Summary
Short-Questions
1. How do you think Mrs. Mooney settled with Mr. Doran about Polly? Did
Mr. Doran marry Polly or pay out compensation?
2. Write an interpretation of the story, "The Boarding
House".
3. Who was Polly?
4. How was Mrs. Mooney’s husband?
Long-Questions
1. Sketch the character of Mrs. Mooney.
The Boarding House
James Joyce
Character
Mrs. Mooney : daughter of a butcher
Doran : Polly's lover
Polly : Mrs. Mooney's daughter
Jack : clerk, Mrs. Mooney's son
A drunkard : Mrs. Mooney's husband
Mary : servant
Theme : The story deals with adolescence experience and about beauty which attracts everyone.
Summary
“The Boarding House” is a social story written by James Joyce. The writer deals with the experience of adolescence. The story is about an Irish middle class family living in Dublin. Mrs. Mooney, one of the main characters of the story, was a butcher’s daughter. She was very much confident and independent woman. She was married to her father’s foreman (helper). After marriage she started a butcher’s shop which she ran successfully. But her husband was very stupid and drunkard. He drank all the time and finished most of the property. He fell into a heavy debt. He quarreled with his wife and sometimes attacked her with a cleaver. So she had to go to neighbor’s house to sleep. Therefore she got divorced from her husband and opened a boarding house where many tourists, office workers, artists would come to stay.
Mrs. Mooney had a son and a daughter. Her daughter, Polly Mooney was a beautiful girl of 19. She fell in love with Mr. Doran, one of the young boys living at the boarding house. Mrs. Mooney suspected their relation but kept quiet watching their activities. One day she asked Miss Polly about went to Mr. Doran’s room and informed him that her mother had known their secret relation.
Mr. Doran fell in confusion not knowing what to do. In fact, he was not in mind of marrying Polly, she was not educated and her language was not good. She was the daughter of a butcher and her boarding house had no good fame. On the other hand, he was from gentle family and he had a good job. He thought that if he married her all his friends would laugh at him. Miss Polly began to weep but he asked her not to lose patience. At the same time maid (servant) came in his room and said that Mrs. Mooney wanted to talk to him. Wearing a coat he went to see her. Miss Polly sat alone in the room thinking about what he and her mother would make the decision. After sometime her mother called her and said that Mr. Doran wanted to speak to her.
Thus, the story ends in suspense. We don’t know what decision has been made. However, we can say that Mr. Doran must have agreed to marry Miss Polly.
Short-Questions
1. How do you think Mrs. Mooney settled with Mr. Doran about Polly? Did
Mr. Doran marry Polly or pay out compensation?
Mrs. Mooney knew their relationship and love affair. So, she talked to Polly about it. And Polly told her every detail. Then, she called Mr. Doran and asked him to accept her proposal to marry Polly. She made a plan to meet Doran in a room and told him about it. Mr. Doran was in dilemma whether to accept or run away. They had special relationship so he can not pay any compensation for it. Doran accepted Mrs. Mooney's proposal to marry Polly.
2. Write an interpretation of the story, "The Boarding
House".
This is an interesting story written by James Joyce. Mrs. Mooney married a man who worked for her father. He drank and fought with her. So, she lived separately, and ran a boarding house. She had a daughter and a son. Her daughter had special relation with Mr. Doran. Their love affair hit the boarding house. So, Mrs. Mooney planned to talk to Mr. Doran. She asked to accept her daughter. But Mr. Doran didn't want to marry with Polly, because she was uneducated and uncivilized, although he accepted Polly. They all became happy.
3. Who was Polly?
Polly was a daughter of Mrs. Mooney. She was slim girl of nineteen. She had light soft hair and a small full mouth. Her eyes were grey with a shade of green. She had a habit of glancing upward when she spoke with any one. She was like naughty little girl.
4. How was Mrs. Mooney’s husband?
Mrs. Mooney’s husband, Mr Mooney, was a worker in her father’s. He did bad things, like drinking alcohol. He stole money and owed a lot of money. He promised not to drink alcohol but started drinking again. He fought his wife in the presence of customers. He tried to finish off his wife, Mrs. Mooney. He was a drunkard. His face was white and with a white moustache and white eyebrows.
5. What was the major problem in the relation between Mr. Doran and
Polly?
6. Do you think Mr. Doran married Polley? Explain.
7. How is Mrs. Mooney succeed in her mission at the end? Explain.
Long-Questions
1. Sketch the character of Mrs. Mooney.
Mrs. Mooney, the main character of the story The Boarding House possessed a civilized and conscious character or behaviour. She had a daughter called Polly once fell in love with a boy called Mr. Doran. Gradually, people came to know about their relationship and started to gossip. Finally, Mrs. Mooney came to know the fact. Due to her civilized manner, she didn’t get angry but planned to make a perfect inquiry to find out the fact. If Doran had no bad intention, she would allow them to get married. If not she would take action against him to pay as a compensation. Later on, it is understood that she settled the problems between them and allowed them to go ahead. Before this event, she had started a shop to sell meat. She had two children. She got separated from her husband after he became useless to business. She followed legal process to get separated. She started a business of boarding house where many people stayed from short to long time.
From such kind of ideas and schemes of Mrs. Mooney, we can say that she was bold, decisive, responsible, civilized and a perfect woman. On the other hand, she gave responsibility to her daughter and son. Miss Polly had to be responsible to look after the boarding house. It means Mrs. Mooney was conscious to make them independent. So, regarding her character, Mrs. Mooney is courageous, business skilled, and deserving all types of qualities fit in modern time.
2. Briefly narrate the story "The Boarding House".
See the summary…
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