- Action, Linking, and Auxiliary Verb: Definitions, Functions, and Examples
- Correct Use of Verbs
- Correct Use of Preposition
- Present Perfect vs. Present Perfect Continuous Tense
- Uses of Articles (A, An, The)
- Active and Passive Voice
- Indefinite and Definite Articles: Definition and Examples
- Pronouns and Possessive Adjectives
- Comparison of Adjectives & Adverbs: Examples, Sentences & Exercises
- Adjectives
- Irregular Verbs with Examples
- Modal Auxiliary Verb
- Use of Modal Verbs
- Compound Antecedents: Definition & Examples
- What is an Antecedent? Definition, Meaning & Examples
- What Are Collective Nouns?
- What Are Possessive Nouns? Examples, Definition & Types
Comprehensive English: Sentence Structure: Understanding Grammar
- Parts of Speech
- Degree of Comparison
- Difference Between Direct & Indirect Objects in Sentence Structure
- Gerunds: Are They Verbs? Are They Nouns?
- Conjunction vs. Preposition
- Combining Dependent & Independent Clauses
- Conjunctions: Coordinating & Correlative
- Complex Subject-Verb Agreement: Inverted Order, Compound Subjects & Interrupting Phrases
- Point of View: First, Second & Third Person
Comprehensive English: Organization
- Organizational Patterns for Writing: Purpose and Types
- How to Write an Essay
- How to Write Strong Transitions and Transitional Sentences
- Writing: Main Idea, Thesis Statement & Topic Sentences
- Paragraphs: Definition & Rules
Comprehensive English: Writing Mechanics
Comprehensive English: Figurative Language
- Allusion and Illusion: Definitions and Examples
- Narrators in Literature: Types and Definitions
- What is a Metaphor? Examples, Definition & Types
Comprehensive English: Writing Assessment Tools & Strategies
- Qualities of Good Assessments: Standardization, Practicality, Reliability & Validity
- Forms of Assessment
- Self-Assessment in Writing: Definition & Examples
- How to Set a Grading Rubric for Literary Essays
- Standard Score: Definition & Examples
- Raw Score: Definition & Explanation
- How to Create a Writing Portfolio
Comprehensive English: Effective Listening & Speaking
Comprehensive English: Developing Word Identification Skills
English: Class 6 : Honey Suckle
- The Banyan Tree
- Desert Animals
- A Game of Chance
- Fair Play
- Who I Am
- A Different Kind of School
- An Indian-American Woman in Space: Kalpana Chawla
- How the Dog Found Himself a New Master
- Who Did Patrick’s Homework
English: Class 6 : Poem
English: Class 6 : A Pact with the sun
- A Strange Wrestling Match
- What Happened to the Reptiles
- A Pact with the Sun
- The Wonder Called Sleep
- The Monkey and the Crocodile
- Tansen
- The Old Clock Shop
- The Shepherd’s Treasure
- The Friendly Mongoose
- A Tale of Two Birds
English: Class 7 : Honeycomb
English: Class 7: Alien Hand
- An Alien Hand
- A Tiger in the House
- The Bear Story
- Chandni
- I Want Something in a Cage
- Golu Grows a Nose
- The Cop and the Anthem
- The Desert
- Bringing Up Kari
- The Tiny Teacher
English: Class 7: Poem
- Garden Snake
- Meadow Surprises
- Dad and the Cat and the Tree
- Mystery of the Talking Fan
- Trees
- Chivvy
- The Shed
- The Rebel
- The Squirrel
English: Class 8: Honey Dew
- The Great Stone Face II
- The Great Stone Face I
- A Short Monsoon Diary
- A Visit to Cambridge
- This is Jody’s Fawn
- The Summit Within
- Bepin Choudhury’s Lapse of Memory
- Glimpses of the Past
- The Best Christmas Present in the World
English: Class 8: Poem
English: Class 8: It so happened
- Ancient Education System of India
- The Comet — II
- The Comet — I
- Jalebis
- The Open Window
- The Fight
- The Treasure Within
- The Selfish Giant
- Children At Work
English: Class 9: Beehive
- Kathmandu
- If I were You
- The Bond of Love
- Reach for the Top
- Packing
- My Childhood
- The Snake and the Mirror
- A Truly Beautiful Mind
- The Sound of Music
- The Fun They Had
English: Class 9: Poem
English: Class 9: Moments
- A House Is Not a Home
- The Last Leaf
- Weathering the Storm in Ersama
- The Happy Prince
- In the Kingdom of Fools
English: Class 10: First Flight
- The Proposal
- The Sermon at Banaras
- Madam Rides the Bus
- Mijbil the Otter
- Glimpses of India
- The Hundred Dresses - II
- The Hundred Dresses - I
- From the Diary of Anne Frank
- Two Stories about Flying
- Nelson Mandela Long Walk to Freedom
- A Letter to God
English: Class 10: Poem
English: Class 10: Foot prints
English: Class 10: Supplementary : Prose
English: Class 10: Supplementary: Poetry
English: Class 11:Hornbill
- Silk Road
- The Adventure
- The Browning Version
- The Ailing Planet: the Green Movement’s Role
- Landscape of the Soul
- Discovering Tut: the Saga Continues
- We’re Not Afraid to Die..if We Can All Be Together
- The Portrait of a Lady
English: Class 11: Supplementary
- The Tale of Melon City
- Birth
- The Ghat of the Only World
- Albert Einstein at School
- Ranga’s Marriage
- The Address
- The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse
English: Class 11: Poem
- 2Ajamil and the Tigers
- Ode to a Nightingale
- Felling of the Banyan Tree
- Refugee Blues
- For Elkana
- Hawk Roosting
- Mother Tongue
- The World is too Much With Us
- Telephone Conversation
- Coming
- Let me Not to the Marriage of True Minds
- The Peacock
English: Class 12: Prose
- Going Places
- The Interview
- Poets and Pancakes
- Indigo
- The Rattrap
- Deep Water
- Lost Spring
- The Last Lesson
English: Class 12: Supplementary
Chapter Summary
“The Portrait of a Lady” by Khushwant Singh is based on a real story. The whole story discusses the pfe journey about his grandmother which he had pstened from her in his childhood. In this story, the writer has discussed the relationships with the grandma throughout her pfe journey. Before writing this story he minutely observed the daily activities of his grandmother. In order to disclose the portrait of his grandmother, he has provided her actual appearance along wither the emotional attachment with other family members. The relationship between the grandmother as well as grandson is beautifully presented in this story. The innocence of their relationship also shows an example of admiration as well as love can be clearly seen. During the separation from his grandmother, the author’s mental condition was also beautifully portrayed in such a wide canvas.
