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By Any Other Name, A Memoir

Total questions: 15

Worksheet time: 10mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

Dangerously insecure

a)

percarious

b)

insular

c)

sedately

d)

tepid

2.

Neither hot nor cold; lukewarm

a)

precarious

b)

insular

c)

sedately

d)

tepid

3.

Calm and in a dignified manner

a)

precarious

b)

insular

c)

sedately

d)

tepid

4.

Narrow-minded or detached from others

a)

precarious

b)

insular

c)

sedately

d)

tepid

5.

Read this line from paragraph 3. "The headmistress had been in India, I suppose, fifteen years or so, but she still smiled her helpless inability to cope with Indian names."


What does this line best suggest about English people in India during the time period the author describes.

a)

The English had trouble speaking the names of Indian and British children

b)

The English thought their culture and language was superior to India's

c)

The English tried to educate British and Indian children during their rule

6.

Which character in the story is most outspoken and disturbed by the treatment of Indian people by the English?

a)

Santha

b)

Mother

c)

Premila

7.

When Premila was given the English name ‘Pamela’, how did she react?

a)

She hit the teacher

b)

She joyfully jumped

c)

She kept a stubborn silence

8.

What does Santha and Premila’s mother mean when she says “you can bury a dog’s tail for seven years and it still comes out curly, and you can take a Britisher away from his home for a lifetime and he still remains insular”?

a)

Dogs’ tails don’t change after seven years, but British people will change

b)

British people are NOT interested in other cultures: that is their nature

c)

Dogs and British people have many similarities

9.

Why did Premila and Santha begin studying in a “British-run establishment”?

a)

Their mother was too sick to help them

b)

They wanted to learn English so they could go to college

c)

They cheated and were kicked out of their Indian school

10.

INFER: How did Santha most likely feel when she couldn’t answer the teacher’s question about her name?

a)

Relieved and relaxed

b)

Embarrassed and ashamed

c)

Angry and Irate

11.

Why was Santha mostly bored?

a)

She didn’t like studying

b)

The language was too difficult so she just spaced out

c)

Her mother had already taught her what the students were learning

12.

What makes Santha and her sister different than their classmates?

a)

They brought Indian food instead of sandwiches for lunch

b)

They didn't smile

c)

They wore short dresses

13.

What is the first thing the teacher does when she meets Premila and Santha?

a)

She tells them to change their clothes

b)

She smacks their knuckles with a ruler

c)

She gives them English-sounding names

14.

Why do the girls stop attending school?

a)

They refused to be targets of bigotry.

b)

The school suspended them because they wouldn't answer their names.

c)

The father moved to a new area too far to attend school.

15.

(RL.2.4) Read the excerpt from the passage.

“‘Come along,’ she said, frowning slightly. ‘What’s your name, dear?’

‘I don’t know.’ I said flatly.”

How does the Rau’s word choice impact the meaning of the passage?

a)

It reveals the language barrier that exists between the British and Indian people.

b)

It conveys the teacher’s disinterest in her Indian students.

c)

It highlights the loss of identity felt by the Indian people.