Nobel Lecture DQ
Nobel Lecture
Mother Teresa [1910-1997]
DQ – 5 /6 Marks
14 Important Questions
Unit – I
1. Narrate in your words the experience of Mother Teresa in an old age home.
👉In her ‘Nobel Lecture’ Mother Teresa has shared an experience of visiting an old age home where old parents were just put and might be forgotten by their sons and daughters. She went there and was saddened and surprised to see that though the old parents had everything in that home, they all were looking towards the door with their dismal faces. Mother had not seen a single one with his or her smiling face.
Being surprised, Mother Teresa asked the sister and learnt that these old parents were hurt because they were forgotten. Nearly everyday they were expecting, hoping that a son or a daughter would come to visit them. But none visited them. So, being forsaken and forgotten by the family members, these old inmates felt hurt and became unhappy. Thus, smile slipped from their lips. Such was the experience of Mother Teresa in an old age home in Calcutta.
Related Questions
[I] Sum up in a short paragraph how was the experience of Mother Teresa at the old age home where she found the inmates unhappy despite being well-provided for.
[II] What experience did Mother Teresa have while visiting an old age home?
[III] What did Mother Teresa experience when she visited an old-age home?
[IV] Describe in your own words the experience of Mother Teresa in an old age home that she visited.
[V] What was Mother Teresa’s experience of visiting an old age home? What did the residents expect there everyday? [3+2] / [3+3]
[VI] What did Mother Teresa observe in old age home? What answer did she get from the sister about it? [3+2] / [3+3]
[VII] Describe in brief the experience of Mother Teresa in an old age home.
[VIII] Narrate the experience and the feelings of Mother when she visited an Old Age Home?
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2. “I had the most extraordinary experience with the Hindu family that had eight children.” Which experience is Mother Teresa speaking of?
👉In her ‘Nobel Lecture’ Mother Teresa has shared the most extraordinary experience in her life with a Hindu family that had eight children.
Once a gentleman came to Mother Teresa’s house and informed her that there was a family with eight children, they had not eaten for so long. The gentleman urged Mother Teresa to do something for the family. Hearing this, Mother Teresa, taking some rice, went there immediately. She saw that the children’s eyes were shining with hunger. Mother Teresa gave the rice to the mother of the starved family. The mother divided the rice into two portions, and taking one portion, she went out.
When she came back, being curious, Mother Teresa asked where she had gone and what she had done with the rice. The woman simply answered that she had given the portion of the rice to a Muslim family—their neighbour. She added that they were also in the same distress and they were hungry too. Mother Teresa was overwhelmed with joy to learn such extraordinary service of the poor Hindu family. Mother learnt the lesson of joy of sharing even in acute destitution.
Related Questions
[I] “I had the most extraordinary experience with the Hindu family that had eight children.” Describe the speaker’s most extraordinary experience.
[II] “I had the most extraordinary experience with the Hindu family that had eight children.” Narrate this experience of Mother Teresa.
[III] “I had the most extraordinary experience with the Hindu family that had eight children.” Describe the experience of Mother Teresa.
[IV] “I had the most extraordinary experience with the Hindu family that had eight children.” Which experience is being stated here?
[V] Give a short account of Mother Teresa’s experience with the Hindu family having eight children.
[VI] What experience did Mother Teresa have with the family of eight children? What behaviour of the poor woman charmed her and why? [3+2] / [3+3]
[VII] Describe the most extraordinary experience that Mother Teresa had.
[VIII] Which real incident did Mother Teresa cite when she wanted to know and love their neighbours?
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3. In what ways does Mother Teresa appeal to the emotions of her audience? What stories does she share of her encounters with the poor in Kolkata? [2+3] / [3+3]
👉In her speech Mother Teresa is illustrative and full of liveliness. She reminds the audience to love God to live a beautiful life. She appeals to the emotions of her audience with her healing voice of love to evoke their love, peace, mutual feeling, compassion, forgiveness, charity, service to the poor, downtrodden. Mother also appeals to them to become a burning light of peace in the world so that they can love all as God loves, especially the poor and the destitute.
