Question

Review of the story the price of flowers by prabhat Kumar mukhopadhyay

Answer 1

The Price of Flowers” is a story written by Prabhat Kumar Mukhopadhyay. It underlines the bond of human relationship. This story portrays the life of a young poor girl named Alice Margarett Clifford(Maggie) who was far away from her beloved brother Frank. Gupta was an Indian living in London. Once he met Alice in a vegetarian restaurant. She was also called Maggie. She was working as a typist in a nearby office. Her mother made cakes to sell them on Saturdays. She was from a poor family. She wanted to know if Gupta was an Indian. Her brother Frank had gone to India as he was a soldier in the military service.

Gupta once went to Maggie’s house to meet her mother. Her mother was anxious to know about India as she heard that India was a dangerous place to live in. She believed that most of the Indians had the rare power to see a person living in a distant land by gazing at a crystal ring. Maggie and her mother wanted him to  look into the crystal ring and say how Frank was. Gupta told them that he did not  possess such a power. 

One day Gupta received news that Maggie’s mother was not well. He went to their house immediately. Maggie wanted him to gaze into the crystal and say whether Frank was safe. Reluctantly, Gupta took the ring and told a lie that Frank was safe. Maggie’s mother was happy and soon became well. 

Later Gupta was shocked to learn that Frank had died in the war. Gupta felt very sad. Then in the morning of his last day in London, Maggie came to see him. He was packing up things. She gave him a shilling to buy flowers and place them on her brother’s grave in Punjab

Answer 2

Answer:The story revolves round the superstitious act of telling future by crystal gazing.This happens when an Indian writer visits a poor British family in London.Maggie as well as her mother has been anxious about her brother Frank because they have not heard about him for many days.The narrator tells that Frank ,the soldier fighting in India is alive .It was a lie told to save Mrs. Clifford ,the sick mother of the main character in the story ,the teenage girl –Maggie.

The words have a magical effect on the old woman and she recovers soon.Later it turns out that Frank had been dead for a few weeks .The death would have occurred at about the same time when the narrator gazed into the crystal and saw him alive .By then it was time for the writer to go back to India.Maggie hands him over a shilling to buy flowers and place them at her brother’s grave in India.He learns that the girl had to work hard for three days to earn the shilling. The narrator is moved by her love and dedication for her brother.

Explanation: