THE LOST CHILD : INTRODUCTION , PAGE 1& 2

18TH MAY 2020

THE LOST CHILD

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LEARNING OUTCOMES:

List out the word meanings

Summarize the story

Analyze the plot, theme and characters

DEAR STUDENTS TODAY WE WILL BEGING THE FIRST CHAPTER FROM MOMENTS READER. WE WILL DISCUSS PAGES 1 AND 2

The Lost Child is the story of a small child who gets lost in a fair. This is written by Mulk Raj Anand.

About the Poet Mulk Raj Anand

Mulk Raj Anand (1905-2004) was an Indian writer in English, notable for his depiction of the lives of the poorer castes in traditional Indian society. He is a prominent Indian author of novels, short stories, and critical essays in English, who is known for his realistic and sympathetic portrayal of the poor in India.

A prolific writer, Anand first gained wide recognition for his novels Untouchable (1935) and Coolie (1936), both of which examined the problems of poverty in Indian society. In 1945 he returned to Bombay (now Mumbai) to campaign for national reforms.

SUMMARY

The Lost Child” is a short story written by Mulk Raj Anand, an eminent Indian English writer. Anand is one of the famous Trio of Indian English Novelists. This story depicts children’s psychology. The story is set in a rural village with all its charm, pomp and gaiety during the spring festival season.
A small child goes to a fare along with his parents, during a spring season. The child is filled with joy and happiness on seeing the fun, pomp, and gaiety around him. There were many stalls selling a variety of things such as toys, sweetmeats, flowers, balloons, etc. There were snake charmers and merry-go-round and many other attractions.
Attracted by the colourful items in the stalls, the child stops at every stall to enjoy watching them. But as the parents find the child lagging behind, they keep shouting at him and ask him to move fast along with them. He has to keep moving lest he is lost in the crowd. The child pesters his parents to buy the toys, sweetmeats, flowers, balloons, etc. but in vain. The child also knows that his parents would refuse his request and strictly say ‘No’ to his request.
At the merry-go-round, the child stops. He is determined to request his parents for a round. But he finds his parents nowhere near. The child is overpowered by the fear and starts crying frantically. He searches for his parents by running here and there. But, he could not find them anywhere. He only utters the words ‘Mother’ and ‘Father’ in a loud and frantic voice.  
The child reaches a temple and searches for his parents there. He is almost trampled in the rush of the people there. Then, a stranger saves him from the crowd. He tries to pacify the child by taking the child to the stalls and offering the toys, sweets, flowers, and colourful balloons. But the child does not show any interest in them and cries in a loud voice that he wants only his mother and father.

Interestingly, all the things which had appealed so much to the child are no longer attractive. The story ends at this point without telling whether the child got his parents back or not. Thus, the story portrays child psychology very effectively. 

KEY POINTS (EXPLANATION OF PAGES 1, 2)

The story is set in the spring season. As the winter season had just ended, all the people came out of their houses. They were cheerful as the chilling cold weather had ended. People conveyed through different modes - foot, horses, bamboo carts and bullock carts. A little child was accompanied by his parents. He ran excitedly and often banged into his father’s legs. He was full of life, excitement and laughter.

The child was attracted to the toys which were displayed at the various stalls. As he would be left behind, his parents would call him to come with them.

The child was obedient and would walk towards them on being called but his eyes would keep on looking at the toys that he wanted. As he reached them, he couldn't control his desire to buy a toy. He was familiar to the reaction that they would give. He knew that they would stare him indicating denial to buy him the toy. The child knew the emotionless  way in which they would stare at him.

The father’s eyes grew red with anger. He looked at the child just like a cruel ruler who was trying to oppress him. The mother became emotional due to the cheerful mood. Lovingly, she gave her finger to the child to hold and guided him to a place. She asked him to see what was in front of him.

There was a vast field full of bright yellow - coloured mustard flowers. They seemed like flowing streams of gold and were widespread. A group pf dragonflies, black bees and butterflies buzzed around, sucking the nectar from the flowers. The child looked at them as they flew around. When one of the sat somewhere, he tried to catch them but the tiny creatures would fly away the next instance. The mother called out to him as they started walking down the footpath.

The child ran towards his parents. He walked next to them but after few steps, he stopped to see the insects who were coming out of the soil. Once again the child was left behind.

As the child entered the shady forested area, he was welcomed by a shower of flowers. He forgot his parents and started collecting the petals that had fallen. Just then he heard the cooing of doves and was excited to see them. He started chasing the birds and in the process, the petals fell from his hand. (This shows that as the child got attracted towards the next thing, he forgot what he had been doing earlier).

The parents called the child who was running and playing around a banyan tree. They lifted him and walked down a narrow, twisting lane through which they crossed the mustard fields and reached the fair.

YOU CAN WATCH THIS VIDEO EXPLANATION FOR A BETTER UNDERSTANDING:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNGLpyYLzGc

WORD MEANINGS

wintry shades of narrow lanes and alleys: in the winter season, the narrow lanes were full of shade.

Emerged: came out

Brimming over: to be full of something

Lagged behind: was left behind

Fascinated by: attracted to

Lined the way: were set up along the way.

Lingering: lasting for a long time

Receding: left behind as he walked ahead

Suppress: put an end to

Cold: without any feelings, emotions

Pale: dull, colourless

Gaudy: extremely bright and showy

Abreast: side by side and facing the same way

Teeming out: to pour or empty out

Tyrant: a cruel and oppressive ruler

Grove: a small wood or group of trees

Capers: a playful skipping movement

CLASSWORK: WATCH THE VIDEO EXPLANATION

READ THE KEY POINTS FROM PAGES 1 AND 2

HOME WORK: LIST OUT THE WORD MEANINGS IN YOUR MOMENTS LITERATURE NOTEBOOK

READ THE COMPLETE STORY

THAT’S ALL FOR TODAY!!