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The Last Voyage of the Ghost Ship
MAIN SUMMARY
This short story was initially published in the year 1972, but later on, in the year 1991, this story was included in a book called 'A Hammock Beneath the Mangoes'. This story has been written using the stream of consciousness technique. In this technique, we can find the continuous flow of the main narrator's thoughts. In this technique, the psychological processes of the main narrator play a very vital role. In this technique, long sentences are used, especially the unstructured soliloquies. Due to this, we have difficulty understanding the text. There is only one full stop here in this text. The whole text is in a single paragraph.
Here in this story, we find both supernatural and realistic elements. For supernatural elements, we can find fear, magical activities, and unbelievable events here in this text. For realistic elements, we can find real objects, the lifestyle of common people, and real events here in this text.
About Ship:
Real ship
Proved by the boy at last.
It was 97 times longer than the village and 20 times taller than the steeple of the church.
Whiter than white
The biggest ocean liner in the world.
Halálcsillag was written in a curved manner.
Boy and People of the Village:
The boy wasn't believed by the villagers, not even by his mother.
The main reason for disbelieving the boy is the boy's description of the ship.
The boy used to call them (the people of his village) disbelievers.
The villagers also treated the boy so badly. They beat the boy for making a disturbance.
According to the villagers, the boy was the son of the same widow who had brought an evil chair into the village.
He used to speak a sentence in anger against the villagers: 'Now, they are going to see who I'm'.
Mother and Chair:
A widow whose husband had died 11 years before.
She used to love her husband so much.
She kept on thinking about her dead husband all the time.
She was so upset about her son's activities.
Her son used to sleep during the day while wandering, just like a criminal at night.
She had an old chair, which she had used for 11 years.
She went to the town and brought a new chair from Turk's store to an auction.
The new chair was so comfortable, which was from the days of Sir Francis
She died on that chair, thinking much about her dead husband.
She died due to overthinking and a heart attack. Sudden excitement (blood bubbling in her heart) took her life.
Seriousness = sudden excitement = heart attack.
Not only that, but the chair engulfed four other women from that village.
The people of that village threw that chair into the sea, thinking it was an evil chair.
Boy and Ship:
The ship was seen by the boy four times in his life.
His main resolution was to prove the existence of the ghost ship in front of all the disbelievers in his village.
To prove that ship, it took him a lot of time. He didn't accept defeat. To prove that, he turned from an ordinary boy to a confident and assertive young man.
Boy's First-Time Experience:
He saw the ship on one of the nights in March.
His description of the ship is:
The ship was so huge. It also did magical activities. It moved without any light or sound. There was no sound when it crashed or hit the rocks. It came only on a particular night in March. The most surprising part was that it disappeared when the colonial city's rotating light's beam hit it.
Due to the gigantic shape and magical activities of the ship, the boy called it the ghost ship.
When the boy saw it for the first time, he couldn't believe his eyes.
It seemed as if it was moving in the wrong direction.
The boy thought it was a dream.
The next day, he again moved on the shore at the same time, but he couldn't find any sign of that ship. He only saw cottages and diamond smugglers loading their boats.
Boy's 2nd Time Experience:
He saw the same ship again on the next March night. He told it to his mother, but she didn't believe his words. His mother thought that his mind was out of order.
Mother even sent a boatman for inspection, but the boatman didn't find the ship except for the rabbit and hair.
Boy's 3rd Time Experience:
He became an orphan. His mother was no more. She died before her son proved that ship.
The third time, when he saw it, he cried so loudly and madly to wake all the people up.
He cried loudly, saying that a behemoth whale had come.
Listening to the roar of the boy at night, most of the elderly people got so panicky, thinking that their great-grandfather, William Dampier, had come back.
This time, the boy was severely beaten by the villagers for making a disturbance.
The boy spoke a line in anger: "Now, they are going to see who I'm'.
Boy's 4th Time Experience:
He stole a small boat and moved in that direction with his lantern, where he had seen that gigantic ship.
He waited for the ship there.
When he saw the ship, he didn't feel any fear.
He showed his lantern towards the ship.
After some time, the miracle took place. That huge ship started following the boy.
The boy guided the ship to the sandy bank of the church.
Due to the little water near the shore, the ship stuck on the sand. The ship blew a loud whistle.
Many people came there.
Their mouths remained wide open to watch that gigantic ship.
In this way, the boy proved himself right in front of all the disbelievers in the village.
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
The Last Voyage of the Ghost Ship
(Long 2057) – Narrate the story of the boy’s growth from an ordinary boy to an assertive young man.
Answer:
The boy wanted to prove himself in front of the villagers by showing the real existence of a ghost ship. It took him lots of time to prove that ghost ship. The boy turned from an ordinary boy to an assertive young man to prove it.
