Character Sketch of Ali, Miriam, Lakshmi Das and Postmaster | The Letter

by | Aug 31, 2023 | General | 0 comments

 

Character Sketch of the letter

 

Give a Character Sketch of Ali, Miriam, Lakshmi Das and Postmaster from class 10 Communicative English chapter 3 The Letter

Character Sketch of Ali

Ali was an old man. He had been a clever hunter in his youth and loved to hunt birds and animals. He had a good eye sight, the moment he sighted a partridge, the bird was in his bag. He had immense love for his daughter. He suffered pangs of loneliness and separation and gave up hunting after her daughter Miriam went to Punjab after her marriage. It was then that he realized the pain that the young ones of the birds and animals suffered whom he had hunted dead. He too feels lonely and desperately waits for a letter from his daughter. For 5 years he goes to the post office every morning, in the hope of getting a letter from her. It seemed that the only aim of his existence was to get a letter from his daughter which came only after his death. He just wanted to know about her well-being.

The Letter Overview – This is a story of an old man, Ali. He lived all alone after his daughter Miriam’s marriage. He was waiting for a letter from his daughter Miriam. He used to visit the post office every day in the hope of her letter. But unfortunately, he got that letter only at his grave.

 

Related: The Letter Summary, Explanation

Some Questions on Character Sketch of Ali

Q1. Why was Ali called a ‘mad man’ by the men at the post-office?
Q2. Why was Ali undisturbed by the insensitivity of the people?
Q3. What was Ali’s profession when he was young?
Q4. Compare and contrast the father-daughter relationship as shown in ‘The Letter’ and ‘The Dear Departed’.

 

Character Sketch of Miriam

Miriam is the only child of Shikari Ali. When she grew up, she married and left him. She went off with a soldier into his regiment in Punjab. However, her father desperately fought lonliness and sought a letter from Miriam about her well-being. She sent him a letter but it was late and reached after Ali was dead.

 

Some Questions on Character Sketch of Miriam

Q1. Do you think Miriam was attached to her father? If yes, then what could be the reason behind her decision of leaving him and moving to Punjab?

 

Character Sketch of Lakshmi Das (Post Office Clerk)

Lakshmi Das was a clerk in the post office where Ali went daily. All the employees made fun of Ali but Laxmi Das was a little kind to him, convinced by his faith that he would receive a letter from his daughter. Ali gave Lakshmi Das five golden guineas and asked to deliver the letter at his grave if it came after his death because he knew his end was near.

 

Some Questions on Character Sketch of Lakshmi Das

Q1. What can we say about the character of Lakshmi Das from the fact that he helped Ali and did not laugh at him?

 

Related: The Letter Important Questions 

Character Sketch of Postmaster

The postmaster was a rude and arrogant person. He only cared about himself. He was full of over confidence and treated others as inferior. He called Ali “pest” and always made fun of him. He behaved insensitively and indifferently to Ali until he himself went through a similar pain and suffering. However, after going through the pain of separation from his own daughter, his arrogance was completely transformed into sympathy for Ali. He empathized with him. He realizes his mistake and goes to Ali’s grave to place the letter there.

 

Some Questions on Character Sketch of Postmaster

Q1. What brings about a change in the postmaster?
Q2. What significant lesson did the postmaster’s experience teach him?

 

 

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