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My Mother at Sixty-six, Question 1., The mother’s old age and lack of energy is a depiction of, (a) the poet’s helplessness in old age, (b) joy and fun of old age, (c) bonding of mother with family members, (d) sickness and ill-health, Answer, Answer: (a) the poet’s helplessness in old age, Question 2., The poem is made up of, (a) twenty lines, (b) a single sentence, (c) ten stanzas, (d) five stanzas, Answer, Answer: (b) a single sentence, Question 3., The image of merry children has been brought out by the narrator in order to, (a) show energy and exuberance of young children, (b) to show the children playing, (c) to show the children playing pranks, (d) to compare with herself, Answer, Answer: (a) show energy and exuberance of young children, Question 4., The narrator is only using her smile to, (a) cover up her pain, (b) make herself happy, (c) to make her mother happy, (d) to make her father happy, Answer, Answer: (a) cover up her pain
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Question 5., Smile and smile and smile is, (a) alliteration, (b) repetition, (c) simile, (d) metaphor, Answer, Answer: (b) repetition, Question 6., She said to her mother, (a) goodbye, (b) au revoir, (c) good morning go., (d) see you soon, Amma, Answer, Answer: (d) see you soon, Amma, Question 7., When the narrator looked at her mother again she felt a pang of, (a) her familiar ache, (b) guilt, (c) heartache, (d) a headache, Answer, Answer: (a) her familiar ache, Question 8., The narrator again compared her mother too, (a) summer’s sun, (b) rain clouds, (c) late winter’s moon, (d) trees and plants, Answer, Answer: (c) late winter’s moon, Question 9., ‘Children spilling out’ is an, (a) simile, (b) metaphor
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(c) personification, (d) transferred epithet, Answer, Answer: (b) metaphor, Question 10., ‘Trees sprinting’ is a poetic device. It is, (a) personification, (b) alliteration, (c) repetition, (d) simile, Answer, Answer: (a) personification, Question 11., She soon put that thought out of her mind and, (a) smiled, (b) laughed heartily, (c) cried bitterly, (d) looked out of the window, Answer, Answer: (d) looked out of the window, Question 12., The poetess says her mother looked pale like a, (a) corpse, (b) ghost, (c) malnourished child, (d) anaemic person, Answer, Answer: (a) corpse, Question 13., The person in the car, beside the poetess, was,, (a) her aunt, (b) her niece, (c) her uncle, (d) her mother, Answer
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Answer: (d) her mother, Question 14., She was going to, (a) Goa, (b) Mumbai, (c) Cochin, (d) Kolkata, Answer, Answer: (c) Cochin, Question 15., Kamala Das was an, (a) Bengali, (b) Punjabi, (c) Keralite, (d) Gujarati, Answer, Answer: (c) Keralite, Question 16., What were the words she used while parting from her mother?, (a) See you soon Ba, (b) See you soon beeji, (c) See you soon mata ji, (d) See you soon, amma, Answer, Answer: (d) See you soon, amma, Question 17., Whose house the poet was leaving?, (a) her friend’s house, (b) in-law’s house, (c) her husband’s house, (d) her parents’ house, Answer, Answer: (d) her parents’ house
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Question 18., What does the expression smile, smile and smile signify?, (a) poet was going home and was elated, (b) poet was happy, (c) poet was hopeless, (d) poet’s desperate efforts to hide her fears, Answer, Answer: (d) poet’s desperate efforts to hide her fears, Question 19., What question arises from the complexity of the situation in the poem?, (a) what to do in old age, (b) how to take care of one’s skin, (c) how to drive, (d) How to strike a balance between duties and responsibilities, Answer, Answer: (d) How to strike a balance between duties and responsibilities, Question 20, What does the narrative single sentence style of the poem highlight?, (a) Poet’s feelings, (b) Poet’s insecurities, (c) poet’s thoughts, (d) poet’s intertwining thoughts, Answer, Answer: (d) poet’s intertwining thoughts, Question 21., Why does the poet feel parted, upset and sad?, (a) because of her fears, (b) because she was getting late, (c) fear of missing her flight, (d) because of her duty towards mother and her own needs, Answer, Answer: (d) because of her duty towards mother and her own needs, Question 22., Quote an example of personification used in the poem., (a) sprinting trees, (b) home to cochin
