Unit 4: A New Name

Words and their Meanings:-

1)prompted-encouraged
2)abrupt- sudden and unexpected
3)cross –annoyed
4)flicked – rapid action
5)aisle-a long narrow space between rows of seats in a room or train or
aeroplane
6)lose face-feel embarrassed

Understanding the Text

A. 1. d 2. a 3. e 4. b 5.c
B. Answer the following questions:
1. I went around whispering over and over, “Keoko .Kaneyama
Keoko.” Why did the speaker whisper the name repeatedly what did
she think of the new name ?
Ans: The speaker whispered the name repeatedly because she was trying
to get used to the new name. She found it difficult to believe the name
was hers and was trying to make herself accept it.
2. In what way were the family’s old and new names-
a. different from each other? (para 2)
b. Similar to each other?( para 3)
a. The family’s old name was Korean and their new name was Japanese.
 b. The new Japanese name ‘Kaneyama’ meant ‘mountain of gold’ and
was similar to the old Korean name ‘Kim’ which meant ‘gold’ and
referred to a clan of people who used to live in the mountains of Korea.
3. Did Sun- hee find it easy to respond when she was called Keoko?
Why or why not?(para 3 and 6)
Ans: No, Sun-hee did not find it easy to respond to her new name. She
could not think of it as her name. Whenever someone called her Keoko,
she felt as if they were talking to someone else and not to her.
4.Why did the teacher have to punish Sun-hee ?How did she feel
about doing so?(para 13)
Ans: The teacher had to punish Sun-hee because Onishi-san had ordered
her to do so. She felt very unhappy about giving the girl such a harsh
punishment for such a small mistake.
5. Best of all, I was too angry to cry. Why was the speaker angry?
What reason did she have to cry? why did she appear to feel proud
of not crying? (para 15)
Ans: The speaker was angry because she felt it was unfair that the names
of the Korean people were taken away and they weren’t given any time
to learn their new names. She was given a painful punishment in front of
the whole class and so had a reason to feel angry and ashamed and
therefore cry. She appeared to be proud of not crying because she
refused to be defeated by the cruel actions of those who were trying to
oppress her and did not want to seem weak in front of them.
6. Why do you think Sun- hee did not want to forget the unfair
manner in which she had been treated?(para 17)
Ans: Sun- hee did not want to forget the unfair manner in which she had
been treated because forgetting would mean accepting the unjust way
that she and her fellow citizens were being treated by the Japanese. She
did not want to accept this unfair treatment and thus, chose not to forget.
 7. Now we were both laughing. what caused the laughter? Were the
people who were laughing doing so for the same reasons? Explain
your answer.(paras 18-21)
Ans: The laughter was caused by Tomo forgetting, mispronouncing and
then making fun of Sun-hee's Japanese name. No, the two were laughing
for different reasons. Tomo was laughing at himself and at how funny
the name sounded when he mispronounced it. However, Sun-hee was
laughing at the fact that she was making fun of a name that she disliked
so much. She also enjoyed being able to do something to defy the
Japanese authorities. Sun-hee probably felt as if she was laughing not
just at the name but at the law and at the Japanese themselves.
8. Why did Sun-Hee he convince Tomo to address her by her
Japanese name even though she disliked it? Underline the correct
answer .
a. If Tomo got confused and called her by the wrong name, then both of
them could get in trouble.
b. Tomo, being the principal’s son could not be seen as someone who
disobeyed Japanese laws .
c.Sun-hee’s experience as a Korean child and punishment she received
made her more aware of the dangers of being caught breaking the law.
d.All of the above.
9. Tomo glanced at me quickly, and then looked away again why
did Tomo seem unable to look the speaker in the eye? What does
this tell you about how does he feels about the name change? (Para
22)
Ans: Tomo was unable to look the speaker in the eye because, being
Japanese himself, he felt ashamed at the way his people were treating the
Koreans. Therefore, he probably also felt responsible in some way for
the injustice that his friend had to face. His reaction tells us that he
agreed that the forced name change was wrong.
10. And I knew this was his way of saying he was sorry... Who was
the speaker talking about? What did this person do to show that he
was sorry? (Para 26)
Ans:The speaker was talking about Tomo. Tomo showed that he was
sorry by acknowledging that the name change was a bad idea and caused
unnecessary trouble for everyone. Even though he couldn’t do anything
about the change, the fact that he understood and accepted that it was
unjust showed that he felt bad about what had happened.
Appreciating the Text:-
We see that a change in name affect son he deeply she feels torn
between who she is and who she is expected to be. Using examples from
the text, describe what you understand about the connection between a
person's name and -
a. their culture, language and sense of belonging.
Ans: A person’s name, more often than not, reflects their background,
their culture, the history of their community, place and language. Thus, a
name can help a person form a connection to these things and thus, give
them a feeling of being part of a whole.
b. The ways in which they relate to and interact with other people.
Ans:A person’s name becomes their identity—it is how people will
come to identify and know them. A name helps us differentiate between
one person and another and thus, we relate a certain name to a certain
person. Thus a name forms an important part of interactions and
relationships that we form with each other.
c. the feeling that they are valued for who they are.
 Ans: When we accept a person’s given name and accept their choice to
be known by that name, we acknowledge and respect their decision to
use their name to shape their identity. In doing so, we send out the
message that we value their opinion in creating their identity and thus,
help them create and preserve a sense of self-worthness.
Grammar and Usage
A. 1. another 2. everything 3. Whose 4. mine 5. anyone 6. many 7.
nothing 8. these
B. 1. himself 2. myself 3. herself 4. themselves 5. ourselves 6. yourself
C. 1. himself 2. yourself 3. themselves 4. ourselves 5. herself
Words in Use
A. 1. moved backwards, away from something or someone, usually out
of fear 2. to turn away from something or someone 3. escape 4. to avoid
something or someone 5. got rid of
B. 1. deeply 1. pleasantly 2. winding 3. great 4. strictly 5. doing 6. big