Three Phases of the Author’s Relationship with His Grandmother Before He Left the Country to Study Abroad
The initial phase discusses the early childhood phases when he stayed with his grandmother. In this phase, he pved in a village and his grandmother looked after him very much by getting him up from sleep and making him ready for school.
The next phase was the time when they both moved to the city with his parents. The turning point of the story started when they had to stay separated from each other.
The final phase started when the author was admitted to the university. He pved in a separate room and his grandma was in another room. All day long she was busy wheelspinning and reciting prayers. Grandmother accepted this seclusion in silence.
Reasons Why the Author’s Grandmother Was Disturbed When He Started Going to the City School
The grandmother of the author was disturbed when she knew that in school the learning was related to western science which she did not accept at all. Another reason for her disturbance happened because any kind of story about god as well as scriptures was not taught in school. The next unhappiness of his grandmother was about the music lesson. According to him, music is only suitable for those people who are belonged to the low dignity.
How the author’s grandmother spent her days after he grew up?
The three ways in which the grandmother spent the days are grandma pved alone within the room and she fully accepted this lonepness silently. She never complained about her position and asked for the company of others. All day long, she sat at the spinning wheel and recited prayers silently. In the afternoon, grandmother would feed sparrows on the meadow, for not more than half an hour. Moreover, she was completely habituated to her position in the family and genuinely missed her village home.
What was the odd way in which the author’s grandmother behaved just before she died?
Before death, grandmother behaved in an odd way she mostly omitted to pray and spent a very pttle time talking with the family members. The pps of grandmother almost stopped moving and rosary fells from fingers her which was pfeless. Moreover, before her death grandmother omitted all the connections with the family members and spent a lonely pfe.
What was the way in which the sparrows expressed their sorrow when the author’s grandmother died?
A unique bond was seen between the grandmother and the sparrow. She got the ultimate satisfaction to feed them and spending time with them. During the afternoon she became very happy. The day, when she died, thousands of sparrows came to the meadow and chattered around her body.
The author’s grandmother was a repgious person. What are the different ways in which we come to know this?
The grandmother of the author was fully a repgious lady and it could be seen from her behavior. She recited prayers all day, and visited temples daily as well as read scriptures. She also recited the prayers when the writer was getting ready to go to school. Even she did not pke the school where the author was admitted because any kind of repgious teaching was taught there. During the time, when the author returned from school she became very excited and happy and this is the time when she did not recite at all. Until her death, she continued her prayer as well as telpng beads of a rosary.
Describe the changing relationship between the author and his grandmother.
Throughout the story, the relationship between the author and his grandmother was changed gradually. In the initial period, the author was closely connected with her but when they shifted to the city then he was separated from his grandmother. Only the schoolgoing time as well as returning time was the happiest time for her as she got in touch with her daughter.
Would you agree that the author’s grandmother was a person strong in character? If yes, give instances that show this.
Yes, she was a strong lady as she thought repgious teaching than science or music teaching. She spent all the time on the spinning wheel as well as praying. She did not express his emotion to others and never complained about her situation. She ignored other family members and eagerly waited for his grandson.
What were the ways in which the sparrows expressed their sorrow when the author’s grandmother died?
The sparrows were all silent as they mourned her death. They did not notice the food on the meadow at all and when her body was taken away for the final rites they also silently left the place.
FAQs
Q1. What is a real-based story?
Ans. This type of story is based on any real characters or an incident. In this type of story, all the facts that are described are fully connected with reapty. In this particular story, the whole story portrayed the different shades of characteristics of the author’s grandmother and their relationship.
Q2. It is a repgious story?
Ans. No, it is not a repgious story as such through the grandmother is a fully repgious lady. Here in the story, all the facts are surrounded by the different facts of her pfe journey. The bond of a grandmother with a grandson is displayed in this story.
Q3. Is the title of this story justified?
Ans. All over the story, Khushwant Singh displayed the different stages of his grandmother’s pfe journey and the relationship with the family members. Here, the author beautifully portrayed the different shades of the characteristics of his grandma pke her loving or caring nature, her lonepness as well as her spirituapty. Moreover, the author successfully portrayed his grandmother so the title is fully justified.