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(c) airport’s security check, (d) All of these, Answer, Answer: (a) sprinting trees, Question 23., Quote an example of a metaphor used in the poem., (a) as a late winter’s moon, (b) ‘Trees sprinting, the merry children spilling out of their homes’, (c) Driving from my parent’s home, (d) None, Answer, Answer: (b) ‘Trees sprinting, the merry children spilling out of their homes’, Question 24., Which Rhyming scheme is used in the poem?, (a) coupled rhyme, (b) monorhyme, (c) Alternate rhyme, (d) free verse, Answer, Answer: (d) free verse, Question 25., Why did the poet look at her mother again?, (a) because she was busy, (b) because she was going away, (c) because she wanted to stay back, (d) because of fear and insecurity, Answer, Answer: (d) because of fear and insecurity, Question 26., What is the universality of the theme of the poem?, (a) death is a truth, (b) Life is a reality, (c) everyone is happy, (d) to show old age, Answer
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Answer: (a) death is a truth, Question 27., What do the parting words “See you soon Amma” signify?, (a) her carelessness, (b) Her optimistic farewell full of cheerfulness, (c) she bids goodbye like this, (d) she is in a hurry, Answer, Answer: (b) Her optimistic farewell full of cheerfulness, Question 28., What does ‘ashen face ‘ signify?, (a) colour of face, (b) face is covered with ash, (c) Pale and lifeless face of poet’s mother, (d) to show ugly face, Answer, Answer: (c) Pale and lifeless face of poet’s mother, Question 29., What do the running trees signify?, (a) fast moving appearance, (b) speed of the moving car, (c) fast moving change in human life from childhood to old age, (d) none, Answer, Answer: (c) fast moving change in human life from childhood to old age, Question 30., What did the poet realize with pain?, (a) her mother’s appearance like a corpse, (b) she is inconsiderate, (c) old age is pleasant, (d) she has duties, Answer, Answer: (a) her mother’s appearance like a corpse
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Question 31., What does this narrative style of the poem signify?, (a) differing thoughts, (b) many thoughts, (c) contrasting thoughts, (d) a single thread of thought mixed with harsh realities, Answer, Answer: (d) a single thread of thought mixed with harsh realities, Question 32., Which poetic device is used in “Trees sprinting-” ?, (a) metaphor, (b) simile, (c) alliteration, (d) Personification, Answer, Answer: (d) Personification, Question 33., Name the poetic devices used in the poem., (a) metaphor, (b) similie, (c) alliteration, (d) all of these, Answer, Answer: (d) all of these, Question 34., What is the kind of pain and ache that the poet feels?, (a) Losing her mother, (b) heart attack, (c) headache, (d) children screaming at her, Answer, Answer: (a) Losing her mother, Question 35., Who is the poet of this poem?, (a) John Keats, (b) Rudyard Kipling
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(c) William Wordsworth, (d) Kamala Das, Answer, Answer: (d) Kamala Das, Question 36., What pangs did she feel when she looked at her mother?, (a) Pangs of headache, (b) Pangs of stomachache, (c) Pangs of knee pain, (d) Pangs of heartache, Answer, Answer: (d) Pangs of heartache, Question 37., What was the poet’s childhood fear?, (a) Parting from her husband, (b) Parting from her friends, (c) Parting from her siblings, (d) losing her mother, Answer, Answer: (d) losing her mother, Question 38., What was the expression of the poet’s face while parting from her mother?, (a) satirical, (b) funny, (c) sad, (d) smiling, Answer, Answer: (d) smiling, Question 39., How is the imagery of ‘young trees and merry children’ a contrast to the mother?, (a) mother is old in comparison to the trees and children, (b) mother is like ash while the trees are green and children are happy, (c) like spring and autumn season, (d) Mother’s health-hopelessness and trees and merry children- youthfulness and hope, Answer
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Answer: (d) Mother’s health-hopelessness and trees and merry children- youthfulness and, hope, Question 40., What does the poem revolve around?, (a) poet’s fears, (b) poet’s love for her mother, (c) Theme of old age, (d) All of these, Answer, Answer: (d) All of these
