Table of Contents
Chapter 1: "What then, Raman?" — Shirley L. Arora
"What then, Raman?" is an emotionally moving short story set in the Palani Hills of southern India. It follows the struggles of an eleven-year-old boy named Raman, who is the first in his poor village of woodcutters to attend school. The story highlights the friction between his intense personal aspirations for learning and his deep moral responsibility towards his family when they face extreme economic hardships.
Part A: 15 Short Answer Questions (1–2 Sentences)
Question: Who is Raman and where does he live?
Answer: Raman is an eleven-year-old boy from a poor but hardworking family who lives in a village in the Palani Hills of southern India.
Question: What is the occupation of Raman's parents?
Answer: His father is a woodcutter who cuts wood in the forest, and his mother cultivates vegetables and herbs to earn a small income.
Question: Why is Raman unique and respected in his village?
Answer: He is unique because he is the first child in his entire community who has been given the rare privilege to attend school and learn to read.
Question: How did Raman develop his passion for learning and stories?
Answer: He developed his passion by reading cheap paper booklets containing heroic stories from the Ramayana, which he bought from a traveling bookseller.
Question: What was Raman's ultimate dream as a student?
Answer: Raman's dream was to one day own a beautiful, fully illustrated copy of the Ramayana to read, cherish, and keep as his personal possession.
Question: Why did Raman have to leave school?
Answer: Raman had to leave school because his father had to leave the village in search of work, forcing Raman to help support his struggling family.
Question: How does Raman earn money after dropping out of school?
Answer: He earns money by collecting rare wildflowers and forest plants for an American teacher and botanist who lives in a nearby town.
Question: What physical dangers does Raman face while collecting plants in the forest?
Answer: He braves steep cliffs, slippery paths, wild bees, and the constant fear of snakes and the rumored presence of a forest tiger.
Question: Who is the 'Merkin lady' in the story?
Answer: The 'Merkin lady' is the American teacher and botanist who buys the wild plants and flowers that Raman collects for her studies.
Question: What did Raman want to buy with his first saved six rupees?
Answer: He wanted to buy his dream book, the beautiful illustrated copy of the Ramayana from the traveling bookseller named Tumbuswamy.
Question: What did Raman notice about his younger sister during his trip to the market?
Answer: He noticed that she was shivering from the cold, and her foot was sticking out from under her tattered, torn blanket.
Question: What selfless decision did Raman make at the market?
Answer: He sacrificed his personal dream and decided to buy a warm, thick blanket for his sister instead of the illustrated Ramayana book.
Question: How does Raman's mother react to his purchase of the blanket?
Answer: She is deeply touched and proud of his maturity, responsibility, and selfless love for his family in their time of need.
Question: What does the question 'What then, Raman?' signify?
Answer: It is a question asked by his American teacher, urging him to think about how he will use his education to help others rather than just for personal gain.
Question: What is the ultimate moral lesson of Raman's journey?
Answer: The story teaches that true maturity and education lie in responsibility, selflessness, and making moral choices for the welfare of others.
Part B: 12 Medium Answer Questions (80–100 Words)
Question: Describe Raman's background and his family's economic condition.
Answer: Raman belongs to a very poor family in the rural Palani Hills of southern India. His father is a woodcutter who earns a meager living, and his mother struggles to cultivate small quantities of vegetables and herbs. The family lives in a small hut, struggling to afford basic necessities like warm clothing and blankets. Despite their severe poverty, they recognize the value of education and make immense sacrifices to send Raman, their eldest son, to school, making him the first child in their community to learn how to read and write.
Question: What is the significance of the book 'Ramayana' in Raman's life?
Answer: The Ramayana holds a profound symbolic and emotional value for Raman. To him, the stories of heroic deeds, moral duty, and honor represent a world of wonder far removed from his daily struggle with poverty. He reads cheap, plain booklets of the epic with great passion. His ultimate dream is to own a beautifully illustrated, hardbound copy of the Ramayana. This book represents his personal aspiration, intellectual curiosity, and his hope for a better, more beautiful future beyond his life of manual labor.
Question: Discuss the role of Tumbuswamy in nurturing Raman's love for books.
Answer: Tumbuswamy is a traveling bookseller who visits Raman's village carrying a bundle of cheap, colorful books. He plays a vital role in fueling Raman's imagination and love for literature. Unlike other merchants, Tumbuswamy is patient with Raman's curiosity, allowing him to browse the books even when he lacks the money to buy them. He promises to set aside the beautiful, illustrated copy of the Ramayana for Raman and sell it to him for six rupees, acting as a bridge between Raman and his dream of learning.
Question: Why did Raman have to leave school, and how did it affect him emotionally?
