3.

THE GIRL WHO CAN

Section A: Multiple-Choice Questions
1. (c) 2. (b) 3. (c) 4. (b) 5. (d) 6. (b) 7. (c) 8. (a) 9. (c) 10. (a) 11. (d) 12. (a) 13. (b) 14. (a)
Section B: Context Questions
I. (i) ‘I’ refers to the narrator of the story, Adjoa, a seven-year-old girl.
According to Adjoa her grandmother’s problem was Adjoa’s thin and long legs, which
she considered as not suitable for supporting strong hips required for childbearing.

(ii) Adjoa’s problem at the age of seven was that she was not able to express in words the
things that were in her mind as she did not know the proper language to speak them
out with.
It was a serious problem because her grandmother forbade her from saying certain things
and at times ask her to repeat what she had said for the purpose of adult’s entertainment.
Thus, she was confused when the keep quiet or to repeat them and get laughed at.

(iii) When Adjoa would say something, her grandmother would at first stare at her for a
very long time, then would ask her to repeat what she had said. After Adjoa would
repeat what she had said, her grandmother would immediately tell her never to repeat
that or would trust out laughing.

(iv) Nana would involve other people by repeating what Adjoa had said a white ago and
then laugh with first, one person, then two and finally up to three, four or even more people.
All of them would laugh together and scream with tears running down their faces.

(v)The seven-year-old Adjoa, the protagonist of the story is the narrator as well.This helps to
• present a unique view of the world around her using simple vocabulary and child-like
innocence.
• It shows the inner feelings and doubts of a girl-child while she struggles to evaluate
the appropriateness of her grandmother’s dictates which at times forbade her from
speaking out her mind and at other times laugh at her for saying certain things.
• The voice of a girl-child makes the narrative appear more realistic and reliable.

II. (i) The narrator, Adjoa want to tell her grandmother and mother not to worry about her
spindly legs.
It suggests that the narrator does not find anything wrong with her legs as all her friends have
got legs that look like legs and nothing different from hers.

(ii) The narrator’s two favourite people are his mother Kaya and her maternal grandmother,
whom is called Nana.
The narrator’s grandmother was always worried about Adoja’s spindly legs. However,
her mother, Kaya tried to resist the notion that her daughter was worthless for having
spindly legs, in small courage she could muster in her mother’s presence.

(iii) ‘They’ refer to people who were her grandmother’s acquaintances and used to visit
Adjoa’s house and laugh at her child-like remarks until their eyes would become watery.
They would do so to either imitate Adjoa’s grandmother’s act of laughing or would find
Adjoa’s statements childish and worth laughing at.
 (iv) The narrator feels that her grandmother and mother would have been discussing her
legs ever since she was born because she had been hearing them discussing this issue
from the time she could comprehend their talk.
The two women belonged to an orthodox society and held the conservative view that
a girl needs to have strong legs to support the hips for childbearing. Although Adjoa’s
mother did not like her mother’s act of constant cribbing about Adjoa’s spindly legs,
she could not muster enough strength to raise her voice against her mother.

(v) Juxtaposition, i.e., the close placement of ideas to highlight the contrast between them.
In the last two lines of the extract, the narrator has compared her mother’s womb to the
outside world. Her mother’s womb is described as a land of sweet, soft silence whereas
the outside world is described a that of noise and comprehension.

III. (i) The narrator could feel her mother’s silent tears from her voice. Besides, Ajoa was
aware of the fact that her mother did not like her grandmother’s disparaging remarks about
her (Adjoa’s) thin legs but could not muster enough strength to assert her opinion and
therefore, used to weep silently.
Her grandmother could not hear her daughter’s inside weeping because she was an
authoritative woman and a representative of patriarchy, who did not allow women to
express their views or raise the voice.

(ii) Because she was an authoritative woman who had conventional view that recognised
women in the roles of wives and mothers.
She viewed her own daughter as a failure as a wife and mother and therefore, never
understood her silent tears.
Her grandmother was an authoritative woman and a representative of patriarchy who
had orthodox view. Her mother was a remorseful woman, who could never raise her
voice against conventional wisdom.

(iii) The narrator says so because she liked her grandmother, who was a matriarch but kept
her daughter and granddaughter with her and used to look after them.
It suggests that the narrator was an understanding and affectionate child.

(iv) The grandmother would be discussing the worthless of Adjoa’s short and thin legs.
She admitted the fact that her only daughter Kaya’s husband was not as big a problem
as Adjoa’s long and thin legs.

(v) (a) An understanding and receptive child who could understand her mother’s silent tears.
(b) Inquisitive and confused child who wanted to know everything but used to get
confused about her grandmother’s constant cribbing about her long and thin legs.
(c) An affectionate child who liked her maternal grandmother despite her constantly
cribbing about her legs. It seems that despite her conventional orthodox views, she
was an affectionate mother who provided for her daughter and granddaughter when
her son-in-law had left her daughter and child.
IV. (i) The grandmother would thank God that her biggest problem was not her son-in-law.
Because she considered daughter at fault for marrying such a man and then giving birth
to a child (Adjoa) who had too long and thin legs to be of any use.
It shows that she was an orthodox lady who had conventional views about the role of
women in society and acted as a representative of patriarchy.

