Memories of Childhood Summary Class 12 English Vistas book CH-8 Memories of Childhood Memories of Childhood by Jack Finney
Table of Contents
Memories of Childhood Summary Class 12
Short Summary of Memories of Childhood
This lesson presents autobiographical episodes from the lives of two women.
The first account is of a native Indian girl in America. She faces American culture being imposed upon other communities living there. In her own culture, only cowards keep shingled hair. But in America, her long and heavy hair is forcibly shingled. She resents in her own child-like way by slipping away from the scene and kicking and scratching.
The other account is of a girl from a so-called lower caste in India. She sees an elderly person of her caste being insulted by a landlord. Her brother tells her about the social inequality faced by the people of lower castes. He encourages her to study hard in order to rise in social position. She does so and feels better.
Detailed Summary of the chapter Memories of Childhood
I. The Cutting of My Long Hair…..(ZITKALA -SA)
In the introduction to Carlisle Indian School, the narrator describes the first day as cold and unpleasant with lots of snow around. There was a loud noise of a metallic bell ringing for breakfast, causing a clatter of feet and unnerving noise.
During the breakfast routine, girls are marched to the dining room, and watched over by a pale-faced woman. The small girls wear aprons and have shingled hair, dressed in clinging clothes. The narrator’s blanket is stripped away, and other girls seem accustomed to this treatment. Additionally, three brave-looking boys enter from another door, and everyone takes a chair after a bell is tapped. Others only sit down after the ringing of the second bell. All hung their heads down.
The narrator describes her experience at the Carlisle Indian School. During breakfast, everyone only sits down after the second bell, and they all hang their heads. The pale-faced woman looks angrily at the author. They begin their eating after the third bell.
When the author hears about the shingling of her hair, she refuses to let it be so because she believes that only unskilled warriors and captured enemies have their hair shingled. Mourners wore short hair in the narrator’s community.
The author decides to resist the haircutting, but Judewin, the friend, advises submission as others are stronger. The narrator hides under a bed to avoid being caught.
The narrator is discovered, dragged out, and tied to a chair in the subsequent humiliation. Her thick braids are cut off, and she feels humiliated and dehumanized.
II. “We Too are Human Beings”……(BAMA)
The story starts with the narrator’s walk back home from her school. The narrator describes her journey back home from school, which took longer than expected. Along the way, she observed various attractions and activities, including fun games, novelties, shops, and the bazaar. They saw a performing monkey, a man pedalling for days, activities at the Maariyaata temple, a statue of Gandhiji, and even wild animals in cages.
The author found other attractions like political speeches, puppet shows, street plays, coffee shops, and fruit trees captivating. They watched peddlers selling fruits, snacks, halwa, and iced lollies.
The scene at the landlord’s house involved a threshing floor and cattle being driven to tread corn. The narrator’s community elder brought a packet of food by holding it in a queer way. He was carrying the food packet by hanging it the strings, not touching it because the landlord wouldn’t touch it due to caste-based discrimination.
The narrator later learns about untouchability and shares this incident with their brother. The landlord’s refusal to touch the food due to caste pollution leaves the narrator feeling sad, let down, and angry. This incident sparked a protest against discrimination, with the community being exploited while the upper caste enjoyed benefits.
The narrator is outraged by this exploitation, viewing it as a curse against humanity, especially due to the wealth-based discrimination.
The narrator believes that their community should boycott and refuse to do petty errands as a means of protest. Her elder brother described how he was questioned about his caste, and all the Dalits lived together in a separate place.
The narrator’s brother, Annan, advises her that their community lacks respect and dignity due to their caste, emphasizing that education is the only way to gain respect. The narrator is encouraged to work hard and learn, and they follow this advice with determination, eventually achieving the first position in her class. As a result, many people tried to befriend them because of their academic success and newfound status.
Memories of Childhood PDf
Read More-