Mother Teresa has shared a number of heart-touching encounters with the poor in Kolkata. One evening Mother Teresa with her sisters picked up a dying woman from the street, and the lady, without blaming anybody, died at Mother’s home with a smile on her face expressing her thankfulness to Mother for serving her. Another similar incident happened when a man, half-eaten by worms, was picked up from the drain. He also thanked Mother Teresa as he was dying like an angel.
Again, an interesting incident of four years old Hindu boy, who donated his three days’ alloted sugar to Mother to share his great love with the children at Mother’s home. Finally the most touching story is about a poor starved Hindu family with eight children. The mother of the family shared the rice given by Mother with her neighbouring starved Muslim family and relished the rice in joy of sharing.
Related Questions
[I] In what way does Mother Teresa appeal to the emotions of her audience? Relate the stories of her encounters with the poor in Kolkata? [2+3] / [3+3]
[II] How does Mother Teresa appeal to the emotions of her audience? What stories does she share of her encounters with the poor in Kolkata? [2+3] / [3+3]
[III] In what way does Mother Teresa appeal to the emotions of her audience?
👉In her speech Mother Teresa is illustrative and full of liveliness. She reminds the audience to love God to live a beautiful life. She appeals to the emotions of her audience with her healing voice of love to evoke their love, peace, mutual feeling, compassion, forgiveness, charity, service to the poor, downtrodden. Mother also appeals to them to become a burning light of peace in the world so that they can love all as God loves, especially the poor and the destitute.
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4. Why did Mother Teresa say that the poor people are great people?
👉Mother Teresa has shared a number of heart-touching encounters with the poor in Kolkata. One evening Mother Teresa with her sisters picked up a dying woman from the street, and the lady, without blaming anybody, died at Mother’s home with a smile on her face expressing her thankfulness to Mother for serving her. Another similar incident happened when a man, half-eaten by worms, was picked up from the drain. He also thanked Mother Teresa as he was dying like an angel. Again, an interesting incident of four years old Hindu boy, who donated his three days’ alloted sugar to Mother to share his great love with the children at Mother’s home.
Finally the most touching story is about a poor starved Hindu family with eight children. The mother of the family shared the rice given by Mother with her neighbouring starved Muslim family and relished the rice in joy of sharing. Thus Mother finds the greatness and nobility of the poor through her encounters with them, and so she compares the poor people with ‘angles’.
Related Questions
[I] Why did Mother Teresa consider the poor people as ‘great people’?
[II] Cite examples from the text that made Mother think ‘the poor people are very great people’.
[III] Why does Mother Teresa compare the poor people with ‘angles’?
[IV] “The poor people are very great people.” Who remarks it and why? [1+4] / [2+4]
[V] Why does Mother Teresa say poor people are great people? What examples of their greatness does she give? [2+3] / [3+3]
[VI] “The poor people are very great people.” What is the context of the remark? What was the speaker’s observation about the poor people? [2+3] / [3+3]
[VII] “The poor people are very great people.” In what context did the speaker say this? Why did the speaker make this remark? [2+3] / [3+3]
[VIII] “The poor people are very great people.” Write down at least two examples from Mother’s ‘Nobel Lecture’ to justify the comment. [2+3] / [3+3]
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5. Narrate the experience Mother Teresa had when there was great difficulty in getting sugar?
👉In her ‘Nobel Lecture’ Mother Teresa has highlighted a number of experiences and encounters with the poor in Kolkata. One such experience was about securing sugar. Some time ago in Calcutta Mother Teresa and her sisters had great difficultly in getting sugar, and Mother did not know how the word got round to the children, and a little four-year old Hindu boy went home and proposed his parents that he would not eat sugar for three days and thus he wanted to accumulate sugar to offer it to Mother for the children of Mother’s home. The boy only wanted to relish the joy of sharing.
After three days when his parents brought the little boy to Mother’s home, this little one could scarcely pronounce Mother’s name, but he knew exactly what he had come to do. He knew that he wanted to share his love. Mother Teresa was deeply impressed by the little boy’s sense of sharing love with the poor children.
Related Questions
[I] Narrate in your own words the experience Mother Teresa had when there was great difficulty in getting sugar?
[II] How did a four-year old boy share his love with the poor children.
[III] Narrate the incident, mentioned by Mother Teresa in her speech during the sugar crisis in Calcutta.
[IV] Narrate the experience Mother Teresa had when there was a great difficulty in getting sugar.
[V] Briefly narrate the story of the four years old boy who wanted to share his love with the children looked after by Mother Teresa’s organization.
[VI] “He knew that he wanted to share his love.” Narrate the incident that led the speaker make the the above remark.
[VII] “….but he knew exactly what he had come to do” What incident is referred to here? Why did Mother Teresa mention this incident? [3+2] / [3+3]
👉Here the ‘incident’ refers to once Mother Teresa’s great difficulty in getting sugar in her home.
In her ‘Nobel Lecture’ Mother Teresa has highlighted a number of experiences and encounters with the poor in Kolkata. One such experience was about securing sugar. Some time ago in Calcutta Mother Teresa and her sisters had great difficultly in getting sugar, and Mother did not know how the word got round to the children, and a little four-year old Hindu boy went home and proposed his parents that he would not eat sugar for three days and thus he wanted to accumulate sugar to offer it to Mother for the children of Mother’s home. The boy only wanted to relish the joy of sharing.
After three days when his parents brought the little boy to Mother’s home, this little one could scarcely pronounce Mother’s name, but he knew exactly what he had come to do. He knew that he wanted to share his love. Mother Teresa was deeply impressed by the little boy’s sense of sharing love with the poor children.
Mother Teresa mentioned this incident just to remind everyone to love each other and to share his or her love with everyone especially with the poor.
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Unit – II
6. “And she died with a smile on her face” How did she die with a smile on her face?
👉Mother Teresa has shared a number of heart-touching encounters with the poor in Kolkata. One evening Mother Teresa with her sisters went out and picked up four people from the street. And one of them was in a most terrible condition. Mother told her sisters to take care of the other three. She herself took the worst one under her care. Though Mother tried her best to cure her, she could not survive and died with a smile on her face. Mother Teresa was surprised to see the greatness of the poor lady. She had no objection to her life. She simply took hold of Mother’s hand and without drawing a little attention to herself and without blaming anybody for her condition, died at Mother’s home with a smile on her face expressing her thankfulness to Mother for serving her. This experience moved Mother Teresa much and she learnt the greatness of the poor people from the dying lady.
Related Questions
[I] “And she died with a smile on her face” Which incident did Mother Teresa relate with this line?
[II] “And she died with a smile on her face” Briefly narrate the incident referred to in the line.
[III] “And she died with a smile on her face” How did she die with a smile on her face? Describe in brief the incident referred to in the line.
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7. “I think the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion.” Why did Mother Teresa consider abortion as the greatest destroyer of peace? How did she decide to fight against abortion? [3+2] / [3+3]
👉In her ‘Nobel Lecture’ Mother Teresa highlighted a number of problems prevailing in the world which break peace. But she is very much concerned about abortion. She feels that it is the greatest destroyer of peace today, because it is a direct war, a direct killing—direct murder by the mother herself. Millions of children are dying deliberately all over the world only by the will of the mother. In Christianity abortion is strictly prohibited by God. So, abortion is nothing but a direct denial of God’s gift, a war against God. According to Mother Teresa, if a mother can kill her own child, nothing remains then. Therefore, peace, love are no longer with the mother and the God as well. So, Mother considers abortion as the greatest destroyer of peace in the today’s society.
Mother Teresa wanted to fight abortion by adopting unwanted children. She along with her co-workers sent words to all the clinics, to the hospitals, police stations– not to destroy the child, they would take the child. Mother also counseled quite a number of unwedded mothers to give their children to them. Apart from all these, Mother with her co-workers taught the beggars, the leprosy patients, slum dwellers and street-dwellers the necessity of natural family planning. And thus they had saved thousands of lives.
