A Doctor’s Journal Entry for August 6, 1945 workbook solution

Workbook Answers Question Answers

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
The morning stretched calm, beautiful, and warm.

Sprawling half-clad, I gazed out at the form

Of shimmering leaves and shadows. Suddenly

A strong flash, then another, startled me.

I saw the old stone lantern brightly lit…

Magnesium flares?

(i) How is the morning described in the extract? In what mood was the narrator?

The morning in the extract is said to be tranquil, lovely, and warm. Referring to “shimmering leaves and shadows” accentuates the peace and natural beauty. Rising from sleep, the narrator was in a calm and leisureful state.

 

(ii) What startled the narrator? What did he think of it?

Ans: The continuous intense bursts of light emanating from the antique stone lantern shock the narrator. He is considering the observed magnesium flare throughout the conflicts.

 

 

(iii)What was the impact of the explosion on the place and the people?

The wall of the building and the roof collapsed. Debris including timber is all around, and dust was rising from the pile. The doctor discovered he had been tossed into the garden and the drawers, and undershirts he had been wearing had burned off.

 

(iv)What was the impact of the explosion on the place and the people?

Ans: The explosion left the narrator personally seriously injured. They had a shredded leg with a splinter sticking out, right side gushing, a damaged cheek, and a piece of glass sloppily thrown about. Furthermore missing were the narrator’s undershirt and drawers.

 

(v)) Give the meaning of

(a) The morning stretched calm, beautiful, and warm

(b) A strong flash, then another, startled me.

Ans: (a) the morning was peaceful, lovely, and cozy.

The narrator is surprised two successive powerful flashes one after.

ii. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:.

..My blood gushed out.

The artery in my neck? Scared for my life,

I called out, panic-stricken, to my wife.

Pale, bloodstained, frightened, Yecko-san emerged,

Holding her elbow.

i) What made the blood gush out? Why was the narrator panic-stricken?

 The intense flash caused injuries that caused the blood to flow out from the neck artery.

(ii) What in the extract shows that Yecko-san was badly injured?

Yecko appeared before the Narrator pale, clutching her elbow; bloodstained can be seen on her and she was afraid. In the surrounding circumstances of war and suffering, she suffered similarly to her husband.

((iii) What did the narrator tell his wife consoling her? What does it say about the narrator?

 The narrator tells his wife Yecko-san, “We’ll be fine.” i.e., the narrator reassured his wife that, for now, they would be alright very soon; but, we had to go fast to safeguard ourselves. It reveals that, despite the situation, the narrator is trying to stay cool and collected. Regarding his wife, the narrator worries and motivates her.

iv) Describe the object they found on the street. What was the reaction of the narrator after finding the object?

 they discovered a human head on the street. Startled, he gasped He then said he was sorry but knew the man was dead. He then grew terrified.

((v) By giving two examples, state how an atmosphere of fear was created by the explosion in the minds of the narrator and his wife.

 Ans: Many situations in the poem show how the explosion in the thoughts of the narrator and his wife produced an environment of anxiety. Just timber and trash remain scattered all around them. Both have horrible ailments and are bleeding. Almost tripped on a human head. The explosion in all these illustrations makes one afraid.

 

III. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:…He was dead:

A gate had crushed him. There we stood, afraid.

A house standing before us tilted, swayed,

Toppled, and crashed. Fire sprang up in the dust.

Spread by the wind.

(i) Who was dead? What had killed him?

The human person on whose head the narrator and his wife stumbled and almost fell. He had been crushed by a gate falling onto him.

 

(ii) Describe the strange things that happened as stated in the extract,

The house stood like a deck of cards swung, tipped, and fell. The winds carried a fire derived from the whirling dust.

 

(iii Immediately after the extract, what two decisions does the narrator make?

The narrator decides to assist the hospital workers in addition to seeking help at the institution. He urged his wife to go alone and obtain aid when he found he couldn stand.

 

(iv) Why couldn’t the narrator aid his staff at the hospital?

The narrator’s own situation is terrible; he is bleeding constantly. He had to sit on the ground when his legs gave way.

 

(v) What physical inconveniences did the narrator suffer after the incidents referred to in the extract?

Ans: Injured in his thigh, the narrator couldn walk and had to sit on the ground tired. Though they lacked water, they were thirsty; smoke and dust causes dyspnea. Though nude, their priorities were survival rather than guilt.

 

IV. Read the extract given below and answer the questions

that My breath was short, but bit by bit my strength

Seemed to revive, and I got up at length.

I was still naked, but I felt no shame,

This thought disturbed me somewhat, till I came

Upon a soldier, standing silently,

Who gave the towel round his neck to me.

i) Why was the breath of the speaker short? “

They suffer shortness of breath since they were badly injured and bleeding profusely walking in order to reach aid wears them out. The Japanese endured the disaster, and with their unwavering spirit and diligence, little by bit my strength/seemed to revive and slowly rebuild their broken.

 

(ii) The narrator was conscious that he was naked. Who helped him? How did the offer help the narrator to have self-confidence?

The soldier assisted him and handed the narrator the towel he had on his neck. This deed highlighted fundamental human kindness by symbolizing the soldier’s readiness to provide what he had to aid another. The gesture gave the narrator compassion and encouragement, therefore increasing his self-confidence in the trying circumstances.

