Lesson Out of Business JKBOSE Tulip Class 10 Full Explanation, Summary in English and Hindi, Difficult Words
By MEENA CHOUDHARY
R.K. Narayan: Out of Business
Little over a year ago Rama Rao went out of work when a gramophone company, of which he was the Malgudi agent, went out of existence. He had put into that agency the little money he had inherited, as security. For five years his business brought him enough money, just enough, to help him keep his wife and children in good comfort. He built a small bungalow in the Extension and was thinking of buying an old Baby car for his use.
And one day, it was a bolt from the blue, the crash came. A series of circumstances in the world of trade, commerce, banking and politics was responsible for it. The gramophone company, which had its factory somewhere in North India, automatically collapsed when a bank in Lahore crashed, which was itself the result of a Bombay financier’s death. The financier was driving downhill when his car flew off sideways and came to rest three hundred feet below the road. It was thought that he had committed suicide because the previous night his wife eloped with his cashier.
Rama Rao suddenly found himself in the streets. At first he could hardly understand the full significance of this collapse. There was a little money in the bank and he had some stock on hand. But the stock moved out slowly; the prices were going down, and he could hardly realize a few hundred rupees. When he applied for the refund of his security, there was hardly anyone at the other end to receive his application.
The money in the bank was fast melting. Rama Rao’s wife now tried some measures of economy. She sent away the cook and the servant; withdrew the children from a fashionable nursery school and sent them to a free primary school. And then they let out their bungalow and moved to a very small house behind the Market.
Rama Rao sent out a dozen applications a day and wore his feet out looking for employment. For a man approaching forty, looking for employment does not come very easily, especially when he has just lost an independent, lucrative business. Rama Rao was very businesslike in stating his request. He sent his card in and asked, ‘I wonder, sir, if you could do something for me. My business is all gone through no fault of my own. I shall be very grateful if you can give me something to do in your office . . .’
‘What a pity, Rama Rao! I am awfully sorry, there is nothing at present. If there is an opportunity I will certainly remember you.’
It was the same story everywhere. He returned home in the evening; his heart sank as he turned into his street behind the Market. His wife would invariably be standing at the door with the children behind her, looking down the street. What anxious, eager faces they had! So much of trembling, hesitating hope in their faces. They seemed always to hope that he would come back home with some magic fulfilment. As he remembered the futile way in which he searched for a job, and the finality with which people dismissed him, he wished that his wife and children had less trust in him. His wife looked at his face, understood and turned in without uttering a word; the children took the cue and filed in silently. Rama Rao tried to improve matters with a forced heartiness. ‘Well, well. How are we all today?’ To which he received mumbling, feeble responses from his wife and children. It rent his heart to see them in this condition. At the Extension how this girl would sparkle with flowers and a bright dress; she had friendly neighbours, a women’s club and everything to keep her happy there. But now she hardly had the heart or the need to change in the evenings, for she spent all her time cooped up in the kitchen. And then the children. The house in the Extension had a compound and they romped about with a dozen other children; it was possible to have numerous friends in the fashionable nursery school. But here the children had no friends and could play only in the back yard of the house. Their shirts were beginning to show tears and frays. Formerly they were given new clothes once in three months. Rama Rao lay in bed and spent sleepless nights over it.
All the cash in hand was now gone. Their only source of income was the small rent they were getting for their house in the Extension. They shuddered to think what would happen to them if their tenant should suddenly leave.
It was in this condition that Rama Rao came across a journal in the Jubilee Reading Room. It was called The Captain. It consisted of four pages, and all of them were devoted to crossword puzzles. It offered every week a first prize of four thousand rupees.
