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Complete Notes for Class-XII According to New Syllabus - 2018
Thank You Ma’am -Langston Hughes

Short Answer Type (Mark 1)
A1. Who is the writer of the story ‘Thank You Ma’am’?
Ans: Langston Hughes is the writer of the story ‘Thank
You Ma’am’.
2. What was the name of the large lady in the story
‘Thank You Ma’am’?
Ans: The name of the lady was Luella Bates Washington
Jones.
3. When the lady was walking down the street it was –
Ans: about 11 o’clock at night.
4. What was the age of the boy in the story ‘Thank You
Ma’am’?
Ans: The age of the boy was about fourteen or fifteen
years.
5. What was the name of the boy in the story ‘Thank
You Ma’am’?
Ans: The name of the boy was Roger.
6. The boy proposed to go to the shop to buy –
Ans: milk.
7. The price of the cake that the lady had bought was-
Ans: ten cents.
8. Where did the lady work?
Ans: The lady worked at a hotel beauty shop.
9. How much money did the lady offer the boy?
Ans: The lady offered the boy ten dollars.
10. The boy in the story ‘Thank You Ma’am’ wanted to
buy a pair of –
Ans: Blue suede shoes.
11. The boy could hardly say more than ‘Thank You
Ma’am’ because –
Ans: The door was shut.
12. What kind of purse did Mrs. Luella Bates have?
Ans: Mrs. Luella Bates had a large purse with a long strap
and it had almost everything in it.
13. What was Roger’s final words to Mrs. Jones?
Ans: Roger’s final words to Mrs. Jones were ‘Thank you’.
14. What lesson did Roger get from Mrs. Jones?
Ans: Roger learnt from Mrs. Jones that thing obtained by
unfair means would hurt him badly.
15. What was in the ice box?
Ans: There were lima beans and ham in the ice box.
16. What did Mrs. Jones do when the boy struggled to
escape?
Ans: Mrs. Jones put a half nelson around his neck when
the boy struggled to escape.
17. Where did Mrs. Jones take the boy?
Ans: Mrs. Jones took the boy to her room.
18. What could the boy hear in Mrs. Jones’s house?
Ans: The boy could hear the talking and laughter of other
roomers.
19. What did Mrs. Jones give the boy to clean his face?
Ans: Mrs. Jones gave a clean towel to the boy to clean
his face.
20. How did Mrs. Jones use the canned milk?
Ans: Mrs. Jones made cocoa with the canned milk.
21. Why did Roger want to snatch the purse of Mrs.
Jones?
Ans: Roger wanted to snatch the purse of Mrs. Jones
because he wanted money to buy a pair of blue suede
shoes.
22. What kind of ladies did Mrs. Jones meet?
Ans: Mrs. Jones met blondes, red-heads and Spanish
ladies.
23. What was Mrs. Jones’s last warning to the boy?
Ans: Mrs. Jones warned the boy not to snatch the purse
of anybody else.
24. What was Mrs. Jones’s last advice to the boy?
Ans: Mrs. Jones advised the boy to behave well in future.
25. Why did the boy want to say something more to
Mrs. Jones?
Ans: The boy wanted to say something more because he
was moved greatly by the motherly behaviour of Mrs.
Jones.