(iii)Why did he send Yecko-san alone to the hospital? How did he justify his decision to let his wife go alone to the hospital?

The narrator discovered he could hardly walk since his legs were scorched with dried blood. At the time, he had no other choice, hence in a justified manner he sent his wife alone to get treatment. Emphasizing the terrible predicament they were in, his physical state and the urgency of the matter drove to this tough decision.

(iv) What did the narrator feel when Yecko-san left for the hospital? Explain the symbolism.

ns: When Yecko-san went to the hospital, the narrator felt alone. Though his body lacked quickness, his mind was working. To show their might and isolate their adversaries, strong countries like the United States of America bring agony and destruction to common people. Nobody comes to retrieve the defeated.

v) Describe the appearance of the people whom the narrator saw.

The folks the narrator observed in the sample seemed as ghostly or scarecrow outlines. Though they were nude, they showed no shame; they moved like zombies with spread arms. The general hush added to the suspenseful scene represented the great shock and agony they had through following the attack.

V. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:

I saw the shadowy forms of people, some

Were ghosts, some scarecrows, all were wordless, dumb-

Arms stretched straight out, shoulder to dangling hand;

It took some time for me to understand

The friction on their burns caused so much pain

They feared to chafe flesh against flesh again.

Those who could, shuffled in a blank parade

Towards the hospital.

 1.What does the speaker mean by: shadowy forms of people? Why were they looking so?

i) What does the speaker imply by using dark forms of people? Why were they acting so?

The answer is that they resembled silhouettes against the grey backdrop; bombs destroyed houses; dust was all around.

 

(ii) Explain briefly the horrifying effect of the bombing on the people, as described in the extract.

The folks clearly walked like zombies with outstretched arms, hands hanging, and shell-shocked expressions after the bombing. The horrified throng proceeded silently, together toward the hospital, symbolizing the extreme effects of the catastrophe on their mental and physical condition.

 

(iii) What caused the pain as the victims of the bombing moved? What is the suffering of the narrator as well as his wife in the poem?

The answer is that they burned intensely; any movement hurt, especially when flesh came into touch. The narrator was bleeding and dyspnea; he couldn walk. His wife lost blood, thus she appeared pale. Both of them were utterly tired.

 

(iv) Give the meaning of the following:

(a) feared to chafe flesh against flesh again

(b) shuffled in a blank parade

Ans: (a) The charred flesh on their body would inflict profound pain – flesh touching flesh would magnify.

(b) Straight-lined walk devoid of any in the same direction or contact with others.

Walked in a straight line without touching one another or making any in the same direction.

(v) How does the poet create an atmosphere of fear, panic, and horror in the poem?

Ans: By means of several narrative devices, Vikram Seth deftly generates in the poem an environment of terror, panic, and horror. Lack of complex rhyming and arranged stanzas promotes a realistic and constant narrative. Personification, hyperbole, and vivid images help to accentuate the devastation caused by the explosion by showing individuals walking like ghosts and shadows, therefore expressing suffering and powerless. The horrific elements of the explosion transport readers to the terrible aftermath by a great degree of anxiety and horror. (for further information consult “Narrative technique” under Style.)

 

VI. Read the following extract and respond to the accompanying questions:

Having returned from the bath?

I turned my head, but I was lost.

She ought to stand thus until I came upon

A naked man and now the idea started to flow.

That odd object had robbed us of our garments.

The face of an elderly woman grounded here

Suffering was all around her, but she spoke nothing.

Silence was something we all knew really well. I listened to.

Not one syllable, not any cries of agony.

 

(i) Who are they referred to in the extract? Why does the narrator doubt whether they had come back from the bath?

The passage mentions people who are severely injured and on their way to the hospital in search of treatment. The narrator questions whether they had returned from the bath since they were quite nude, as if they had just had one.

 

(ii)The poem often refers to the nakedness of the body. Figuratively, besides the bomb explosion, who else is responsible for making them naked of clothes as well as human dignity? How?

Ans: Apart from the bomb blast, the poet implies that war itself and the participating governments or leaders are accountable for rendering the people bare of garments and human dignity. As a brutal and destructive deed, war not only literally removes their clothing by bombings but also metaphorically removes their humanity and dignity. Implicit as major elements in this metaphorical nakedness of both garments and human dignity are the degrading nature of war and its effects on innocent life.

 

(iii)What is meant by: “Silence was common to us all?

The sentence “Silence was common to us all” suggests that everyone impacted by the attack experienced shock and silence among the terrible consequences. The horrific events left the people in a state of emotional numbness and incredulity, which prevented them from clearly expressing their suffering or grief. The silence represents a communal reaction to the enormous and terrible experience whereby words appeared inadequate to portray the intensity of their feelings and the scope of the tragedy.

 

(iv) Describe the physical and psychological sufferings shown in the extract

The passage eloquently depicts the psychological and physical pain brought forth by Hiroshima bombing. The narrator shows terrible injuries with her damaged thigh, blood, and torn cheek. Whereas the people’s ghostly shapes and wordlessness exposes their anguish, the abrupt flashes frighten and destroy. The pictures of devastation cause emotional suffering, hence stressing the terrible results of war and helping to