For the next few days his head was free from family cares. He was thinking intensely of his answers: whether it should be TALLOW or FOLLOW. Whether BAD or MAD or SAD would be most apt for a clue which said, ‘Men who are this had better be avoided.’ He hardly stopped to look at his wife and children standing in the doorway when he returned home in the evenings. Week after week he invested a little money and sent his solutions, and every week he awaited the results with a palpitating heart. On the day a solution was due he hung about the newsagent’s shop, worming himself into his favour in order to have a look into the latest issue of The Captain without paying for it. He was too impatient to wait till the journal came on the table in the Jubilee Reading Room. Sometimes the newsagent would grumble, and Rama Rao would pacify him with an awkward, affected optimism. ‘Please wait. When I get a prize I will give you three years’ subscription in advance . . .’ His heart quailed as he opened the page announcing the prize-winners. Someone in Baluchistan, someone in Dacca and someone in Ceylon had hit upon the right set of words; not Rama Rao. It took three hours for Rama Rao to recover from this shock. The only way to exist seemed to be to plunge into the next week’s puzzle; that would keep him buoyed up with hope for a few days more.
This violent alternating between hope and despair soon wrecked his nerves and balance. At home he hardly spoke to anyone. His head was always bowed in thought. He quarrelled with his wife if she refused to give him his rupee a week for the puzzles. She was of a mild disposition and was incapable of a sustained quarrel, with the result that he always got what he wanted, though it meant a slight sacrifice in household expenses.
One day the good journal announced a special offer of eight thousand rupees. It excited Rama Rao’s vision of a future tenfold. He studied the puzzle. There were only four doubtful corners in it, and he might have to send in at least four entries. A larger outlay was indicated. ‘You must give me five rupees this time,’ he said to his wife, at which that good lady became speechless. He had become rather insensitive to such things these days, but even he could not help feeling the atrocious nature of his demand. Five rupees were nearly a week’s food for the family. He felt disturbed for a moment; but he had only to turn his attention to speculate whether HOPE or DOPE or ROPE made most sense (for ‘Some people prefer this to despair’) and his mind was at once at rest.
After sending away the solutions by registered post he built elaborate castles in the air. Even if it was only a share, he would get a substantial amount of money. He would send away his tenants, take his wife and children back to the bungalow in the Extension and leave all the money in his wife’s hands for her to manage for a couple of years or so; he himself would take a hundred and go away to Madras and seek his fortune there. By the time the money in his wife’s hands was spent, he would have found some profitable work in Madras.
On the fateful day of results Rama Rao opened The Captain, and the correct solution stared him in the face. His blunders were numerous. There was no chance of getting back even a few annas now. He moped about till the evening. The more he brooded over this the more intolerable life seemed . . . All the losses, disappointments and frustrations of his life came down on him with renewed force. In the evening instead of turning homeward he moved along the Railway Station Road. He slipped in at the level crossing and walked down the line a couple of miles. It was dark. Far away the lights of the town twinkled, and the red and green light of a signal post loomed over the surroundings a couple of furlongs behind him. He had come to the conclusion that life was not worth living. If one had the misfortune to be born in the world, the best remedy was to end matters on a railway line or with a rope (‘Dope? Hope?’ his mind asked involuntarily). He pulled it back. ‘None of that,’ he said to it and set it rigidly to contemplate the business of dying. Wife, children . . . nothing seemed to matter. The only important thing now was total extinction. He lay across the lines. The iron was still warm. The day had been hot. Rama Rao felt very happy as he reflected that in less than ten minutes the train from Trichinopoly would be arriving.
He lay there he did not know how long. He strained his ears to catch the sound of the train, but he heard nothing more than a vague rattling and buzzing far off . . . Presently he grew tired of lying down there. He rose and walked back to the station. There was a good crowd on the platform. He asked someone, ‘What has happened to the train?’
‘A goods train has derailed three stations off, and the way is blocked. They have sent up a relief. All the trains will be at least three hours late today . . .’
‘God, you have shown me mercy!’ Rama Rao cried, and ran home.
His wife was waiting at the door, looking down the street. She brightened up and sighed with relief on seeing Rama Rao. She welcomed him with a warmth he had not known for over a year now. ‘Oh, why are you so late today?’ she asked. ‘I was somehow feeling very restless the whole evening. Even the children were worried. Poor creatures! They have just gone to sleep.’
When he sat down to eat she said, ‘Our tenants in the Extension bungalow came in the evening to ask if you would sell the house. They are ready to offer good cash for it immediately.’ She added quietly, ‘I think we may sell the house.’