Related Questions
[I] What does Mother Teresa think of abortion? How does she appeal to fight against abortion? [3+2] / [3+3]
[II] Why does Mother Teresa think ‘abortion’ as the greatest destroyer of peace? How does she appeal to fight against abortion? [3+2] / [3+3]
[III] Why did Mother Teresa think abortion as the greatest destroyer of peace? How did she want to fight against it? [3+2] / [3+3]
[IV] What, according to Mother Teresa, is the greatest destroyer of peace? How are she and her sisters fighting against it? [3+2] / [3+3]
[V] “And this is what is the greatest destroyer of peace today” What, according to Mother Teresa, is the greatest destroyer of peace? How does she want to combat this problem? [3+2] / [3+3]
[VI] Discuss why and how Mother Teresa fulfilled her mission of fighting abortion by adoption. [3+2] / [3+3]
[VII] Why did Mother Teresa consider abortion as the greatest destroyer of peace and what message did Mother send to the clinics, hospitals and the police stations? Why, according to Mother Teresa, is it difficult to remove the poverty of the West? [3+2] / [3+3]
👉In her ‘Nobel Lecture’ Mother Teresa highlighted a number of problems prevailing in the world which break peace. But she is very much concerned about abortion. She feels that it is the greatest destroyer of peace today, because it is a direct war, a direct killing—direct murder by the mother herself. Mother Teresa wanted to fight abortion by adopting unwanted children. She along with her co-workers sent words to all the clinics, to the hospitals, police stations– not to destroy the child, they would take the child.
According to Mother Teresa, it is difficult to remove the poverty of the West because this type of poverty is completely related to mind. Mother Teresa in her ‘Nobel Lecture’ said that thousands of people in the Western countries are feeling shut-out, unwanted and terrified as they are thrown-outs from the society. Most of them are neglected by their parents. Their parents don’t have time to spare with them. There is none to show any sympathy and love to them. As a result, the children have been feeling loneliness, carelessness etc. This sort of poverty is really hurtable, and very much difficult to remove as it is completely related to mind. The sisters of Teresa’s organization are also working amongst that kind of people.
[VIII] “I feel the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion.” Elaborate.
👉In her ‘Nobel Lecture’ Mother Teresa highlighted a number of problems prevailing in the world which break peace. But she is very much concerned about abortion. She feels that it is the greatest destroyer of peace today, because it is a direct war, a direct killing—direct murder by the mother herself. Millions of children are dying deliberately all over the world only by the will of the mother. In Christianity abortion is strictly prohibited by God. So, abortion is nothing but a direct denial of God’s gift, a war against God. According to Mother Teresa, if a mother can kill her own child, nothing remains then. Therefore, peace, love are no longer with the mother and the God as well. So, Mother considers abortion as the greatest destroyer of peace in the today’s society.
[IX] How does Mother Teresa point out to put an end to abortion?
👉Mother Teresa wanted to fight abortion by adopting unwanted children. She along with her co-workers sent words to all the clinics, to the hospitals, police stations– not to destroy the child, they would take the child. Mother also counseled quite a number of unwedded mothers to give their children to them. Apart from all these, Mother with her co-workers taught the beggars, the leprosy patients, slum dwellers and street-dwellers the necessity of natural family planning. And thus they had saved thousands of lives.
[X] How does Mother Teresa fight against the greatest destroyer of peace?
👉Mother Teresa wanted to fight against abortion, the greatest destroyer of peace by adopting unwanted children. She along with her co-workers sent words to all the clinics, to the hospitals, police stations– not to destroy the child, they would take the child. Mother also counseled quite a number of unwedded mothers to give their children to them. Apart from all these, Mother with her co-workers taught the beggars, the leprosy patients, slum dwellers and street-dwellers the necessity of natural family planning. And thus they had saved thousands of lives.
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8. “And this I appeal in India, I appeal everywhere.” What is the speaker’s appeal? Why does the speaker appeal? [3+2] / [3+3]
👉Mother Teresa wanted to fight against abortion, the greatest destroyer of peace by adopting unwanted children. She along with her co-workers sent words to all the clinics, to the hospitals, police stations– not to destroy the child, they would take the child. Mother also counseled quite a number of unwedded mothers to give their children to them. Apart from all these, Mother with her co-workers taught the beggars, the leprosy patients, slum dwellers and street-dwellers the necessity of natural family planning. And thus they had saved thousands of lives.
