Model Question Paper English Literature Literary Texts: James Joyce's Araby

 Difficulty Level: Graduation        Time: 1hr 30 Mnt

Each Question: Word Limit: 30

James Joyce's "Araby" Short Questions- Answers  

Question: Where was North Richmond Street? When was it quite disturbed?

Answer: North Richmond Street was located in Dublin, Ireland. It was quite disturbed during the winter season.

Question: What is the meaning of Araby?

Answer: The meaning of Araby refers to an idealized and exotic place, often associated with romance and adventure. In the context of James Joyce's story, it represents the boy's infatuation and desire for something beyond his mundane surroundings.

Question: North Richmond Street being blind, where and when did the boys in Araby play?

Answer: The boys in "Araby" played in the street, which was adjacent to North Richmond Street. They played in the evenings when the street was empty.

Question: When and why did Mangans' sister call her brother? Did her brother obey her at once?

Answer: Mangans' sister called her brother in the evening to ask him to go to the bazaar called Araby. Her brother initially refused, but eventually agreed to go after some persuasion.

Question: This happened morning after morning - What happened morning after morning?

Answer: The phrase "this happened morning after morning" refers to the boy's infatuation with and observation of his neighbor, Mangans' sister. He would watch her from his window as she passed by on her way to school.

Question: Who was the former tenant of the house in which the boy-narrator of "Araby" lived?

Answer: The former tenant of the house in which the boy-narrator of "Araby" lived was a priest who had passed away. The boy mentions finding religious books and a bicycle pump belonging to the priest.

Question: "Her image accompanied me even in places most hostile to romance" - Mention the places most hostile to romance.

Answer: The places most hostile to romance mentioned in the story are the market where the boy's uncle does business, the drapery shop where his aunt shops, and the street where he sees men loading barrels onto carts.

Question: The nasal chanting of street-stagers who sang a 'come all you' about O'Donovan Rossa. What is 'come all you'? Who is O'Donovan Rossa?

Answer: "Come all you" is a phrase that introduces or invites people to listen to a story or song. O'Donovan Rossa was an Irish Fenian leader and a prominent figure in the Irish nationalist movement.

Question: Whose body is referred to here? Whose words and gestures were like fingers running upon the wires? Stripped of the metaphor, what does the sentence mean?

Answer: The body referred to here is the boy's body. The words and gestures that were like fingers running upon the wires belonged to Mangans' sister. Stripped of the metaphor, the sentence means that the boy's body was tense and responsive to every word and gesture of Mangans' sister.

Question: At last, she spoke to me - Who spoke to whom? What did she speak?

Answer: Mangans' sister spoke to the boy. She initiated a brief conversation with him, inquiring if he was going to the bazaar and expressing her inability to attend due to staying at a retreat.

Question: I bore my chalice safely through a throng of foes - says the boy in James Joyce's "Araby." What is meant by chalice?

Answer: In this context, the word "chalice" is used metaphorically to represent the boy's hopes and aspirations, his idealized view of the bazaar and the possibility of obtaining a gift for Mangans' sister.

Question: What is meant by Freemason affair? What is meant by 'it'?

Answer: In the context of the story, a "Freemason affair" refers to a secretive organization or event associated with Freemasonry, a fraternal society. The narrator's aunt expresses surprise and hopes that the event the boy is attending (the bazaar) is not related to Freemasonry. The "it" refers to the event or affair that the boy is participating in.

Question: Who is the speaker? Why did the master's face pass from amiability to sternness?

Answer: The speaker is the boy-narrator of the story. The master's face passed from amiability to sternness because the speaker arrived late for school, which displeased the master.

Question: When did the boy in 'Araby' intend to go to the bazaar?

Answer: The boy in 'Araby' intended to go to the bazaar on Saturday evening.

Question: When I came downstairs again, I found Mrs. Mercer knitting at the fire. Who was Mrs. Mercer? When did she leave for her home? How did she appear to the speaker?

Answer: Mrs. Mercer was a neighbor of the boy's aunt. She left for her home after dinner. To the speaker, she appeared to be a friendly and ordinary neighbor engaged in knitting.

Question: My uncle said he was sorry he had forgotten. What had he forgotten?

Answer: The uncle had forgotten to give the boy the money he had promised for the bazaar.

Question: How much did the boy in 'Araby' take with him to the bazaar? What was finally left with him?

Answer: The boy in 'Araby' took one pound with him to the bazaar. In the end, he only had two shillings left with him.

Question: When did the boy reach the bazaar?

Answer: The boy reached the bazaar quite late, around 9 o'clock in the evening.

Question: He asked me, "Did I know 'the Araby's Farewell to his steed'?" Who asked whom? What is 'the Araby's Farewell to his steed'?

Answer: The boy's friend asked him if he knew 'the Araby's Farewell to his steed.' The 'Araby's Farewell to his steed' is a poem or song that was likely part of the cultural or literary references surrounding the bazaar.

Question: What was the state of the bazaar when the 'boy hero' in Joyce's Araby reached there?

Answer: When the 'boy hero' reached the bazaar, it was in a state of almost complete darkness. Many of the stalls were already closed, and there were few people remaining. The atmosphere was disappointing and anticlimactic for the boy.

  Ardhendu De