Question 292
HardOriginal questionDear Amma,
The city is very big and very loud, and I am well. The factory gives us two meals and a bed in a room with five other men. They are good men. One of them is from a village near ours, and he like Appa's old tractor, so I feel quite at home.
The work is not hard. I stand at a machine that cuts cloth, and I watch that it cuts straight. At the end of the month I will send the money for Chotu's school and for the roof. Do not let Chotu tell you he can leave school. He is cleverer than I was, and he should stay.
I have bought a small fan with my first money. It makes more noise than wind, but I have it Monsoon, and the other men laugh. In the evenings we sit on the roof, where it is cooler, and one of them plays songs on his phone.
Please do not worry about me. Please tell Chotu that he must study, and that I said so.
Your son, Suresh
P.S. The food is not like yours. Nothing is. But I am eating it all, as you told me.
Why does Suresh describe his roommate's snoring as "like Appa's old tractor, so I feel quite at home"?
Show the answer and explanation
Correct answer: C
Explanation
Sharing a room with five men and a loud snorer is not easy, but he turns it into a joke about home.
The humour is meant to comfort his mother, just as his line "Please do not worry about me" is.
Worth noting
A comparison with home is not a complaint. He makes the discomfort sound familiar and funny.
- Concept
- Understanding humour used to comfort
- Typical timeTypical
- 55 s
- Your timeYours
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Ten questions from Narrative passages, at your own pace.