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AARAMBH 2024
A Portrait of a Lady, The Summer of the
Beautiful White Horse, We're not Afraid to DPP-01

Die.. If We Can All be Together

1. Describe the disaster of the large wave which 7. Describe in brief how the voyage began in July 1976
destructed the narrator’s boat. from Plymouth, England and ended at a small island
Isle Amsterdam in the South Indian Ocean.
2. The narrator’s grandmother looked like the ‘winter
landscape in the mountains’. Comment. 8. What led to the gradual distancing of the narrator
from his grandmother in the city? Give three
3. “We’re Not Afraid to Die” is a saga of patience and reasons.
bravery. Comment.
9. Describe the steps taken by the captain and the
4. What measures were taken to save the ship from crewmen to protect the boat from the storm and the
sinking? gigantic waves. Were they successful?

5. Why do you think people undertake such 10. The narrator mentioned ‘a crazy streak’ running in
adventurous expeditions in spite of the risks his family. Which two characters showed this streak
involved? in their behaviour and words? Write briefly about
them showing how they could be called crazy.
6. How does the author describe the character of
Mourad?

Hints and Solutions
1. The large wave hurled the boat upright, jerked the
captain’s lifeline taut and smashed the decks.
Broken timbers hung perilously and the entire
starboard side bulged inwards so that water broke
over the boat.
2. The grandmother was always dressed in spotless
white. She had silvery hair. Her white locks spread
untidily over her pale and wrinkled face. She looked
like an expanse of pure white serenity. The stretch
of snow over the mountains looks equally white and
peaceful. So her silvery locks and white dress made
her look like the winter landscape in the mountains.
3. “We’re Not Afraid to Die” is the story of rare
courage and perseverance of the narrator’s family. It
comprised his wife and children, with the crewmen.
All the dangers and disasters were confronted with
patience, courage and determination. Never did
anybody shake or waver even for a second. Even the
children showed an exemplary courage. They were
not afraid to die. They were ready to die with their
daddy and mummy together.
4. The captain controlled the direction of the ship to
meet the waves. Larry and Herb pumped sea water
out and fixed the starboard side holes with canvas
and waterproof hatch covers.
5. People undertake such adventurous expeditions due
to two reasons. They have the passionate thrive for
risk, thrill and uncertainty and they push their limits
of skill and endurance. They seek such adventures
for pure joy and exhilaration. They also want to do
certain things for attaining name, fame and
recognition.
6. Mourad is one of the main characters of the story,
‘The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse’ by
William Saroyan. He is thirteen years old and the
narrator’s cousin. The story evolves with a white
horse brought by Mourad. The author has portrayed
the character as a lively, free-spirited and a little
crazy person. Besides being too enthusiastic, he has
a kind heart too. He can build great bonding with
animals, birds and people. As an innocent boy, he
took the white horse only to ride it. He didn’t
consider it as stealing but later felt guilty and
returned it to its owner. Thus, he carried on the
reputation of trust and honesty of his clan. Murad is
a unique character and plays an important role in the
story.
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7. The narrator wanted ‘to duplicate’ the round-the-
world voyage made 200 years earlier by Captain
James Cook. For the past 16 years they had been
making preparations. They got a boat professionally
built for this purpose. It was a 23 metre, 30 tonne
wooden hulled boat. It had been tested for months in
the roughest weather. The first leg of their 1, 05,000
kilometre journey passed pleasantly. They sailed
down the west coast of Africa to Cape Town.
Their troubles started on the second day out of Cape
Town. They encountered strong gales. Waves rose
as high as their main mast. The boat was slowed
down. The storm jib was dropped. Heavy ropes
were looped across the stern. Lifelines were
attached, oilskins and life jackets were donned.
Wavewalker was near capsizing. Sue got a big bump
over her eyes. The narrator was tossed over the
deck. His left ribs cracked and teeth were broken.
By morning on January 3, Larry and Herb brought
the water level sufficiently under control.
On January 4, they received some respite. The
situation was again quite grim. Jon asked if they
were going to die. They were not afraid of dying if
they could all die together. But by the morning of 6
January, Wavewalker rode out (of) the storm. lle
Amsterdam was just in front of them. The next day
all 28 inhabitants cheered and helped them ashore.
8. As the years rolled by, the narrator grew older. His
dependence on his grandmother became lesser. He
started going to an English school in a motor bus.
She could not go with him. Moreover, she couldn’t
help him in teaching English and Science. She hated
English school. There was no teaching about God
and scriptures there. All these things distanced the
narrator from his grandmother.
9. Just on the second day when they left Cape Town,
Wavewalker began to face all kinds of troubles.
Strong gales lashed it for the next few weeks. The
size of the waves was really alarming. They went up
as high as the main mast. The captain took
immediate steps to save the boat. The boat was
slowed down. The storm jib was dropped. Heavy
mooring ropes were lashed across the stern.
Lifelines were attached. Oilskins and life-jackets
were donned. A tremendous explosion shook the
deck. A torrent of green and white water broke over
the ship. Wavewalker was near capsizing. Her masts
had fallen flat. Waves tossed him around the deck
like a rag doll. Larry and Herb continued pumping
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water out like madmen. Waterproof covers across
the open holes were covered. Most of the water was
now being thrown over the sides.
All the urgent steps were taken. Fortunately, they
proved quite effective. By the morning of January 6,
the wind eased. Wavewalker rode out storm. But
still it couldn’t hold for long to reach Australia.
Hence, the search for islands began. In the end,
Wavewalker had a cheerful landing at lle
Amsterdam.
10. Mourad and Uncle Khosrove were the two
characters who showed a crazy streak in their
behaviour. Mourad was a thirteen-year old
Armenian boy. He belonged to Garoghlanian tribe.
He was fond of riding to the point of craziness. He
sang out of joy when riding a stolen horse. He said
confidently that he had a way with horses.
He was crazy like his uncle Khosrove and was
considered the natural descendent of his crazy uncle.
Uncle Khosrove had a furious temper1 and was
known to be crazy. He was so impatient and irritable
that he stopped anyone from talking by roaring, ‘It
is no harm; pay no attention to it’. He said this even
when his son came running to tell him that their
house was on fire. He got irritated and snubbed John
Byro when he told him about his horse having been
stolen.

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