THE SUMMER OF THE BEAUTIFUL WHITE HORSE

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

William Saroyan (1908-1981) was an Armenian-American novelist, playwright and short-

story writer. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1940 and in 1943, he won the
Academy Award for Best Story for the film adaptation of hos novel, The Human Comedy.
Some Notable works include: My Heart’s in the Highlands, My Name is Aram, The Human
Comedy.

ESSENTIAL DISCUSSION

1. The Armenian Massacre:

The Hamidian massacres also referred to as the Armenian Massacres of 1894–

189 and Great Massacres,were massacres of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire that took
place in the mid-1890s. It was estimated casualties ranged from 80,000 to
300,000,resulting in 50,000 orphaned children. The massacres are named
after Sultan Abdul Hamid II, who, in his efforts to maintain the imperial domain of the
collapsing Ottoman Empire, Although the massacres were aimed mainly at the
Armenians, they turned into indiscriminate anti-Christian pogroms where, at least
according to one contemporary source, up to 25,000 Assyrians were also killed.The
massacres received extensive coverage in the media of Western Europe and North
America.
The origins of the hostility toward Armenians lay in the increasingly precarious position
in which the Ottoman Empire found itself in the last quarter of the 19th century. The end
of Ottoman dominion over the Balkans was ushered in by an era of European nationalism.
The Armenians of the empire were long considered second-class citizens, When a nascent
form of nationalism spread among the Armenians of Anatolia, including demands for
equal rights and a push for autonomy, the Ottoman leadership believed that the empire's
Islamic character and even its very existence were threatened.

The killings continued until 1897. In that last year, Sultan Hamid declared the Armenian
Question closed. Many Armenian revolutionaries had either been killed or escaped to
Russia.

One headline in a September 1895 article by The New York Times ran "Armenian
Holocaust."

2. The Garghlonian Tribe:

The tribe is from Armenia. Many of those who managed to escape the Holocaust reached
America in search of a better life. They ended up settling in places like Fresno, California.
Part of the tribe’s culture is trying to find a sense of placement and self in a new and
 modern setting. The tribe operates in this modern predicament while clinging to values of
the past, of Armenia.
The tribe was poverty stricken. It was a comical poverty as they always scraped enough
money to put food on the table. They were famous for their honesty for nearly 11
centuries. They were also a proud race of people with a strong value system. They never
took advantage of anybody..

SYNOPSIS OF LESSON

The Extract has been taken from the novel, My Name is Aram.

The narrator recalls an incident which took place one summer when he was 9 years old.
Around 4 in the morning, his cousin, Mourad, arrived at his window and invited him out for a
ride. His cousin always had a strong desire to ride. But as Armenian refugees in America,
they were always impoverished. So getting the money to buy a horse was out of the question.
The idea that Mourad could have stolen the horse also seemed improbable. They belonged to
the proud tribe of Garghlonians whose values of honesty were beyond compare.

‘We were proud first, honest next and after that we believed in right or wrong’

In his childish innocence, Aram convinced himself that stealing a horse merely for a ride and
stealing money were not the same. So Aram joined Mourad. They took the horse behind their
house to the orchards and vineyards when they rode the horse. Mourad rode well but Aram
failed miserably.

Mourad had a crazy streak like uncle Khusrove. He was an enormous man with a large
moustache, furious temper and short temper. His constant statement was ‘It is no harm, pay
no attention to it.’

Mourad seemed to have already got a place readied to hide the horse (Fetvajian’s deserted
barn) which made it clear that he had had the horse for sometime before he came for Aram.

John Byro, an Assyrian who was a friend of Aram’s family, arrived one afternoon and
informed that his horse had gone missing over a month back and he was facing immense
problems. Aram thus becomes aware that the horse which Mourad and he were riding
belonged to John Byro. Aram pleads Mourad to keep the horse for at least a year so that he
could learn to ride. Despite the virtue of their tribe, the 2 young boys had fallen into
temptation. But they were not delinquents. The moral fibre of the community brings them
back to the path of righteousness.