The boy saw the ship four times in his lifetime. He was amazed to see that ship for the first time. The next day, he went there again to see that ship but didn't see any sign of it. The ship, which he had seen, was quite unbelievable. It used to appear when there was darkness, and vice versa. The ship was bigger than the village and taller than the steeple of the church. After many years, he saw the same ship by the harbour. He could not believe his eyes. He rushed home to tell his mother about it. His mother got angry with him. She advised him to get involved in a romance with some lady instead of going to sea. The boy’s mother, however, agreed to go there next March. But unfortunately, his mother expired while she was sitting on a chair and thinking about her dead husband. He got beaten by the villagers when he tried to inform them about the ship during the night. That event made the boy angrier. His determination grew bolder; he wanted to prove the existence of the ship to the villager, so he went towards that location with a lantern. He didn’t stop anywhere; he went straight towards his destination. As he reached the place, he saw the ship again. The ship was moving without any sound. His presence made the ship disappear at first. It reappeared after some time. The boy lit the lantern and showed it towards the ship. As he showed the light, a miracle happened. The ship started following him. The boy guided the ship towards the village. At last, he took the ship there. The ship blasted as it reached there. The villagers came there running and saw the destruction of ninety thousand champagne glasses. The boy watched the villagers gasp at the ship.
What does the refrain of the boy “Now they are going to see me who I’m” mean?
Answer:
The refrain of the boy, “Now they are going to see who I'm,” means to show all the villagers about the real existence of the ghost ship. In the childhood of a boy, he was criticized by the villagers. When he was a boy, he saw an uncontrolled, large ship without light or sound. It appeared in the darkness but disappeared in the light. The ship collided with the rock and sank in the sea. The next day, he went to the sea but could not find any sign of the ship.
Again, after a year, he saw the same ship. He told his mother about it, but she thought he was crazy. She died before her son could prove anything about the ship.
Similarly, he saw the same ship the third time and called the villagers to watch it. The villagers beat him because they could not see the ship. The boy promised to prove his manhood and complete his goal. He saw the same uncontrolled ship on March night. He guided the ship with his lantern to the village and showed it to the villagers. The vision of the ship was only his illusion of imagination, but later on, he made it true through his adult passion.
Why did the boy have to prove who he was?
Answer:
The boy had to prove who he was because he was the only person who saw the ghost ship. He wanted to prove the real existence of that ghost ship in front of all the villagers. His opinion about the ghost ship was rejected by the villagers all the time. Villagers did not believe his words; instead, they beat him for making a disturbance. To prove the ghost ship, the boy waited for years. He turned from an ordinary boy into an assertive young man. To prove himself correct about the ghost ship in front of all the villagers, he had to prove himself.
What is the strangest thing about the ghost ship?
(Or) – Describe the ship.
Answer:
The strangest thing about the ghost ship is that it does various magical activities. It is only seen by the boy. It is seen on a particular night in March. It is huge, but without light or sound. It moves through the village. Nobody hears its sound while hitting the rocks. It disappears when the beam of the rotating light from the colonial city falls on it.
The ship seems magical, being described as “the largest ocean liner in this world." It is whiter than anything. It is twenty times taller than the steeple and some 97 times longer than the village, and the word ‘HALALCSILLAG’ is written in its body in a curved manner.
How does the boy show his maturity at the end of the story?
Answer:
The boy here in this story is a widow’s son. He has seen the ghost ship many times in his life. He relates everything to his mom about the ghost ship. But his mother thinks of him as crazy. After the death of his mother, he sees the ghost ship again and tells the villagers about its existence, but the villagers beat him severely in return for making a disturbance. He becomes bolder and takes a strong resolution to prove the existence of a ghost ship. A year passes by. He sees the ship again on one of March’s nights. He guides the ship and takes it to the shore. All the villagers remain gasping in their mouths with wide eyes. In this manner, the boy proves his maturity at the end of the story.
What is the significance of the repetition of the words ‘Now they are going to see who I am...’?
Answer:
This line is repeated in the story. ‘Now they are going to see me for who I am...’ is a line spoken by the boy, the main narrator of the story. This line is a kind of resolution that the boy takes to prove himself in front of the villagers. He wants to prove to himself the existence of the ghost ship. He isn’t believed in by anyone in the village. His mother even thinks of him as crazy when she hears him talk about the amazing ghost ship. After the death of his mother, whenever he tries to say factual things about the ghost ship, he gets severely beaten by the villagers for making a disturbance. He becomes quite upset about the villagers’ behaviour. He gets punished for speaking the truth. He states his aggression in this line. He wants to make all people believe his words. This repetition of words has great value in his life. To prove himself or these words, he has turned himself from a kid to an assertive young man.
Describe the adventurous work done by the boy.
Answer:
Finally, the boy sees the ghost ship again. He gathers his courage and plans to go to the ghost ship. He steals a boat and moves near the ghost ship. He lights his lantern and guides the ghost ship up to the village’s church. He doesn’t feel any kind of fear while the ship follows him. He shows his dare to prove himself in front of all the villagers.
What was the reason that people hated the boy?
Answer:
People hated the boy because of two reasons. According to the villagers, the boy was the widow’s son, who brought evil into the village in the form of a chair. That chair swallowed the lives of four women. Next, they hated the boy for making a disturbance. The boy told them about the ghost ship, which was not seen by the villagers. They beat the boy for making an imaginative story about the ghost ship.
What was the cause of the boy’s mother death?
Answer:
I think excessive thinking was the main cause of the boy’s mother's death. After the death of her husband, she became so sad and spent most of her time sitting on an old chair. She desired to bring a new chair from the town. After bringing a new chair, she used to pass her time sitting on a new chair. She kept on thinking about her dead husband all the time. While thinking a lot about her dead husband, suddenly she became too excited and died on that new chair. Sudden excitement while thinking was the sole cause of the boy’s mother's death.
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Important Questions and Answers for Exam 2078
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