Quick Review Flashcards - Click to flip and test your knowledge!
Question
Who is the central character whose complaint initiates the events of the story?
Answer
Nathu, the sweeper-boy.
Question
Which specific institution serves as the primary setting for the story's conflict?
Answer
The Pipalnagar Bank.
Question
What is the name of the wealthy owner of the Pipalnagar Bank?
Answer
Seth Govind Ram.
Question
What is the primary reason for Nathu's grumbling at the start of the narrative?
Answer
His regular pay has not been received by the twentieth of the month.
Question
How much of an extra monthly increase was Nathu seeking from the bank?
Answer
Two rupees.
Question
What is Sitaram's role in the Pipalnagar community?
Answer
He is the washerman's son.
Question
How does Sitaram first offer to assist Nathu with his financial troubles?
Answer
By keeping a lookout for any new jobs that might suit him.
Question
To whom does Sitaram first mention that the bank's sweeper is looking for work?
Answer
Mrs. Srivastava.
Question
What specific reason does Sitaram give Mrs. Srivastava for Nathu's desire to leave the bank?
Answer
The bank is not giving him his pay.
Question
Where does Mrs. Srivastava meet her friend Mrs. Bhushan to share the news?
Answer
Under a large shady tamarind tree at one end of the bazaar.
Question
How does Mrs. Srivastava's version of the news differ from what Sitaram actually told her?
Answer
She claims the bank cannot even pay its employees, rather than just one sweeper.
Question
What conclusion does Mrs. Bhushan reach regarding the bank after speaking with Mrs. Srivastava?
Answer
That the bank is about to go bankrupt.
Question
Where is Mr. Bhushan found when his wife goes in search of him?
Answer
Sitting in front of Kamal Kishore’s photographic shop.
Question
Who is the owner of the photographic shop in Pipalnagar?
Answer
Kamal Kishore.
Question
What profession does Deep Chand practice in the town?
Answer
He is a barber.
Question
What physical mishap occurs when Deep Chand hears the news about the bank's impending collapse?
Answer
He nicks his customer's right ear with his razor.
Question
What does the elderly gentleman concluded when he cannot reach Seth Govind Ram by telephone?
Answer
That the Seth has fled the town, confirming the bank's collapse.
Question
Where was Seth Govind Ram actually staying during the panic in Pipalnagar?
Answer
He was on holiday on a houseboat in Kashmir.
Question
With what imagery does the author describe the speed at which the rumour spreads through the bazaar?
Answer
The rapidity of a forest fire.
Question
Who is the beggar with a crooked leg who surprisingly runs to the bank to withdraw savings?
Answer
Old Ganpat.
Question
What amount of money did the beggar Ganpat have in his secret savings?
Answer
One thousand rupees.
Question
List one of the conflicting rumours circulated about the whereabouts of Seth Govind Ram.
Answer
He had hanged himself from the tamarind tree.
Question
What was the state of the bank's ready cash by noon on the day of the panic?
Answer
It had all been gone through.
Question
How far was the nearest alternative bank from Pipalnagar?
Answer
Thirty miles.
Question
What did the bank manager tell the crowd to encourage them to leave?
Answer
That the bank had plenty of money but no immediate means of collecting it.
Question
Who joined the crowd at the bank to aggravate the mood despite having no money at stake?
Answer
Mischief makers who didn't have a paisa in the bank.
Question
What was the first physical act of violence committed against the bank building?
Answer
A brick was thrown through the plate glass window.
Question
What is Nathu’s reaction to the state of the bank steps the following morning?
Answer
He is horrified by the refuse and broken glass he must now clean up.
Question
What irony is revealed in Nathu's final dialogue at the end of the story?
Answer
He wonders how the bank could have collapsed, unaware he started the rumour.
Question
Literature: The story is described as a 'deftly worded _____' regarding the damage of carelessly spoken words.
Answer
Hyperbole.
Question
Literature: What narrative term is used to describe the story's symbolic exploration of truth and rumour?
Answer
Allegorical.
Question
According to the introduction, what becomes 'more important than the facts' during the spread of a rumour?
Answer
Opinion.
Question
What happens to 'the truth' as the news about the bank spreads from person to person?
Answer
It gets hidden and then lost.
Question
What was Mrs. Bhushan fanning herself with at the tamarind tree?
Answer
A large handkerchief.
Question
To what animal does Mr. Bhushan compare his wife's shopping habits?
Answer
A bee in a flower garden.
Question
Which character used the telephone in the general merchant's store to call the Seth?
Answer
The elderly gentleman (Deep Chand's customer).
Question
What was the specific rumour regarding the sweeper-boy that Mrs. Srivastava told Mrs. Bhushan?
Answer
That he hadn't received his wages for over a month.
Question
Why did the bank manager feel he was in a 'dilemma' by noon?
Answer
He was out of cash and couldn't contact the owner or get emergency funds.
Question
What phrase did the elderly gentleman use to describe the Seth's absence?
Answer
"The bird has flown!"
Question
Which group of people in Pipalnagar 'boasted of their farsightedness' during the bank crisis?
Answer
Those who had already taken out their money or never put any in.
Question
What did Nathu do to 'emphasise his point' while talking to Sitaram at the bank steps?
Answer
He banged his pan against the dustbin several times.
Question
What instructions did Mrs. Srivastava give the cook before heading to the market?
Answer
Not to be late with the mid-day meal.
Question
Who did Kamal Kishore inform immediately after hearing the news from his wife?
Answer
Deep Chand, the barber next door.
Question
What was the crowd's reaction to the manager's request to return the following day?
Answer
They gathered outside, shouting demands to break in or for the Seth to appear.
Question
In the crowd's imagination, where was Seth Govind Ram supposedly hiding?
Answer
In a safe deposit locker.
Question
What did Sitaram have balanced on his head during his rounds?
Answer
A bundle of freshly pressed clothes.
Question
How does the story describe the typical history of Pipalnagar regarding natural disasters or crises?
Answer
It seldom or never had floods, earthquakes, or drought.
Question
What was Nathu doing when Sitaram passed him the second morning?
Answer
Sweeping the steps of the bank.
Question
How did Sitaram react when he heard Mrs. Srivastava needed a sweeper?
Answer
He felt glad to be of service to both a customer and his friend.
Question
What did Nathu call the people responsible for the broken glass at the bank?
Answer
Hooligans and sons of donkeys.
Question
What was Nathu's attitude toward his job at the start of the story?
Answer
He was annoyed and intended to leave as soon as he received his pay.
Question
Why was the manager unable to persuade the crowd to wait for emergency funds?
Answer
There was no way of contacting the Seth on his houseboat in Kashmir.
Question
Which shopkeeper was cutting the hair of an elderly gentleman when the rumour arrived?
Answer
Deep Chand.
Question
What is the primary theme explored through the character of Nathu?
Answer
The plight of children forced to work.
Question
According to the townspeople, what was the primary reason for the bank's supposed 'crash'?
Answer
Excesses indulged in by Seth Govind Ram.
Question
What was Sitaram's mode of transport on the morning after the riot?
Answer
A bicycle.
Question
Where did Nathu sit at the very end of the story?
Answer
On the highest step of the bank.
Question
What did Mrs. Bhushan complain about as being the worst in Pipalnagar's history?
Answer
The summer heat.
Question
The bank news travelled from the general merchant's to which various bazaar workers?
Answer
The betel-seller, the tailor, the free vendor, the jeweller, and the beggar.
Question
What did Nathu do with the refuse on the second morning before sitting down?
Answer
He smote the steps with his broom to scatter it.