Sure Shot Questions: Memories of Childhood

Short Answer Type Questions

Q1: How did Zitkala-Sa try to prevent the shingling of her hair?
Ans: Zitkala-Sa slipped away unnoticed and entered a large room that contained three beds. She crawled beneath one of the beds and huddled herself into a dark corner, hoping to remain hidden. She could not stay concealed for long; people soon found and dragged her out. Although she kicked and scratched wildly in an effort to resist, she was tied fast to a chair and her long, heavy hair was shingled.

Q2: Why was Zitkala-Sa terrified when Judewin told her that her hair would be cut short?
Ans: Zitkala-Sa was terrified because, in her community, cutting hair was a sign of shame reserved for mourners, prisoners of war and those considered cowards. She understood that having her long hair cut would be a serious humiliation. For this reason she tried to hide in a vain attempt to prevent the shingling.

Q3: What advice did Annan offer Bama?
Ans: Annan loved his sister Bama and acted as her mentor. He told her that, as Dalits, they would not be shown dignity or respect by society. He advised her to study hard and to excel academically so that she could earn respect and rise above social indignities. In short, he encouraged her to outshine the upper castes by winning honours in examinations and thereby gain recognition.

Q4: What did Judewin tell Zitkala-Sa? How did she react to it?
Ans: Judewin, who knew some English, warned Zitkala-Sa that she had overheard a pale-faced woman saying that the girls' long hair would be cut. Judewin counselled submission and resignation to this fate, but Zitkala-Sa refused to accept it. She chose to resist: she tried to hide and later struggled violently when they attempted to make her submit.

Q5: When did Bama first come to know of the social discrimination faced by the people of her community?
Ans: Bama first became aware of social discrimination when she was in the third standard. While walking home from school she saw an elderly man carrying a small packet of food by its strings so that he would not have to touch it, and he handed it to the landlord who opened it and began to eat. Bama at first thought this behaviour strange, but her elder brother Annan explained that the man belonged to a low caste and therefore could not touch the food directly, which revealed the practice of untouchability to her.

Q6: What made Bama return home invariably late from school?
Ans: Bama usually took thirty minutes to an hour to cover a ten-minute walk home because she was easily distracted by the lively sights along the way. She would stop to watch games in the street, gaze at shop fronts and bazaars, and enjoy performances such as the dancing monkeys and the snake charmers. These attractions delayed her and made her journey longer than it need have been.

Q7: What sort of shows or entertainment attracted Bama?
Ans: Bama was drawn to popular entertainments that appeared on the road or on an improvised stage. These included street plays, puppet shows, and occasional stunt performances that claimed to show "no magic, no miracle." Political parties also sometimes staged events and used loudspeakers to address the crowd, and she would watch those too.

Q8: Why was Zitkala-Sa in tears on the first day in the land of apples?
Ans: Zitkala-Sa wept on her first day in the land of apples because she faced a sudden cultural shock. The language was unfamiliar, routines were strict and unlike anything she knew, and the noisy clatter of shoes disturbed her. Furthermore, the frightening news that her long hair might be cut added to her distress. All these unfamiliar experiences together made her cry.

Q9: Why did Zitkala-Sa resist the shingling of her hair?
Ans: Zitkala-Sa resisted because she knew that cutting hair in her culture symbolised disgrace. Having learned that the authorities intended to cut her long hair, she tried to hide to avoid that humiliation. When found, she fought back by kicking and scratching, but she was overpowered and her hair was cut.

Q10: At the dining table why did Zitkala-Sa begin to cry when others started eating?
Ans: As Zitkala-Sa sat at the long line of tables she noticed a pale-faced woman watching her intently. She was unused to eating by strict rules and rituals. When the third bell tapped and everyone else began to eat on cue, Zitkala-Sa felt confused, watched and out of place; overwhelmed by fear and alienation she began to cry.

Long Answer Type Questions

Q11: What are the similarities in the lives of Bama and Zitkala though they belong to different cultures?
Ans: Bama and Zitkala-Sa, though from very different backgrounds, both belonged to marginalised communities and faced systematic discrimination. Zitkala-Sa, an American Indian girl, endured forced assimilation by white authorities who sought to destroy native customs; the most painful indignity she suffered was the forcible cutting of her long hair. She struggled fiercely and resisted, but was overpowered. Bama, a Dalit in India, experienced caste-based humiliation from an early age and the practice of untouchability left her deeply hurt. Both women refused to accept humiliation passively. Zitkala-Sa resisted physically when her hair was taken; Bama responded by studying hard to excel academically, which earned her respect. In both lives the central similarity is the struggle against racial or social oppression and a determination to resist and assert dignity.

Q12: What activities did Bama witness on her way back home from school?
Ans: On her way home Bama often took much longer than the journey required because she watched many public entertainments and daily sights. She saw performing monkeys, snake charmers and a cyclist who boasted that he had not dismounted for three days. She watched devotees preparing Pongal offerings in front of the Maariyaata temple. Political groups sometimes set up a stage to speak to the public, and there were street plays, puppet shows and magic or stunt performances. These varied spectacles regularly delayed her return.

Q13: What were Zitkala-Sa's experiences on her first day in the land of apples?
Ans: The first day in the land of apples was cold and bewildering for Zitkala-Sa. She experienced discomfort from the unfamiliar clatter of shoes and the strict schedule of the institution. She was formed into a line with the other Indian girls and marched into the dining room where many girls were dressed differently from what she was used to. A pale-faced woman watched her keenly, which unsettled her. Judewin later warned her that this woman had spoken of cutting their long hair. Terrified, Zitkala-Sa hid under a bed, but she was discovered and dragged out. She protested with vigorous kicking and scratching, yet she was carried downstairs, tied to a chair and had her long hair shingled.

Q14: In India, the so-called lower castes have been treated cruelly for a long time. Who advised Bama to fight against this prejudice, when and how?
Ans: Bama's elder brother Annan advised her to resist caste prejudice by excelling in education. The advice came after she had an early, painful lesson in untouchability while in the third standard: she witnessed an older man from their community being forced to hand food to a landlord without touching it. Annan explained the social reality and counselled Bama to study hard and make progress so that she could overcome indignities. Bama followed his counsel, worked diligently and eventually stood first in her class, which helped her gain respect and challenge discriminatory attitudes.