For two weeks, early every morning, the cousins took the horse out for a ride. On their way
back one day, they met John Byro. The farmer took a close look at the animal, looked into its
mouth and said that he could have sworn it was his but knowing the moral fibre of the tribe
(famed for their honesty), he would not believe his own eyes, rather he would believe his
heart.
Our anticipation as to what the boys will do next is finally answered when they return the
horse to Byro’s barn the next morning. Mourad was a true animal lover. In his own words, he
had a ‘way with animals and birds’. Once he was seen mending the broken wings of a bird,
later he was seen dealing with byro’s dogs when they stealthily entered his barn. Also the way
he deals with the horse is proof of his claim.

CHARACTER SKETCH

Mourad

 Lively and energetic

 Loves horses; rides well
 Plans his actions well—the deserted barn he found to hide the horse
 Has a way with animals and birds
 Gives in to temptation but is not delinquent
 Had inherited the crazy streak of Uncle Khusrove; loved to sing

Aram

 Younger to cousin Mourad

 Innocent and childish—tries to convince himself that taking others things without
informing is not stealing until monetary gain is made.
 Loves horses but cannot ride well—falls every time he tries to ride by himself.
However desires to learn
 Can keep secrets—even when he finds out the horse belongs to John Byro, does not
divulge the fact to the farmer when he visits their house

Uncle Khusrove

 Enormous man with a head full of black hair and a powerful moustache
 Had a furious temper, was irritable, impatient
 Spoke rather loudly; almost roared out when opposed
 Constantly harped on the problems and poverty pervading in their tribe---missed their
flamboyant life of the past.

John Byro

 Assyrian farmer who had been befriended by the Garghlonians due to his loneliness
 Had learnt to speak Armenian
 Mild mannered—had lost his horse for over a month because of which he could not
use his surrey—but he took no strong step for it
 Appeals to conscience of boys instead of rebuking/chastising them—even when he is
almost certain that the horse being taken by the boys belongs to him, he says he would
trust his heart (he knew Garghlonians never lied) rather than believe his eyes

HUMOUR IN THE STORY

  Uncle Khusrove displayed a crazy streak.
 He was impatient, irritable, short tempered—could not wait for anyone to complete
their statement
 For every situation—varying intensity and magnitude—reaction was same---‘it is no
matter; pay no attention to it.
 His reactions create humour in the story.

Question Answer

1. Eventhough the story lacks breathless action, it is still very interesting to read. Justify.

Ans.

 Beautiful reminder of what life was before materialism and communalism gained
sway
 Poised beautifully at the intersection of fading influence of old country values and
evolving realisation that the younger characters could be moving away from the
values of their community
 Despite their thoughtless act—not delinquents—innocent youngsters fallen prey to
temptation, but have not lost their moral-fibre—revert to path of righteousness.

2. Did the boys return the return the horse because they were conscience stricken or
because they were afraid?

Ans.

 Returns the horse because they were conscience stricken

 Tribe famous for honesty
 Aram finds out horse belongs to Byro—approached Mourad with request not to
return it before he had learnt to ride—Mourad outraged—insisted that no member
of Garghlonian tribe could steal—the horse had to be returned
 Took very good care of the horse
 After studying the horse, Byro convinced that it was his—but didnot say so to the
boys—instead commented that he would much rather trust his heart than his eyes
—he knew the boys belonging to that tribe could not steal
 It thus becomes clear that they had nothing to be afraid of; they were conscience
stricken

EXTRA QUESTIONS

1. Mourad had a way with animals and birds. Justify.

2. Comment on the ‘crazy streak’ in the family.
3. Describe the first ride Aram had with Mourad when they Went out together.
 1. About Grandmother

The Portrait of a Lady is an autobiographical account by Khushwant Singh. It is the author’s

perception of his grandmother. He recalls her as an eternally old woman-calm and serene,
dressed in white with silver hair that reminded one of a snow-capped mountain. Her name
was Lakshmi Bai. The very idea that she could ever have been young and pretty was difficult
for the author to grasp. The stories about her childhood games seemed like a fairy tale to her
grandson.

