January Night
by Premchand
COMPREHENSION
1. Answer the following questions.
a. Why did Munni want Halku to pay the landlord only after the harvest?
= Munni wanted Halku to pay the landlord only after the harvest as she wanted to buy a blanket with the money for Halku to get through those January nights in the fields. Without a blanket he couldn't possibly sleep in the fields at night while guarding the crops.
b. What was the 'other plan' that Halku tried? Was it successful?
= The 'other plan' that Halku tried was to borrow money from others.
It was not successful because they had already many debts left over that they couldn't pay off.
c. Why did Munni want Halku to give up tenant farming?
= Munni wanted Halku to give up tenant farming because the hard work was killing Halku gradually. Whatever he harvested went to pay up the arrears.
d. What does Munni mean when when she says, 'Fine work, farming someone else's land'?
= When Munni says, 'Fine work, farming someone else's land', she meant that it is better to work as a hired labourer in someone's land than to be a tenant farmer. He can at least get enough food to eat from it. On the other hand, in tenant farming, whatever he harvests goes to pay up the arrears.
e. Why did Halku look as though 'he were tearing his heart out and giving it away'?
= Halku looked as though 'he were tearing his heart out and giving it away' because he had saved the rupees from his work, pice by pice, for buying a blanket.
f. Is the first sentence in section 2 a complete one? Why do you think it is written like this?
= The first sentence in section 2 is 'A dark January night.' Grammatically this is not a complete sentence as it does not posses a sense and there is no verb in it. But for the sake of literary excellence, it expresses the essence of the whole forthcoming events in the section.
g. How do we know that Halku loves his dog a great deal? Give two examples of how he shows his love.
= While lying on a bamboo cot in the field, Halku reached out his hand and patted his dog Jabra's cold back.
Later he gently picked Jabra up and got him to fall asleep in his lap. The dog's body gave off some kind of stink but Halku, experienced a happiness hugging him tight.
h. Why did Jabra probably think he was in heaven?
= Jabra probably thought he was in heaven due to his master's love and affection towards him. Jabra was shivering in the cold and Halku took him to his bed and gave him a tight hug. It gave him warmth and made him feel like being in heaven.
i. Why did Halku look up at the skies?
= Halku looked up at the skies to look how much the night was still left. The Dipper had not yet climbed half the sky. By the time it was overhead it would probably be morning. Night would last another three hours or so.
j. Why did Halku feel proud when he lit the fire?
= Halku felt proud when he lit the fire because he had achieved victory over the immense power of the winter by lighting the fire.
k. How did Halku know that there were some wild animals in his field? How did he react?
= As Jabra gave a loud bark and ran towards the field, Halku realized that this meant a pack of wild animals had probably broken into the field. They must be bluebuck. They must be grazing; he began to hear the sound of nibbling.
Then he thought that no animal can get around while Jabra is around. He must had been mistaken. Then he could hear no sound at all.
l. The whole field was ruined. What did Halku feel about it? What did Munni feel?
= Halku felt indifferent about as he nearly died and managed to get through the night in the cold. Munni was worried and upset. Her face was shadowed with grief.
2. Answer the following with reference to context.
a. 'Tell him we'll pay him after the harvest, not right now.'
i) Who is speaking and to whom?
= Munni is speaking to her husband Halku.
ii) Who is the 'him' the speaker refers to?
= The 'him' the speaker refers to is the landlord of Halku.
iii) What is the payment the speaker refers to?
= Halku was a tenant farmer. He farms the land of the landlord and pays him off some money. The speaker refers to the payment of the landlord.
b. 'This is the reward you get from farming.'
i) Who says this and to whom?
= Halku says this to his pet dog Jabra.
ii) When does the speaker make this statement?
= While lying on the bamboo cot in the field, wrapping his old shawl, Halku reached out his hand and patted his dog Jabra's cold back and makes this statement.
iii) What is the reward that the speaker mentions?
= Halku mentions the reward in a sarcastic way. Here the reward is to suffer and spending the cold night of January in the field without any blanket. This is actually not a reward at all. While they do the hard work and somebody else gets the joy of it. Here Halku's misery and plight have been expressed by the statement.
c. 'In the flickering light the immense trees of the grove looked as though they were carrying the vast darkness on their heads.
i) Where was the light coming from?
= The light was coming from the fire made by Halku with the pile of mango leaves to get rid of the cold of the January night.
ii) Where was the grove?
= The grove was in the orchard at the edge of Halku's field.
iii) Who was in the grove at this time and what were they doing?
= Halku and his dog Jabra were in the grove at that time and they were making themselves warm sitting by the fire made by Halku. Halku was actually guarding his crops and Jabra was accompanying him. The cold of the January night was unbearable for them. Halku managed to gather a pile of mango leaves and he lit it with the help of a lighted cowdung cake. This made them warm and feel comfort.
WORKING WITH WORDS
Complete the following in your own words.
1. The dog lay on the ground as though
= The dog lay on the ground as though it were little cuddly baby.
2. The poor farmer opened his mouth as though
= The poor farmer opened his mouth as though he were holding the globe into his mouth.
3. Jabra ate the food as though
= Jabra ate the food as though it had not eaten for years.
4. The sense of duty had taken possession of the dog as though
= The sense of duty had taken possession of the dog as though it had been having it for many births.
5. The trees looked immense as though
= The trees looked immense as though they were big giants.
6. The dog barked as though
= The dog barked as though it were a dragon.
About the Author:
Premchand (1880 - 1936) is one of the greatest figures of twentieth-century Hindi literature. He wrote over three hundred short stories which contain a rich variety of descriptions of Indian life. In many of his stories he deals with the cruelty and pride of the privileged classes; he shows great sympathy for the poor peasants.