(a) Give a brief description of the encampment of the nomadic graziers
whose lifestyle forms the backdrop of the story 'The Blue Bead'.
(b) Give a brief account of Sibia's heroic act in saving the life of a Gujar
woman.
(c) How did the Gujar woman struggle against the crocodile to save herself ?
How was she rescued by Sibia ?
Answers
Answer:
a-This story is written by Norah Burke. Her father was a forest officer who served in India, so she spent her childhood in India. She started writing from an early age. Her observations and stories were related to her travel and sporting experiences. She was an enthusiastic traveller.
b-‘The Blue Bead’ is a story about a brave young girl, Sibia, who has saved a woman’s life. In the process of doing so, she acquires a blue bead, something she had been desiring for quite earnestly. She is merely twelve years old, so she is very happy to get the blue bead and is very humble even after the glory of saving someone’s life. Such a young girl is not expected to do heroic deeds. This is very unusual and brave of her.
c-This story revolves around the moral that good things come through difficult situations and the proverb ‘where there is a will, there is a way’.
Answer:
(a)'The Blue Bead' is a story about a brave young girl, Sibia, who has saved a woman's life. In the process of doing so, she acquires a blue bead, something she had been desiring for quite earnestly.The story begins with an elaborate description of the mugger crocodile who is well grown and twice as large as a tall man.
(b)Sibia helped the Gujjar women by bravely fighting with the muggar. She came leaping like a rock goat ,aimed her hay fork to the eye of the crocodile and luckily hit the target. As the eye was the weak point of the crocodile , it retreated back thrashing it's tail high in the air.
(c)The Gujar woman recoiled from the crocodile. When the crocodile's jaws closed on the woman's leg, she slipped and fell on the bone-breaking stone. She clutched one of the timber logs to save herself.She showed courage, and with all the force of her little body, she drove the hayfork at the crocodile's eye.The animal being hurt in his eyes lost his grip on the legs of the woman and swam away into the water. Sibia took a prompt and successful decision which saved the Gujar woman's life. Sibia dragged the panting woman out of the water and helped her reach the encampment safely. She came back for her grass sickle and fork.