"A Devoted Son" is a short story written by Indian author Anita Desai. The story is often studied as part of the English curriculum for class 12. It tells the tale of a son, Rakesh, who is deeply devoted to his father and has always strived to make him proud. However, as Rakesh becomes a successful doctor, he begins to clash with his father's traditional views and beliefs. The story explores the theme of the conflict between modernity and tradition, as well as the sacrifices that one may make in the pursuit of success. The below article includes exercises and answers for class 12 students to deepen their understanding of the story and its themes.
{getToc} $title={Table of Contents}Summary of A Devoted Son by Anita Desai
Characters in A Devoted Son
Varma: He is the father of Rakesh. He worked at a kerosene dealer’s storage for forty years. He is illiterate. Varma’s father was a vegetable seller.
Varma’s wife: She is unnamed in the story. She is the mother of Rakesh. She has her son marry with one of her friend’s daughter.
Rakesh: He is the son of Varma. He is intelligent. He secures the highest score in one of the final exams. He won a scholarship to study medicine (M.D.) in the USA. He deeply respects and cares for his father even after achieving success. He marries to a girl chosen by his mother.
Veena: She is Rakesh’s wife. She is the daughter of Rakesh’s mother’s childhood friend. She is fat but pretty. She is uneducated.
Children: The number and gender of the children are not mentioned. But the first child is a son.
Bhatia: He is one of the neighbors of Varma. He lives on the opposite side of the road. Sometimes, he comes in front of Varma’s gate and chats with Varma.
Setting in A Devoted Son
The story takes place in a small yellow house at the end of the road in a colony at the edge of a city in India.
Moral of A Devoted Son
a) Parents have hopes for their children and it’s the children’s duty to fulfil their hopes.
b)Parents make huge sacrifices for their children’s happiness
c) A person should never bring home his profession.
A Devoted Son Summary
There lived the Varma family at the edge of a city. The family lived in a small yellow house in a colony. Varma, the eldest in the family and father of Rakesh, lived with his wife. Varma was uneducated and used to work at a kerosene dealer’s storage.
Rakesh, the son of Varma, had given his finals and was waiting for his results. The result appeared in the newspaper. Rakesh ran to the gate to fetch the paper. Just after he saw the results, he went in front of Varma and bowed down, and touched his father’s feet. Varma asked what his result was. Rakesh replied that he stood first in the country.
It was a matter of great pride for the Varma family. Varma organized a big party to celebrate his son’s achievement. Everyone congratulated the family for Rakesh’s success. Varma told everyone what Rakesh did after getting the results. He proudly said that Rakesh touched his feet.
After some time, Rakesh submitted a thesis on a medical degree. He won a scholarship. Later on, he went to the USA and studied there. He worked in a prestigious hospital in the USA. He was praised by his colleagues for his intelligence. He stayed there for some time and returned to India. He returned to the same old yellow house. Even after graduating from the USA, he touched his father’s feet as he entered the house.
Rakesh was unmarried till then. Rakesh’s mother was proud because she was warned by her neighbors that Rakesh would marry a foreign girl. Since Rakesh was still unmarried, she chose a girl for him. The girl’s name was Veena. Veena was the daughter of her childhood friend. Veena was fat but pretty. She was uneducated. She was good-natured. So she fit into the family very quickly. As time passed, they had children. Their first child was a son.
For a few years, Rakesh worked at a city hospital. He quickly rose the organization and became the director of the hospital. After some time, he left the hospital to open his clinic. He took his parents in his car to see the clinic for the first time. Soon he became the richest doctor in town.
By the time he opened the clinic, Varma had already retired from his job after 40 years of work. He had grown old and weak. He got sick very often. Unfortunately, Rakesh’s mother died soon after Varma’s retirement.
Rakesh started taking care of his father. Sometimes Varma slept all stiff and made everyone believe he was dead. But right after that he got up and shocked everyone.
Rakesh brought Varma his morning tea in his favorite brass tumbler every day. He read out the news for Varma.
He persuaded Varma to come out of his room to take the evening air. On summer nights he ordered his servants to carry out his bed in the garden to have a night under the stars.
Rakesh realized that his father’s health was deteriorating. So, Rakesh made a strict diet plan for his father. He slowly banned everything Varma liked to eat. Rakesh allowed him just to eat dry bread, boiled vegetables, boiled lentils, and meat. Rakesh banned the food Varma liked saying that it wasn’t good for his health.
Once Varma tried to bribe his grandchildren to buy sweets. Soon Rakesh caught his son bringing sweets. Rakesh was angry with his father. He said controlling his diet is very important for his health. Varma was disappointed with his son.
Varma got even sicker. Varma only ate plain food and medicine provided by Rakesh. The only thing that pleasured Varma was conversations with his neighbor Mr. Bhatia.
Day by day Varma grew weaker. Rakesh forced Varma to take medicines. Since Varma had stopped eating enough food, he was surviving just with medicine.
Varma didn’t like his son and his strict behavior towards him. Now, Varma wished to die because he felt that he was overcontrolled. He was in constant pain.
