Chapter 6 - The Third and Final Continent

 See if you understand what the following words that are parts of a house mean. Look up the dictionary if you don't.

 Make a list of items that are referred to differently in British and American English, for example, 'lift' (BE) 'elevator' (AmE).

It took the narrator quite some time to understand that what he heard as 'piper', in fact, meant 'paper' and the phrase 'mind the gap' in the Tube. What do you think caused the problem?

How did the narrator learn to distinguish between 'a flask' and 'a thermos'?

‘Don’t expect an English cup of tea’—how does this phrase bring out the contrast between the English and American attitudes?

There are many instances of gentle humour in the story. Point out some of these and state how this contributes to the interest of the narration.

Examine the pieces of conversation in the story. How do they reflect the world view of each of the speakers?

‘Mrs Croft’s was the first death I mourned in America, for, hers was the first life I had admired; she had left this world at last, ancient and alone, never to return’—how do these lines encapsulate the bond that is possible between two strangers?

Discuss the manner in which the author interweaves details of the narrator’s family with the flow of the main narrative.

The eccentricities of the old are often endearing.

The Indian family system offers more security to the aged than what is found in the West.

Living abroad is challenging in many ways.

How does the narrator bring out the contrast between the Indian way of life and American society? Do you think his wife Mala adjusted comfortably to the new way of life?

What kind of a relationship did Mrs. Croft share with her daughter Helen?

What do you understand of the character of Mrs Croft from the story?

How did the narrator adjust to the ways of life first in London and then in Cambridge, U.S.A.?

Indicate the details that tell us that the narrator was not very financially comfortable during his stay in London.