THANK YOU MAAM

1. “And he did not want to be mistrusted now"—Why did not Roger want to be mistrusted, though he could have easily fled from the home of Mrs. Jones?

Or, What kind of a boy was the little lad Roger ?

Or, Why did the boy in ‘Thank You Ma'am' not run away though he found the door open? 


Ans. ‘Thank You Ma’am’ by Langston Hughes, is based on the transformation of a young boy. The boy, while trying to snatch a purse, was caught by an elderly lady and was taken home by her. He feared that he would be taken to jail for his mischief. The lady, however, only expressed her intention to wash the unclean face of the boy. By this time, the boy had well understood that the lady did not intend to put him into jail. Rather the lady showed absolute faith in the boy by leaving him alone in the room with her purse on the bed. The boy could have easily escaped with it in this situation. But he did not want to be mistrusted anymore. The lady's kindness and trust had changed him. After all, he was a victim of circumstances rather than a criminal.


2. Justify the title of the short story ‘Thank You Ma'am’ .

ANS. The short story of Langston Hughes, ‘Thank You Ma’am’, is based on the external conflict between an elderly woman, Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones and a young boy Roger. The boy attempted to snatch the purse of Mrs. Jones but was caught by her. The woman, instead of putting the boy into jail, took him to her home and gave him proper food and attention. The boy was overwhelmed by the kindness of the elderly lady. He was deeply gratified when the lady not only gave him money to buy his coveted blue suede shoes, but also showed that she trusted him to be good. He wanted to express his gratitude, but so intense were his emotions that expression fell short of words. He could only utter the words ‘thank you’.


So the phrase, “Thank You Ma’am”, though inadequate expresses the over- whelming feelings of a transformed boy. Hence the title is apt.


3. How did the lady catch hold of the boy while he was attempting to snatch her purse?

ANS. Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones, an elderly character in ‘Thank You Ma’am’, a famous short story by Langston Hughes, was returning home from her daily work late at night. She worked in a hotel beauty shop that remained  open till almost eleven at night. As she was walking alone, a boy ran up behind her and tried to snatch her purse. But he lost his balance while snatching because of the combined weight of himself and the purse. He fell on the pavement Mrs. Jones quickly moved forward to the boy and grabbed him by his shirt so that he couldn’t escape . She shook him until his teeth almost rattled.


4. Mrs. Jones kicked the boy, held him by his Shirt, dragged him along the road. Do you think she was unkind to the boy? Give reasons for your opinion.


ANS. Mrs. Jones, the pivotal character in ‘Thank You Ma’am’, a famous short story by Langston Hughes, at first appeared to be a stern lady. Reacting to the act of snatching her purse, she kicked the boy, caught hold of him by his shirt, shook him violently and almost dragged him to her home. But later we see that Mrs. Jones was an extremely kind- hearted lady. She was affectionate towards the young boy in spite of his mischief. She knew that poverty is the reason of almost all wrong doing. She realised that the boy was a victim of circumstances rather than a hardened criminal. That is why she gave food to the boy and ten dollars to buy his coveted suede shoes. Thus Mrs. Jones was apparently harsh in her behaviour but actually she was a warm-hearted, magnanimous lady. She had been cruel to be kind.



5. What picture of society do you get from the short story "Thank You Ma'am"?

ANS. Langston Hughes was acutely aware of the racial problems, poverty and social conditions in which the African-American lived. His concern was to uplift the people whose strength resilience courage and humour were a part of the general American experience. In this short story, we see that Roger, the poverty-stricken little boy has no one at home who would tell him to wash his face. He remains unfed even at eleven o’clock at night. Mrs. Jones is a working lady but she too has to work hard to earn her bread and butter. Her past life has not been very pleasant.
But inspite of such hardships she has retained virtues like kindness and sympathy _ In fact she is a representative of her class. In the short story, the diversified nature of American culture is reflected.


6.  What kind of a woman is Mrs. Luella Bates  Washington Jones?

Or, What features of the character of Mrs. Luella Bates are exposed in the snort story "Thank You Ma’am" ?

ANS. Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones is the central character of the story. She is at once empathetic, generous and perceptive. At the beginning of the short story, Mrs. Bates appears to be a stern, able bodied woman. She is quite quick to react to the boy’s action and single-handedly drags the boy home. She realises that all the boy needs is motherly love to put him on the right track. So she readily gives him food and money to buy his coveted blue suede shoes. She is quite candid or frank and confesses about her past mistakes. But she learnt from her mistakes and asks Roger to do the same. She knows that people are more sinned against than sinning. This makes her forgive Roger easily.


7. What is The moral of the short story, "Thank You
Ma’am " ?

ANS. The moral of the short story, ‘Thank You Ma’am’, by Langston Hughes is simple but forceful. It speaks of an elderly lady who catches a young boy trying to snatch her purse. But the
lady, instead of informing the police takes the boy home and gives him food and money to satisfy his needs. Thus the positive and kind attitude of the lady transforms the boy into a new person. The moral of the story lies in the consequence of events. It shows how trust, understanding and fellow-feeling can redeem a person. The story also focuses on another aspect. Roger wanted to steal as he was poor. No one is born a sinner and so one should hate the sin, not the sinner.


