BIRTH

SUMMARY
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
A. J. Cronin
Born Archibald Joseph Cronin
19 July 1896
Cardross, Scotland
Died 6 January 1981 (aged 84)
Montreux, Switzerland
Occupation Physician, novelist
Archibald Joseph Cronin, MBChB, MD, DPH, MRCP (19 July 1896 6
January 1981) was a Scottish novelist and physician.[1]

His best-known novel was The Citadel, about a doctor in a Welsh

mining village who quickly moves up the career ladder in London.
Cronin had observed this scene closely as a Medical Inspector of Mines
and later as a doctor in Harley Street. This book promoted
controversial new ideas about medical ethics which largely inspired the
launch of the National Health Service. Another popular mining novel,
set in the North East of England, was The Stars Look Down. Both these
novels were adapted for film, as were Hatter's Castle, The Keys of the
Kingdom and The Green Years. His novella Country Doctor was adapted
for a long-running BBC radio and TV series Dr Finlay's Casebook,
revived many years later
Cronin was born at Rosebank Cottage in Cardross, Dunbartonshire, the
only child of a Protestant mother, Jessie Cronin (ne Montgomerie),
and a Catholic father, Patrick Cronin, and would later write of young
men from similarly mixed backgrounds. His paternal grandparents
emigrated from County Armagh, Ireland and were glass and china
merchants in Alexandria. Owen Cronin, his grandfather, had his
surname changed from Cronague in 1870. His maternal grandfather,
Archibald Montgomerie, was a hatter who owned a shop in
Dumbarton. After their marriage, Cronin's parents moved to
Helensburgh, where he attended Grant Street School. When he was
seven years old, his father, an insurance agent and commercial
traveller, died from tuberculosis. He and his mother moved to her
parents' home in Dumbarton, and she soon became a public health
inspector in Glasgow
Cronin was not only a precocious student at Dumbarton Academy who
won many prizes and writing competitions, but also an excellent
athlete and footballer. From an early age, he was an avid golfer, a sport
he enjoyed throughout his life, and he loved salmon fishing as well. The
family later moved to Yorkhill, Glasgow, where he attended St Aloysius'
College in the Garnethill area of the city. He played football for the First
XI there, an experience he included in one of his last novels, The
Minstrel Boy. A family decision that he should study for either the
church or medicine was settled by Cronin himself, who chose "the
lesser of two evils."[3] He won a Carnegie scholarship to study
medicine at the University of Glasgow in 1914. He was absent during
the 19161917 session for naval service. In 1919 he graduated with
highest honours, with the degree of MBChB. Later that year he made a
trip to India as ship's surgeon on a liner. Cronin went on to earn
additional degrees, including a Diploma in Public Health (1923) and his
MRCP (1924). In 1925, he was awarded an M.D. from the University of
Glasgow for his dissertation, entitled "The History of Aneurysm."

Characters
Dr. Andrew Manson A doctor working in the mining town of Blaenelly
Joe Morgan A mine-worker
Susan Morgan Joe Morgans wife
Susans mother Joe Morgans mother-in-law
An elderly midwife (nurse)
Christine Dr. Andrews girlfriend

Vocabulary
Haggard Tired
Flaccid Soft and hanging
Asphyxia Pallida An abnormal state of a new born baby in which it
appears pale and numb
Plunge Sink
Lunge Thrust
Consternation Anxiety
Giddy Dizzy
Linoleum A material consisting of a canvas backing thickly coated
with a preparation of linseed oil and powdered cork, used especially as
a floor covering.
Ewer /ju/ A large jug with a wide mouth, formerly used for carrying
water.
Spent Tired
Oblivious Unaware of
Bibliography
Wikipedia
MERITNATION
CBSE BLOG HELPS

Questions
1. What did the elderly midwife think of the young doctor?
2. I will not come in, he said, and his voice showed signs of
strain. But man, I know ye will do well for us.
a. Name the speaker
b. Why is the speaker not intending to go in?
3. What for did Susans mother offer to make a cup of tea for
Dr. Manson?
4. Why was Susans case one that called all Dr. Mansons
attention?
5. Why was Dr. Andrew Mansons mind heavy when he rushed
to attend a case at Joes Morgans?
6. Why had Susan instructed not to give her chloroform?

***THE END***
SEMINAR
ON
A. J. Cronins
BIRTH
PRESENTED BY:-
GAUTHAM KRISHNA C S
XI A
ROLL NO.2

PRESENTED TO:-
JOEL SILJO