1st PUC English Notes | An Old Woman

11. An Old Woman

-Arun Kolatkar

Glossary :

Tag - follow closely

Burr - force his/her company on others

Farce - deal

Wretched - miserable

Crone - an ugly old woman

Clatter - the sound of the hard objects

Air of finality - the impression that there is nothing more to be

said or done.

Plate glass - glass of fine quality used for doors, mirrors.

COMPREHENSION I

1. ‘You’ in the poem refers to the speaker.

2. What does the old woman offer to do?

The old woman offers to be a tourist guide.

3. What does she expect for her service?

She expects fifty paise coin for her service.

4. The lines, ‘You turn around and face her with an air of finality’

suggest that he decided to end the farce.

5. The old woman’s eyes are compared to bullet holes.

6. ‘You are reduced to so much small change in her hand’

Here, the speaker is suggesting that

C. One feels a change in one’s personality.

COMPREHENSION II

1. How is the plight of the old woman depicted in the poem?

Arun Kolatkar is a bilingual Poet. An Old Woman is selected from Jejuri, a collection his of poems. The old woman he has tried to create is the one who represents our culture, our heritage and our natural beauty. Initially it seems that she is little adamant when speaker refuses to give her any money. But, it also shows how she does not resolve to beggary. She wishes to take the speaker to the horse shoe shrine; in return she demands a mere fifty paisa coin. Poverty and old age are two curses that can cripple a person and make him utterly helpless. The old woman is shown as a helpless woman who laments saying “What else can an Old Woman do on hills as wretched as these?”

2. The Old Woman in the poem is a self appointed tourist guide, not a beggar. Do you agree? Give reasons.

Arun Kolatkar is a bilingual Poet. An Old Woman is selected from Jejuri, a collection his of poems. Yes, I agree that the old woman is a self appointed tourist guide and not a beggar. She is asking a 50 paisa coin in return for taking the speaker round the Horse-Shoe Shrine. This shows that she does not want to beg but wants to earn her living in the only way she knew. She appears happy to receive wages after forcing the visitor to get her guidance about the place.

3. How does the Speaker’s attitude undergo a change?

Arun Kolatkar is a bilingual Poet. An Old Woman is taken from Jejuri, a collection of his poems. The old woman he has tried to create is the one who represents our culture, our heritage and our natural beauty. Initially it seems that she is little adamant when speaker refuses to give her any money. But, it also shows how she does not resolve to beggary. She wishes to take the speaker to the horse shoe shrine; in return she demands a mere fifty paisa coin. 

Poverty and old age are two curses that can cripple a person and make him utterly helpless. The old woman is shown as a helpless woman who laments saying “What else can an Old Woman do on hills as wretched as these?”

The Speaker looks into her eyes and realizes she is right. Her helplessness because of her old age moves him. He is also touched by the fact that she wants to earn the fifty paisa coin by showing him the horse shoe shrine rather than demanding it as a charity. All this brings about a change in his approach and attitude.

 

COMPREHENSION III

1. “The Old Woman reduces the self esteem of the speaker and makes him feel that he is nothing more than ‘so much small change’. Comment.

Arun Kolatkar is a bilingual Poet. An Old Woman is taken from Jejuri, a collection of his poems. The old woman he has tried to create is the one who represents our culture, our heritage and our natural beauty. Initially it seems that she is little adamant when speaker refuses to give her any money. But, it also shows how she does not resolve to beggary. She wishes to take the speaker to the horse shoe shrine; in return she demands a mere fifty paisa coin. Poverty and old age are two curses that can cripple a person and make him utterly helpless. The old woman is shown as a helpless woman who laments saying “What else can an Old Woman do on hills as wretched as these?”The Speaker looks into her eyes and realizes she is right. Her helplessness because of her old age moves him. He is also touched by the fact that she wants to earn the fifty paisa coin by showing him the horse shoe shrine rather than demanding it as a charity. All this brings about a change in his approach and attitude. Thus an arrogant, unconcerned tourist is moved by the self-esteem of an old woman. Initially, he tries to ignore her by paying less heed to whatever she said and by claiming that he has already seen the shrine he wanted to escape from her clutches. The woman pesters him to give her that little job, so that she can earn a bit to fill her stomach. Her willingness to work for a living has reduced him to the small change in her hands.

2. What is the Speaker trying to convey through the lines ‘and the hills crack, and the temples crack, and the sky falls’?

Arun Kolatkar is a bilingual Poet. An Old Woman is taken from Jejuri, a collection of his poems. The old woman he has tried to create is the one who represents our culture, our heritage and our natural beauty. The Speaker highlights the fact that growing old is not just for the living forms it also applies to the non living forms like the hills and the temples. ‘Cracks’ are simply a sign of old age. It is a natural process that with the passage of time, the hills and temples which were strong earlier develop cracks. Everything around the poet seems to fall at the attitude carried by the old woman. Her willingness to survive with dignity in those wretched hills at that age causes the hills and the temples to crack and the sky to fall.

3. How do you relate the ‘cracks around her eyes’ to the cracking of hills and temples?

Arun Kolatkar is a bilingual Poet. An Old Woman is taken from Jejuri, a collection of his poems. ‘Cracks’ are simply a sign of old age. Age is an important factor. As the age passes by it starts leaving its ugly impact on the body. With the passage of time even the hills and temples which were strong earlier develop cracks. It is a natural process. The ‘cracks around her eyes’ are symbolic of her old age and rich experience. It also talks about the wisdom that comes with age. The hills and temples represent the same wisdom and dignity that a woman stands for. The old woman and the hills have been around for centuries. Inspite of being old the woman is able to carry on and find means to keep her life going just like the hills and the temples.

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