9. “And that is what strikes me most” What strikes Mother the most? What remedy does she suggest? [2+3] / [3+3]
👉In Christianity abortion is strictly prohibited by God. Abortion is nothing but a direct denial of God’s gift, a war against God. In the Scripture, God clearly says, “Even if a mother could forget her child–I will not forget you–I have carved you in the palm of my own hand.” As a devout Christian, Mother Teresa fully believed in the Scripture. When she notices a mother is aborting her child, the sayings of God strike her most.
Mother Teresa wanted to fight against abortion, the greatest destroyer of peace by adopting unwanted children. She along with her co-workers sent words to all the clinics, to the hospitals, police stations– not to destroy the child, they would take the child. Mother also counseled quite a number of unwedded mothers to give their children to them. Apart from all these, Mother with her co-workers taught the beggars, the leprosy patients, slum dwellers and street-dwellers the necessity of natural family planning. And thus they had saved thousands of lives.
Related Question
“And that is what strikes me most” What strikes Mother most and what redress does she suggest? [2+3] / [3+3]
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10. Why does Mother Teresa believe that it is not enough for us to say ‘I love God, but I do not love my neighbour’?
👉In the above mentioned line Mother Teresa refers to the famous explanation of St. John who says a person will be a liar if he says he loves God but he does not love his neighbour. The simple reason behind it is that anyone sees or touches his neighbour easily and it is quite easy for him to love his neighbour. But it is impossible for him to love God because he does not see God. So, according to Mother Teresa, if a person does not love his neighbour, logically he will be unable to love unseen God. Mother Teresa believes in this logical reasoning.
Unit – III
11. What, according to Mother Teresa, is needed to overcome the evils of the world?
👉According to Mother Teresa, to overcome all the evils of the world, we must bring peace in our family first. And for bringing peace into our family we must bring the presence of God in our family, for the family prays together stays together. She thinks that we don’t need bombs and guns in our family, to destroy to bring peace. She advises us just to get together and love one another. And thus the joy, peace and the strength of presence of each other will be brought in our home. And only in this way, according to Mother Teresa, we will be able to overcome all the evils of the world.
Related Question
What, according to Mother Teresa, is needed to overcome the evils of the world? What did she propose to do with the prize money? [3+2] / [4+2]
👉According to Mother Teresa, to overcome all the evils of the world, we must bring peace in our family first. And for bringing peace into our family we must bring the presence of God in our family, for the family prays together stays together. She thinks that we don’t need bombs and guns in our family, to destroy to bring peace. She advises us just to get together and love one another. And thus the joy, peace and the strength of presence of each other will be brought in our home. And only in this way, according to Mother Teresa, we will be able to overcome all the evils of the world.
In her ‘Nobel Lecture’ Mother Teresa proposed that with that prize money that she had received as a prize of peace, she was going to try to make the home for many homeless people. Because she believed that love begins at home, and if she could create a home for the poor, more and more love would spread
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12. “That poverty comes right there in our own home” Which poverty is Mother Teresa talking about? What is the outcome of such poverty? [2+3] / [3+3]
👉Here in the above mentioned line Mother Teresa by ‘that poverty’ is talking about the lack of love and peace. It suggests mental ‘poverty’. The ‘poverty’ of loneliness, isolation and mental pangs which is more unbearable than the concrete.
In the old age home, Mother has experienced how the old parents were just put and might be forgotten by their sons and daughters. Nearly everyday they were expecting, hoping that a son or a daughter would come to visit them. But none visited them. So, being forsaken and forgotten by the family members, these old inmates felt hurt and became unhappy. Thus, smile slipped from their lips. This experience of Mother Teresa surely indicates that poverty of love comes right in our own home. Therefore, such negligence and indifference can bring forth poverty in our own home too.
For that poverty, someone is feeling lonely or sick or worried in every family. It may be in our own family too. To remove that poverty at first we need to find out the person feeling worried or unwanted. And then we need to receive him with our sincere love and tenderness.
