Self Help To I C S E Treasure Trove A Collection of Short Stories PDF

TREASURE TROVE
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CONTENTS About the Author, About the Story, Plot, Theme, Highlights of
Speech/or Summary, Characters, Title, Setting, Style, Critical
Appreciation, Glossary, Comprehension Passages, Assignment
Short Stories 1-4
9. My Greatest Olympic Prize 209-227
1. Chief Seattle’s Speech 5-28 About the Author, About the Story, Plot, Theme, Highlights of
About the Author, About the Story, Plot, Theme, Highlights of Speech/or Summary, Characters, Title, Setting, Style, Critical
Speech/or Summary, Characters, Title, Setting, Style, Critical Appreciation, Glossary, Comprehension Passages, Assignment
10. All Summer in a Day 228-257
2. Old Man at the Bridge 29-56 About the Author, About the Story, Plot, Theme, Highlights of
About the Author, About the Story, Plot, Theme, Highlights of Speech/or Summary, Characters, Title, Setting, Style, Critical
Speech/or Summary, Characters, Title, Setting, Style, Critical Appreciation, Glossary, Comprehension Passages, Assignment
Specimen Papers 1 to 10 (Solved) 258-286
3. A Horse and Two Goats 57-93 Solutions of Workbook of Treasure Trove
About the Author, About the Story, Plot, Theme, Highlights of
Speech/or Summary, Characters, Title, Setting, Style, Critical Volume - II Short Stories by Xavier Pinto
Appreciation, Glossary, Comprehension Passages, Assignment (Beeta Publications)
4. Hearts and Hands 94-117 1. Chief Seattle’s Speech 288-299

Speech/or Summary, Characters, Title, Setting, Style, Critical 2. Old Man at the Bridge 300-307
3. A Horse and Two Goats 308-326
5. A Face in the Dark 118-133
4. Hearts and Hands 327-333
Speech/or Summary, Characters, Title, Setting, Style, Critical 5. A Face in the Dark 334-338
6. An Angel in Disguise 339-345
6. An Angel in Disguise 134-164
About the Author, About the Story, Plot, Theme, Highlights of 7. The Little Match-Girl 346-353
Speech/or Summary, Characters, Title, Setting, Style, Critical
Appreciation, Glossary, Comprehension Passages, Assignment 8. The Blue Bead 354-368
7. The Little Match-Girl 165-186 9. My Greatest Olympic Prize 369-375

Speech/or Summary, Characters, Title, Setting, Style, Critical 10. All Summer in a Day 376-387
Appreciation, Glossary, Comprehension Passages, Assignment Specimen Papers 1 to 10 (Solved) 388-418
Short Stories Series of Events : The development of the complication
results in a series of events which build toward the climax of
Elements of the Short Story the story.
All narrative writing contains six main elements: Climax : The point of highest tension or drama within the
StyleThe language used by the author to tell the story story, after which the complication is resolved.
Setting Where and when the story takes place Resolution : Brings the story to a close. All of the issues can
Characters The people in the story be resolved neatly or alternatively have an open ending (leaving
Plot What happens in the story the reader to make up their own mind about the ending).
Point of View Who is telling the story