‘Excellent idea,’ Rama Rao replied jubilantly. ‘This minute we can get four and a half thousand for it. Give me the half thousand and I will go away to Madras and see if I can do anything useful there. You keep the balance with you and run the house. Let us first move to a better locality . . .’
‘Are you going to employ your five hundred to get more money out of crossword puzzles?’ she asked quietly. At this Rama Rao felt depressed for a moment and then swore with great emphasis, ‘No, no. Never again.’
Summary of the Lesson
The protagonist of this story, Rama Rao, inherited money and invested it in a gramophone company to become a Malgudi agent. His business went well for five years, and he earned a lot of money to live a decent and comfortable life with his wife and children. However, things are not turning as well as we always expect. Suddenly, a stock market crash led his company to the point of extinction. This news appeared to him like a blue bolt. Several circumstances in the world of banking, commerce, trade, politics and the unexpected death of a Bombay financial institution have led to his financial disaster. Some doubted that the financial person’s death was a suicide case because his wife and his cashier are unlawful and immoral.
Rama Rao did not initially feel the disaster ‘s impact. His savings were reduced over the course of several months. His condition gradually became compassionate and pathetic. But the calm and composed of his wife was very cool. She was not only sensitive and friendly. She tried to alleviate her husband’s burden by releasing the cook and servant, taking her children from a prestigious and luxurious school into ordinary primary school and moving on to the common house from a comfortable bungalow. Rama Rao was a hard worker, he hadn’t gone to yawning and gaping for his time. His best effort was to get a job from one plant to another, but he was disappointed everywhere. At night his wife and children were looking forward to good news for him. Rama Rao came back with a dull face as usual. Their only hope was the money they received from their bungalow ‘s rent.
Rama Rao found one day a four-page newspaper called ” The Captain.” The four pages were dedicated to puzzles of the crossword. Every week a prize of 4,000 rupees was offered. He thought that by solving those crosswords, he could earn money now. Since then, in the hope of the first prize, he had sent the answers. In anguish, he used to wait for the sender’s name. But his hopes were broken every time. His frustration and disappointment were shown on his face. ” The face is the index of one’s hearts.” He became scary and fought his wife on a slim and insignificant ground. His wife by being cool and composed attempted to appease her husband by remaining silent.
Anyway, 8000 rupees were declared a special prize one day. One more opportunity, one more hope. Rama Rao was trying again to try his luck. He insisted that his wife give him Rs5 by registered post to send his reply. He decided to send four different entries, as he couldn’t be sure of four variations in one part. He hoped for hope and dreamed that a castle with prize money would be built on the air. But fortune goddess had yet to smile and her hopes were crumbled this time as well. ” Hope is the bread of a poor man,” he didn’t win the prize. He, therefore, decided there was no justification for conducting such a measurable life and decided to commit suicide. He walked to the railways and waited for the train there. But God seemed to rescue him this time. He was waiting, waiting, but the train was still coming. He was finally tired of lying there, got up and walked to the station. He came there to know that a freight train has derailed and that all planned trains are three hours late.
He chose to return home. Then he decided. His wife was anxious and eager for the unreasonable delay of Rama Rao. But she shone and sighed at his sight with relief. Then he sat down to eat after a relaxation. His wife told him that in the evening the tenants came and asked him to sell his bungalow in the weather. They’d offer a good deal. He thought it was a very good idea and expressed his thoughts. His wife wanted to know whether he’d invest his money again in a crossword. Rama Rao felt depressed and said no calmly. He was going to go to Madras to look at profitable work there, to get them out of their misery. If they get four and a half for their home, he would have to keep five hundred and give away the rest to his wife.
Critical Comments
In Out of Business by R.K. Narayan we have the theme of control, struggle, defeat, desperation, depression, identity, hope and unity. Taken from his Malgudi Days collection the story is narrated in the third person by an unnamed narrator and from the beginning of the story the reader realises that Narayan may be exploring the theme of control. Rama relies on others doing well, the banks and the Gramophone Company. He lives his life precariously even though this may not have been his intention. He is reliant on both the banks and the Gramophone Company to be successful in order for him to be successful and when the banks collapse so too does the Gramophone Company. The downside for Ram is that he now has no job and he has to down-size. Aspirations he might have had to improve his life materialistically have faded. If anything life becomes a struggle for Rama and his family. Something that is noticeable by the amount of job applications that Rama sends out without any luck. The fact that Rama sends out so many job applications may also be important as it suggests that Rama is not prepared to accept defeat. He continues to persevere to the best of his ability. A trait that many readers and critics might find admirable. However it might be important to remember that Rama does get disheartened after each rejection he receives from potential employers.