One day, after returning from his clinic, Rakesh brought Varma a new medicine. Rakesh insisted his father take the medicine. Varma was angry at Rakesh because he wasn’t able to understand his wishes. Instead, he just fed Verma medicines. Varma refused to take medicines and pushed himself off the bed.
A Devoted Son Exercise
1) Why does Rakesh's behavior towards his father change?
Answer: Rakesh's behavior (व्यवहार) towards his father changed because he couldn't figure out (पत्ता लगाउनु) his father's illness as his father's health got worse (झन् नराम्रो). This caused Rakesh to control his father's diet, which he thought was the best solution.
2) Why was Mr Varma proud of his son Rakesh?
Answer: Mr. Varma was proud of his son Rakesh because Rakesh met all of his father's expectations (अपेक्षाहरू) and made his father's sacrifices (त्याग) worth it.
2) Why did Varma bribe his grandson?
Answer: Varma bribed (प्रलोभन देखाउनु) his grandson to buy him sweets because he had a strong liking for them, but Rakesh had banned (रोक्नु) sweets in the household. The love for sweets motivated Varmaji to bribe his grandchildren, and even though they were reluctant (अनिच्छुक) to take the money, they eventually gave in to their grandfather's wishes.
3) Who is Varma in a devoted son?
Answer: Varma is a character in the story who is Rakesh's father. He is proud of his son and seeks attention from others because of his son's devotion. Varma's character plays an important role in the story as he is impacted by the actions of the other characters, particularly Rakesh.
4) How does Rakesh treat and take care of his father?
Answer: Rakesh took good care of his father by providing him with morning tea, reading the newspaper, and reminding him to take medicines. He also helped his father during his illness by making necessary (आवश्यक) changes to his diet.
5) How does the author characterize Rakesh's wife?
Answer: The author describes Rakesh's wife as uneducated and old-fashioned (पुरानो जमानाको). She is also described as plump (फुलिएको), lazy, and good-natured (राम्रो स्वभावको), with a pretty face.
6) How was Rakesh like a devoted son?
Answer: Rakesh was a devoted son because he took care of his father's health by providing him with good medical treatment (उपचार), reading the morning newspaper for him, and bringing him morning tea in a brass tumbler. Despite achieving great success and going abroad, Rakesh remained committed (प्रतिबद्ध) to fulfilling his duties as a devoted son.
7) Why is the title devoted son justified?
Answer: The title, "A Devoted Son," is appropriate (उपयुक्त)for the story because the main character, Rakesh, is devoted to his parents even after achieving success.
8) Who is the central character in the story “A Devoted Son”?
Answer: Rakesh is the main character in the story, as suggested by the title. While he is crucial (महत्वपूर्ण) to the plot, he does not undergo any significant change throughout the story.
9) What is the theme of A Devoted Son?
Answer: Anita Desai's A Devoted Son explores themes of gratitude (कृतज्ञता), desire, change, and longing.
10) Do you call Rakesh a devoted son?
Answer: Rakesh is a devoted son because he is kind and loving to his parents, taking care of his father's health and showing tender (मान गर्नु) regard for his mother.
11) When were the results of Rakesh published?
Answer: The results of Rakesh were published in the morning papers.
12) How did Rakesh's father react to the results?
Answer: Rakesh's father was beaming (मुस्कुराउंदै) and reached for the papers.
13) Where did Rakesh scan the results?
Answer: Rakesh scanned the results barefoot and in his pajamas, at the garden gate.
14) What did Rakesh's father ask him when he saw the results?
Answer: Rakesh's father asked him if he had gotten a first division.
15) What did Rakesh do when he saw the results?
Answer: Rakesh bowed down (झुक्यो) and touched his father's feet when he saw the results.
16) What did Rakesh's father say to the visitors who came to congratulate him?
Answer: Rakesh's father said that Rakesh came and touched his feet when he saw the results.
17) Where did Rakesh go after winning a scholarship?
Answer: Rakesh went to the USA after winning a scholarship (छात्रवृत्ति).
18) What did Rakesh's mother say about him not marrying a foreign wife?
Answer: Rakesh's mother gloated (नराम्रो दृष्टिले हेर्नु) over the fact that Rakesh did not marry a foreign wife.
19) What is the only pleasure left for Rakesh's father?
Answer: The only pleasure (आनन्द) left for Rakesh's father is visits from elderly neighbors.
20) Who does Rakesh's father visit with?
Answer: Rakesh's father visits with Old Bhatia, his next-door neighbor (नजिकैको छिमेकी).
21) Why does Old Bhatia come to visit Rakesh's father?
Answer: Old Bhatia comes to visit Rakesh's father to talk about their health and to chew betel-leaves.
22) What does Rakesh's father say about Rakesh's treatment of him?
Answer: Rakesh's father says that Rakesh does not give him enough to eat and weighs out his food.
23) What is Rakesh's father not allowed to eat?
Answer: Rakesh's father is not allowed to eat fried foods, butter, or oil.