Theme The main idea behind the story
Short stories use these elements in the following way:
Characters
One main character or a small number of characters. There
is little point in introducing a large number of characters in a
short story, because there is not enough time to deal with
them all.
• Main characters : The story focuses on these people.
Readers learn a great deal about them. Setting : Setting refers to when and where the story is set.
• Minor characters : People in the story of little This is also known as time and place. A short story generally
significance, for example, passers by. focuses on one place and one time. Whilst novels may jump
Throughout the short story readers gain insight into characters’ from place to place and from country to country, most short
personality as well as being provided with physical descriptions. stories use a single setting. This allows the writer to focus on
The reader discovers what type of person the character is, the development of the plot, without having to continually
for example quiet, shy, scared of being alone. The reader is describe new settings. Short stories are too concentrated to
also given a clear idea of what the characters look like. allow large shifts in the time frame of the action. The events
Plot : The plot, or action, of a story is what occurs in the of the story are compressed into a short period to allow the
story – the events. Short stories generally focus on one main narrative to develop quickly and easily.
event. The plot of a short story follows the following structure: Theme : Theme is a term that generally refers to the main
Exposition / Orientation: A brief introduction to the character(s), idea or message behind the story. Theme is not always easy
setting(s) and the main idea of the story. to work out, or obvious, as most stories usually mean different
Conflict / Complication : A problem or issue which arises, things to different people.
creating tension and interest, which must be dealt with for the Point of view : Point of view refers to the perspective from
story to be resolved. which a story is told. Authors have several choices about who
Treasure Trove A Col. of ICSE Short Stories 1 2 Treasure Trove A Col. of ICSE Short Stories
the narrator of the story will be. The main types of point of • Past Tense : Yesterday I walked to the shops alone.
view are as follows: The elderly man was scared to look outside of his window.
• First person : The narrator is a character in the story • Present Tense : I’m walking to the shops. The elderly
and uses: I, my, me, we, our and us to tell the story. man is scared to look outside of his window.
• Third person omniscient : The narrator is outside of • Future Tense : I am going to walk to the shops later.
the story and is not a character, but can see into the The elderly man will look outside his window.
minds of all characters to tell readers the characters’
thoughts and feelings. The narrator knows all and sees
all.
• Third person limited : The narrator is outside of the
story and sees into the mind of only one character. The
narrator still sees other characters, but only knows the
thoughts and feelings of one character.
Style : Style means the language chosen by the author to tell
the story. It is what makes a piece of writing distinctive.
Aspects of style include:
• Use of description
• Use of dialogue
• Word choice
• Length of sentences
• Length of paragraphs
Narrative Techniques : All writers draw upon a range of
literary techniques to make their writing interesting and
distinctive. Some examples are:
• Use of symbolism
• Use of metaphor
• Use of imagery
• Use of foreshadowing,
• Use of flashback
• Use of ironic twists
• Use of parallel plots
Tense : Stories can be written in past, present or future
tense. Writers generally maintain one tense throughout their
story. Some examples of tense:
Guy). He was also known as an orator; and when he
CHAPTER 1 addressed an audience, his voice is said to have carried from
his camp to the Stevens Hotel at First and Marion, a distance
CHIEF SEATTLE’S SPEECH of 3/4 mile (1.2 km)
—By Chief Seattle Seattle was also a warrior with a considerable reputation
for daring raids on other Indian tribes. After smallpox wiped
Introduction out many of his people, he realized the inevitablity of the
coming tide of white settlement. In 1854, he made his speech
Over the years, Chief Seattle’s famous speech has been on the differences between the Indian way of life and white
embellished, popularized, and carved into many a monument, way of life to more than a thousand of his people gathered
but its origins have remained inadequately explained. to greet the Government’s Indian superintendent, Isaac
Understood as a symbolic encounter between indigenous Stevens. A year later, the chief signed a treaty with the United
America, represented by Chief Seattle, and industrialized or States Government, ceding much of the area on which the
imperialist America, represented by Isaac L Stevens, the first city of Seattle now stands. Most historians agree that the
governor of Washington Territory, it was first published in a speech was delivered in the Salish dialect. Dr Henry A. Smith
Seattle newspaper in 1887 by a pioneer who claimed he had is believed to have taken notes and translated it into English.
heard Seattle (or Sealth) deliver it in the 1850s. No other Thus it is Dr Smith’s version published in 1887 which is referred
record of the speech has been found, and Isaac Stevens’s to mostly.
writings do not mention it. Yet it has long been taken seriously
He died in 1866, at the age of 80, one year after the city
as evidence of a voice crying out of the wilderness of the
named for him passed a law making it illegal for Indians to
American past.
live in Seattle.
About the Author About the Story
Seattle was a great speaker and skilled diplomat. Born in There is a great deal of controversy surrounding Chief
1786, his real name, in the Lushootseed language, was See- Seattle’s speech of 1854. There are many sources of
ahth, which the whites found nearly impossible to pronounce. information, various versions of the speech, and debates over
Seattle’s mother Sholeetsa was Dkhw’Duw’Absh its very existence.
(Duwamish) and his father Shweabe was chief of the The National Archives contains two short documents
Dkhw’Suqw’Absh (the Suquamish tribe). Seattle was born attributed to Seattle. In both, he talks about accepting the
around 1780 on or near Blake Island, Washington. Seattle treaty and how his people are looking forward to receiving
grew up speaking both the Duwamish and Suquamish dialects. the things promised by the government.
Seattle earned his reputation at a young age as a leader Mr. Buerge said he believed the Smith translation, which
and a warrior, ambushing and defeating groups of tribal enemy mentioned nothing about the whites ravaging the environment,
raiders. Like many of his contemporaries, he owned slaves is close, in spirit at least, to what Seattle really said.
captured during his raids. He was tall and broad for a Puget
Sound native, standing nearly six feet tall; Hudson’s Bay By most accounts, the speech was stirring, carried by
Company traders gave him the nickname Le Gros (The Big the chief’s strong voice.
Even the date and location of the speech has been reprinted. No such letter was ever written by or for Chief
disputed, but the most common version is that on March 11, Seattle.
1854, Sealth gave a speech at a large outdoor gathering in Version 4 appeared in an exhibit at Expo ’74 in Spokane,
Seattle. The meeting had been called by Governor Isaac Ingalls Washington, and is a shortened edition of Dr. Perry’s script
Stevens to discuss the surrender or sale of native land to (Version 3).
white settlers. Doc Maynard introduced Stevens, who then
The best description of the saga of Chief Seattle’s speech
briefly explained his mission, which was already well
can be found in an essay by Rudolf Kaiser: “Chief Seattle’s
understood by all present.
Speech(es): American Origins and European Reception”
Sealth then rose to speak. He rested his hand upon the published in Recovering the Word: Essays on Native American
head of the much smaller Stevens, and declaimed with great Literature by the University of California Press, 1987. Another
dignity for an extended period. No one alive today knows excellent discussion appears in David Buerge’s article “Seattle’s
what he said; he spoke in the Lushootseed language, and King Arthur: How Chief Seattle continues to inspire his many
someone translated his words into Chinook Indian trade admirers to put words in his mouth,” appearing in the July 17,
language, and a third person translated that into English. 1991 Seattle Weekly.
The speech given by Chief Seattle in January of 1854 is
the subject of a great deal of historical debate. The most Plot
important fact to note is that there is NO VERBATIM
TRANSCRIPT IN EXISTENCE. All known texts are second- 1. Seattle delivers speech in Washington in 1854.
hand. 2. He thanked the white Chief for his greetings and friendship.
Version 1 appeared in the Seattle Sunday Star on Oct. 29, 3. He accepted the White Chief’s proposition and says it was
1887, in a column by Dr. Henry A. Smith. He makes it very just.
clear that his version is not an exact copy, but rather the best 4. Speaks about their ecological and Native American’s land
he could put together from notes taken at the time. There is rights.
an undecided historical argument on which native dialect the 5. Appeals to the White people to be kind and just to the natives.
Chief would have used, Duwamish or Suquamish. Either way
6. Wants the assurance of protection of his people by the whites.
all agree the speech was translated into the Chinook Jargon
on the spot, since Chief Seattle never learned to speak English. 7. Offers greetings and friendship to the White people.
Version 2 was written by poet William Arrowsmith in the Theme
late 1960s. This was an attempt to put the text into more
current speech patterns, rather than Dr. Smith’s more flowery Through the speech that Chief Seattle delivered in
Victorian style. Except for this modernization, it is very similar Washington in 1854 in Suquamish language he attempted to
to Version 1. forward a message of reconciliation and friendship to the
Version 3 is perhaps the most widely known of all. This White people. He spoke about their ecological responsibilities
version was written by Texas professor Ted Perry as part of and respect for the native people. He felt that their hostilities
a film script. The makers of the film took a little literary should end and they should live in harmony. The White Chief
license, further changing the speech and making it into a letter should take the responsibility of protecting the natives. The
to President Franklin Pierce, which has been frequently native people in return agreed to live on the land marked for
them. Seattle strikes a note of optimism when he accepted common between them.
that the proposition made by the Whites appeared just. But as The ashes of their ancestors were sacred to the natives
he is slightly apprehensive, he puts the condition that the and their resting place is hallowed ground.
natives should be allowed to visit the graves of their ancestors
