious instruction and the inclusion of music. Because of this, she talked to him less.
When he went to university and had his own room, they grew even more distant. However, they still cared deeply for each other. She silently kissed him goodbye at the station when he left for studies abroad, which he saw as their last physical connection. When he returned after five years, she warmly welcomed him with a hug and celebrated his return with songs and drumming.
Question 3:
Would you agree that the author’s grandmother was a person strong in character? If yes, give instances that show this.
Answers: The author’s grandmother was a strong, religious woman with firm beliefs. Though not formally educated, she cared deeply about the author’s learning. She struggled with Western ideas and disliked music in school. Her days were filled with prayers and reading scriptures. She was upset that the new school didn’t teach about God.
She was kind, feeding village dogs and city sparrows. Despite her old age and weakness, she had a strong mind. Before she died, she refused to talk to her family, wanting to make up for not praying the night before. She continued praying and using her rosary until her last breath.
Question 4:
Have you known someone like the author’s grandmother? Do you feel the same sense of loss with regard to someone whom you have loved and lost?
Answers: My grandfather, a retired teacher, loved and cared for me deeply. Even after retiring 20 years ago, he stayed active and fit, enjoying walking, jogging, and outdoor games. He encouraged us to rise early, believe in the link between a healthy body and mind, and gave us physical exercises, nutritious food, and study time before school. In the afternoons, he asked about our school lessons, helped with homework, and supervised our studies. Though he was gentle, he was firm about good habits and character. He passed away while I was studying abroad, and I miss him greatly. Seeing his portrait reminds me to stay strong and face life’s challenges.
The Portrait of a Lady Thinking About Language
Question 1:
Which language do you think the author and his grandmother used while talking to each other?
Answer:
The author’s grandmother was not educated. So, I think the author and his grandmother used to talk in their mother tongue.
Question 2:
Which language do you use to talk to elderly relatives in your family?
Answer:
My elderly relatives are well-versed in Assamese and Hindi. I feel at home greeting
them in Assamese but like to converse with them freely in Hindi.
Question 3:
What is the expression used in your language for a ‘dilapidated drum’?
Answer:
The expression used in our language for a ‘dilapidated drum’ is ‘phata-purana dhol.’
Question 4:
Can you think of a song or poem in your language that talks of homecoming?
Answer:
There are many folk songs and poems singing of the exploits of brave warriors. All these talk of their homecoming after winning a battle.
The Portrait of a Lady Short Answer Type Questions
Question 1:
How long had the narrator known his grandmother—old and wrinkled? What did people say? How did the narrator react?
The narrator had known his grandmother for the past twenty years, during which she was very old and wrinkled. She seemed as old as anyone could be. People mentioned that she had once been young and beautiful and even had a husband, but the narrator found it hard to believe.
Question 2:
How did the narrator’s grandfather appear in the portrait?
Answers: His grandfather looked very old. He had a long white beard. His clothes were loose fitting. He wore a big turban. He looked too old to have a wife or children. He looked at least a hundred years old. He could have only lots and lots of grandchildren.
Question 3:
Which thought about the grandmother was often revolting and for whom?
Answer:
The narrator’s grandmother was very old and wrinkled. She had stayed at this stage for the last twenty years. People said that once she was young and pretty. The narrator couldn’t even imagine her being young. So the thought was revolting to him.
Question 4:
Explain: “As for my grandmother being young and pretty, the thought was almost revolting”.
Answer:
The narrator’s grandmother was terribly old. She could not appear young and beautiful. Her face was a criss-cross of wrinkles. She was short, fat and slightly bent. The very idea of her being young and pretty did not appeal to the mind.
Question 5:
The narrator’s grandmother ‘could never have been pretty, but she was always beautiful’. Explain the importance of the statement.
Answer:
She was terribly old to appear pretty. Her face was a criss-cross of wrinkles. She was short, fat and slightly bent. She didn’t create any physical appeal or attraction. However, in her spotless white dress and grey hair, she was a picture of serenity, peace, sobriety, and beauty.
Question 6:
Why was it hard for the author to believe that his grandmother was once young and pretty?
Answer:
She was quite an old lady. She had been old and wrinkled for more than two decades. It is said that once she had been young and pretty. But it is hard to believe so.
Question 7:
The narrator’s grandmother looked like the ‘winter landscape in the mountains’. Comment.
Answers: The grandmother was always dressed in clean white and had silvery hair that fell messily over her pale, wrinkled face. She looked as serene and pure as a snowy mountain landscape. Her white clothes and silver hair made her resemble the peaceful, snowy expanse of a winter scene.
Question 6:
Why was it hard for the author to believe that his grandmother was once young and pretty?
Answer:
She was quite an old lady. She had been old and wrinkled for more than two decades. It is said that once she had been young and pretty. But it is hard to believe so.
Question 8:
How did the narrator and his grandmother become good friends?
Answer:
During his childhood, the narrator stayed with his grandmother in the village. She was his constant companion. She looked after him. She used to wake him up. She got him ready for school in the morning. She would give him breakfast. She went to school with him.
Question 9:
Why could the grandmother not walk straight? How would she move about the house?
Answer:
The grandmother was short and fat. She was also slightly bent. She put one hand on her waist to support the stoop. She could not walk straight. She walked like a lame person. She limped or hobbled about while moving.
Question 10:
Describe how the grandmother spent her time while the narrator sat inside the village school.
Answer:
The grandmother went to the school with the narrator. The school was attached to the temple. The narrator would learn alphabet and morning prayer at school. The grandmother would sit inside the temple. There she would read holy books. Thus she spent her time before they came back together.
Question 11:
Grandmother has been portrayed as a very religious lady. What details in the story create this impression?
Answer:
She visited the temple every morning and read scriptures. At home she always mumbled inaudible prayer and kept telling the beads of rosary. She would repeat prayers in a sing-song manner while getting the narrator ready for school. All these details create the impression that she was a religious lady.