Narayan may also be exploring the theme of desperation. Rama spends a lot of his time doing crosswords puzzles hoping that he will win some money. He becomes so preoccupied with the crossword puzzles that he spends his time at the newsagents’ checking to see if he has won. This may be important as it suggests that due to his circumstances Rama has become desperate. He is putting all his faith in the hope that he might win a prize from the crossword puzzles. It is as though the only hope that Rama feels he has, is winning on the crossword puzzles. It is also noticeable that Rama’s preoccupation with the crossword puzzles is taking a toll on his family life. So disastrous is Rama’s preoccupation that money for household expenses is being spent on crossword puzzles. It is as though Rama is blindly leading himself into an alternative world that is devoid of reality. Rama’s circumstances and those of his family are dire yet he continues to spend money he doesn’t have on the crossword puzzles. Though again the reader is aware of just how desperate Rama is.
There is also no doubting that the continual failures that Rama encounters with the crossword puzzles leads to him feeling depressed. So depressed is Rama that he contemplates suicide. He can see no other option. He has spent money he could not afford to spend on crossword puzzles and has not been successful. It is as though Rama views his life as being a failure. Not even the thought of his family can lift Rama’s spirits. It is also possible that Rama has lost his identity since he lost his job. No longer is he as sure of who he is which may not help the depression that Rama feels. For Rama the most important thing is ‘total extinction.’ However things do not go as planned for Rama. There has been a derailment of a train causing a three hour delay. This may be important because in this moment Rama gets a new lease of life. It is as though he has an epiphany or moment of realisation. Understanding that how he has lived his life (doing the crossword puzzles) is the wrong way to live. He begins to realise that there is something else worth living for and that something is his family.
The end of the story is also interesting as there is as sense of unity between Rama and his family. No longer is Rama interested in spending money he doesn’t have on crossword puzzles. Rather with the money he will receive from the sale of his home he intends to find work in Madras. Where previously Rama had lost focus he now realises that his family are the most important thing in his life. It is as though the sale of Rama’s home has brought a new sense of hope into his life. It is also noticeable that Rama for the first time in a long time is at one with himself. It is as though he remembers what his priorities are and the responsibilities that he has. Something that was missing when Rama was spending money on the crossword puzzles. Money that he did not necessarily have to spend. At the end of the story the reader can’t help but feel as though Rama and his family’s life will improve for the better. Though Rama had chased good fortune by buying the crossword puzzles. It is the sale of his home that has brought him the luck that he needs to get himself back on his feet.
Text Book Questions and Answers
Q1: What was Rama Rao’s business? How did it collapse?
Ans: Rama Rao had a decent income from his business as an independent agent of a gramophone company with its factory somewhere in North India. This enabled him to support his family comprising himself, his wife and two children, providing them a comfortable lifestyle.
In the wake of a series of circumstances in the world of trade and commerce, the gramophone company collapsed when a bank in Lahore crashed on account of the unusual death of a financier based in Mumbai.
Q2: What effect did the collapse of Rama Rao’s business have on him and his family?
Ans: Rama Rao suddenly found himself in the streets. There was a little money in the bank and he had some stock on hand. When he applied for the refund of his security, there was hardly anyone at the other end to receive his application.
The money in the bank was fast melting. Rama Rao’s wife now tried some measures of economy. She sent away the cook and the servant; withdrew the children from a fashionable nursery school and sent them to a free primary school. And then they let out their bungalow and moved to a very small house behind the Market.
Q3: Why did Rama Rao worry about his family after he came across The Captain?
Ans: Rama Rao became fascinated by the prospect of earning some extra money after he had come across a journal, The Captain, in the jubilee reading room. All the four pages of the journal were devoted to crossword puzzles. The journal offered every week a first prize of four thousand rupees. He devoted his entire attention to the puzzles trying to think of the correct answers.
