ASSIGNMENT
Answer the following questions:
1. How did Kezia make the pin- cushion and why?
2. Why was Kezia punished by her father?
3. Why was Kezia afraid of her father?
4. Draw the character sketch of Kezia, her father and her grand mother
Answers
1) Kezia made a pin-cushion as a birthday gift for her father out of the beautiful piece of yellow silk that her Grandmother had given her. She laboriously stitched its three sides with a double cotton and stuffed it with papers that she took from the bed-table in her mother's room.
2) Kezia was punished by her father because she tore important papers of her father to stuff in the pin cushion because she wanted to present a gift to her father on his birthday. The papers had her father's speech written on it so, she was punished for tearing it.
3) Kezia used to be afraid of her father because her father talked to her harshly. One day her grandmother told her to make a pin-cushion to gift him on his birthday which was approaching. ... Thus, her efforts to please her father resulted in displeasing him very much.
Required answers :-
Q.1 - How did Kezia make the pincushion and why?
Ans.1 - One day, Kezia was suffering from cold so, she was kept indoors. Her father's birthday was next week, so her grandmother suggested that she should make a pincushion for her father. Her grandmother gave her a beautiful piece of yellow silk. She laboriously stitched its three sides with a double cotton and stuffed it with papers that she took from the bed-table in her mother's room.
Q.2 - Why was Kezia punished by her father?
Ans.2 - Kezia was punished by her father because she tore important papers of her father which contained her father's speech written on it, just because she wanted to present a gift to her father on his birthday.
Q.3 - As one day, her grandmother told her to make a pincushion to gift his father on his birthday which was approaching. However, she got scolded by her father for tearing his important papers. Thus, her efforts to please her father resulted in displeasing him very much.
That's the reason Kezia used to be afraid of her father. Her father used to talk to her very harshly.
Q.4 - Draw the character sketch of Kezia, her father and her grandmother.
Ans.4 -
Kezia's character sketch :-
Kezia, the young female protagonist of the story - "The Little Girl", is an emotional and sensitive girl. She is much affected by her father's disciplinarian attitude as by his love. The behaviour of Kezia is typical by a young girl. She sees her father as the boss of the family who must be served properly all the time. So, she feels relieved when he leaves for work every morning. Kezia is an obedient girl. She is afraid of her father, and wishes to avoid him, still she takes of her shoes when her mother asks to. However, she fears her father so much that she begins to stutter in his presence. Sometimes, she even thinks that there should not have been any fathers in this world. When she compares herself to other children, she is pained to observe that her father does not pamper her like the fathers of other children.
Kezia is innocent but impulsive. She makes a pincushion for her father as his birthday gift but innocently picks up his important papers as stuffing for the pincushion. Impulsively, she tears those papers without seeking permission and hence spoils matters. Kezia's strong bond with her father comes to fore when she is quick to observe his affection on the night she gets terrified by a bad dream. She feels happy when her father protectively takes her to his bed and comforts her. Her distrust for him changes into appreciation for his hard work. She admires his big heart and discovers her love for him. She changes from a resenting and frightened girl to a soft-hearted, affectionate and understanding daughter.
Kezia's father character :-
Kezia's father displays two divergent characteristics in the story. Initially, he appears as a domineering head of the family and demands complete obedience from other family members. He wanted them to be at his back and call all the time. As soon as he returns home in the evening, he wants his tea brought to him along with the newspaper. Instead of taking off his shoes himself, he makes Kezia do it for him. He is so strict with her daughter that the poor girl stutters in front of him and feels relieved when he leaves for work in the morning. This negative personality is highlighted even more when he punishes Kezia with a ruler. It appears that he fails to understand the innocent emotions of his daughter who damages his papers accidentally. However, the positive aspect of his persona surfaces when he takes care of his little girl in the absence of the women of the household. He not only carries her in his arms to his room but also tucks her comfortably in his bed. He asks her to rub her feet with his legs to make them warm. This reveals his parental affection, protective nature, and caring attitude. Kezia's father thus makes a typical father who poses a stern exterior which actually hides a soft, affectionate, and tender big heart, full of love.
P.S. :- I've attached the character of Kezia's grandmother as a picture because I was unable to send this long answer.
