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A Story by Dylan Thomas
MAIN SUMMARY
A Story by Dylan Thomas
This narrative short story, "A Story" has been written by Welsh writer Dylan Thomas. This story is about a day's outing to Porthcawl in a charabanc made by a group of adults. In the very first line of this text, the writer uses a conditional line, which is 'If you can call it a story'. By this conditional line, he means to say to all the readers that it’s up to them whether they can call it a story or not. He even states that there is no proper beginning or end. There is somewhat a little story type in the middle. This text is full of descriptions and has been humorously narrated by a small boy about the world of adults.
The narrator of this story is an unnamed young boy. He has narrated the adultery world from his perspective. He has described an outing with his uncle's friends' group.
The narrator lives with his uncle and aunt. At the beginning of the text, the narrator gives a very humorous description of his uncle Thomas, his aunt, and other men. He describes the preparation for the outing and the outing itself. According to the boy, his uncle is a big, fat, and noisy person. He is so sociable and likes to go on an outing. He likes drinking with his friends. He has red hair and mainly wears a huge waistcoat, which looks so dirty. He eats a lot and drops food particles on his long waistcoat. His waistcoat stinks a lot. He has a small shop and a small wife.
The boy’s aunt is small, like a mouse, and quiet, like a cat. She is a good housewife. She spends a lot of time cleaning a small house. She does not like her husband’s habit of going on an outing and drinking with his friends. She wants love from her husband better than going outside. Whenever Mr. Thomas lifts her on the chair, she hits her husband’s head with a Chinese dog. When she becomes angry with her husband, she moves to her mother's house. Before leaving, she often advises her husband to put off his shoes before going to bed.
In the next part, the narrator describes his uncle’s friends. For the narrator, his uncle and his uncle’s friends are not good fellows. They have a variety of bad habits. They are all good for nothing. First, there is Bob the Fiddle, who stole the money from last year’s outing. He did the task of stealing so that he could pay for last year’s outing and buy alcohol for himself. Another person is Mr. Benjamin Franklyn, who is keeping money for this year’s outing. Will Sentry always follows Mr. Franklyn to make sure that the same thing will not be repeated this year too (theft of money).
At last, the narrator describes an outing. The day is Sunday morning. The destination for an outing is Porthcawl. Mr. Thomas decides to go for an outing despite his wife’s threats. Mrs. Thomas goes to her mother’s house. Feeling alone, the narrator also joins his uncle. They start their journey by bus. O. Jone is left behind, but later on, he is also helped. The bus stops outside the pub in Mountain Sheep. All of them rush towards the pub except the boy. All of them start drinking, but after 45 minutes, there is nothing in the bar. Then they go to another pub by using the rear door. It is too late. They enjoy singing and drinking. Later on, they start the bus again. They stop the bus and dive into the cool water on the way. All of them get wet and drunk. O Jone prepares supper and also carries down some remaining beer. They realise they were late. The narrator sleeps against his uncle’s huge waistcoat. They cannot reach Porthcawl or even home before midnight.
IMPORTANT QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
A Story by Dylan Thomas
What message does the boy’s aunt leave in the kitchen before she goes to her mother’s home?
Answer:
Here in this story, the aunt of the narrator doesn’t like her husband’s habit of drinking alcohol and spending his time with his friends. She expects a lot of care and love from her husband. The narrator’s uncle cares much about his entertainment and joys. Due to these habits of his uncle, his aunt always has a brawl with her husband. She often moves to her mother’s house to be angry. Whenever she moves to her mother’s house, she always leaves a message for her husband in the kitchen that the eggs in the kitchen are ready for him and he has to put off his shoes before going to bed.
‘If you can call it a story’. What does Dylan Thomas mean by this conditional sentence? Does he mean to say it is not a story in a true sense?
Answer:
A story was written by Dylan Thomas. In the very first line of this text, he uses this line. By this conditional line, he means to say to all the readers that it’s up to them whether they can call it a story or not. He even states that there is no proper beginning or end. There is somewhat a little in the middle. This text is full of description through a small narrator about the adultery world. He describes a lot of humorous people as well as an outing. Dylan Thomas doesn’t mean to say it is not a story in the true sense. He has presented a lot of jumbled people’s and outings' descriptions. He has left the choice to all his readers. The title itself is ‘A Story’ but the way of presenting it is quite different from the story.
The plan was to go to Porthcawl for the outing. Did they ever reach there? Why?
Answer:
The plan of the narrator’s uncle and his friends was to reach Porthcawl for the outing. But they could not reach their destination because of their habit of drinking. But it does not mean that it was the only cause for it; there are many other reasons. The first cause was their late departure. It was only at eight o'clock that they started their outing. Another cause of it was the late arrival of one of their partners. Everyone was quite hurried; that's why they moved without counting all heads. But when they knew that one head was missing, they could not continue their journey. They returned to receive him. The third and greatest of the causes, as already said, is their tendency to drink a lot. When they reached the mountain sheep, they drank a lot. They did not think of their destination. It was only after the owner informed them of the closing time. They came out, though it was already late to reach Porthcawl. No one worried about their outing even after they came out. They thought of playing with water when they reached the river. Hence, they could not reach.