Related Questions
[I] “That poverty comes right there in our own home” Which poverty is Mother Teresa talking about? What solution does she provide to remove that poverty? [2+3] / [3+3]
[II] “That poverty comes right there in our own home” What is suggested by ‘that poverty’? What happens when such poverty comes? [2+3] / [3+3]
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13. How did the donor of 15 dollars to Mother Teresa save that money? How was the money spent by Mother Teresa? [3+2] / [3+3]
👉Once Mother Teresa had a wonderful experience with a physically challenged man who had been on his back for twenty years, and the only part he could move was his right hand. And his only companion was smoking. Mother Teresa was thrilled when she got 15 dollars from this type of disabled man. When Mother visited this man, he simply told her that he did not smoke for one week and saved the money amounting 15 dollars to send it to Mother Teresa to help the poor. According to Mother Teresa, it was ‘a terrible sacrifice for him’ and the ‘sacrifice’ would be ‘a gift of God’ and this kind of sacrifice melted her mind.
After getting the money, Mother Teresa began to think what to be done with that noble giving. She bought some bread and gave to those who were hungry. The hungry people took the food with a joy. And the joy was on both sides–the man was giving and the poor were receiving. It proved that, that person had a great heart to feel for the poor.
From this incident we get a message of helping the poor from the core of our heart without any personal objective.
Related Questions
[I] What sacrifice did the man who sent 15 dollars to Mother Teresa make? How did Mother Teresa turn his ‘terrible sacrifice’ into ‘a joy on both sides’? [3+2] / [3+3]
[II] What experience did Mother Teresa have with a disabled person who donated Mother 15 dollars and why? [3+2] / [3+3]
[III] “I send you this money.” What sacrifice did the speaker make to send the money? How does Mother describe ‘love’ here? [3+2] / [3+3]
[IV] Who donated fifteen dollars and how did he save the money? Why did Mother remember the person with gratitude? [3+2] / [3+3]
[V] “It must have been a terrible sacrifice for him.” What is ‘a terrible sacrifice’? How would the ‘sacrifice’ be ‘a gift of God’? [3+2] / [3+3]
[VI] “It must have been a terrible sacrifice for him.” Why is the sacrifice terrible? What is the final outcome of his sacrifice? [3+2] / [3+3]
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14. Mention in brief two real life incidents of Mother Teresa that prove that sharing is the greatest love.
👉Mother Teresa has shared a number of heart-touching encounters with the poor in Kolkata. Out of real life experiences of Mother two most glaring examples are stated below that prove that sharing is the greatest love–
Some time ago in Calcutta Mother Teresa and her sisters had great difficultly in getting sugar, and Mother did not know how the word got round to the children, and a little four-year old Hindu boy went home and proposed his parents that he would not eat sugar for three days and thus he wanted to accumulate sugar to offer it to Mother for the children of Mother’s home. The boy only wanted to relish the joy of sharing. Mother Teresa was deeply impressed by the little boy’s sense of sharing love with the poor children.
The most touching story is about a poor starved Hindu family with eight children. The mother of the family shared the rice given by Mother with her neighbouring starved Muslim family and relished the rice in joy of sharing.
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WBCHSE Sample Questions
1. Narrate the experience Mother Teresa had when there was a great difficulty in getting sugar……(6)
👉In her ‘Nobel Lecture’ Mother Teresa has highlighted a number of experiences and encounters with the poor in Kolkata. One such experience was about securing sugar. Some time ago in Calcutta Mother Teresa and her sisters had great difficultly in getting sugar, and Mother did not know how the word got round to the children, and a little four-year old Hindu boy went home and proposed his parents that he would not eat sugar for three days and thus he wanted to accumulate sugar to offer it to Mother for the children of Mother’s home. The boy only wanted to relish the joy of sharing.
After three days when his parents brought the little boy to Mother’s home, this little one could scarcely pronounce Mother’s name, but he knew exactly what he had come to do. He knew that he wanted to share his love. Mother Teresa was deeply impressed by the little boy’s sense of sharing love with the poor children.