The native’s dead never forget this beautiful world that
whenever they so wished. This is how the author puts forward
gave them being. The Red Man has ever fled the approach
the theme of respect for elders and value of the traditions of
of the White Man. However, he agrees that the white man’s
their race.
proposition seems fair and the natives would accept it and
Highlights of Speech/or Summary retire to the reservation offered to them. Then they would
live apart in peace. Grim fate seems to be on the Red Man’s
Chief Seattle delivered his speech at Washington in trail., He compared the native’s plight to that of the wounded
1854 saying that whatever Seattle said, the Great Chief at doe that hears the approaching footsteps of the hunter.
Washington could rely upon with as much certainty as he He agreed to accept the white man’s proposition on the
could upon the return of the sun or the seasons. condition that they would not be denied the privilege of visiting
He sends greetings of friendship and goodwill and thanks at any time the tombs of their ancestors, friends, and children.
the White chief for their friendship in return. His people were He appealed to the white man to be just and deal kind
many. They were like the grass that covered vast prairies. to his people.
Seattle had few people. The White Chief had sent word that
he wished to buy their land but was willing to allow them Character
enough to live comfortably. This indeed appeared just, even
generous. Chief Seattle
There was a time Seattle’s people covered the land but Chief Seattle is a prominent and respected member of
that time long since passed away with the greatness of tribes the Suquamish tribe. His people accept the decisions he makes.
that were now but a mournful memory. Youth is impulsive and He is their leader. Seattle’s mother Sholeetsa was
young men often grow angry at some real or imaginary wrong, Dkhw’Duw’Absh (Duwamish) and his father Shweabe was
and are often cruel and relentless, and their old men and old chief of the Dkhw’Suqw’Absh (the Suquamish tribe). Seattle
women are unable to restrain them. Thus it was when the was born around 1780 on or near Blake Island, Washington.
white man began to push the native’s forefathers ever Seattle grew up speaking both the Duwamish and Suquamish
westward. But he hoped that the hostilities between them dialects.
may never return as there would be everything to lose and Seattle earned his reputation at a young age as a leader
nothing to gain. and a warrior, ambushing and defeating groups of tribal enemy
Seattle then referred to George Washington as —‘our raiders. Like many of his contemporaries, he owned slaves
great and good father,’ who promised the natives that if they captured during his raids. He was tall and broad for a Puget
do as he desires he would protect them. But native God is not Sound native, standing nearly six feet tall; Hudson’s Bay
the coloniser’s God! The coloniser’s god was partial and could Company traders gave him the nickname Le Gros (The Big
not renew the native’s prosperity and awaken in them dreams Guy). He was also known as an orator; and when he
of returning greatness. They are two distinct races with addressed an audience, his voice is said to have carried from
separate origins and separate destinies. There is little in his camp to the Stevens Hotel at First and Marion, a distance
of 3/4 mile (1.2 km). Seattle was also a warrior with a Style
considerable reputation for daring raids on other Indian tribes.
He was wise enough to understand that the White Few speeches have captured the imagination of both
colonisers were powerful and the only option his people had Europeans and Americans as Chief Seattle’s legendary address
was to agree to their proposition. So he agreed but also made has. It was originally made in the Suquamish language as
a condition that the White Chief take the responsibility of Chief Seattle could not speak English. Reputedly delivered in
protecting his people and allowing them to visit the graves of the 1850s to Isaac Stevens, the governor of the Washington
their ancestors. This showed that he loved and respected the Territory, it took on a life of its own in the late 20th century
traditions. when several different versions, many with an emphasis on
the environment, surfaced.
Title Chief Seattle shares his precious land’s memories by
forming two different tones. Chief Seattle creates a passionate
The title, Chief Seattle’s Speech is apt and suggestive and a sorrowful tone through diction and imagery. He made
because it is a rendition of his views about the White people, his speech passionate and sorrowful to move the audience’s
his apprehensions and his reconciliation for the sake of the heart and hoping that the people would take care of the land
survival of his people. He speaks about the proposition made like the chief did.
by the White Chief. His acknowledgement of the friendship,
The first part of Seattle’s speech of the land is packed
his fears for the safety and survival of his people and about
with memories and what they mean to his people. He says
their ecological responsibility.
that if he sells the land everybody must remember that they
Setting should treat “every” part of the land as if they were their
“brothers”. The tone of his words is sorrowful because he
Chief Seattle delivered his speech at Washington in focused on what he’s going to lose, the things and values that
1854 saying that whatever Seattle said, the Great Chief at are precious to him – everything in his memory, his brothers.
Washington could rely upon with as much certainty as he Every detail of the land, part of the land came from his
could upon the return of the sun or the seasons. memories. Seattle uses detailed words or imagery such as
Chief Seattle’s speech was originally addressed to every “shining” pine needle, every “humming” insect, and
Governor Issac Stevens. Seattle claimed the rare opportunity every “perfumed” flower. Seattle uses detailed words to
to address Euro-American representations of American Indians describe a scene that had impacted him. His imagery centers
to express his love for his land. Governor Issac Stevens spoke and puts deeper meanings to his speech that he is going to
to them about what later came to be called the Treaty of miss the land.
Point Elliott of 1855, which was a land treaty between the The second part of Seattle’s speech presents is not his
United States Government and the Native American Tribes of memory – it is what Seattle wants the inherent of the land to
the area in the Washington Territory formed in 1853. The do and not to do and what the land means to him. He says
speech was a reaction to the proposition of the White settlers to love and to care for the land because it is precious to
to buy the land of the natives and settle them on a small part everyone and all things are united and harming the land is the
of it. same thing as to have contempt for its creator. The tone of
his words is passionate because the land is very precious to
him and he wants everyone to take care of the land. Seattle speech ultimately demonstrates the inherent dangers of
uses repetition of “love” and “care” in the sentence: “love it representation and misrepresentation in the contact zone.
as we have loved it, care for it as we have cared for it.” Under the assumption that Smith’s recreation of the
Repeating the two words emphasizes them and it makes it speech accurately translates Chief Seattle’s original speech,
sound that he is really passionate about the land. Seattle says the text qualifies as an autoethnography of the Native American
that “No man, be he Red Man or White Man can be apart.” people..
His speech abounds in similes and metaphors. Traditional Euro-American representations of the
Similes : ‘My words are like the stars that never change.’ American Indians consistently degraded them to the level of
‘Our people are ebbing like a rapidly receding tide that will “savages.” From the beginning of their contact, Europeans
never return.’ contrasted their civilization with the savageness of the Indians.
Metaphor : He calls his God, ‘the Great Spirit. This view of the beastly, godless, and devil-worshipping
nature of the Indians continued for a vast part of the contact,
Thus we can say that in his speech he adopts a style that
shaping the violent interactions between the natives and the
is literary, straightforward and emotionally stirring.
settlers. This view also led to the notion that the Native
Critical Appreciation Americans had no claim to the land. The continual claiming
of Indian land, even to the time of the Chief Seattle’s land
Controversy surrounds the speech Chief Seattle delivered negotiation with Governor Stevens in Washington, demonstrates
in 1855 during a land treaty negotiation with Governor Issac the widespread acceptance of Gray’s view among the Euro-
Stevens. On one hand, we worship Seattle’s eloquent words Americans. In his speech, Chief Seattle counters these Euro-
for their unique insight on the Native American perspective. American representations of the Native Americans. In
On the other hand, debate rages over the authenticity of the response to the portrayals of savageness and godlessness, he
speech’s only existing recording, a reproduction produced by emphasizes the nobility and religiousness of his people.
Dr. Henry Smith thirty years after the event. Many facts In particular, Chief Seattle condemns the violence that
about Smith’s situation still remain clouded. occurred between the two races and elevates his people above
Despite the mystery surrounding this famous speech, its the mutual savagery. Seattle acknowledges the involvement
contents can be understood in terms of what Mary Louis of his race in the statement, “Youth is impulsive. When our
Pratt calls a “contact zone.” In Pratt’s article “Arts of the young men grow angry… they are often cruel and relentless,
Contact Zone,” she introduces this zone as the chaotic space and our old men and old women are unable to restrain them”
in which cultures collide. Essential features of the contact However, he carefully creates the distinction between the
zone include autoethnography, the representation of one’s own “impulsive” youth and the wiser “old men and old women”
culture that responds to representations made by others, and who wish for peace, displaying the complexity within Indian
transculturation, the selective absorption of the dominant culture society. Chief Seattle also points out that the Euro-Americans
by a marginal group. These features of autoethnography and were equally at fault for the violence. He refers to the time
transculturation emerge prominently in Chief Seattle’s speech, “when the white man began to push our forefathers ever
shedding more insight on the interactions between the Native westward” and how his “paleface brothers [hastened] our
Americans and the Euro-Americans; however, in the context untimely decay” . While acknowledging the violence, Seattle
of the unique circumstances surrounding the text, Seattle’s suggests that his “paleface brothers” were the true savages
who slaughtered vast numbers of Indians during the westward the Native Americans were going to become extinct surfaced