8. "The woman did not ask the boy anything would embarrass him”. - Why did not Mr want to embarrass Roger in any way?

ANS. It was evident , to Mrs. Jones that Roger was already ashamed of his misdeed. If she embarrassed him  more, it would actually belittle him. it would again  alienate him. Mrs. Jones knew that young people having no other choice often do silly things. But they needed to be given an opportunity to change. Thus she became a mother-like figure to Roger. She wanted Roger not to do any wrong in future. The best way to do this was to treat him with affection. She recollected that she herself had done certain inglorious deeds in her past and so she could understand and empathise with Roger. Her objective was to influence Roger and not to embarrass him. So, she stopped questioning further.


9. “I wanted a pair of ... shoes” - What reply did the speaker get and how did he react ?

ANS. The young boy Roger informed Mrs. Luell Bates Washington Jones that he wanted to buy a pair of blue suede shoes. He tried to snatch the pocket book of Mrs. Jones to get money to fulfill
his desire. The speaker, Roger, got a strange answer from Mrs. Jones. She said that instead of snatching, he could have asked for the money. The boy was amazed _ hearing the answer. He was so astonished that he forgot to dry his face for a moment. He could not say anything and wondered what to do next. As a result, there was a large pause.


10. "I am very sorry lady, I'm sorry”.—Who is the  speaker? Was the speaker really sorry? When was the speaker a changed person?

Ans. The speaker is a frail boy of fourteen or fifteen, named Roger who tried to snatch the purse of an elderly lady in the Langston Hughes’short story, ‘Thank You Ma’am’.

  The boy had been caught by the lady. She was also not ready to loosen her grip lest he would escape. The boy, therefore, said that he was sorry so that he may be released, But the boy spoke more out of fear than from real regret. He was afraid that the lady might put him in jail.


  Roger was transformed into a new person when he realized the benevolence of the lady. Even though he had committed a crime, the lady was kind and sympathetic to him. She gave him food, money to buy his coveted shoes and advised him never to follow the wrong path. Most importantly, she trusted him. Roger was completely changed by her motherly affection and support.


11. What were the things that Mrs. Jones wanted from Roger? What did Roger want?
 Ans. In the course of the short story, ‘Thank You Ma'am’ Mrs. Jones expressed her wishes from time to time. Firstly, she wanted to take Roger to her home. When asked by the boy if she would put him in jail, the lady said that she wanted to wash his face. Before going to cook food for themselves, the lady wanted the boy to comb his hair so that he would look presentable She also wanted him to take some more food, At the end, Mrs. Jones wanted Roger to, behave properly and never to snatch anyone’s purse. She wanted him to remain a virtuous character for the rest of his life.


  Roger initially wanted to escape from the lady and asked her to set him loose. Later, he wanted to flee from the lady’s room. But gradually he started to appreciate her kindness and wanted to thank her sincerely


12. "Eat some more, son."—Who is the speaker? What is offered by the speaker to the listener? What picture of the speaker's character is revealed in this line?

ANS. The speaker is Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones.

 * She offers Roger, the young boy, a half of her ten-cent cake.


*Mrs. Jones understood that the boy was hungry. So, she decided to give him some food. She heated some Lima beans and some ham. She also prepared some cocoa out of canned milk. When Roger had consumed these, Mrs. Jones offered him half of her ten-cent cake and told him the quoted sentence. The motherly feelings of Mrs. Jones is revealed in this line. She treated Roger with affection and hospitality She tried to compensate for the lack of love and care in Roger's life.


13.  How did Mrs. Jones behave with Rog when they arrived home?

Or, What are the ways by which the la reformed Roger?

Ans. Langston Hughes’ short story ‘Thank You Ma’am’ shows the power of love and trust. Mrs. Jones almost dragged Roger into her house after she caught him trying to snatch her purse. Then Mrs. Jones asked the boy to wash his face and  offered a clean towel. The lady said that she herself had to suffer a lot in her youth. Her candid confession gave the boy confidence. He became familiar with the lady and no longer wanted to flee.She shared her present working experiences with the boy while they ate so that he would be quite easy with her. The lady advised the boy not to commit such a misdeed again. Finally, she gave him ten dollars to buy the coveted blue suede shoes. Thus the lady reformed Roger by playing the role of a perfect friend and guide.


14. "The woman did not watch the boy to see if he was going to run now”. —Why did not the woman watch the boy any more?

Ans. In Langston Hughes’ short story. ‘Thank You Ma'am’, Mrs. Jones realised that poverty had prompted Roger to steal. So she took him home and did not inform the police. She could understand that he was ashamed  of his misdeed. She did not want to mistrust him any more. She felt that Roger would never break her trust. She left her purse with him when she went to cook food for them. This was a new experience for Roger. Probably for the first time, a man or a woman had put so much faith in him. The young boy did not want to be mistrusted any more. Mrs. Jones could easily read the thought process of the boy, and that is why she did not watch him while cooking.