Madam Rides the Bus
The ride to town
Explain what Valli's ride and her choices show about her.
Saving for the trip. She saved every stray coin and gave up peppermints, toys and balloons. At the village fair she even gave up a ride on the merry-go-round, though she had the money. In the end she had sixty paise: enough for both ways.
Slipping out. Every afternoon her mother naps from about one to four. Valli usually spends those hours at the doorway. Today she uses them for her first trip outside the village.
The world through a child's eyes.
- the bus seems about to 'gobble up' every vehicle coming towards it;
- 'Trees came running towards them' and then stood 'helpless' by the road;
- a young cow, tail in the air, gallops in front of the bus and won't get off the road. Valli laughs until there are tears in her eyes;
- a train, 'a speck' that grows bigger, roars past;
- then big, bright shops and crowds, and Valli is 'struck dumb with wonder'.
Why she stays on the bus. Everyone gets off; Valli pays another thirty paise for the return. 'I just felt like having a bus ride.' She is 'much too afraid' to look round the town alone.
Why she refuses the drink. The conductor offers to buy her a cold drink. She says 'No, I don't have enough money', and when he says it is his treat, 'No, no, please, no'. She has self-respect: she will not take favours.
Practise this lesson
Questions that get harder as you improve, a Tutor that helps without giving the answer away, and progress you can see. Free for every learner.
No account, no email address. Opens the real product.