push. Meanwhile, Seattle expresses his “hope that the throughout his speech.This idea of the inevitable extinction of
hostilities… never return” , given the extent that they have the Native Americans as a race originated from the colonists.
hurt his people. In doing so, he completes the reversal of This idea served the colonists quite conveniently. It justified
representations; the Euro-Americans are the barbarians waging what Ring calls the “transfer of real estate,” the process in
war while the Natives are the victims begging for peace. which European settlers gradually moved into established Indian
Chief Seattle also responds to the charge of communities as the Indians “disappeared”. Apparently, killing
“godlessness” circulated by the conquerors by comparing his and stealing from an already-doomed race was easier to
religion with Christianity. He exclaims, ‘Your God is not our accept.
God! Your God loves your people and hates mine! … If we Throughout his speech, Chief Seattle indicates his
have a common Heavenly Father He must be partial, for He acceptance of this belief that the Native Americans would
came to His paleface children. We never saw Him. He gave become extinct. He refers to their “untimely decay” and
you laws but had no word for His red children.’ laments, “It matters little where we pass the remnant of our
These statements highlight the absurdity of expecting the days. They will not be many”, although he does not provide
American Indians, having been isolated from the Europeans any concrete reasons for these sentiments. Instead, Seattle
for thousands of years, to have adopted the same religion. In settles with the warning, “When the last Red Man shall have
place of Christianity, Seattle introduces the religion of his perished… these shores will throng with the invisible dead of
people: “Our religion is the tradition of our ancestors… ” . He my tribe… The White Man will never be alone”. In accepting
points out several areas in which his religion is superior to the ultimate defeat of the Indians, Chief Seattle adopted an
Christianity. He says, “Your religion was written upon tablets element of the dominant, Euro-American thought,
of stone… so that you could not forget… Our religion… is demonstrating the transculturation predicted.
written in the hearts of our people” . Similarly, “Your dead While the contents of Chief Seattle’s speech, as recreated
cease to love you… Our dead never forget this beautiful by Dr. Smith, demonstrate both autoethnography and
world that gave them being”. These comparisons pose a transculturation in a contact zone, their presence alone does
direct challenge to the earlier portrayals of the Indians as not confirm the authenticity of the speech. In fact, numerous
godless and devil-worshiping. Furthermore. Chief Seattle also historical details question its legitimacy. Considering, for
responds to the Euro-American belief that the Indians had no instance, that the original speech was given in Lushotseed,
claim to the land by expressing their profound attachment to translated in Chinook Jargon a language with around 300 words
it. He declares, “The very dust upon which you now stand and then into English from thirty-year-old notes , we should
responds more lovingly to [our] footsteps than yours, because view the speech with at least some degree of suspicion. In
it is rich with the blood of our ancestors.” In direct opposition fact, Dr. Smith admits in the publication that his version fails
with Euro-American representations, Seattle demonstrates that to reproduce Seattle’s exact statements.
the Natives, like the Europeans, have a complex religion and In addition to a lack of historical evidence, an analysis of
culture. the Chief Seattle himself also casts doubts on the very existence
The speech has elements of transculturation. Although of the speech. The only two paragraphs of Chief Seattle
Seattle tended to emphasize the differences between Native statements on the official record present him as compliant
Americans and Euro-Americans, the Euro-American idea that and reserved: at one point, Seattle says, “My mind is like
yours, I don’t want to say more” William Abruzzi suggests 2. compassion : sympathy
that Seattle was selected for the negotiation over local leaders 3. eternal : permanent.
precisely because he demonstrated this allegiance, not
4. prairies : wide areas of grassland.
opposition. This picture of Chief Seattle, which sharply
contrasts the forceful, passionate tone of Smith’s text, suggests 5. dwell on : think a lot about something.
that the speech produced by Dr. Smith may not have taken 6. mourn over : grieve over.
place at all. 7. reproach : blame/criticize.
Regardless of the final verdict on the authenticity of 8. denotes : indicates.
Seattle’s speech, it is safe to conclude that Dr. Smith played 9. restrain : check,stop somebody from doing something.
at least a significant role in the formation of Chief Seattle’s
10. hostilities : strong and angry opposition.
speech. As Dr. Smith belongs to the dominant culture, the
speech can no longer be considered as a pure autoethnographic 11. receding : moving away.
text; elements of ethnography inevitably contaminate the 12. tide : wave of water.
speech. The transculturation present in the speech suffers 13. prosperity : progress
a similar fate; we can no longer take Chief Seattle’s acceptance 14. multitudes : many.
of the extinction of the Indians as an actual absorption of
dominant material by a marginal group. 15. firmament : the sky.
Significantly, each new version of Seattle’s speech, 16. ancestors : persons in the family who lived long ago.
beginning with that of Dr. Henry Smith and ending with the
Comprehension Passages
latest reincarnation of Ted Perry’s script, has been created
entirely by non-Indians. Not one Native people has translated Passage 1
Seattle’s speech into their own indigenous language
Read the extract given below and answer the questions
The true interests of the Native Americans become lost that follow.
as Euro-American culture continues to fabricate images of
There was a time when our people covered the land as
Native Americans through figures like Chief Seattle.
the waves of a wind-ruffled sea cover its shell-paved floor,
In sum, while autoethnography and transculturation offer but that time long since passed away with the greatness of
valuable insights into cultures and their interactions, we must tribes that are now but a mournful memory. I will not dwell
also remain wary of misrepresentation in the contact zone. on, nor mourn over, our untimely decay, nor reproach my
Chief Seattle’s speech appears to shed valuable light on Native paleface brothers with hastening it, as we too may have been
American reactions to the representations of the Euro- somewhat to blame.
Americans, but the increasingly larger role that Dr. Smith is
Youth is impulsive. When our young men grow angry at
believed to have played in the production of the speech
some real or imaginary wrong, and disfigure their faces with
challenges the validity of those reactions. Perhaps then, one
black paint, it denotes that their hearts are black, and that
day, we can begin to understand Chief Seattle’s real message.
they are often cruel and relentless, and our old men and old
Glossary women are unable to restrain them. Thus it has ever been.
Thus it was when the white man began to push our forefathers
1. yonder : there ever westward. But let us hope that the hostilities between us
may never return. We would have everything to lose and resting place is hallowed ground. You wander far from the
nothing to gain. Revenge by young men is considered gain, graves of your ancestors and seemingly without regret. Your
even at the cost of their own lives, but old men who stay at religion was written upon tablets of stone by the iron finger
home in times of war, and mothers who have sons to lose, of your God so that you could not forget. The Red Man could
know better. never comprehend or remember it. Our religion is the traditions
1. What does Chief Seattle tell about the condition of his of our ancestors — the dreams of our old men, given them
people earlier? in solemn hours of the night by the Great Spirit; and the
visions of our sachems, and is written in the hearts of our
Ans. Chief Seattle says that earlier his people occupied the land in
people.
large numbers just like water of the sea covers the sea bed.
Your dead cease to love you and the land of their nativity
2. What hint does he give regarding the cause for the
as soon as they pass the portals of the tomb and wander
depletion of his race?
away beyond the stars. They are soon forgotten and never
Ans. Chief Seattle said that he did not blame the aggression of the return. Our dead never forget this beautiful world that gave
white man for the depletion of his race but he does hint at it them being. They still love its verdant valleys, its murmuring
being the most plausible reason. rivers, its magnificent mountains, sequestered vales and verdant
3. What happened when the tribal young man became lined lakes and bays, and ever yearn in tender fond affection
angry? over the lonely hearted living, and often return from the happy
Ans. Seattle said that youth is impulsive and the young men of his hunting ground to visit, guide, console, and comfort them.
race were no exception. When the young men grew angry at Day and night cannot dwell together. The Red Man has
some real or imaginary wrong and they painted their faces ever fled the approach of the White Man, as the morning mist
with black paint, it denoted that their hearts were upto no flees before the morning sun. However, your proposition seems
good , and then they were often cruel and relentless. fair and I think that my people will accept it and will retire to
4. When did the hostilities between the Tribals and the the reservation you offer them. Then we will dwell apart in
White men begin? peace, for the words of the Great White Chief seem to be the
Ans. The hostilities began when the White men started pushing the words of nature speaking to my people out of dense darkness.
Tribals out of their land and occupying it and the tribals were 1. How do the tribal men regard the ashes of their
forced to move westward. ancestors?
5. Why did Seattle wanted to end up the hostilities? Ans. The tribal men regard the ashes of their ancestors as sacred
Ans. Seattle wanted the hostilities to end because no one would and respect them. The ground where their dead are buried is
have any gain rather everything would be lost as the young considered holy by them.
men considered revenge as gain, even at the cost of their 2. How do the White feel about their dead people?
own lives, Ans. The white people have no respect for their dead and leave
Passage 2 their graves unattended.
Read the extract given below and answer the questions 3. Where was the religion of the White people written?
that follow. Ans. The religion of the white people was written on stone slabs
To us the ashes of our ancestors are sacred and their so that they would never forget but they could never
understand its significance. White Manwhose God walked and talked with him as friend
4. What is the religion of the Tribal men? How is it to friend, cannot be exempt from the common destiny. We
different? may be brothers after all. We will see.
Ans. The religion of the tribal people is the traditions of their 1. How does Seattle predict the future of his tribe to be?
ancestors — the dreams of their old men, given to them in Ans. Seattle predicts that his tribe might not survive for long. He
solemn hours of the night by the Great Spirit, their God, and says that he can see ableak future for his people without a
is written in the hearts of our people. single star of hope. Sad-voiced winds moan in the distance
5. Why do the dead of the Tribals never forget them or and a grim fate seems to be in store for them. But he is sure
this beautiful world? his people will prepare stolidly to meet their doom whenever
they hear the approaching footsteps of their fell destroyer.
Ans. The dead of the Tribals never forget this beautiful world that
gave them being. They still love its verdant valleys, its 2. How does the speaker differentiate his tribal people
murmuring rivers, its magnificent mountains, sequestered vales from the white people?
and verdant lined lakes and bays, and always yearn in tender Ans. Seattle feels that although the decay of his people might come
fond affection over the lonely hearted living, and often return earlier , the white people will also not be spared. They too
from the other world to visit, guide, console, and comfort their would perish, the only difference being that hty might survive
people. a little longer.
Passage 3 3. How does the speaker realize that he should not mourn
Read the extract given below and answer the questions the untimely fate of his people?