2. Narrate the experience and the feelings of Mother when she visited an Old Age Home?……(6)
👉In her ‘Nobel Lecture’ Mother Teresa has shared an experience of visiting an old age home where old parents were just put and might be forgotten by their sons and daughters. She went there and was saddened and surprised to see that though the old parents had everything in that home, they all were looking towards the door with their dismal faces. Mother had not seen a single one with his or her smiling face.
Being surprised, Mother Teresa asked the sister and learnt that these old parents were hurt because they were forgotten. Nearly everyday they were expecting, hoping that a son or a daughter would come to visit them. But none visited them. So, being forsaken and forgotten by the family members, these old inmates felt hurt and became unhappy. Thus, smile slipped from their lips. Such was the experience of Mother Teresa in an old age home in Calcutta.
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WBCHSE Previous Years’ Questions
1. Narrate in your words the experience of Mother Teresa in an old age home. [5]
[WBCHSE Class-XI Annual Examination 2014]
👉In her ‘Nobel Lecture’ Mother Teresa has shared an experience of visiting an old age home where old parents were just put and might be forgotten by their sons and daughters. She went there and was saddened and surprised to see that though the old parents had everything in that home, they all were looking towards the door with their dismal faces. Mother had not seen a single one with his or her smiling face.
Being surprised, Mother Teresa asked the sister and learnt that these old parents were hurt because they were forgotten. Nearly everyday they were expecting, hoping that a son or a daughter would come to visit them. But none visited them. So, being forsaken and forgotten by the family members, these old inmates felt hurt and became unhappy. Thus, smile slipped from their lips. Such was the experience of Mother Teresa in an old age home in Calcutta.
2. “I had the most extraordinary experience with the Hindu family that had eight children.” Which experience is Mother Teresa speaking of? [5]
[WBCHSE Class-XI Annual Examination 2015]
👉In her ‘Nobel Lecture’ Mother Teresa has shared the most extraordinary experience in her life with a Hindu family that had eight children.
Once a gentleman came to Mother Teresa’s house and informed her that there was a family with eight children, they had not eaten for so long. The gentleman urged Mother Teresa to do something for the family. Hearing this, Mother Teresa, taking some rice, went there immediately. She saw that the children’s eyes were shining with hunger. Mother Teresa gave the rice to the mother of the starved family. The mother divided the rice into two portions, and taking one portion, she went out.
When she came back, being curious, Mother Teresa asked where she had gone and what she had done with the rice. The woman simply answered that she had given the portion of the rice to a Muslim family—their neighbour. She added that they were also in the same distress and they were hungry too. Mother Teresa was overwhelmed with joy to learn such extraordinary service of the poor Hindu family. Mother learnt the lesson of joy of sharing even in acute destitution.
3. In what ways does Mother Teresa appeal to the emotions of her audience? What stories does she share of her encounters with the poor in Kolkata? [2+3]
[WBCHSE Class-XI Annual Examination 2016]
👉In her speech Mother Teresa is illustrative and full of liveliness. She reminds the audience to love God to live a beautiful life. She appeals to the emotions of her audience with her healing voice of love to evoke their love, peace, mutual feeling, compassion, forgiveness, charity, service to the poor, downtrodden. Mother also appeals to them to become a burning light of peace in the world so that they can love all as God loves, especially the poor and the destitute.
Mother Teresa has shared a number of heart-touching encounters with the poor in Kolkata. One evening Mother Teresa with her sisters picked up a dying woman from the street, and the lady, without blaming anybody, died at Mother’s home with a smile on her face expressing her thankfulness to Mother for serving her. Another similar incident happened when a man, half-eaten by worms, was picked up from the drain. He also thanked Mother Teresa as he was dying like an angel.
Again, an interesting incident of four years old Hindu boy, who donated his three days’ alloted sugar to Mother to share his great love with the children at Mother’s home. Finally the most touching story is about a poor starved Hindu family with eight children. The mother of the family shared the rice given by Mother with her neighbouring starved Muslim family and relished the rice in joy of sharing.
