English Literature Notes

  STRONG ROOTS            APJ Abdul Kalam 1. "We lived in our ancestral house."- Who is the speaker? When was the house built? What kind of house was it? How did the inmates(বাসিন্দা) of the house lead their lives in the house? Dr. Kalam talks about his childhood in ' Strong Roots ' which is taken from Kalam's autobiography ' Wings of Fire' . The house was built in the 19th century. The house consisted of a fairly large terraced(পাকা বাড়ি) house built of limestone and brick and was located on Mosque Street in Rameswaram.The house was a 10 minute walk from the famous Shiva temple. Kalam was born in a middle class Tamil family and lived with his parents and siblings(নিজের ভাই বোন) in their ancestral home. Kalam remembers that his mother Ashiamma used to feed the family members and many outsiders every day. The residents of the house lived a simple and peaceful life. They avoided all unnecessary comforts and luxuries. However Jainulabdeen and Ashiamma n...

                      STRONG ROOTS                                       Dr. APJ. ABDUL KALAM 1. "I would say mine was a very secure childhood"- Why does Kalam consider his childhood to be materially and emotionally secure? In his autobiographical excerpt, ' Strong Roots' Abdul Kalam illustrates his birth and genealogy. Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam was the fifth of seven children of Jainulabdeen and Ashiamma. Although his parents were tall and handsome, Kalam was a very ordinary looking boy. His mother's ancestor was awarded the title of 'Bahadur' by the British.They lived in a pucca house on Mosque Street in Rameshwaram. His father kept himself away from comforts.Yet he did not compromise with his children on food, clothing and medicine. Kalam's mother was very careful about his diet and served rice, sambar, pickles, chutney etc.  Thus, we ...