Going Places
A. R. Barton
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| Going Places (www.hikha.in) |
QUESTIONS FROM
TEXTBOOK SOLVED
THINK AS YOU READ
Q1.Where was it most
likely that the two girls would find work after school?
Ans:
Sophie and Jansie would soon pass out of their school. Only a few months
were left. Jansie knew very well that both of them were earmarked for biscuit
factory. Sophie had wild dreams about her career. Jansie was a realist. She
knew that they did not pay well for shop work and Sophie’s father would not
allow her to work there.
Q2. What were the
options that Sophie was dreaming of? Why does Jansie discourage her from having
such dreams?
Ans:
Sophie wanted to open a boutique. It would be the most amazing shop that
city had ever seen. Alternatively, she would become an actress and have the
boutique as a side business. She also thought of being a fashion designer.
Jansie had her feet firmly planted to the ground. She wanted Sophie to be
sensible and drop all her utopian plans because all of them required much money
and experience.
THINK AS YOU READ
Q1.Why did Sophie
wriggle when Geoff told her father that she had met Danny Casey?
Ans:
Sophie knew her father well. He would be angry if he knew of her meeting
with the young Irish footballer, Danny Casey. She didn’t tell him. When Geoff
told his father about it, he became angry. He turned Ms head to look at her
with disdain. Sophie wriggled where she was sitting at the table.
Q2.Does Geoff believe
what Sophie says about her meeting with Danny Casey?
Ans:
No, Geoff doesn’t believe what Sophie says about her meeting with Danny
Casey. First, he looks round in disbelief and says, “It can’t be true”. Again
he says, “I don’t believe it.” Sophie then narrates how Danny Casey came and
stood beside her. Geoff asks her, “What does he look like?” So, he doesn’t seem
to be convinced that Sophie met Danny Casey.
Q3. Does her father
believe her story?
Ans:
No, Sophie’s father does not believe her story. When Geoff tells him that
Sophie met Danny Casey, his father looked at Sophie with disdain. He ignores
her totally. He thinks that it is yet another ‘wild story’. He begins to talk
about Tom Finny, another great football player.
Q4. How does Sophie
include her brother Geoff in her fantasy of her future?
Ans:
Geoff was always the first to share her secrets. So, she told him about
meeting Danny Casey. She also told him about her plan to meet him next week.
She suspected areas of his life about which she knew nothing. She longed to
know them. She wished that someday he might take her with him. She saw herself
riding there behind Geoff.
Q5. Which country did
Danny Casey play for?
Ans:
Danny Casey played for Ireland.
THINK AS YOU READ
Q1. Why didn’t Sophie
want Jansie to know about her story with Danny?
Ans:
Jansie was very interested in things that did not concern her. She wanted
to know other people’s affairs. She would spread the news in the whole
neighbourhood. So, Sophie didn’t want Jansie to know about her story with
Danny. It may also be mutual rivalry and one-up manship on her part. Sophie was startled to learn that Geoff
had told Jansie about her story with Danny.
Q2. Did Sophie really
meet Danny Casey?
Ans:
No, Sophie did not really meet Danny Casey. She was very fascinated by
the young Irish footballer. She imagined his coming. She sat in the park,
waiting for Casey and knowing that he would not come. She felt sad. Sadness was
a hard burden to carry. She was always lost in a dreamy world where she
imagined Casey meeting her.
Q3. Which was the
only occasion when she got to see Danny Casey in person?
Ans:
The only occasion when Sophie got to see Danny Casey in person was when
the family went to watch United on Saturday. Sophie, her father and little
Derek went down near the goal. Geoff went with his mates higher up. United won
two-nil. Her idol Casey drove in the second goal. She saw the Irish genius
going round two big defenders on the edge of penalty area. He beat the hesitant
goal keeper from a dozen yards. Sophie glowed with pride. She was very happy.
UNDERSTANDING THE
TEXT UNDERSTANDING THE TEXT
Q1. Sophie and Jansie
were classmates and friends. What were the differences between them that show
up in the story?
