Monday 8 July 2013

The Photograph by Shirley Toulson - Chapter Summary

Short Synopsis

A photograph descries 3 stages. In the first stage, the photograph shows the poet's mother standing at the each enjoying her holiday ith her two girl cousins. She was 12 or so at that time. The second stage takes us twenty or thirty years later. The motehr would laugh at the way she and her cousins Betty and Dolly were dressed up for each holidays. In the third stage, the poet remembers the mother with  a heavy heart. The photograph revives a nostargic feeling in the poet.

Brief Summary

A Book by Shirley Toulson
The poet is looking at her mother's photograph which is indeed an old one. With it she can see how her mother looked when she was a little girl of twelve. THe photo shows her on  a beach with her two girl cousins ho are younger than her, holding her hand. It might have een windy at that time that their hair was flying on their faces when the uncle took the photograph. All the three as smiling through their flying hair. Looking at the photograph, the poet says that her mother had a sweet face, but it was a time before the poet was born. The sea was washing their feet. The poet says that the sea has changed only a little but change has come about who's feet it was washing.
                                       After 30 or 40 years, the mother would take out the photograph and take a look at it. By that time, she was married and had a daughter. She would laugh a little and says "Look at Betty and Dolly, see how they have dressed for the beach". By now, she can only remember those days. A huge change has come about her and she is no longer that small innocent girl of twelve.
                                      After some years, the poet's mother dies. Now the poet remembers her mother's laughter, for her it is a thing of past.
That's why she says "the sea holiday as her past and mine is her laughter". Because just like the mother remembers her old days, now the poet can rememer her in that way only. However in course of time, the two of them learnt to live ith their losses. The pay of the losses had made a permanent impression in their wry faces. The poet says that her mother had been dead and no she feels herself in a situation that there is nothing to be said about but only emptiness. The silence of this situation sileances her. In other words, she is left speechless. The fate has killed all the feelings in her.

71 comments:

  1. It was really helpful
    Thanks!!!!!

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  2. Can you explain the line where it says "silence silences" a bit more

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    1. Nimer amol Singh....its silences silences
      Means that there is nothing left to say as the happy days or moments have gone for ever and will never come back and now only a silence remain that is Nothing remains left behind only memories are their

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    2. its "silence silences" only....

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    3. Ya it's silence silences as per the cbse class 11 text book .
      But well explained !

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  3. Nimer amol Singh....its silences silences
    Means that there is nothing left to say as the happy days or moments have gone for ever and will never come back and now only a silence remain that is Nothing remains left behind only memories are their

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  4. in second line of short synopsis word should be "beach" not "each"

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  5. very helpful thnxx...:) keepp it up...

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  6. can some explain when she says "the sea holidays was her past'mine is laughter"

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    1. She says this bcoz when she was a young girl her mom reminisces about her past which was her beach holiday.
      Now when she is grown elder, she reminisces about her mom's laughter which was bcoz of her sighting of the photograph.
      :)

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  7. I can't believe what my english teacher taught me... it is so wrong

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  8. A lot of spelling mistakes

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    1. Stop pointing out mistakes instead be thankful to him

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    2. Anshul dont be half-mind...clasher is actually trying to help...it should be corrected

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  9. A lot of spelling mistakes. Why?

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  10. Can someone explain this line "now she's been dead nearly as many years as that girl lived"

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    1. The girl in the picture was 12 years old and the mother has been dead for 12 years

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  11. Why the poetess feel emotional on seeing the photograph?
    Please can you explain this question..

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    1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    2. because it is related to her mother , who is dead now.Which makes her full of silence and emptiness

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    3. because it is related to her mother , who is dead now.Which makes her full of silence and emptiness

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  12. Informative ... Justread this content and the complete chapter is understood in a couple of mintes

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  13. what is the thing that has not changed over the year ?

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    Replies
    1. The sea has not changed whereas the poet's mother has changed with the passage of time, which means human life is short.

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  14. Thank you
    Beautifully explained....:)

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  15. See your spelling first and then complain and its explained very nicely.

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  16. Thanqu for the explanation it was so helpful....

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  17. Thanks man i couldn't understand anything from the poem but this helped me for my exam again thanks you

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  18. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  19. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  20. It's really good
    So clearly explained
    Thnxxxx...!!!

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  21. Thanks for providing the summary..

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  22. It silence silences can also be explained as when the author thinks about her mother a silences evolves and that silence silences everything

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  23. Can anyone tell me is their any allitration, semili etc........?and what is the meaning of terribly transiant feet.........?

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    1. Transiant means something lasting for a short time
      Here it means that those feet lasted for a short time ie. Those girls died young terribly.

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    2. Thanks bro..........i am preety sure you are rightπŸ‘

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    3. Terribly transient feet here signify the human body. The human body is transient i.e. temporary. It will die someday but nature is permanent

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    4. Terribly transient feet here signify the human body. The human body is transient i.e. temporary. It will die someday but nature is permanent

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  25. spelling was mistake and i got confused but it was helpful

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  26. Both wry with the laboured ease of loss
    Pls can someone explain this sentence.... By the way thanks for the explanation of the poem helped a lot

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    Replies
    1. Change is harsh and bitter truth. None can hold or capture them. With the passage of time everything gets distorted(out of shape) and man is compelled to accept this loss with ease. However harsh or painful it may be for the person to accept it.

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  27. What does transinient feet mean ? And why the reference of the sea has been given?

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  28. Can you describe the line "Both wry with the laboured ease of loss."

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  30. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  31. What is the meaning of line "both wry with the laboured ease of loss"?

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  32. Can you explain the line "Both wry with the laboured ease of loss" pls... Help me if someone can

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  33. satisfactory. can not fullybe rely on it.

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  34. she said do u love me? , i said i only party, i only love my bed and my mom ,i am sorry.

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  35. Thankuuuu veryy much 😁😁😁summary is fantastic πŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ‘ŒπŸ˜

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  36. Sir can u explain me more bout that sentence "both wry with the laboured ease of loss"

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    Replies
    1. Both the mother and the poet suffered a great sense of loss.The mother has lost her childhood innocence and joyful spirit that the photograph has captured some years ago. For the poet,the smile of her mother has become a thing of the past.She has silently resigned to her faith. Ironically both labour to bear with ease

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    2. Nice explaination.. Thnx a lot

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  37. Its silence silences
    means??

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  38. Its silence silences means??

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