Answer: Raman had to leave school because his father was forced to leave the village to find woodcutting work elsewhere, leaving the family without an immediate source of income. As the eldest son, Raman had to take on the responsibility of earning money to feed his mother and sister. This forced departure from school devastated Raman emotionally. He felt a deep sense of despair, shame, and loss, as he loved studying and feared that leaving school meant his dreams of learning and self-improvement were permanently crushed.
Question: Describe Raman's interactions with the American botanist (the Merkin lady).
Answer: The American botanist, referred to as the 'Merkin lady' by the locals, is a teacher who studies the rich flora of the Palani Hills. She hires Raman to collect rare wildflowers, roots, and herbs from the forest. She is patient, kind, and values Raman's sharp intelligence and observation skills. She pays him fairly for his hard work. Their interactions provide Raman with a source of income, but more importantly, she acts as an intellectual mentor, asking him questions that challenge him to think about the true purpose of his education.
Question: What physical dangers did Raman face in the forest while collecting plants?
Answer: Collecting plants in the forest was a highly dangerous task for an eleven-year-old boy. Raman had to climb steep, slippery rock faces, walk through thick undergrowth, and search near deep ravines. He faced the threat of wild bees, scorpions, and venomous snakes. Additionally, there was a persistent local rumor about a tiger roaming the forest, which terrified him. Despite his intense fear, his determination to earn money for his family and save for his beloved book gave him the courage to face these wilderness dangers daily.
Question: Explain the moral dilemma Raman faced when he finally saved six rupees.
Answer: After weeks of dangerous work collecting plants, Raman successfully saved six rupees—the exact amount needed to buy the illustrated Ramayana. However, when he went to the market, he saw his younger sister shivering in the cold, her feet sticking out from a tattered, thin blanket. He was caught in a painful moral dilemma: should he use his hard-earned money to buy the book that represented his deepest personal happiness, or should he buy a warm blanket to protect his sister's health? It was a clash between personal desire and family duty.
Question: Describe the climax of the story where Raman chooses the blanket over the book.
Answer: The climax occurs in the bustling market where Tumbuswamy holds out the beautiful, illustrated copy of the Ramayana. Raman's heart leaps with joy, but the memory of his sister's cold, shivering frame stops him. With a heavy heart but a resolute mind, Raman turns away from the book and purchases a warm, thick blanket instead. He carries the blanket home, realizing that his sister's physical survival and comfort are far more important than his own immediate intellectual pleasure, marking his transition into true maturity.
Question: How did Raman's family react to his selfless act, and what did it prove?
Answer: When Raman returned home carrying the warm blanket instead of the book, his mother immediately understood the immense sacrifice her young son had made. She was deeply moved and proud of his maturity. By wrapping his younger sister in the blanket, Raman proved that he possessed a deep sense of responsibility, compassion, and moral integrity. His actions showed that education had not made him selfish; rather, it had refined his character, giving him the moral strength to put his family's needs before his own.
Question: What is the significance of the question 'What then, Raman?' asked by the teacher?
Answer: The question 'What then, Raman?' was asked by the American teacher when Raman proudly declared that he wanted to learn to read and write. She wanted him to reflect on what he would do with his education once he acquired it. She challenged him to understand that reading is not just a tool for personal pride or entertainment, but a responsibility. It must be used to help his community, solve practical problems, and improve the lives of others, giving his literacy a larger social purpose.
Question: How does Raman become a symbol of hope and leadership in his community?
Answer: In the final part of the story, although Raman cannot return to formal school immediately, he does not give up on learning. He decides to use his knowledge to teach the other children in his village how to read and write. By doing so, he transforms his personal dream into a collective benefit. He becomes a beacon of hope and a young leader in his community, showing that true greatness lies in service, and that knowledge must be shared to uplift society.
Question: Discuss the major theme of education as empowerment as depicted in the story.
Answer: The story portrays education not merely as a path to economic wealth, but as a source of moral and social empowerment. Through books, Raman gains a wider perspective on life, moral courage, and dignity. Education gives him the capacity to think critically, make responsible choices, and lead his peers. Even when poverty forces him out of the classroom, his spirit of inquiry remains unbroken. The narrative demonstrates that once a mind is empowered by knowledge, it can never be truly enslaved by poverty.
Part C: 5 Long Answer Questions (200 Words Each)
Question: Critically analyze the conflict between personal aspiration and family responsibility in 'What then, Raman?'.
Answer: The central thematic conflict in Shirley L. Arora's 'What then, Raman?' revolves around the painful tension between individual dreams and domestic obligations within a poverty-stricken household. Raman, a young boy with an extraordinary passion for reading, dreams of owning an illustrated copy of the Ramayana. This book represents his personal sanctuary, his intellectual curiosity, and his aspiration to rise above his mundane, impoverished environment. However, when his father is forced to leave the village to find work, Raman must abandon school and work as a plant collector to support his family.
