NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Snapshots Chapter 3 Mother’s Day

This play, written in the 1950s, is a humorous and satirical depiction of the status of the mother in the family.
(i) What are the issues it raises?
(ii) Do you think it caricatures these issues or do you think that the problems it raises are genuine? How does the play resolve the issues? Do you agree with the resolution?
Answer:
(i) This is a story that fits in every era. It was written seventy years ago, but even after seventy years it can be worthwhile. This is a story arising out of those issues of a normal family, on which hardly any member of the house pays any attention. A woman, who does all the household chores, takes orders and is frequently pulled up by members and that too without any fault. No one pays attention to his hard work and dedication. Most importantly, she does not get a day off or rest in a month. This story raises the sufferings of such woman very beautifully.

(ii) We strongly believe that the problems it raises are genuine. This is the story of almost every house across the world. The narrator has presented in a different way to readers. He takes the help of a magic of East which is an unusual way to resolve such issues. The magical spell helps in interchange of two main characters i.e. Mrs. Pearson & Mrs. Fitzgerald. The former with strong and sinister personality of latter gives rough treatment to kids and husband to teach them a lesson. At the end of the story, her kids not only agree to do their household chores of their own, but also refrain from placing orders on their mother and giving ample space to parents. The resolution works well with the family. The idea of Mrs. Fitzgerald works well and her neighbor succeeds in controlling her husband and kids.

Problems take different forms from time to time. Though the problem raised by J.B. Priestley is genuine and fits in every era. But in today’s time we have a problem which is taking the youth under its grip and that is drug addiction. Children who feel isolated or socially alienated can be at risk for addictions. Children are falling prey to this wrong habit from a very young age keeping aside good health and are putting their future in great danger.

The consumption of alcohol and narcotics amongst young people is caused by social factors, such as the need to conform to their peers. There are also psychosocial factors, such as the desire to experience new sensations, the “need” to break rules, as well as coping in order to deal with feelings of anxiety or other negative emotions.

Apart from addiction, the excessive consumption of drugs can provoke serious consequences and can expose young people to significant dangers. First of all, there is a direct impact on their development, given that adolescents have not yet reached adulthood. They are still growing physically and psychologically; drug-use can negatively affect this growth. The government has made a lot of efforts for child improvement and awareness in this direction, but not much success has been achieved.

This drama is certainly a good medium for conveying a very important message of society. It was a very different story in itself, which was presented well by the author. This is an issue that not everyone pays much attention to. However, after reading this drama, everyone will be forced to think of a woman who works tirelessly round the clock at home without worrying about herself. In her absence, the whole system of the house gets spoiled and it is almost impossible to fix it.

We often talk or reads about social issues like drug abuse, child labor, racial discrimination, religious violence etc. but this is a unique message raised by author. Those who work eight hours a day and forty hours a week treat the housewife as an unpaid domestic servant. Family members neither request her nor thank her for her services. Secondly, they do not even show gratitude towards their mother and wife and selfishly gets all the work done.

By the way, many films giving direction to the society have come in every era. But the name of the latest movie which probably every child or elderly has seen is “Taare Zameen Par”. Taare Zameen Par is an impressive film which one can never forget because it brings something special for everyone. It’s a story of a child who suffers from a disease called dyslexia. Though he can think outside the box and paint with such passion and creativity but he was not understood by his teachers as he was only thought of as a mischievous and a very naughty child.

He found very difficult to study but his art teacher believes that every child has his own capabilities, desires and pace of learning. He helped the child to manage deficiencies brought about by being dyslexic. He was able to unveil the potentials of child by employing educational psychology. With time, patience and care Art teacher succeeds in boosting the confidence level of child. He helps him in overcoming his inabilities and re-discover his lost confidence. The beauty of the narration is that the message applies to all children – learning disability or not. It also points a very subtle finger at how we build conformation in our system right at the roots.