that follow. Ans. The speaker realizes that he should not mourn the untimely
It matters little where we pass the remnant of our days. fate of his people because tribe follows tribe, and nation follows
They will not be many. The Indian’s night promises to be nation, like the waves of the sea. Yhe cycle of life continues
dark. Not a single star of hope hovers above his horizon. Sad- and change is the law of nature. It is the order of nature, and
voiced winds moan in the distance. Grim fate seems to be on regret is useless.
the Red Man’s trail, and wherever he will hear the approaching 4. Why does Seattle say that they maybe brothers after
footsteps of his fell destroyer and prepare stolidly to meet his all?
doom, as does the wounded doe that hears the approaching Ans. Seattle say that they maybe brothers after all because a
footsteps of the hunter. common fate in the form of ultimate decay awaits both. The
A few more moons, a few more winters, and not one of decay and death for the white race may be distant, but it
the descendants of the mighty hosts that once moved over would surely come, for even the White Man whose God
this broad land or lived in happy homes, protected by the walked and talked with him as friend to friend, could not be
Great Spirit, will remain to mourn over the graves of a people exempted from the common destiny that is death and decay.
once more powerful and hopeful than yours. But why should So being bound by a common destiny made them brothers
I mourn at the untimely fate of my people? Tribe follows after all.
tribe, and nation follows nation, like the waves of the sea. It Passage 4
is the order of nature, and regret is useless. Your time of
decay may be distant, but it will surely come, for even the
that follow.
We will ponder your proposition and when we decide we and children as it was sacred ground for them.
will let you know. But should we accept it, I here and now 2. How is every part of the soil sacred to his people?
make this condition that we will not be denied the privilege
Ans. Every part of the soil is sacred to his people because every
without molestation of visiting at any time the tombs of our
hillside, every valley, every plain and grove, has been hallowed
ancestors, friends, and children. Every part of this soil is
by some sad or happy event in days long gone by. Even the
sacred in the estimation of my people. Every hillside, every
rocks, which are now dumb and dead are connected with
valley, every plain and grove, has been hallowed by some sad
memories of events from the lives of his people, and the very
or happy event in days long vanished. Even the rocks, which
dust upon which they stand responds lovingly to their footsteps
seem to be dumb and dead as the swelter in the sun along the
because it is rich with the blood of their ancestors, and their
silent shore, thrill with memories of stirring events connected
bare feet are conscious of the sympathetic touch.
with the lives of my people, and the very dust upon which you
now stand responds more lovingly to their footsteps than yours, 3. When will the shores swarm with the invisible dead of
because it is rich with the blood of our ancestors, and our the speaker’s tribe? Why?
bare feet are conscious of the sympathetic touch. Our departed Ans. The shores will swarm with the invisible dead of the speaker’s
braves, fond mothers, glad, happy hearted maidens, and even tribe tribe when the white man’s children’s children think
the little children who lived here and rejoiced here for a brief themselves alone in the field, the store, the shop, upon the
season, will love these somber solitudes and at eventide they highway, or in the silence of the pathless woods, but they will
greet shadowy returning spirits. And when the last Red Man not be alone. And they will not be alone because in all the
shall have perished, and the memory of my tribe shall have earth there is no place dedicated to solitude. At night when
become a myth among the White Men, these shores will the streets of the white man’s cities and villages are silent and
swarm with the invisible dead of my tribe, and when your they think that they are deserted, the fact would be that the
children’s children think themselves alone in the field, the streets throng with the returning spirits of his people that had
store, the shop, upon the highway, or in the silence of the once filled them and still love this beautiful land.
pathless woods, they will not be alone. In all the earth there 4. What does the speaker say about death? Explain.
is no place dedicated to solitude. At night when the streets of Ans. The speaker says that death is inevitable and is the destiny of
your cities and villages are silent and you think them deserted, both the races, whether the Indians or the white people. They
they will throng with the returning hosts that once filled them all have to die one day one may decay earlier than the other
and still love this beautiful land. The White Man will never be but the ultimate fate is death. So he feels that death unites
alone. them and they are like brothers. He says that infact there is
Let him be just and deal kindly with my people, for the no death , only a change of worlds.
dead are not powerless. Dead, did I say? There is no death, 5. What plea does the speaker make to the white men?
only a change of worlds.
Ans. The speaker pleads with the White men to be just and kind
1. What is the condition laid by the speaker before he to his people.
accepts the white man’s proposition?
Ans. The condition laid by the speaker before he accepts the white Assignment
man’s proposition is that they will not be denied the privilege
of visiting at any time the tombs of their ancestors, friends, 1. Show how the author uses tone and style to reinforce
his memories and make an impact upon his audience.
Ans. Few speeches have captured the imagination of both as we have loved it, care for it as we have cared for it.”
Europeans and Americans as Chief Seattle’s legendary address Repeating the two words emphasizes them and it makes it
has. It was originally made in the Suquamish language as sound that he is really passionate about the land. Seattle says
Chief Seattle could not speak English. Reputedly delivered in that “No man, be he Red Man or White Man can be apart.”
the 1850s to Isaac Stevens, the governor of the Washington 2. Mention and discuss the versions of Chief Seattle’s
Territory, it took on a life of its own in the late 20th century speech.
when several different versions, many with an emphasis on
Ans. The speech given by Chief Seattle in January of 1854 is the
the environment, surfaced.
subject of a great deal of historical debate. The most important
Chief Seattle shares his precious land’s memories by fact to note is that there is NO VERBATIM TRANSCRIPT
forming two different tones. Chief Seattle creates a passionate IN EXISTENCE. All known texts are second-hand.
and a sorrowful tone through diction and imagery. He made
Version 1 appeared in the Seattle Sunday Star on Oct. 29,
his speech passionate and sorrowful to move the audience’s
1887, in a column by Dr. Henry A. Smith. He makes it very
heart and hoping that the people would take care of the land
clear that his version is not an exact copy, but rather the best
like the chief did.
he could put together from notes taken at the time. There is
The first part of Seattle’s speech of the land is packed an undecided historical argument on which native dialect the
with memories and what they mean to his people. He says Chief would have used, Duwamish or Suquamish. Either way
that if he sells the land everybody must remember that they all agree the speech was translated into the Chinook Jargon
should treat “every” part of the land as if they were their on the spot, since Chief Seattle never learned to speak English.
“brothers”. The tone of his words is sorrowful because he
Version 2 was written by poet William Arrowsmith in the late
focused on what he’s going to lose, the things and values that
1960s. This was an attempt to put the text into more current
are precious to him – everything in his memory, his brothers.
speech patterns, rather than Dr. Smith’s more flowery Victorian
Every detail of the land, part of the land came from his style. Except for this modernization, it is very similar to Version
memories. Seattle uses detailed words or imagery such as 1.
every “shining” pine needle, every “humming” insect, and
Version 3 is perhaps the most widely known of all. This
every “perfumed” flower. Seattle uses detailed words to
version was written by Texas professor Ted Perry as part of
describe a scene that had impacted him. His imagery centers
a film script. The makers of the film took a little literary
and puts deeper meanings to his speech that he is going to
license, further changing the speech and making it into a letter
miss the land.
to President Franklin Pierce, which has been frequently
The second part of Seattle’s speech presents is not his reprinted. No such letter was ever written by or for Chief
memory – it is what Seattle wants the inherent of the land to Seattle.
do and not to do and what the land means to him. He says
Version 4 appeared in an exhibit at Expo ’74 in Spokane,
to love and to care for the land because it is precious to
Washington, and is a shortened edition of Dr. Perry’s script
everyone and all things are united and harming the land is the
(Version 3).
same thing as to have contempt for its creator. The tone of
his words is passionate because the land is very precious to 3. How does Seattle justify his religion as opposed to what
him and he wants everyone to take care of the land. Seattle the white men had said about it?
uses repetition of “love” and “care” in the sentence: “love it Ans. Chief Seattle also responds to the charge of “godlessness”
circulated by the conquerors by comparing his religion with European settlers gradually moved into established Indian
Christianity. He exclaims, ‘Your God is not our God! Your communities as the Indians “disappeared”. Apparently, killing
God loves your people and hates mine! … If we have a and stealing from an already-doomed race was easier to
common Heavenly Father He must be partial, for He came accept.
to His paleface children. We never saw Him. He gave you Throughout his speech, Chief Seattle indicates his
laws but had no word for His red children.’ acceptance of this belief that the Native Americans would
These statements highlight the absurdity of expecting the become extinct. He refers to their “untimely decay” and
American Indians, having been isolated from the Europeans laments, “It matters little where we pass the remnant of our
for thousands of years, to have adopted the same religion. In days. They will not be many”, although he does not provide
place of Christianity, Seattle introduces the religion of his any concrete reasons for these sentiments. Instead, Seattle
people: “Our religion is the tradition of our ancestors… ” . He settles with the warning, “When the last Red Man shall have
points out several areas in which his religion is superior to perished… these shores will throng with the invisible dead of
Christianity. He says, “Your religion was written upon tablets my tribe… The White Man will never be alone”. In accepting
of stone… so that you could not forget… Our religion… is the ultimate defeat of the Indians, Chief Seattle adopted an
written in the hearts of our people” . Similarly, “Your dead element of the dominant, Euro-American thought,
cease to love you… Our dead never forget this beautiful demonstrating the trans-culturation predicted.
world that gave them being”. These comparisons pose a
direct challenge to the earlier portrayals of the Indians as
godless and devil-worshiping. Furthermore. Chief Seattle also
responds to the Euro-American belief that the Indians had no
claim to the land by expressing their profound attachment to
it. He declares, “The very dust upon which you now stand
responds more lovingly to [our] footsteps than yours, because
it is rich with the blood of our ancestors.” In direct opposition
with Euro-American representations, Seattle demonstrates that
the Natives, like the Europeans, have a complex religion and
culture.
4. Discuss trans-culturation as represented in Seattle’s
speech.
Ans. It has elements of trans-culturation. Although Seattle tended
to emphasize the differences between Native Americans and
Euro-Americans, the Euro-American idea that the Native
Americans were going to become extinct surfaced throughout
his speech.This idea of the inevitable extinction of the Native
Americans as a race originated from the colonists. This idea
served the colonists quite conveniently. It justified what Ring
calls the “transfer of real estate,” the process in which
in this confrontation lose hope and faith. His straightforward