She was a religious-minded lady. This is evident from the fact that though she was
uneducated, she knew how to read the scriptures. After taking Khuswant to the village school,
she sat in the temple reading scriptures until it was time to escort him back home. Also, she
loved nature. In the village, she fed the street dogs everyday. In the city, the happiest half
hour of her day was feeding the sparrows in the afternoon. The sparrows appreciated her love
for them and came to bid her good-bye when she passed away.

2. Life In the Village

As a small boy, Khushwant stayed in the village with his grandmother. It was a simple,
uncomplicated life. Grandmother was his constant companion and took care of all his needs.
She was quite active. Waking early in the morning, she dressed him for school, readied his
slate, prepared his breakfast and accompanied him to school. The escorted him to and back
from school. She stayed at the temple the entire duration of his school. At this time she was
his sole guardian and mentor.

3. Friendship

Khushwant’s relation with grandmother went through 3 distinct phases. During the village
phase, they were extremely close. She was his sole mentor and guardian. They were
constantly together from morning till night. During the first phase of the city life, their
relationship got strained as Khushwant shifted to an English medium school and grandmother
could no longer help him with his studies. Moreover, he was studying subjects which she
didnot understand and sometimes, didnot even approve. She no longer accompanied him to
school as he used the school transport. But they got to see each other occasionally as the y
shared the same room. When he went to the university,(second phase of city life) he got a
separate room. This snapped the already fragile link of friendship that they had. Later he went
abroad for further studies and grandmother did not see him for 5 long years. Grandmother
resigned herself to loneliness and never complained about this. She spent most of her waking
hours spinning the wheel or telling her beads.

However, the deep bonds of love didnot actually break. This became evident when
grandmother behaved rather oddly the day Khushwant returned from London. The lady who
always associated music with lewd connotations, brought down an old drum and sang
throughout the evening, as if welcoming a hero back. Khushwant had almost been certain that
she would not make it by the time he returned. However, it seemed that she held on to life
with grit just to see him return. For the very next day she was taken ill and she passed away.

JUSTIFICATION OF TITLE

 Heart warming, pen-portrait of a lady Khushwant loved and admired.

 Not pretty but beautiful—serene and content
 Narrator shared a special relationship—remembers number of incidents nostalgically,
time spent together, care extended.
 Benevolent lady-cared for stray dogs, sparrows (nature-lover). Even sparrows
mourned her death.
 Character exuded beauty of personality—shows great strength—disapproves many
things but never complains-great adaptability
 Portrays grandmother as a dear old lady who is quite unforgettable.

CHARACTER SKETCH OF GRANDMOTHER

 Divine beauty though not pretty—serene and content.

 Kind and benevolent
 Nature lover—loved dos and sparrows
 Religious and pious
 Woman displaying a strong character—shows immense power of acceptance, great
adaptability
 Deep bond of love for grandson

Answer Briefly
 1. Why was the author’s grandmother disturbed when he started going to the city
school?

Ans.

 Grandmother didnot believe in the things that were taught at the English school
(like western science)
 She was distressed that nothing about God or Scriptures was being taught
 Music, to her, had lewd connotations. Khushwant was being given music lessons
at school which agitated her.

2. How did grandmother spend her days after Khushwant grew up?

Ans.

 Resigned to her loneliness; didnot interact much with the author

 Rarely left her spinning wheel
 Either spinning the wheel or telling her beads
 Every afternoon, relaxed for half an hour—fed sparrows at this time—happiest
hour of her day

Practice Questions

1. Mention the odd way in which grandmother died.

2. ‘This was the turning point of our friendship.” Why did the author comment so?
3. How did the sparrows show their gratitude for grandmother?
4. Why was grandmother’s behaviour the day before she died considered odd?