What is the reason for which Will Sentry always followed Mr. Franklyn?
Answer:
Actually, Will Sentry is a very careful person. He was deceived during last year’s outing. The collection from last year’s outing was stolen. So this year’s total money collection for the outing was collected by Mr. Benjamin Franklyn. Will Sentry keeps following Mr. Benjamin Franklyn to make sure that this year’s money is not stolen. He does not want to miss this year’s outing as well as the money.
Give a description of the outing as Thomas would describe it?
Answer:
The day was Sunday morning. All of my friends made their preparations. My wife became angry with me and went to her mother’s home. Our destination for an outing was Porthcawl. We set off for Porthcawl at 8 a.m. by charabanc. We had a problem first because O. Jone was left behind. Later on, O. Jone was helped. The whole day, we travelled. In the evening, all people rushed towards the pub except my nephew. We drank a lot, but within 45 minutes, the pub became empty. After some time, we got into the other pub using the rear door. We enjoyed ourselves a lot there. We sang songs and drank heavily. We started our bus again to move ahead. While moving ahead, we saw a beautiful river. We stopped our bus and hurriedly jumped into the cold water. We got wet completely. O Jone helped us make supper and also brought the remaining bottles of beer from the bus. Finally, we cancelled the plan to go to Porthcawl because it was too late. That day, we didn’t reach Porthcawl or even get home early. We returned half way and reached home only after midnight.
How does the boy, the narrator, look at his uncle and aunt?
(Or) – Describe the relationship between the boy’s uncle (Mr. Thomas) and his aunt?
Answer:
Though the narrator thinks that the relationship between Mr. Thomas and his wife is bad, they actually love each other very much. When his wife was angry, he used to lift her onto the chair. She also used to hit him with a Chinese dog. Thomas was a heavy man who often drank alcohol. His wife did not like it. So she often went to her mother’s house. She wanted love from her husband better than drinking or going outside. While going to her mother’s house, she used to arrange eggs for him and ask him to put off his boots while going to bed.
How does the boy look at his uncle and friends?
Answer:
According to the boy, his uncle is a boring man. His uncle is a big, fat, and noisy person. He is so sociable and likes to go on an outing. He likes drinking with his friends. He has red hair. He mainly wears a huge waistcoat, which looks so dirty. He eats a lot and drops food particles on his waistcoat. His waistcoat stinks a lot. He has a small shop and a small wife. For the narrator, his uncle and his friends are not good friends. These fellows pass time uselessly. They like to pass time on an outing. All these people are drunk and seek only their pleasure all the time. They have a variety of bad habits. They are all good for nothing.
Give a description of boy’s uncle and aunt.
Answer:
According to the boy, his uncle is a big, fat, and noisy person. He is so sociable and likes to go on an outing. He likes drinking with his friends. He has red hair. He mainly wears a huge waistcoat, which looks so dirty. He eats a lot and drops food particles on his waistcoat. His waistcoat stinks a lot. He has a small shop and a small wife. He only thinks about his pleasure. He mostly refuses his wife’s commands. He doesn’t take his responsibilities seriously. He likes to spend time with his friends.
The boy’s aunt is small, like a mouse, and quiet, like a cat. She is a good housewife. She mostly spends her time cleaning a small house. She does not like her husband’s habit of going on an outing and drinking with his friends. She wants love from her husband better than going outside. Whenever Mr. Thomas lifts her on the chair, she hits her husband’s head with a china dog. Mostly, she goes to her mother’s house after discussing it with her husband.
How do the men spend the time while going on an outing?
Answer:
They spend their time having lots of fun. They want complete freedom from their responsibilities. They are very interested in drinking. In an outing, first they spend their time travelling. Secondly, they spend their 45 minutes in a pub engaging in drinking. Later on, they pass time in the next pub for hours. Finally, they spend their time near the river and return home late at midnight.
Describe the outing of the man and boy involved.
Answer:
The day is Sunday morning. Everyone does their preparation. The destination for an outing is Porthcawl. Mr. Thomas decides to go for an outing despite his wife’s threats. Mrs. Thomas goes to her mother’s house. Feeling alone, the narrator also joins his uncle. They start their journey by bus. O. Jone is left behind, but later he is helped. The bus stops outside the pub. All of them rush towards the pub, except the boy. All of them start drinking, but after 45 minutes, there is nothing in the bar. Then they go to another pub by using the rear door. It is too late. They enjoy singing and drinking. Later on, they start the bus again. They stop the bus and dive into the cool water on the way. All of them get wet and drunk. O Jone prepares supper and also carries down some remaining beer. They think that it is too late. The narrator sleeps against his uncle’s waistcoat. They cannot reach Porthcawl or even home before midnight.
Boy’s description of an outing.
Answer:
My uncle and his friends prepare everything before the outing. My aunt goes to her mother’s house, angry with my uncle. She tries to stop my uncle, but he refuses. The day is Sunday morning. I join my uncle because there is no one in the house. We start our journey by bus. O. Jone creates some problems at first. He is missing somewhere. Later on, he is also helped. We travel the whole day. In the evening, Uncle and his friends pass time in pubs for hours. They return quite late. Next, they pass time near the river. Finally, they decide to return home instead of to our destination. We arrive home late, at midnight.
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