Ch.

6: MY MOTHER AT SIXTY-SIX
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTION
1 Name the literacy device used in the line “her face ashen like that of a corpse”

(A) Metaphor

(B) Simile

(C) Alliteration

(D) Personification

2 Where was she driving to?

(A) IGI Airport

(B) Cochin Airport

(C) Mumbai Airport

(D) Kolkata Airport

3 How did her mother look like?

(A) Sick and drowsy

(B) Young

(C) Healthy

(D) Beautiful

4 What thought did she put away?

(A) mother would live long

(B) mother would not live long

(C) mother’s pale and wan face

(D) None of these

5 Why has the mother been compared to a corpse?

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 (A) She looks active

(B) She looked pale

(C) She look happy

(D) None of these

6 Who is “I” in the poem?

(A) Mother

(B) Poetess Kamala Das

(C) Driver

(D) Both (B) and (C)

7 What does the old age symbolize

(A) Responsibility and duty

(B) Approaching death

(C) Healthy body

(D) None of these.

8 The mother’s old age in the poem makes the poet……………..

(A) Joyful

(B) Sad

(C) Curious

(D) Angry

9 From where were the children spilling out?

(A) Home

(B) Temple

(C) Hospital

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 (D) School

SET- II

1. The speaker is driving with her mother from __________________ to Cochin.

(a) her home
(b) her parent’s home
(c) her in-laws’ home
(d) airport
2. Kamala Das was born in the year _________
(a) 1934
(b) 1935
(c) 1936
(d) 1937
3. In which language did Kamala Das wrote with the pen-name “Madhavikutty”?
(a) Kannada
(b) Telugu
(c) Malayalam
(d) Tamil
4. The speaker was afraid of _____________ .
(a) going alone to Cochin
(b) her mother’s old age
(c) losing her mother
(d) not being able to take care of her mother.
5. Pick the statement which uses the same literary device as the following line:
I looked again at her, wan, pale as a late winter’s moon…..
(a) As soon as I saw the thief, I grabbed him by the collar and punched him on his face.
(b) There was no way you can get an ice-cream now as there are no shops open at this
hour.
(c) You will have to send the email as early as possible
(d) This playground is as big as the one we have in our town.
6. The poem is in a single sentence punctuated only by commas. Why has the poet done so?
(a) The poet has used poetic license
(b) The poet has minimized pauses to keep the poem short
(c) The poet wants to convey that it is a single thread of thought
(d) The poet has tried to minimize the use of unnecessary words and phrases
7. “Trees sprinting, the merry children spilling……” Identify the statement which uses the
term sprinting in the same context as used in the poem.
(a) His mother was sprinting her for not helping her in her household works.
(b) He was sprinting to catch the bus.

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 (c) The trees were sprinting, therefore the farmer decided to cut them down
(d) There was no way of coming back in this bad weather; so we had to sprint for another
hour.
8. Pick out the word from the following which DOES NOT correspond to the word “doze”:
(a) slumberous
(b) nap
(c) drowse
(d) insomnia
9. “All I did was smile and smile and smile….” The repetition of the word “smile” indicates
(a) The speaker was trying hard to conceal her pain and emotions
(b) The speaker was unhappy to leave her mother
(c) The speaker was happy to go back to Cochin
(d) The speaker has used it to include literary device in the poem.
10. The old face of the mother sitting beside the speaker and the image of the children
playing can be called as a
(a) paradox
(b) antithesis
(c) synecdoche
(d) contrast

SET- III

Q1- Who is the poet of this poem?

A) John Keats
B) Rudyard Kipling
C) William Wordsworth
D) Kamala Das

Q2- What is her work known for?

A) for its originality, versatility and flavour of the soil
B) for its popularity
C) for its style
D) for the expressions used

Q3- In which languages has Kamla Das written stories and novels?
A) English and Tamil
B) English and Hindi
C) English and Urdu
D) English and Malayalam

Q4- Name the poetic devices used in the poem.

A) metaphor
B) simile

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C) alliteration
D) all of these

Q5- What is the significance of the title My Mother at Sixty Six?

A) Poet’s fear of losing her old mother
B) Poet’s fear of moving fast
C) Poet’s inability to express her feelings
D) All of these

Q6- Which poetic device is used in “Trees sprinting-”?

A) metaphor
B) simile
C) alliteration
D) Personification

Q7- What is the distinctive feature of the poem?

A) its metaphors
B) simile used
C) alliteration used
D) narrative style using a single sentence in a set of 14 lines

Q8- What does this narrative style of the poem signify?

A) differing thoughts
B) many thoughts
C) contrasting thoughts
D) a single thread of thought mixed with harsh realities

Q9- What is the main idea of the poem?

A) Painful old age
B) discolouration of skin
C) carelessness of a daughter
D) lack of strength

Q10- What did the poet realize with pain?

A) her mother’s approaching death
B) she is inconsiderate
C) old age is pleasant
D) she has duties

Q11- What is the familiar ache?

A) her childhood fear of losing her mother
B) her mother’s weak health

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C) her duties
D) her helplessness

Q12- What do the running trees signify?

A) fast moving appearance
B) speed of the moving car
C) fast moving change in human life from childhood to old age
D) none

Q13- Who lives at Cochin?

A) Poet
B) Her parents
C) Both A and B
D) None of them

Q14- What does ‘ashen face ‘ signify?

A) colour of face
B) face is covered with ash
C) Pale and lifeless face of poet’s mother
D) to show ugly face

Q15- What does the poet notice outside the car ?