CHAPTER 2 prose, his spare dialogue, and his predilection for
understatement are particularly effective in his short stories,
OLD MAN AT THE BRIDGE some of which are collected in Men Without Women (1927)
—By Ernest Hemingway and The Fifth Column and the First Forty-Nine Stories (1938).
Early on the morning of July 2, 1961, Ernest Hemingway
committed suicide in his Ketchum home.
About the Author Hemingway left behind an impressive body of work and
an iconic style that still influences writers today. His personality
Nobel Prize winner Ernest Hemingway is seen as one of
and constant pursuit of adventure loomed almost as large as
the great American 20th century novelists, and is known for
his creative talent.
works like A Farewell to Arms and The Old Man and the
Sea. When asked by George Plimpton about the function of
his art, Hemingway proved once again to be a master of the
Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961), was born in Oak Park,
“one true sentence”: “From things that have happened and
Illinois and started his career as a writer in a newspaper
from things as they exist and from all things that you know
office in Kansas City at the age of seventeen. After the
and all those you cannot know, you make something through
United States entered the First World War, he joined a
your invention that is not a representation but a whole new
volunteer ambulance unit in the Italian army. Serving at the
thing truer than anything true and alive, and you make it alive,
front, he was wounded, was decorated by the Italian
and if you make it well enough, you give it immortality.”
Government, and spent considerable time in hospitals. After
his return to the United States, he became a reporter for About the Story
Canadian and American newspapers and was soon sent back
to Europe to cover such events as the Greek Revolution. Ernest Hemingway’s economical short story “Old Man
During the twenties, Hemingway became a member of the at the Bridge” first appeared in Ken Magazine (Volume 1,
group of expatriate Americans in Paris, which he described in Number 4, May 19, 1938) prior to its later publication in the
his first important work, The Sun Also Rises (1926). Equally book The Fifth Column and the First Forty-Nine Stories,
successful was A Farewell to Arms (1929), the study of an also published in 1938. The Fifth Column is Hemingway’s only
American ambulance officer’s disillusionment in the war and full-length play and also includes all of his previously published
his role as a deserter. Hemingway used his experiences as a short stories.
reporter during the civil war in Spain as the background for At just two pages in length, “The Old Man at the
his most ambitious novel, For Whom the Bell Tolls (1940). Bridge” is one of Hemingway’s shortest tales. It is based
Among his later works, the most outstanding is the short upon an Easter Sunday stopover at the Ebro River during
novel, The Old Man and the Sea (1952), the story of an old his coverage of the Spanish Civil War in April 1938. Although
fisherman’s journey, his long and lonely struggle with a fish employed by the North American Newspaper Association
and the sea, and his victory in defeat. Hemingway - himself (NANA), Hemingway apparently decided to submit it to Ken
a great sportsman - liked to portray soldiers, hunters, bullfighters Magazine as a short story instead of using it as a news
- tough, at times primitive people whose courage and honesty article.
are set against the brutal ways of modern society, and who
Plot The soldier places the need of the man made and
unnatural as his priority. He offers a kind ear to the old man
In the middle of a military action, an army scout encounters but does nothing physically to change the old man’s situation.
an old man at a bridge where people are crossing to escape While the soldier has orders, he could have taken a moral
the war zone. The scout engages the old man in conversation point of view in the old man’s dilemma. The young soldier
and by the end of it, he realizes the old man is not going to represents man’s neglect of nature and tendency toward war
move and will probably die at the bridge. or violence.
Theme Highlights of Speech/or Summary