Q4: Why did Rama Rao decide to send in at least four entries for the ‘ Special Offer Crossword Competition?
Ans: Week after week Rama Rao invested a little money and sent down his solutions and waiting for the results with a throbbing heart. One day the good journal announced a special offer of eight thousand rupees. It excited Rama Rao’s vision of a future tenfold. He studied the puzzle. There were only four doubtful corners in it. This time, he didn’t want to leave anything to chance. He wanted to sure of winning a prize. So, he decided to send in at least four entries this time.
Q6: Why did Rama Rao plan to go to Madras?
Ans: Rama Rao had sent in four entries for the special offer crossword competition. This time, he had left nothing to chance. There were only four doubtful solutions and he had covered them all by ending four entries. Thus he was dead sure of wining a prize this time. With this certainly, he started building castles in the air. He thought he would send away the tenant and move back to his bungalow. He would give all the prize money to his wife. It would be enough for her to run the family for a couple of years. For himself, he would take only a small amount and go away to Madras. There he would try to find some profitable work for himself. That was why Rama Rao planned to go to Madras.
Q7: What made Rama Rao believe that God has shown him mercy?
Ans: Rama Rao had all hope that he would win a big prize in the special crossword puzzle competition. This time, he had taken no chances. He had sent in four entries because there were only four doubtful solutions. But when the results came, there was no prize for him. It was too big a shock for him. He decided to end his life on the railway line. He started walking along the line and reached a few miles from the town. There he lay down across the line. A train was due in a few minutes. Rama Rao kept lying for quite some time, but the train didn’t come. He became tired and got up. He walked towards the station. There was a big crowd on the platform. Rama Rao came to know that the train was three hours late because of an accident. Thus Rama Rao was in no doubt that God has shown him mercy.
Q 8: How did Rama Rao alternate between hope and despair?
Ans: Rama Rao hoped to overcome his financial difficulties through the crossword puzzle competition. Rama Rao alternated between hope when he would prepare himself for cracking a cross word puzzle and despair when he failed to win it.
Text-Based Question Answer
Q 1: What was Rama Rao's original income?
Ans: Rama Rao had a decent income as the Malgudi agent of a gramophone company with its factory somewhere in North India.
Q 2: How did Rama Rao support his family when he earned?
Ans: Rama Rao had a decent income from his business as an independent agent of a gramophone company with its factory somewhere in North India. This enabled him to support his family comprising himself, his wife and two children, providing them a comfortable lifestyle. He bought a bungalow in the Extension, sent his children to a fashionable school and even thought of buying a baby car for himself.
Q 3: When did the Gramophone Company collapse?
Ans: In the wake of a series of circumstances in the world of trade and commerce, the gramophone company collapsed when a bank in Lahore crashed on account of the unusual death of a financier based in Mumbai.
Q 4: How was the death of the Bombay financier caused?
Ans: The Bombay financier was driving downhill when his car flew off sideways and plunged three hundred feet below the road. His unusual death was interpreted as a suicide by him as his wife had eloped with his cashier.
Q 5: What were the measures adopted By Rama Rao's wife to deal with the financial crisis?
Ans: When the little money in the bank began to melt away, Rama Rao's wife took some austerity measures. She dismissed the services of the cook and the servant and withdrew the children from a fashionable nursery school and sent them to a free primary school. They let out their bungalow and moved to a very small house behind the market.
Q 6: What did Rama Rao do to find employment?
Ans: In an attempt to get employment Rama Rao sent out a dozen applications a day and moved from place to place wearing his feet out. The very thought that he once owned a lucrative business influenced the manner of Rama Rao's manner of seeking employment. He chose to be business like in stating his request for a job. He sent his card in and asked in a very formal manner if something could be done for him. He mentioned that his business had gone through no fault of his own. He added that he would be very grateful if the man approached could offer him something to do in his office.
Q 7: What was the assurance given to Rama Rao when he visited offices looking for employment?
Ans: When Rama Rao visited offices looking for employment, he would hear the same story. He would be told that it was only a pity and that the man approached was very sorry that there was presently nothing for him to do. Yet he would be given an assurance that if there was an opportunity, he would certainly be remembered.
