"By Any Other Name" Analysis Question

Precarious (adj)

Dangerously insecure.

Sedately (adv)

In a calm and dignified manner.

Insular (adj)

Narrow-minded or detached from others.

Tepid (adj)

Neither hot nor cold; lukewarm.

How does Santha view the conflict with the headmistress? How does it fit the author's purpose for writing this?

Santha feels the conflict didn't happen to her, but a girl named Cynthia. It reflects how names do not define who you are.

How might Premila's teacher have passed on prejudice to her students? What is the theme or insight about life?

She called Indians cheaters and seated them in the back of the class. To be true to yourself.

What do the headmistress's gestures & expressions tell you about her motivation for changing the girls' names?

That she has no respect for their Indian culture, and only did it to make it easier upon herself.

Prejudice

The act or state of holding unreasonable preconceived judgements or convictions.

Author's Purpose

The reason the author writes a particular piece, whether to inform, persuade, entertain, or to express to the audience.

Name two ways the Indian girls imitate the English girls. How does it reflect the historical context of the memoir?

They began to wear dresses and take sandwiches. Prejudice was strong against Indian customs, so they adapted to the English culture.

What values did the girls' mother pass onto them?

To value a good education.

Veranda

A porch or balcony usually roofed and often partly enclosed extending along the outside of a building.

Memoir

A true story told as a memory, usually in the past tense.

What is the setting of the story?

An Anglo-Indian day school in Zorinabad, India.

What does the text suggest about how the experience of childhood is remembered?

Children understand more than we think they do.