ECC-Eng.-XII-Thank You Ma’am www.myqpaper.in edited by Vinay Kumar 1

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Descriptive Type (Marks 6)
1. Justify the title of the story ‘Thank You Ma’am’.
Ans: Langston Hughes’s short story ‘Thank You Ma’am’
is based on the sympathy shown by a large woman, Mrs.
Luella Bates Washington Jones to a young boy Roger.
The boy tried to snatch her purse but was caught by her.
Instead of taking him to the police station, she took him
to her home. She washed his dirty face and fed him
cocoa and cake. She also offered him ten dollars to buy
suede shoes. The motherly love and behaviour of the
woman changed the attitude of the boy. He was
overwhelmed by the kindness of the woman. While
departing from the woman, the boy could only say
‘thank you’. So keeping it in brain, we can say that the
title ‘Thank You Ma’am’ is appropriate and justified.
2. Sketch the character of Mrs. Jones in the story
‘Thank You Ma’am’.
Or, What type of woman was Mrs. Jones? How did Mrs.
Jones behave with Roger when they arrived home?
Or, What are the ways by which Mrs. Jones reformed
Roger?
Ans: Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones is the main
character of the short story ‘Thank You Ma’am’. She was
a large woman who worked at a hotel beauty shop. She
has been presented by Langston Hughes as an
affectionate woman. She caught the boy Roger when he
was trying to snatch her purse. She felt sympathy for the
urchin. Instead of taking him to the police station, she
took him to her home. She made him washed his dirty
face and gave him a towel. She fed him cake and cocoa
also. She understood that it was not a crime what he did.
She believed in reformation. So she gave him ten dollars
to buy the shoes that he wanted. She also taught him not
to snatch purse of anybody else and advised him to
behave well in future. She showed motherly love for the
boy and her unconditional love moved him.
3. Why did the boy in ‘Thank you Ma’am’ not run away
though the door was open?
Or, Why did Roger abandon the idea of running away
from the house of Mrs. Jones?
Or, “And he did not want to be mistrusted now” – Why
Roger did not want to be mistrusted, though he could
easily fled from the home of Mrs. Jones.
Ans: The boy Roger was caught by Mrs. Jones while
snatching her purse on the street. Instead of taking him
to the police station, she took him to her house. Mrs.
Jones asked him to wash his dirty face. She also gave him
a towel to dry up his face. By this time, the boy
understood that she was not going to take him to the jail.
Mrs. Jones showed faith in the boy and went behind the
screen in another corner of the house leaving him alone
with her purse on the day bed. She was not watching him
if he was running away. The boy could have easily
escaped with the purse. But the motherly affection of
Mrs. Jones prevented him from running away. He did not
ECC-Eng.-XII-Thank You Ma’am www.myqpaper.in
want to be mistrusted by her anymore. Her kindness and
trust changed him completely.
4. “Eat some more son.” – Who is the speaker? What is
offered by the speaker to the listener? What picture of
the speaker’s character is revealed in this line?
Ans: The speaker is Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones.
She offered a half of her ten-cent cake to the young
boy Roger.
Mrs. Jones caught the boy while he was snatching
her purse. She understood that he was hungry. So, she
decided to take him home and give him some food. She
showed a motherly love for him. She fed him lima beans,
ham and cocoa. After this, she offered him half of her
ten-cent cake and said the quoted sentence. The
motherly feeling of Mrs. Jones is revealed in this line.
5. “I would teach you right from wrong” – Who said this
to whom and when? How did the speaker transform
the person spoken to?
Ans: Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones said this to the
young boy Roger. She said the quoted sentence when
she caught him while he was trying to snatch her purse.
Instead of taking him to the police station, she
took him to her home. She made him washed his dirty
face and gave him a towel. She fed him cake and cocoa
also. She believed in reformation. So, she gave him ten
dollars to buy the shoes that he wanted. She also taught
him not to snatch purse of anybody else and advised him
to behave well in future. She showed motherly love for
the boy and her unconditional love and trust
transformed him.
6. Describe the first encounter between Mrs. Jones and
the boy Roger.
Or, How did the lady catch hold of the boy while he was
attempting to snatch her purse?
Ans: It was eleven o’clock at night when Mrs. Luella
Bates Washington Jones was returning from her work. It
was a hotel beauty shop that stayed open late night. So,
she was walking alone in the street. A fourteen or fifteen
years old boy Roger followed her. Suddenly, he snatched
her large purse. He tried to escape but the strap of the
purse broke and he lost his balance. He fell on his back
on the sidewalk. Mrs. Jones turned around and kicked
him on his blue jeaned sitter. She bent down and picked
him up. She shook him until his teeth rattled. Then she
asked him about the reason for his rude behaviour. The
boy excused as he was afraid of going to the jail. But she
grabbed him and took him to her home.
7. “I wanted a pair of blue suede shoes.” – Who is the
speaker? What reply did the speaker get and how did
he react?
Ans: The young boy Roger in the short story ‘Thank You
Ma’am’ is the speaker.
The young boy Roger informed Mrs. Jones that he
wanted a pair of blue suede shoes. He snatched her
purse to get money and buy those shoes. After his.
edited by Vinay Kumar 2
 Download Questions, Notes and Suggestions From Website www.myqpaper.in

confession, he got a strange reply from Mrs. Jones. She

said that instead of snatching he could have asked her Note :-
for money.
The answer amazed the boy. He was not expecting There may be some typing mistakes. So
that answer from Mrs. Jones. He could not say anything
and could not understand what to do next. As a result, please try to deal with it.
he kept drying his face with the towel again and again.
8. “I am sorry lady, I’m sorry.” – Who is the speaker? Don’t forget to Share this notes with all
Was the speaker really sorry? When was the speaker a
changed person? your friends. It’s good to be good.
Ans: The young boy Roger in the short story ‘Thank You Thank You.
Ma’am’ is the speaker.
The boy was not really sorry. He was caught by the
lady while snatching her purse. She was not even ready
to turn him loose. So he said that he was sorry. But he
said so because he was afraid that the lady might take
him to jail.
Though he had attempted to snatch her purse, she
felt sympathy for him. She took him to her home. She
made him washed his dirty face and gave him a towel.
She fed him cake and cocoa also. She gave him ten
dollars to buy the shoes that he wanted. Most
importantly, she trusted him. She also taught him not to
snatch purse of anybody else and advised him to behave 9903016147
well in future. She showed motherly love for the boy and
her unconditional love and trust changed him.

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