Q8: What did Rama Rao feel like when he returned home in the evening after a futile attempt to get employment?
Ans: When Rama Rao returned home in the evening after a futile attempt to get employment, his heart sank when he turned into the street behind the market. He would think that his wife would surely be standing at the door with the children behind her, wistfully looking down the road. There was so much of trembling, hesitating hope in their faces. They looked like they hoped that he would return with some magic fulfillment.
Q 9: Why did Rama Rao spend sleepless nights lying in bed?
Ans: Rama Rao spent sleepless nights thinking about the miserable condition of his wife and children in striking contrast to what they had before. When Rama Rao would return in the evening filled with despair and pain as he was unable to find a job to support his family, he could not but think of the past of his wife and children. He would remember that there was a time when his wife would sparkle with flowers and a bright dress. She had the privileges of friendly neighbours, a women's club and everything to keep her happy. Presently she hardly had the heart or the need to change in the evenings as she would be cooped up in the kitchen all the time. The children in his heyday would caper about in the compound of the house in the Extension along with a dozen other children. They had no dearth of friends in the fashionable nursery school. But presently they had no friends and no choice but to play in the courtyard of the house. Their shirts were not showing tears and frays while formerly they had the luxury of being dressed in new clothes every three months.
Q10:What was the only source of income of the family after all the cash was spent?
Ans:After all the cash was spent, the only source of income of the family was the small rent they had been getting from their house in the Extension.
Q 10: What did Rama Rao and his family members shudder to think?
Ans: Rama Rao and his family members shuddered to think of what would happen to them if their tenant suddenly left.
Q 11: Why was Rama Rao's head free from all family cares for the next few days?
Ans: Rama Rao became fascinated by the prospect of earning some extra money after he had come across a journal, The Captain, in the jubilee reading room. All the four pages of the journal were devoted to cross word puzzles. The journal offered every week a first prize of four thousand rupees. He devoted his entire attention to the puzzles trying to think of the correct answers.
Q 12: What did Rama Rao do for the puzzles week after week?
Ans: Week after week Rama Rao invested a little money and sent down his solutions. Week after week saw him waiting for the results with a throbbing heart.
Q 13: What did Rama Rao do on the day a solution was due?
Ans: On the day a solution was due, he would hang around the newsagent's shop and flatter him to get his favour to look into the latest issue of the journal Captain without paying for it. It was due to a feeling of impatience that he could not wait for the magazine to come on the table of the jubilee reading room.
Q 14: Why would the newspaper agent grumble? How would Rama Rao pacify him?
Ans: The newspaper agent would grumble at the way Rama Rao would try to look into the pages of the journal for the solution without paying for it.
When the newspaper agent would grumble at the way he would try to look into the journal, Rama Rao would pacify him pretending to be optimistic of winning the money of the reward. He would assure the agent that when he would get the prize, he would give him three years' subscription in advance.
Q15: What did Rama Rao feel like when he opened the page of the journal announcing the prize winners?
Ans: Rama Rao opened the page of the magazine captain with a feeling of nervousness to discover to his utter disappointment that the winners hailed from as far- flung places as Baluchistan, Dacca or Ceylon, coming up with the right set of words. It took him three hours to get over the shock of his failure.
Q 16: What was the violent alternating between hope and despair? What was the outcome of it?
Ans: Rama Rao alternated between hope when he would prepare himself for cracking a crossword puzzle and despair when he failed to win it.
As a result of this tremendous alteration between hope and despair, his nerves would be wrecked and he would lose his poise. He did not talk to anyone at home and his head was always bent in thought. He also quarrelled with his wife when she refused to give him a rupee a week for the puzzles.
Q 17: How did Rama Rao manage to have his way with his wife?
Ans: Being a woman of a milder nature, Rama Rao's wife failed to continue to quarrel with her husband for too long and finally gave in to his demand for a rupee every week. She had to let him have his way, though it meant a slight sacrifice in the family expenses.
Q 18: What excited Rama Rao's vision of a future tenfold?
Ans: One day the journal Captain announced a special offer of eight thousand rupees and it excited Rama Rao's vision of future tenfold.
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