A) sprinting trees and running children
B) schools and roads
C) other vehicles
D) many people on the road

Q16- What do the parting words "See you soon Amma" signify?
A) her carelessness
B) Her optimistic farewell full of cheerfulness
C) she bids goodbye like this
D) she is in a hurry

Q17- What does the poet’s smile signify in the poem?

A) Her assurance to mother and helplessness inside
B) she has a responsibility
C) she has to do her duty first
D) she is a loving daughter

Q18- What is the universality of the theme of the poem?

A) death is a truth
B) Life is a reality

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C) everyone is happy
D) to show old age

Q19. What worried the poet when she looked at her mother?
A) her face
B) her broken arm
C) her loving words
D) her declining age
SET- IV
i. In the Poem, My Mother at Sixty Six, the pain of separation is expressed both
literally and_____________.
A. critically
B. metaphorically
C. ironically
D. virtually
ii. The poet confides her __________ and about her ________ through the poem.
1. Woes
2. Feelings
3. Fears
4. Dissatisfactions
5. Hopes
6. Ambitions
A. 1 & 4
B. 2 & 3
C. 3 & 5
D. 5 & 6
iii. Choose the option that DOES NOT make the correct usage of the word ‘Drive’
1. Electric motors drive the wheels.
2. The NGO conducted a special drive to end child poverty.
3. John will be remembered for his drive and enthusiasm.
A. 1
B. 2
C. 3
D. None

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 iv. The poem ‘My Mother at Sixty-Six’ is rich of literary devices. Choose the option
that correctly matches the instances/ examples in Column A with the literary
devices in Column B:
Column A Column B
1. her face ashen like that of a corpse (i) Metaphor
2. smile and smile and smile (ii) Personification
3. ‘merry children spilling out (iii) Simile their
homes’
4. trees sprinting (iv) Repetition
A. 1 - (i) ; 2 – (ii) ; 3 – (iii) ; 4 – (iv)
B. 1 – (iv) ; 2 – (i) ; 3 – (ii) ; 4 – (iii)
C. 1 – (iii) ; 2 – (iv) ; 3 – (i) ; 4 – (ii)
D. 1 – (ii) ; 2 – (iii) ; 3 – (iv) ; 4 – (i)
v. Choose the option that completes the sentence given below:
Just as the brightness of the winter’s moon is veiled behind the haze and mist,
similarly, __________________.
A. The pain of separation has shaded mother’s expression.
B. Age has fogged mother’s youthful appearance.
C. The poet is going away from her mother
D. Poet’s face looked pale like a moon in winter.
vi. How is the imagery of ‘young trees and merry children’ a contrast to the mother?
A. Mother’s childhood is compared to children and old age to trees.
B. Mother’s sadness is compared to the green trees and her
happiness is compared to children.
C. Like spring and autumn season.
D. Trees signify hope and health, whereas merry children
represent youthfulness and hope.
vii. What does ‘ashen face ‘signify?
A. face filled with shame
B. wearing ash on forehead
C. pale, dull and lifeless
D. ugly face

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 viii. From this poem, it is evident that the poet has an attitude of
A. Nonchalance
B. Apathy
C. empathy
D. Bewilderment
ix. What does the poem revolve around?
A. Poet’s fears
B. Poet’s love for her mother
C. Theme of old age
D. All of these
SET- V
1. The poem is made up of
(a) three stanza
(b) a single sentence
(c) ten stanza
(d) five stanzas
2. From the poem,it can be inferred that the poet was :
a) a school-going child
b) a teenager
c) an adult
d) an old woman
3. The image of merry children has been brought out by the narrator in order to
(a) show energy and exuberance of young children
(b) to show the children playing
(c) to show the children playing pranks
(d) to compare with herself
4. The narrator is only using her smile to
(a) cover up her pain
(b) make herself happy
(c) to make her mother happy
(d) to make her father happy
5. She said to her mother
(a) goodbye
(b) au revoir
(c) good morning go.
(d) see you soon, Amma
6. What does the expression smile, smile and smile signify?
(a) poet was going home and was elated
(b) poet was happy

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 (c) poet was hopeless
(d) poet’s desperate efforts to hide her fears
7. What do the running trees signify?
(a) fast moving appearance
(b) speed of the moving car
(c) fast moving change in human life from childhood to old age
(d) none
8. What does this narrative style of the poem signify?
(a) differing thoughts
(b) many thoughts
(c) contrasting thoughts
(d) a single thread of thought mixed with harsh realities
9. What is the kind of pain and ache that the poet feels?
(a) Losing her mother
(b) heart attack
(c) headache
(d) children screaming at her

ANSWER
SET- 1
1 (B) Simile
2 (B) Cochin Airport
3 (A) Sick and drowsy
4 (B) mother would not live long
5 (B) She look passive
6 (B) Poetess Kamala Das

7 (B) Approaching death

8 (B) Sad
9 (A) Home

SET- 2
1. (b)
2. (a)

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 3. (c)
4. (c)
5. (d)
6. (c)
7. (b)
8. (d)
9. (a)
10. (d)

SET- 3
1 D
2 A
3 A
4 D
5 D
6 A

7 D
8 D
9 D
10 A
11 A
12 A
13 C
14 A
15 C
16 A
17 B
18 B
19 A
20 D

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 SET- 4

Q.No.1
B

Q.No.2 B

Q.No.3 D

Q.No.4 C

Q.No.5 B

Q.No.6 D

Q.No.7 C

Q.No.8 C

Q. No. 9 D

SET- 5
1) B
2) C
3) A
4) A
5) D
6) D
7) C
8) D
9) A

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