THE STORY OF MY LIFEA brief description on Chapter 18

CONTENT(i)Summary of chapter 18

(ii)Important Characters(iii)Let’s Revise-(a)Points to remember (b)Quiz (c)Questions and Answers

I.SUMMARY OF CHAPTER 18•In October 1896,Helen entered the Cambridge School for Young Ladies, to be prepared for Radcliffe, when she was a little girl. She visited Wellesley and surprised her friends by the announcement that someday she would go to college and she would prefer Harvard to Wellesley.•With passage of time, this desire grew stronger and stronger and it impelled her to enter into competition for a degree with girls who could see and hear. It was decided that she would go to Cambridge.

The plan was to have Miss. Sullivan attend the class with her(Helen) and interpret to her what was taught in the class. It was not an easy task for a handicapped child to acquire knowledge in this way.But her dedication towards education and Miss. Sullivan's co-operation made it easy for her to accomplish her goal. And yet she had to face many difficulties and overcome many hurdles.

Miss. Sullivan could not spell out in her hand all that the books required and it was very difficult to make her available all the embossed books in a short time. But the proverb, ‘where there is a will, there is a way’ came true to her and she surmounted every obstacle.She worked hard with Miss. Sullivan and made satisfactory progress in all her subjects. She studied Shakespeare’s ‘As you like it’.She was much influenced by Burke's ‘Speech on Conciliation with America’ and Macaulay’s ‘Life of Samuel Johnson'. She wondered how it was that King George and his Ministers turned a deaf ear to his(Burke’s) warning prophecy of opposition’s victory and their humiliation.

Macaulay’s ‘Life of Samuel Johnson’ made her a great admirer of Dr.Johnson.She rejoiced over all his success and ignored his failures.At Cambridge, Helen was delighted to have lived with the girls who were able to hear and see. She joined them in many of their games, took long walks with them, and discussed her studies and read aloud the things that interested her.Some of the girls learned to speak to her and so Miss. Sullivan did not had to repeat their conversation. Here preliminary examination for Radcliffe started on 29th of June and continued till the 3rd of July.

Every student was required to pass in sixteen hours. Twelve were called for elementary and four for advanced. She was no. 233.The examination papers were given out at nine o’clock a Harvard and brought to Radcliffe by a special messenger.As Helen used a typewriter arrangement was made for her to sit in a separate room. A man was placed on guard at the door to prevent interruption. A teacher read examination paper to her, and she wrote the answers. Professor Schilling informed Helen that she had passed her exam in German Satisfactorily and this inspired her to go through other examinations in a more confident way.

II.Important charactersHelen:-This chapter spots light on Helen’s boldness and ambition. She studied and competed with the normal girls who could hear and see and proved that she was second to none.Inspite of being discouraged by many, she remained firm on her decision to go to Harvard. She worked hard and achieved her goal.

MISS.SULLIVAN:-She had always been with Helen. She was gifted with tremendous patience and worked hard with Helen so that the latter might attain success. She never failed Helen and did her best to explain Helen what was taught in the class.

POINTS TO REMEMBERHelen enters Cambridge School for young ladies, to be prepared for Radcliffe.Competes with hearing and seeing girls.Miss. Sullivan attends classes, works as go-between Helen and her studies and teachers.Reads German authors and their books; Gilman teaches her English literature.Reads Macaulay, Burke.At Cambridge School enjoys the company of seeing and hearing girls.Takes preliminary examinations for Radcliffe from 29 June to 3 July 1897; passes with higher credits.Passes in German.

III.QUIZConnect the following Pictures:-(i)Place where Helen studied

(ii)A person who taught German to Helen

III.Q&A1. Helen’s Instructors had no experience in teaching the handicapped. Yet Helen coped up with her studies bravely. How?In spite of being taught by teachers who had no experience in teaching the handicapped, Helen coped with her studies bravely. Miss. Sullivan helped her a lot in making her understand what was taught in the class. She went to the class with Helen, and spelled in to her hand all that the teacher’s said. Helen copied her Latin in Braille to be able to recite with other girls.2. What difficulties did Helen face at the Cambridge School?Helen faced many difficulties at the Cambridge School. Most of her teachers did not know the finger alphabet to give her instruction. It was difficult to get all the books embossed needed by her. Her speech was imperfect and no special attention was paid to her. Miss. Sullivan helped her a great deal in surmounting her difficulties.

3. Name the two important persons whose works influenced Helen the most?Two important persons whose works influenced Helen were Burke and Macaulay. She found Burke’s speech the best and most instructive as compared to any other in politics. Helen admired the masterly speech which was very eloquent and had the power to sway minds. Similarly, Macaulay’s ‘Life of Dr.Johnson’ also had a great influence on her mind. She admired his bravery in the midst of hard work and suffering, his supporting nature and his qualities to make the ordinary look extraordinary.4. How was Helen’s stay at the school?Helen’s stay at the school was hectic, but she enjoyed the company of the normal girls of her own age. She had advantage of homely life as she lived in a house very close to the school. Then, her own sister came to study with her for six months. Miss. Sullivan had always been with her to infuse her with necessary encouragement.

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