The climax of the story intensifies this conflict when Raman, having saved six hard-earned rupees, must choose between buying the book or a warm blanket for his shivering sister. This decision is not merely about a book and a blanket; it is a profound moral choice. By choosing the blanket, Raman subordinating his personal happiness for the survival and well-being of his family. The story demonstrates that in conditions of severe economic hardship, personal aspirations cannot exist in isolation. True maturity is achieved when Raman realizes that the bond of family solidarity and the responsibility of care are far more urgent and noble than any individual pursuit, turning his sacrifice into a triumph of character.
Question: Examine the theme of education and its true purpose as depicted in the story.
Answer: In 'What then, Raman?', Shirley L. Arora explores the deeper, philosophical purpose of education in a developing society. For Raman, education is initially a matter of personal pride and a key to a world of heroic fantasy. However, his interactions with his mentor, the American botanist, challenge this limited view. When she asks him, 'What then, Raman?', she forces him to look beyond the immediate benefits of literacy and consider how his education will serve his community.
The narrative argues that the true purpose of education is not merely to obtain personal status, read stories, or escape from manual labor. Instead, education must foster social responsibility, empathy, and practical problem-solving. When Raman sacrifices his dream of owning the illustrated Ramayana to buy a blanket for his sister, and later decides to teach the other village children to read, he fulfills the true purpose of education. He demonstrates that knowledge is a tool of empowerment that must be shared to uplift others. Education, therefore, is portrayed as a moral force that refines a person's character and inspires them to become active contributors to the welfare of their society.
Question: Write a detailed character sketch of Raman, highlighting his emotional and moral development.
Answer: Raman is a highly sensitive, intelligent, and determined eleven-year-old boy who serves as the moral center of the story. From the beginning, he is distinguished by his deep love for books and learning, holding a unique position as the first literate child in his village. He is not a passive dreamer; he shows immense resilience and courage by entering the dangerous, snake-ridden forest to collect rare plants for the American botanist to earn money.
Raman's character development is marked by his transition from a self-centered boy obsessed with his personal dream of owning an illustrated Ramayana to a responsible, mature young man. His moral growth is tested at the market, where he overcomes his selfish desires to buy a blanket for his sister. This act of selflessness shows his capacity for deep empathy and sacrifice. Furthermore, his final decision to teach other village children highlights his leadership and social consciousness. Raman emerges as an inspiring figure who proves that poverty cannot crush a noble spirit, and that true dignity lies in accepting responsibility and helping others rise alongside oneself.
Question: How do the setting of the Palani Hills and rural poverty influence the narrative and Raman's choices?
Answer: The physical setting of the Palani Hills in southern India and the harsh reality of rural poverty are not merely background elements in the story; they act as active forces that shape the plot and Raman's choices. The beautiful yet dangerous forest represents both an economic opportunity and a physical threat. It is a place of rare wildflowers that Raman can sell, but also a place of slippery cliffs, snakes, and rumored tigers that test his courage.
Rural poverty acts as a constant constraint on the characters, creating a sense of urgency and vulnerability. It is poverty that forces Raman's father to leave the village, forces Raman to drop out of school, and deprives his younger sister of a basic warm blanket. The setting highlights the fragile nature of life in a marginalized community where survival is a daily battle. Raman's choices are directly dictated by this environment. His sacrifice of his dream book is a direct consequence of his family's poverty, demonstrating how material scarcity forces individuals to make difficult moral choices. Ultimately, the setting emphasizes the triumph of Raman's spirit, showing that moral grandeur can bloom even in the most impoverished soil.
Question: Discuss the symbolic significance of the 'illustrated Ramayana' and the 'blanket' in the story.
Answer: In 'What then, Raman?', Shirley L. Arora uses the illustrated Ramayana and the warm blanket as powerful central symbols to represent the conflict between Raman's intellectual aspirations and his familial responsibilities. The illustrated Ramayana is a symbol of Raman's dreams, his love for learning, his aesthetic appreciation, and his desire to escape the limitations of his poor village. It represents the rich, inner world of his imagination and his individual identity as a student.
In contrast, the blanket is a symbol of warmth, physical survival, familial love, and practical responsibility. While the book represents the nourishment of the mind, the blanket represents the protection of the body. The cold climate of the Palani Hills makes the blanket a symbol of urgent necessity for Raman's shivering younger sister. When Raman chooses to buy the blanket instead of the book, the transition of symbols represents his journey into moral maturity. The blanket becomes a symbol of his selfless love and responsibility, proving that human relationships and the care of loved ones are the true foundation upon which any intellectual pursuit must be built.