Ans:
Sophie and Jansie are poles apart in tastes and temperament. Sophie has
fantastic dreams and floats in a fairy land. She is an incurable escapist who
won’t come out of her dreams. Jansie is down to earth—a realist. Sophie wants
to do something sophisticated. Jansie knows that these things require a lot of
money which their families do not possess. Jansie also knows that they were earmarked
for the biscuit factory. She even advises Sophie to be sensible and practical.
Sophie considers Jansie ‘nosey’ and does not want to confide in her.
Q2. How would you
describe the character and temperament of Sophie’s father?
Ans:
Sophie’s father has a plumpy face looking grimy and sweaty. He doesn’t
seem to be a soft or sophisticated man. Sophie fears his agressive manliness.
He is a realist and does not believe in his daughter’s wild stories. He loves
watching football. He hopes young Casey will be as good as Tom Finney. He
wishes that the young footballer keeps away from all distractions. He shouts
instructions to Casey at the playground. When the Irish genius beats the
hesitant goal keeper, Sophie’s father screams with joy and pride. He goes to a
pub to celebrate the victory.
Q3. Why did Sophie
like her brother Geoff more than any other person? From her perspective, what
did he symbolise?
Ans:
Geoff is the only person who listens to Sophie’s fantasies and long
cherished dreams. Her father is too bossy and aggressive. He hates Sophie’s
fantastic stories. Even little Derek – makes fun of her growing rich. Her
classmate Jansie is ‘nosey’ and can’t be trusted with a secret. Only Geoff can
be trusted to keep all the secrets of Sophie to himself. From her perspective,
Geoff symbolises an elder brother who has grown up and visited places unknown
to her. She wished that someday her brother might take her to those places. He
is sympathetic and cautions her by telling her that Casey might have strings of
girls. He warns her that he would never show up again. He speaks softly so as
not to break the heart of the young dreamer.
Additional
Q&A Of Going Places
Q1. What does Sophie
dream of doing after she passes out of school? Why do you call it a ‘dream’ and
not a ‘plan’?
Ans:
Sophie dreams to have a boutique of her own. It will be the most amazing
shop the city has ever seen. She says that she will buy a boutique if ever she
comes into money. She does not mind becoming an actress to run a boutique as a
side business. Since she has no money or experience, it is called a ‘dream’ and
not a ‘plan’.
Q2. What are the
other dreams of Sophie in addition to having a boutique?
Ans:
The greatest dream of Sophie is to have a boutique. She wants to be a bit
sophisticated and rise above her lower-middle class status. Her other dream is
of being an actress as “there’s real money in that”. Moreover, actresses don’t
work full time. She can look after her first love i.e. boutique as a side
business. She has another option. She can be a fashion designer, and do
something sophisticated.
Q3. Why does -Jansie
say: “Soaf, you really should be sensible”?
Ans:
Jansie knows Sophie’s family background and financial position. She knows
that both of them are earmarked for that biscuit factory. Sophie dreams of big
and beautiful things like having a boutique or becoming an actress or a fashion
designer. All these things need a lot of money and experience. Sophie has
neither of them. So Jansie being down-to-earth advises her to be sensible and
stop having wild dreams.
Q4. Compare and
contrast Sophie and Jansie?
OR
Jansie is Sophie’s
classmate and friend but doesn’t entertain any ‘wild dreams’ like her. Why?
Ans:
Sophie and Jansie are classmates and friends, but the similarity ends
here. They are poles’ apart in thinking and temperament. Sophie is an incurable
dreamer and escapist. She dreams of big and beautiful things, which are beyond
her reach. On the other hand, Jansie is realistic and practical. She knows that
they are poor and will have to work in the biscuit factory after leaving
school. She is well aware that big things require big money and experience,
which they don’t have. It is better to live in reality and think accordingly.
Q5. What job is Geoff
engaged in? How does he differ from his sister, Sophie?