5. Narrate the experience Mother Teresa had when there was great difficulty in getting sugar? [5]
[WBCHSE Class-XI Annual Examination 2017]
👉In her ‘Nobel Lecture’ Mother Teresa has highlighted a number of experiences and encounters with the poor in Kolkata. One such experience was about securing sugar. Some time ago in Calcutta Mother Teresa and her sisters had great difficultly in getting sugar, and Mother did not know how the word got round to the children, and a little four-year old Hindu boy went home and proposed his parents that he would not eat sugar for three days and thus he wanted to accumulate sugar to offer it to Mother for the children of Mother’s home. The boy only wanted to relish the joy of sharing.
After three days when his parents brought the little boy to Mother’s home, this little one could scarcely pronounce Mother’s name, but he knew exactly what he had come to do. He knew that he wanted to share his love. Mother Teresa was deeply impressed by the little boy’s sense of sharing love with the poor children.
6. “And she died with a smile on her face” How did she die with a smile on her face? [5]
[WBCHSE Class-XI Annual Examination 2019]
👉Mother Teresa has shared a number of heart-touching encounters with the poor in Kolkata. One evening Mother Teresa with her sisters went out and picked up four people from the street. And one of them was in a most terrible condition. Mother told her sisters to take care of the other three. She herself took the worst one under her care. Though Mother tried her best to cure her, she could not survive and died with a smile on her face. Mother Teresa was surprised to see the greatness of the poor lady. She had no objection to her life. She simply took hold of Mother’s hand and without drawing a little attention to herself and without blaming anybody for her condition, died at Mother’s home with a smile on her face expressing her thankfulness to Mother for serving her. This experience moved Mother Teresa much and she learnt the greatness of the poor people from the dying lady.
4. Why did Mother Teresa say that the poor people are great people? [5]
[WBCHSE Class-XI Annual Examination 2020]
👉Mother Teresa has shared a number of heart-touching encounters with the poor in Kolkata. One evening Mother Teresa with her sisters picked up a dying woman from the street, and the lady, without blaming anybody, died at Mother’s home with a smile on her face expressing her thankfulness to Mother for serving her. Another similar incident happened when a man, half-eaten by worms, was picked up from the drain. He also thanked Mother Teresa as he was dying like an angel. Again, an interesting incident of four years old Hindu boy, who donated his three days’ alloted sugar to Mother to share his great love with the children at Mother’s home.
Finally the most touching story is about a poor starved Hindu family with eight children. The mother of the family shared the rice given by Mother with her neighbouring starved Muslim family and relished the rice in joy of sharing. Thus Mother finds the greatness and nobility of the poor through her encounters with them, and so she compares the poor people with ‘angles’.
5. In what way does Mother Teresa appeal to the emotions of her audience? [5]
[WBCHSE Class-XI Annual Examination 2023]
👉In her speech Mother Teresa is illustrative and full of liveliness. She reminds the audience to love God to live a beautiful life. She appeals to the emotions of her audience with her healing voice of love to evoke their love, peace, mutual feeling, compassion, forgiveness, charity, service to the poor, downtrodden. Mother also appeals to them to become a burning light of peace in the world so that they can love all as God loves, especially the poor and the destitute.
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All-time Suggestive Questions
1. Narrate in your words the experience of Mother Teresa in an old age home.
2. “I had the most extraordinary experience with the Hindu family that had eight children.” Which experience is Mother Teresa speaking of?
3. Why did Mother Teresa say that the poor people are great people?
4. “I think the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion.” Why did Mother Teresa consider abortion as the greatest destroyer of peace? How did she decide to fight against abortion? [3+2] / [3+3]
5. How did the donor of 15 dollars to Mother Teresa save that money? How was the money spent by Mother Teresa? [3+2] / [3+3]
6. Narrate the experience Mother Teresa had when there was great difficulty in getting sugar?
7. “And she died with a smile on her face” How did she die with a smile on her face?
8. “And that is what strikes me most” What strikes Mother the most? What remedy does she suggest? [2+3] / [3+3]
9. Why does Mother Teresa believe that it is not enough for us to say ‘I love God, but I do not love my neighbour’?
10. What, according to Mother Teresa, is needed to overcome the evils of the world?
11. “That poverty comes right there in our own home” Which poverty is Mother Teresa talking about? What is the outcome of such poverty? [2+3] / [3+3]
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