THE STORY OF MY LIFE
NOVEL
1. How did Helen learn to know many things? How did she communicate that she wanted food?
Helen was quick and eager learner. Her hands felt every object and observed every motion. In this way she learned to know many things. She began to make crude signs to communicate with others. She would shake her head to imply “no” and a nod to say “yes” pull meant “come” and a push meant “go”. Helen used sign language to communicate with family. She had learnt some gestures for certain things. She could understand most of the things that were going around her. At five she had learnt how to fold and put away the clean clothes. She could identify her own clothes. Whenever she wanted food she had special gestures to communicate. If she wanted bread then she would imitate the act of cutting the slices and buttering them. If she wanted ice-cream she would shiver and point to freezer indicating cold.
2. How did Helen and Martha Washington work together in the kitchen? What does it show about their relationship?
Helen and Martha Washington were good friends. Martha was the child of her cook. She understood her signs. Martha always accepted her dominance which pleased Helen. They gave good company to each other. Helen was very comfortable in her company. Both of them used to spend a great deal of time in the kitchen. They used to knead dough balls. Helen loved making ice cream and grinding coffee. They also had a fight over some issues, like making cake. Quarrelling over the cake bowl was also very frequent. They used to feed the hens and turkeys that swarmed about the kitchen steps. Their working together shows the bond between the two. They were not only good friends but understood each other well. Martha was a great support for Helen. Though sometimes there was a communication gap between the two, both used to manage it with time.
3. What did the narrator say about Dr Alexander Graham Bell? What did Dr. Bell advise the narrator‟s father to do?
The father of the narrator was advised by Dr. Chisholm to consult with Dr. Alexander Graham Bell of Washington who, he believed would be able to provide him with information regarding schools and teachers set up for the deaf or blind children. With a sad heart, many misgivings and a slight ray of hope, the narrator along with her parents went to see Dr. Bell. Since the time she was a child she had at once felt the tenderness and sympathy which endeared Dr. Bell to such a large number of hearts. She said that Dr. Bell placed her on his knee while she examined his watch and he made it strike for her. He at once understood her signs. The narrator stated the fact that the interview with Dr. Bell was the door
through which she would pass from darkness to light, from isolation to friendship, companionship, knowledge and love. Dr. Bell advised her father to write to Mr. Anagnos who was the director of The Perkins Institute in Boston, the scene of Dr. Howe‟s great labours for the blind and to ask him whether he had a teacher competent enough so as to begin her education.
4. Describe the nature of the narrator before Miss Sullivan came into her life. What changes took place in her nature after she spent a few days with Miss Sullivan?
Before Miss Sullivan entered the narrator‟s life, she was a very unhappy person who was aware of the fact that she was different from others and that there were things that she could not do. She was living in a dark world and her inner being as well as her soul cried for light wordlessly as she could not speak and had no vocabulary. After spending a few days with Miss Sullivan, the narrator and her teacher started working on her vocabulary making a conscious effort to build it.
She learnt to spell in an uncomprehending way a lot of words and some words like sit, stand and walk. After several week of instruction with Miss Sullivan, the narrator understood that everything in this world had a name. She also understood that each name gave birth to a new thought. The word „water‟ awakened her soul, gave it light, hope and joy and set it free. Her perspective started changing and she began to see everything in a new light with the strange, new sight that had come to her when her process of learning and education had begun. She learnt and memorized many words like mother, father, sister and teacher. The simple knowledge of these words was useful to make the world open up and blossom for her. She later said, as she lay in her crib, that perhaps it would have been difficult to find a child who was happier than her. For the first time in her life she longed for a new day to come, so that she could continue her journey of education.
5. How did the narrator get over the fear of climbing trees? Explain.
The narrator‟s teacher Miss Sullivan was aware of the fear that her ward had experienced when it came to climbing trees due to the unfortunate incident during the thunderstorm. However one spring day it was the sweet alluring smell of the mimosa tree in full bloom that helped the narrator finally overcome her fear of climbing trees. One beautiful spring morning she was alone in her summer house reading a book. She suddenly became aware of the wonderful subtle
fragrance of the mimosa tree which was wafting in the air. She came near that tree as if hypnotized and climbed the tree very slowly. She kept on climbing the tree until she reached a little seat which somebody had built long time ago. She sat there for a long time enjoying the sensation and feeling like a fairy on a rosy cloud. This is how she got over the fear of climbing trees.
6. How did Helen finally understood the meaning of the word „love‟?
Helen was keen to know the meaning of the word „love‟. Her teacher tried to kiss her but Helen did not like anyone except her mother to kiss her. Miss Sullivan put her arm around her and spelled into her hand „I love Helen‟. Still Helen wanted to know what love is. Her teacher pointed to her heart and said „it is here‟ but Helen could not understand anything unless she touched it. She asked her teacher whether the love was the sweetness of flowers or the warmth of the sun but was greatly disappointed that her teacher could not show her love. Finally her teacher taught her the process of thinking and explained that just as one cannot touch the clouds, one cannot touch love either but one feels the sweetness it pours into everything- without love one would not be happy or want to play.
7. How did Miss Sullivan help Helen in learning to read? What did Helen say about Miss Sullivan her teacher?
Miss Sullivan worked very hard with Helen. She gave her slips of cardboard having printed words in raised letters. She learnt that each printed word stood for an object, an act or a quality. She had a frame in which she could arrange the words in little sentences. Before she put sentences in frame she used to make them in objects. She found the slips of paper which represented words like „doll‟ „is‟ „on‟ „bed‟. She placed these slips to make a sentence. In this way she learnt to make sentences. Same way she learnt „girl is in wardrobe‟ and played this game for hours which delighted her. She took the book “Readers for Beginners” and hunted for the words she knew. She enjoyed it as the game of hide and seek. This she began to read. Miss Sullivan was a very important person in Helen s life. It was she who brought light in the life of a blind girl. Helen appreciates her teacher wholeheartedly. She says that it was her teacher‟s genius, her quick sympathy, her loving tact which made the first years of her education so beautiful.
8. How did Helen experience her first Christmas after Miss Sullivan came to Tuscumbia?
It was a wonderful experience for Helen. She celebrated it as a great event. Everyone in the family had some surprise for her. The mystery that surrounded the gifts was her greatest delight and amusement. Every evening seated round a glowing wood fire, they played a guessing game which grew more and more exciting as Christmas approached. On Christmas eve the school children from Tuscumbia had invited Helen to see the tree. She danced and capered round the tree in ecstasy. When she learned that there was a gift for each child, she was delighted and the people who had prepared the tree permitted her to hand the gifts to the children. The narrator woke up the next morning and found surprises not only in the stocking which she had hung, but also on the table, on all the chairs, at the door, on the window sill. Indeed she could hardly walk without stumbling on a bit of Christmas gift wrapped up in a tissue paper. But when her teacher presented her with a little canary, her cup of happiness overflowed
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