Ans:
Geoff is a grown up boy. He left school three years ago. Now he is an
apprentice mechanic. He has to travel to his work each day to the far side of
the city. He speaks little but listens to his sister’s ‘wild stories’. But he
is not a day dreamer like her. He knows the financial limitations of his
family. He cautions Sophie against entertaining dreams for a celebrity like
Danny Casey.
Q6. Why was Sophie
jealous of Geoff’s silence?
Ans:
Geoff was almost grown up now. He spoke little. Words had to be extracted
out of him like stones out of the ground. Sophie was jealous of his silence.
She knew that when he was not speaking, he was away somewhere. He was out in
the surrounding country—in those places she had never been. She wanted to share
her brother’s affection.
Q7. What does Sophie
tell Geoff about her meeting with Danny Casey? How does Geoff react to it?
Ans:
Sophie tells Geoff that she met Danny Casey. Geoff is surprised. He looks
round abruptly and asks ‘where?’ Sophie replies that she met him in the arcade.
Geoff can’t believe her. He says, “It’s never true.” He asks her, “What does he
look like?” She replies that he has green eyes and is not very tall. Geoff is
still not convinced.
Q8. Why did Sophie
long for her brother’s affection?
Ans:
Ans: Geoff was not very talkative. He was an introvert. Sophie thought
that Geoff had access to the world where she had not got even a chance to
visit. She wanted to be the part of her brother’s world. That is why she longed
for his affection.
Q9. What did Sophie
want to keep a secret from her father and why? How did Jansie react to this
disclosure?
Ans:
Sophie told Jansie that she wanted to keep her meeting with Casey a
secret. There would be a row if her father knew it. Jansie thought that he
would be pleased. Sophie told Jansie what a misery her father was. Moreover,
she did not want crowd of people asking him about Danny Casey and her. She
feared that he would murder her. Her mother felt upset whenever there was a
row. Jansie assured Sophie that she could trust her to keep the secret.
Q10. How did Jansie
react at Sophie’s story of her meeting with Danny Casey?
Ans:
Jansie was a classmate and friend of Sophie. She lived in the same
neighbourhood. She knew Sophie quite well. She was also aware of Sophie’s habit
of dreaming. On learning of her meeting with Danny Casey, her first reaction
was of disbelief. “You never did”, exclaimed Jansie. But when Sophie told her
about her request for autograph, Jansie softened a little and said, “Jesus, I
wish I’d have been there.”
Q11. Why did Sophie
not want Jansie to know anything about her meeting with Danny Casey?
Ans:
Sophie knew that Jansie was ‘nosey’. She was very inquisitive by nature.
She took special interest in knowing new things about others. Sophie did not
trust Jansie as she could not keep a secret. She could spread the rumour in the
whole neighbourhood.
Q12. Did Geoff keep
his promise? How do you know?
OR
Why did Sophie say
“Damn that Geoff, this was a Geoff thing not a Jansie thing.”
Ans:
Sophie had told Geoff about her meeting with Danny Casey and asked him to
promise that he would tell no one. It was a secret between the two—something
special just between them. Geoff did not keep his promise. He told Jansie’s
brother Frank about it. Sophie cursed Geoff, as it was his doing, not Jansie’s.
Q13. What promise
does Sophie want Geoff to make and why ?
OR
Why does Sophie say:
“Promise you’ll tell no one” and “Promise, Geoff-Dad’d murder me.”
Ans:
Sophie wants to confide in Geoff what happened dining her meeting with
Danny Casey. Before telling him the details, she wants him to promise that he
would tell no one about her meeting and the next ‘date’. She is afraid of her
father’s anger. She fears he would murder her. Geoff assures her that she is
quite safe. Their father does not believe such wild stories.
Q14. Who was Danny
Casey? How did the members of Sophie’s family react towards him?
Ans:
Danny Casey was a young Irish football player. He played for the United.
The Irish prodigy could easily dodge the defenders and score goals. Sophie’s
father was a football fan. He admired old heroes like Tom Finney and young
wonder boy Casey. Geoff had a large poster of United first team squad on his
bed room wall. There were three coloured photographs of Casey in the row below
it. Every Saturday they went to watch United play.
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