(ii) Because the narrator always found her grandmother complaining about her (narrator’s)
long and thin legs which would be an obstacle in bearing a child. Further, she could
understand her own daughter, Kaya’s pain and suffering and held her responsible for
everything.
Finally, the narrator felt that despite her Orthodox and conventional wisdom, her
grandmother was a good person, who loved her (Adjoa).

(iii) Adjoa’s mother would feel quite bad after her own mother’s putting all the blame on her
for having failed as a wife and a mother. She would weep inside but her mother would
not be able to understand her silent tears.
Adjoa’s mother and grandmother had a bittersweet relationship in which they were living
together. Adjoa’s grandmother used to blame her daughter for having failed as a wife and
daughter but still supported them and perhaps and perhaps provided for their living.

(iv) The grandmother used to hush up things about Adjoa’s father because she did not want
Adjoa to hear and understand anything about her father.
This shows that she cared for her grandfather and did not want to hurt her feelings.

(v) Adjoa’s grandmother serves as an agent of patriarchy in the following ways:

• She did not allow her daughter Kaya to express her thoughts or raise her voice.
• She never listened to Adjoa, who had to struggle to catch her attention.
• She forbade her from repeating certain things.
• She blamed her daughter Kaya for choosing a wrong husband and giving birth to a girl
having spindly legs.
• She complained her daughter for having failed as a wife and a mother.
• She did not want Adjoa to go to school and get education.

V. (i) The narrator described her friend’s legs as being similar to her own legs.
She was not sure whether unlike her own legs, her friend legs were strong enough to
support hips required for childbearing.

(ii) This shows Adjoa, the narrator’s child-like innocence, which does not allow her to
understand the fact that if she could walk the distance of five kilometres from her village
to school, without complaining, how could her legs be weak.
‘They’ refers to the older boys and girls in Adjoa’s school, who used to complain about
having to walk long distance to school and back.
 (iii) It shows her child-like innocence and perhaps her conviction to go to school and get
herself educated to remove the stigma attached to her for having weak legs.
Adjoa does not feel uncomfortable while walking a distance of five kilometres to school
and back, thereby, asserting that her legs were not weak. She proved it at the end of
the story by winning the district level running competition and thereby, the best all-round
junior athlete.

(iv) Two characteristic traits of the narrator.

• Child-like innocence.
• Courage and resolve to prove himself.
For details please refer to (ii) and (iii) above.

(v) The narrator’s grandmother always considered Adjoa’s spindly legs as worthless. She
had the fear that Adjoa would not be able to perform the traditional role of a mother
as she did not have strong legs required to support the hips for childbearing.
However, her attitude underwent a little changed when Adjoa got selected the represent
her school at the district level race competition. It underwent a complete change when
Adjoa won the race and thereby, proved the worth of her legs and herself.

VI. (i) Nana would laugh at the prospect of Adjoa using her spindly legs to at least go to
school because she believed that Adjoa would be a misfit in school.
She allowed Adjoa to go to school as a good riddance for using her legs to go to school.

(ii) Because she did not consider it worthwhile to tell anyone at home.
This time it was different because she had been selected to represent her school at the
district level running competition quite in contrast to running and winning against her
classmates in school.

(iii) Adjoa’s mother and grandmother could not believe that Adjoa could be selected for any
such competition with her spindly legs.
Her grandmother marched to her school to conform the authenticity of the news.

(iv) When Adjoa’s mother heard the news, she was utterly surprised and wanted to tell
Adjoa’s grandmother that she knew that Adjoa could do something like that but it was
a secret she could not share with anyone.
But finally, she remained silent did not say anything.

(v) After getting the news of Adjoa’s selection for district sports meet, her grandmother
• took up the task of washing and ironing her school uniform daily.
• used to accompany her every afternoon for the district sports week.
She did so because she accepted the worth of Adjoa’s spindly legs and her new role as
an athlete, quite in contrast to the orthodox role of being a wife and mother she
had in mind for Adjoa.
VII. (i) The ‘gleaming cup’ refers to the trophy won by Adjoa for winning the district level
race and thereby, being adjudged the best all-round junior athlete.
Adjoa’s grandmother carried the trophy won by her (Adjoa) on her back as a mark of
accepting the worth of Adjoa’s legs and feeling pride of her granddaughter’s achievement.

(ii) The narrator has compared the gleaming cup with babies and other precious things.
She has done so to show that for her grandmother, who used to say earlier that she
did not care if such things were not done, now the cup seemed to be as important as
a baby is for her mother or some very precious things.

(iii) Adjoa’s grandmother wanted to show the cup to Adjoa’s mother because she wanted the
latter to rejoice at her daughter’s achievement.
Adjoa’s mother became speechless on seeing the trophy but she must had felt a sense
of pride and accomplishment for her daughter Adjoa.

(iv) Adjoa’s grandmother cried softly because she must have realised the worth of Adjoa’s
legs, which she had been criticising ever since she was born. It seems that tears in her
eyes were of joy at her granddaughter’s achievement.
It suggests that though she was a strict and orthodox woman, but she underwent
a change of heart after Adjoa’s selection for the district level sports meet and finally
accepted her worth as an athlete.

(v) Adjoa’s mother and grandmother felt a sense of pride and accomplishment after Adjoa
won the district level race.
Her grandmother proudly displayed her granddaughter’s achievement by carrying the
trophy on her back and thus accepting the view that a woman can achieve much more
than their roles as mothers and wives.
For Adjoa, her victory brought her closer to self-awareness about her worth, especially
of her spindly legs that were constantly criticised by her grandmother.