‘Old Man at the Bridge’ demonstrates the power of The narrator, who says that his mission is to cross the
narrative art. It takes a small, ordinary detail in a situation and bridge and find out how far the enemy has advanced, does so
by the art of story-telling transforms it into a powerful story and finds the old man who was sitting by the bridge when he
about the tragedy of war. The old man becomes a symbol of crossed toward the enemy still sitting there when he crosses
the countless civilian victims of war— those “without politics.” back. He begins conversing with the old man and elicits the
The old man is going to die at the bridge—displaced, information that his hometown is San Carlos; he was the last
disoriented, alone. He’s not a cat, nor a dove, but a goat— person to leave the town, as he was anxious on behalf of
who was “only taking care of animals.” some animals he had charge of.
Another theme in Hemingway’s The Old Man at the The narrator, while nervously awaiting the advent of the
Bridge is sense of duty. The old man, whom the soldier meets Fascist army and the ensuing battle between the armies, asks
at the bridge, feels it is his duty to act as a shepherd, and the old man about the animals. The old man says he had
watch over his flock. The old man believes that he must charge of two goats, a cat, and four pairs of pigeons. He says
watch over the four doves, the cat, and the two goats in San a major told him to evacuate the town and the animals because
Carlos. of artillery fire. He says he has no family.
The young soldier feels that it is his duty to carry out the The old man expresses concern about the fate of his
orders of the evacuation to ensure overall success in the war. animals. He says that the cat would be all right because cats
Although he encounters the old man at the bridge and feels can look after themselves, but he was not sure about what
some empathy for him, the soldier does nothing to aid the old would happen to the other animals.
man. The old man is tired and old, yet the soldier does nothing The narrator, more concerned for the old man’s safety
for him, opting to adhere to his sense of duty to the military than that of the animals, inquires what the old man’s politics
and obey his orders. are, and the old man replies that he has none. He told the
The old man places the needs of other living things over soldier that he was an old man of 76, had walked 12 kilometers
his own well being and the need to save himself. Though, he and was too tired to go any further. The narrator tells him to
does leave the living things behind, it is due to the fact of old walk up the road and catch a ride on a truck to Barcelona.
age and the forced evacuation. He would have taken care of The old man thanks him, but continues to express
them otherwise. The old man represents nature and morality. concern over the fate of the animals he left behind. The
His duty is to care for nature. narrator reassures him, saying that the animals would be fine.
He says that the doves would fly away, but the old man
continues to worry about the goats. The narrator advised him he left his animals. Ther efore we can say that he
not to think about the animals, and that he should get up and psychologically and symbolically died at the moment he left
walk to the trucks. his animals. That is because he lost his hope and his whole
The old man tried to get up and walk, but was too tired reason for existence. The old man is associated with his goats.
and sank back down. In the end, the narrator who was reluctant The others can take care of themselves. “But the others(the
to listen to the old man’s story in the beginning, felt pity for goats). It’s better not to think about the others.” The old man
him. He thought that the old man’s only luck was that the cats is a goat figure as he is unable to escape, an innocent victim
could look after themselves and that the day was overcast of the civil war.
so the Fascists were unable to launch their planes. The Scout is the narrator who creates the story of the old
man at the bridge. Through his telling of the story, he gradually
Characters articulates who the old man is and what he represents. The
Scout at the beginning is the impersonal narrator who sees
Old Man : The central character is the 76 yr. old man,
the old man and decides to engage him in conversation. By
a war refugee who has been uprooted and displaced by the
asking the old man questions about himself, the Scout gradually
war. The old man is “without politics,” who was only taking
understands the situation of the old man. At the beginning he
care of his animals, but who has had his world destroyed. He
thinks the old man is just resting so he encourages him to
is disoriented, confused and disconnected. He has retreated
move on. In the course of his conversation he realizes the old
into his isolated world in which he can only cling to his
man is disoriented, displaced and that he will not be able to
obsessive thoughts about his animals, and is too tired to go
move on, but that he will likely die at the bridge. The scout
any further. He will die at the bridge—another nameless
who begins as a detached observer comes to the painful
innocent victim of war.
realization that “there was nothing to do about him.” And he
He loves his animals and continues to worry about them. ends with the bitterly ironic observation about Easter Sunday
He feels it is his duty to act as a shepherd, and watch over and the old man’s luck, which is no luck. The old man will
his flock. The old man believes that he must watch over the soon cross that final bridge. The scout engages the old man
four doves, the cat, and the two goats in San Carlos. He was in conversation and by the end of it, he realizes the old man
not that worried about his cat because he believed that cats is not going to move and will probably die at the bridge.
could look after themselves. But he was constantly worried ‘There was nothing to do about him.’ The fatalism of the old
about the other animals. Since he was forced to leave and the man and the narrators despair are conveyed through the
other people were evacuating the city, he too had to leave the conversation of the scout and the old man.
city. He walked twelve Kilometers and stopped just before
the bridge which carried them to the other side of the river Title
which was considered as the safe area. But the old man
refused to cross the bridge claiming to be tired. Crossing the The story is about the old man , sitting on the bridge,
bridge promised a physically unharmed life . But it failed to unable to walk to safety as he is too tired, waiting for his
give psychological happiness to everyone. Those who were inevitable death. Hence the tiltle ‘Old Man On The Bridge’
with their families crossed because they had hope to keep is very apt. The old man is sitting on the bridge which
their families safe and to live with them. But the old man was represents uncertainty and dangers. He has left his home and
deprived of any hope. He lost his hope at the very moment animals and is worried about their fate wheras the nameless
soldier is worried about his safety. The old man is a goat c. The goats are the animals who can’t escape. They are
figure as he is unable to escape, an innocent victim of the civil sacrificial animals. Scape goats who are innocent victims. In
war. the course of the story, the old man is associated with his
goats. The others can take care of themselves. “But the
Setting others(the goats). It’s better not to think about the others.”
The old man is a goat figure as he is unable to escape, an
The place is a war zone at a pontoon bridge across the innocent victim of the civil war.
Ebro river during the Spanish Civil War. The time is Easter
Sunday 1938. The setting is a spot in the countryside during 2. Easter Sunday. This is an ironic contrast. The day of the
the Spanish Civil War. An old man with spectacles sits celebration of the resurrection will be the day another innocent
exhausted by the side of the road near a pontoon bridge that victim is crucified.
crosses a river. Peasant refugees and Republican soldiers 3. The 4 repetitions of the old man’s words: “I was taking care
laden with munitions and supplies flee the advancing Fascist of animals.” His last repetitions: “I was only taking care of
army. animals,” “I was only taking care of animals” becomes the
eloquent symbolic expression of all those voiceless innocent
Style men, women and children who are the victims of wars they
neither support nor understand. Without politics, only living in
Basically, his style is simple, direct, and unadorned, their everyday world and taking care of animals, a world
probably as a result of his early newspaper training. He avoids which is destroyed by forces beyond their ability to comprehend.
the adjective whenever possible, but because he is a master
at transmitting emotion without the flowery prose of his Critical Appreciation
Victorian novelist predecessors, the effect is far more telling.
Hemingway has often been described as a master of dialog, “Old Man at the Bridge” was inspired by Hemingway’s
and most readers agree, upon being first introduced to his travels as a war correspondent during the Spanish Civil War
writing, that “this is the way these characters would really in the 1930s. In fact, the story was originally composed as a
talk.”He is able to capture the complexity of human interaction news dispatch from the Amposta Bridge over the Ebro River
through subtlety of dialogue and implication as well as direct on Easter Sunday in 1938 as the Fascists were set to overrun
discourse and calculated emphasis and repetition. He is a the region. Hemingway was writing for the North American
master in the art of economy of words and understatement as Newspaper Association but decided to submit this snippet of
evident in the story. writing as a short story to a magazine instead of as a
journalistic article, which accounts, to a certain extent, for its
Symbols short length.
For all of its unorthodox origins, the story deals with
1. The 3 symbolic animals, which have a long history of conveying
familiar Hemingway themes of depression, resignation, and
symbolic meaning.
impending death. The old man is the heroic fatalist or fatalistic
a. The cat—It is said that a cat has nine lives. It is a survivor. hero of the story, resigned to his fate as a casualty of the war.
b. Pigeons, which become doves in the second mentioning. Birds He is too old and tired to move, and the narrator reflects that
can fly away from the war; doves are associated with peace, he is sure to be killed once the Fascists advance to the bridge
which in this context is ironic. The doves will fly away. across the Ebro. His life is prolonged by the fact that the day
is overcast and the Fascists cannot launch their planes, and to have a voice. As he speaks to the scout, we along with the
his mind is eased by the fact that cats can look after themselves, scout, gradually understand his plight and what the war has
but aside from that, the narrator says that nothing can be done to him. The voiceless victims speak through the old
done for him and his death seems certain. man. The narrator captures the helplessness of the old man
The narrator of the story seems more affected by the as a innocent victim of war in the dialogues he exchanges
inevitability of the man’s probable fate than by the old man. with the old man who has had to leave his home and animals
Just as the old man worries about the goats he left behind, the behind due to the war and now faces inevitable death as he
narrator worries about the old man he will have to leave is too tired to walk any further to seek safe haven. The first
behind, but is obviously not able to stop thinking about him. person narrative enables the reader to identify and understand
the plight of the victims of war ,their feelings of being under
There is irony inherent in the situation. The animals for
threat of death and their helplessness to avert the danger.
which the old man is so concerned have a greater chance of
survival than their caretaker during the next crucial twenty- The story abounds in symbols and metaphors. There
four hours. Unable to walk and barely able to stand, the old is one symbol of hope in the story. At the beginning of the
man’s luck has run out, and he, too, seems resigned to his fate narrator’s conversation with the old man, the birds the old
at the bridge. man was looking after were referred to as “pigeons,” but by
the end of the story, they become “doves,” symbols of peace
Nevertheless, one lingering rhetorical question occurs
in wartime. The narrator makes this switch as he asks, “Did
as the story ends and the narrator bemoans the old man’s
you leave the dove cage unlocked?” It is unclear whether this
impending death. Why doesn’t the narrator help the old man
is a slip of the tongue, because the narrator is clearly distracted
at least part of the way to the trucks bound for Barcelona?
by the impending arrival of the enemy, or if Hemingway is
Surely everyone, including the narrator and the old man, is
attempting to give the image of the birds flying away an even
going in the same direction. Surely it would not be a great
more positive tint by referring to them as symbols of peace.
imposition for the narrator to help a 76-year-old man who had
They maybe the symbols of refugees fleeing the war. The cat
already walked 12 kilometers along at least part of the way
symbolises independence as it does not need anyone to survive.
to safety. Are the old man’s fatalism and the narrator’s despair
The goat is a symbol of sacrificial animal and represents the
justified? Since this story began as a news dispatch recounting
old man who is reconciled to his impending death. The bridge
an encounter Hemingway actually had, this question takes on
represents the uncertainty of death.
more than academic significance.
The story adopts a conversational form between the
A first person narrator tells the story through careful
narrator and the old man who had to evacuate his hometown
description, reportage of dialogue and insightful commentary
during the Spanish civil war. The problems of war as faced
about the old man. The narrator makes the reader see the old
by the victims are conveyed in the form of dialogues. The
man. His engagement with him suddenly brings the old man
conversation moves the story forward culminating in its logical
into focus, he emerges out of the faceless, voiceless crowd.
conclusion and at the same time reveals the theme and
The Narrator’s consciousness of the approaching enemy
characteristic traits of the characters.
“contact” is used to create the dramatic tension between the
immobility of the old man and the coming destruction as he As Hemingway observes the movement of vehicles and
constantly observes the movement of carts across the bridge civilians fleeing across the pontoon bridge from an anticipated
while talking. The narrator’s conversation allows the old man enemy attack, he notices a solitary old man sitting at the edge
of the structure. Upon questioning him, Hemingway determines which he had to leave behind when he fled the advancing
that the old man has just walked the twelve kilometers from Fascists. The narrator presents this slice-of-life as a picture
his home village of San Carlos, but fatigue forces him to halt of the face of war. The advancing Fascist army might be said
at the bridge, for he can go no further. The last man to leave to symbolize the great conflict which seems to be threatening
the village, the old man’s duty is to take care of the animals much of the entire world. Hemingway’s story was published
left behind. It is obvious that he takes his obligation seriously, in 1938. Britain and France declared war on Germany in
for he worries more about the cat, two goats, and eight pigeons 1939. America was drawn into the international conflict when
that were under his care than for his own safety. Sadly, he the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor in Hawaii in 1941.
explains, he was forced to leave them behind. The cat will be Hemingway was trying to capture the aspects of war
able to take care of itself, he adds, but the goats and pigeons that people often forget. In Old Man at the Bridge he reminds
will have to fend for themselves. The correspondent suggests us human life is not the only life disrupted by war. Hemingway
that the displaced man cross the bridge to the next crossroads, states that “cats can take care of themselves”, however the
where he can catch a truck toward Barcelona, but the man cats have still been disrupted from their normal activities and
explains that “I know no one in that direction.” Although the in fact may find it difficult to survive even if they make it
correspondent is curious, he is not particularly helpful, and through the actual fighting. Of course the goats will be dead,
when the old man is unable to proceed, the journalist decides either killed for food or by some random piece of shrap metal.
that “there was nothing to do about him.” The enemy would Hemingway wasn’t just showing the disruption to animals
cross the bridge soon, and death appears imminent for the old though, he made a point to state the old man hasn’t any
man. political side. The old man is just someone trying to live his
This is the type of story in which the conflict is not life to the best of his ability but because the war has reached
between the principal characters but between much larger the old man, he will lose many of the years he had left. The
forces whose struggle affects the lives of the little people old man has seen what the ravishes of war can do to people.
unavoidably involved. On the one side of the great conflict is In this short story Hemingway has captured many parts of
the army of the Loyalists. They are fighting to preserve the war and its disruption to both people and animals.
legally elected Spanish government. On the other side is the
army of the Fascists under the leadership of Generalissimo Glossary
Francisco Franco, who eventually won the rebellion because
they were supported by the Fascist governments of Germany 1. steel rimmed spectacles : glasses with a round metal frame.
and Italy. The little people, such as the weary old man at the 2. pontoon bridge : temporary floating platform made of pieces
bridge, are forced to scramble to keep from getting crushed of metal.
between the opposing juggernauts. The old man symbolizes 3. bridgehead : strong position that the army had conquered,
the Spanish people in general. He is not concerned about the from which it could control or attack the enemy.
greater issues involved in the conflict. He isn’t capable of 4. Ebro Delta : the Ebro river is the longest
understanding them. The Spanish Civil War was considered
5. staggered : walked with unsteady steps
to be a prelude to World War II, which covered the entire
globe and resulted in the deaths of some seventy million people, 6. plodded : walked slowly.
half of whom were civilians. The old man is only concerned 7. artillery : heavy guns moved on wheels
about a few animals—a cat, two goats, and eight pigeons— 8. mysterious : strange
9. blankly : disinterestedly. figure of the old man under a sharp focus.
10. cage : a structure made of wires in which animals are kept. 5. Why did the old man continue to sit without moving
11. fascists : a person who supports an extreme right wing political with the other villagers?
system. Ans. The old man continued to sit because he was too tired to walk
further.
Comprehension Passages Passage 2
Passage 1 Read the extract given below and answer the questions
Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.
that follow. It was my business to cross the bridge, explore the
An old man with steel rimmed spectacles and very dusty bridgehead3 beyond and find out to what point the enemy had
clothes sat by the side of the road. There was a pontoon advanced. I did this and returned over the bridge. There were
bridge across the river and carts, trucks, and men, women not so many carts now and very few people on foot, but the
and children were crossing it. The mule-drawn carts staggered old man was still there.”Where do you come from?” I asked
up the steep bank from the bridge with soldiers helping push him.
against the spokes of the wheels. The trucks ground up and “From San Carlos,” he said, and smiled.
away heading out of it all and the peasants plodded along in That was his native town and so it gave him pleasure to
the ankle deep dust. But the old man sat there without moving. mention it and he smiled.
He was too tired to go any farther. “I was taking care of animals,” he explained.
1. Who was sitting by the side of the road? “Oh,” I said, not quite understanding.
Ans. An old man wearing steel rimmed glasses and very dusty “Yes,” he said, “I stayed, you see, taking care of animals. I
clothes was sitting by the side of the road. was the last one to leave the town of San Carlos.”
2. What does the term “pontoon bridge” mean? He did not look like a shepherd nor a herdsman and I looked
Ans. A pontoon bridge also known as a floating bridge, uses floats at his black dusty clothes and his gray dusty face and his steel
or shallow-draft boats to support a continuous deck for rimmed spectacles and said, “What animals were they?”
pedestrian and vehicle travel. The buoyancy of the supports “Various animals,” he said, and shook his head. “I had to
limits the maximum load they can carry. Most pontoon bridges leave them.”
are temporary, used in wartime and civil emergencies.
1. What was the name of the old man’s native town?
3. Why were the soldiers “helping to push against the
Ans. The name of the name of the old man’s native town was San
spokes of the wheels”?
Carlos.
Ans. The soldiers were “helping to push against the spokes of the
2. What is the narrator’s job?
wheels” because there was a steep elevation.
Ans. The narrator’s job was to cross the bridge, explore the
4. What does the reference to the old man in the beginning
bridgehead beyond and find out to what point the enemy had
and the end of the passage indicate?
advanced.
Ans. The author through the reference to the old man in the
3. Why did the old man leave his hometown? Why did he
beginning and the end of the passage intends to bring the
leave it reluctantly? “I will wait a while,” he said, “ and then I will go. Where do

Ans. The old man had to leave his hometown due to the war as the the trucks go?”
town was being evacuatedHe left it reluctantly because he “Towards Barcelona,” I told him.
had to take care of his animals and he did not want to abandon “I know no one in that direction,” he said, “but thank you very
them. much.
4. What did the narrator see on the bridge when he 1. Why cannot the old man walk further?
returned? Ans. He could not walk further as he was seventy-six years old
Ans. When the narrator returned he saw that there were only a and he had come twelve kilometres. He was very tired.
few carts and very few people on foot, but the old man was 2. Why did the old man have to leave his animals?
still there.
Ans. The old man left the animals because the enemy artillery was
5. What gave the old man pleasure? advancing.
Ans. When he said the name of his hometown aloud, it gave the old 3. Does the old man have a family? What were the animals
man pleasure. he was worried about?
Passage 3 Ans. The old man had no family, only the animals. He had a cat
Read the extract given below and answer the questions which would be all right as it could survive on its own, but he
that follow. was worried about the goat.
“There were three animals altogether,” he explained. “There 4. Why did the soldier tell the old man that it was not a
were two goats and a cat and then there were four pairs of good place to stop?
pigeons.” Ans. The soldier told the old man that it was not a good place to
“And you had to leave them?” I asked. stop because the enemy was advancing and soon their planes
“Yes. Because of the artillery. The captain told me to go would launch bombs on the bridge.
because of the artillery.” 5. Where did the narrator want the old man to go?
“And you have no family?” I asked, watching the far end of Ans. The narrator wanted the old man to go up the road to where
the bridge where a few last carts were hurrying down the it divided for Tortosa as there were trucks there which would
slope of the bank. take the old man to Barcelona.
“No,” he said, “only the animals I stated. The cat, of course, Passage 4
will be all right. A cat can look out for itself, but I cannot think Read the extract given below and answer the questions
what will become of the others.” that follow.
“What politics have you?” I asked. He looked at me very blankly and tiredly, and then said,
“I am without politics,” he said. “I am seventy-six years old. having to share his worry with someone, “The cat will be all
I have come twelve kilometres now and I think now I can go right, I am sure. There is no need to be unquiet about the cat.
no further.” But the others. Now what do you think about the others?”
“This is not a good place to stop,” I said. “If you can make “Why they’ll probably come through it all right.”
it, there are trucks up the road where it forks for Tortosa.” “You think so?”
“Why not,” I said, watching the far bank where now there to side and then sat down backwards in the dust.
were no carts. “I was taking care of animals,” he said dully, but no longer to
“But what will they do under the artillery when I was told to me. “I was only taking care of animals.”
leave because of the artillery?” There was nothing to do about him. It was Easter Sunday
“Did you leave the dove cage unlocked?” I asked. and the Fascists were advancing toward the Ebro. It was a
“Yes.” grey overcast day with a low ceiling so their planes were not
up. That and the fact that cats know how to look after
“Then they’ll fly.”
themselves was all the good luck that the old man would ever
“Yes, certainly they’ll fly. But the others. It’s better not to have.
think about the others,” he said.
1. When the narrator spoke to the old man about the pigeon
1. What does the old man worry about? Why? cage, what does this reveal about him?
Ans. the old man is worried not about the cat or the doves but Ans. When the narrator speaks to the old man about the pigeon
about the goat because they would come under artillery fire cage it reveals that he cares for the old man.
and they could not escape like the cat or fly away like the
2. Why might the old man need good luck at the end of the
doves.
story?
2. How does the soldier console the old man? Does it
Ans. The old man needs good luck at the end of the story because
affect the old man in a positive way?
he is not moving away from the war zone and could die from
Ans. The soldier tells the old man that the animals would survive artillery.
and the doves would fly away. But the old man is not consoled
3. What is the theme of the story?
as he continues to worry about the others, the goats.
Ans. The theme of the story is that we should make sacrifices for
3. Which animal is the old man least concerned about?
those things we love and that war is destructive and dangerous.
Ans. The old man is least concerned about the cat as it is said the
4. Explain the line, ‘There was nothing to do about him.’
cat has nine lives and is a survivor.
Ans. This line expresses the sadness and pity that the soldier feels
4. Why is the old man not worried about the birds?
for the old man as he realises that if the old man sits on the
Ans. He is not worried about the birds as he had left the cage door bridge he would surely die. He is loyal to the military system
open and they would fly off. and has to obey orders and do his duty. He can do nothing
5. Why is the old man worried about the goats? for the old man and knows that inevitable death is in his fate.
Ans. The old man is about the goats because they would come 5. Why could the Fascists planes not fly?
under artillery fire as they would not be able to escape. Ans. The planes could not fly because the sky was overcast and
Passage 5 weather was bad.
that follow. Assignment
“If you are rested I would go,” I urged. “Get up and try to 1. How does the seemingly small incident described in the
walk now.” story reveal a significant truth about life?
“Thank you,” he said and got to his feet, swayed from side Ans. The short story,“The Old Man at the Bridge” is set during the
Spanish Civil War—the old man is a civilian in loyalist territory; War is an interruption; war separates people from all they
the narrator is a loyalist sympathizer, and it is only a matter know and love, and often these individuals cannot bounce
of time before the fascists advance on the town from across back from the trauma. War destroys in more sectors than the
the bridge. The old man is weak and weary; at the beginning battlefield. After all that he has given up, after all that he has
of the story all the peasants in the area are migrating to lost, the old man is lucky, according to the narrator, only in
safety, away from the war, but the old man cannot make it. that the weather has prevented the fascists from sending out
He is sitting in the dust by the side of the road, despairing, their planes that day—“That and the fact that cats know how
clinging to the memory of his home and hisanimals. He was to look after themselves,” a comforting thought for the old
taking care of animals—specifically, two goats, a cat, and man in his last days.
four pigeons, in his hometown of San Carlos, before the town 2. Discuss the conflict in the story, “Old Man at the
was evacuated due to artillery fire. The old man had no Bridge”?
family beyond these animals, and he could not bear to leave
Ans. In Old Man on the Bridge,the conflict is not between the
them, so much so that he was the very last person to leave
principal characters but between much larger forces whose
San Carlos. When asked about his loyalties, the old man replies,
struggle affects the lives of the little people unavoidably
“’I have no politics . . . I am seventy-six years old. I have
involved. On the one side of the great conflict is the army of
come twelve kilometres now and I think now I can go no
the Loyalists. They are fighting to preserve the legally elected
further.’”
Spanish government. On the other side is the army of the
The old man refuses to get on a truck, because the Fascists. The little people, such as the weary old man at the
trucks are headed towards Barcelona and he knows no one bridge, are forced to scramble to keep from getting crushed
in that direction. He no longer has the will to move on. This between the opposing juggernauts. The old man symbolizes
reveals a fact of life: if a person has no will to live, too often the Spanish people in general. He is not concerned about the
he will not live. The animals were all the man had, and now greater issues involved in the conflict. He isn’t capable of
that he had abandoned them, he has nothing. Life is defined understanding them. The Spanish Civil War was considered
by our relationships, by what we value, and once those things to be a prelude to World War II, which covered the entire
are gone, once we have nothing to live for, it takes rigid globe and resulted in the deaths of some seventy million people,
determination to push on. For the old man, his remaining years half of whom were civilians. The old man is only concerned
will prove to be lonely and harsh. And so he chooses rather about a few animals—a cat, two goats, and eight pigeons—
to stay and face his fate. It is not cowardly, it is not weak— which he had to leave behind when he fled the advancing
it is reason. Fascists. The narrator presents this slice-of-life as a picture
In short, the old man has come to terms with his death, of the face of war. The advancing Fascist army might be said
and with the fact that he cannot now control what happens to symbolize the great conflict which seems to be threatening
to his animals. He comes constantly back to this point, fretting much of the entire world. Hemingway’s story was published
over the fate of his animals—over his surrogate family, as it in 1938. Britain and France declared war on Germany in
were. Even as he resigns himself to death, his mind is on the 1939. America was drawn into the international conflict when
only things that gave his life meaning. “I was only taking care the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor in Hawaii in 1941.
of animals,” the man repeats several times. He was living a 3. Why is the old man at the bridge?
simple life, and a contented one, and yet the war disrupted
Ans. The old man sat down beside the road because he is too tired
this contentment and will lead ultimately to the man’s demise.
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TREASURE TROVE

8. The Blue Bead To remove this notice, visit:

4. Hearts and Hands 94-117 1. Chief Seattle’s Speech 288-299

7. The Little Match-Girl 165-186 9. My Greatest Olympic Prize 369-375

Point of View Who is telling the story

who slaughtered vast numbers of Indians during the westward the Native Americans were going to become extinct surfaced

in this confrontation lose hope and faith. His straightforward

Theme Highlights of Speech/or Summary

leave it reluctantly? “I will wait a while,” he said, “ and then I will go. Where do

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