Amerigo, a Street Child
- Choose the correct answer from the alternatives.
(a) What could be the closest meaning for ‘alone’ in the first sentence?
(i) full of eagerness (ii) lonely (iii) mixture of metals (iv) attract
(b) The word ‘beg’ in line 3 refers to_____.
(i) a beggar (ii) snatch away (iii) ask for something (iv) keep away
(c) ‘Vendor’ in line 5 could be best replaced by_____.
(i) seller (ii) buyer (iii) broker (iv) hawker
(d) Amerigois_____human rights.
(i) affected by (ii) deprived of (iii) fond of (iv) working for
(e) Amerigo is_____.
(i) a child (ii) a young man (iii) an adult (iv) a teenager
(f) Whom does he live with
(i) He lives with none. (ii) He lives with his father. (iii) He lives with his mother. (iv) He does not live alone.
(g) What did Amerigo beg?
(i) He begged some foods. (ii) He begged alms. (iii) He begged some money. (iv) He begged some clothes.
(h) Where is the home of Amerigo now?
(i) on the beach (ii) in the shop (iii) on the house tops (iv) in the streets
(i) The narrator of the story is a/an_____.
(i) student (ii) orphan (iii) young man (iv) abandoned child
(j) Amerigo’s parents are_____.
(i) separate (ii) separated (iii) separating (iv) being separated
- Answer the following questions.
(a) From your reading of the passage give a short description of Amerigo.
Ans: Amerigo, a boy of 13 years old, lives on the street alone. His mother is separated from his father and is married to another man. She does not want him. ‘His father also does not take him. He has to work hard to maintain his life.
(b) How is the relationship of Amerigo with his parents?
Ans: The relationship of Amerigo with his parents is not at all good. As his mother is separated from his father, she told him to go away. Now, she is married to another man. His father lives very far away. Amerigo wants to go to his father, but he (f) won’t take him (A) either.
(c) “I would like to live in my own home and sleep there in peace.” ___ Explain in 2/3 sentences.
Ans: Amerigo lives on the street and leads a very miserable life. It is very painful. He always remains hungry and does not know where he will sleep the next night. Besides the nights are very cold in the winter and anyone might die of cold in the street. So, he wishes to live in his own home and sleep there in peace.
(d) Why did Amerigo beg money from his father?
Ans: Amerigo begged for some money from his father so that he could buy a bus ticket to go to him.
(e) Why did Amerigo stop collecting trash?
Ans: Amerigo used to collect trash and sell it to a vendor. But he stopped doing that after he had a serious infection and a doctor told him to stay away from the trash dump.
(f) How was the work of Amerigo in the ice cream shop?
Ans: Once Amerigo worked for an ice cream shop owner and sold ice cream on the beach. The work was difficult and painful. The ice cream box was quite heavy when it was full. He had to walk for hours, offering his ice cream to whoever wanted to buy.
(g) Why does Amerigo consider himself lucky?
Ans: Amerigo considers himself lucky because despite his adverse situation he is alive. His friends who work sorting rubbish in dumps, often suffer from serious diseases. One of them was recently killed after he had fallen into a hole that opened up in the pile of trash. Another friend lost his one eye after a piece of hot glass had flown into his eye.
(h) What happens to the friends of Amerigo?
Ans: Amerigo’s friends face various adversities in their respective work. Those who work sorting rubbish in dumps often suffer from serious diseases. One of them was recently killed after he had fallen into a hole that opened up in the pile of trash. One of his friends lost one of his eyes after a piece of hot glass flew into his eye at the glass factory where he worked.
(i) How was one of his friends killed recently?
Ans: One of the friends of Amerigo was recently killed after he had fallen into a hole that opened up in the pile of trash.
(j) What is the most popular job among street kids?
Ans: Shoe-shining is a popular job among street kids.
(k) What does Amerigo wish to get?
Ans: Amerigo lives on the street and leads a very miserable life. It is very painful. He always remains hungry and does not know where he will sleep the next night. So, he wishes to live in his own home and sleep there in peace.
(1) Do you support child labor? Why/Why not?
Ans: No, I don’t support child labor. It is a great curse for them, preventing them from growing normally. It deprives them of basic human rights.
(m) What did Amerigo do initially? What made him stop doing that job?
Ans: Amerigo initially used to collect trash and sell it to a vendor. When he had a serious infection and a doctor told him to stay away from the trash dump, he stopped doing that.
(n) Why does Amerigo say, “I am lucky because I am alive”?
Ans: Amerigo says this because his friends who work sorting rubbish in dumps often suffer from serious diseases. One of them was recently killed after he had fallen into a hole that opened up in the pile of trash and another friend lost one of his eyes after a piece of hot glass had flown into his eye at the glass factory where he worked.
(o) How does Amerigo evaluate his life now? Does he have any option to change it?
Ans: Now, Amerigo evaluates his life in a very sad way. As a street child, his life is very hard. He remains always hungry and doesn’t know where he will sleep the next night. He has no option to change it.
(p) What does Amerigo desire now? Should he desire such things? Why/Why not?
Ans: Now Amerigo desires to live in his own home and sleep there in peace. But he should not desire such things because his parents, being separated from each other, don’t want him and even don’t maintain any relation with him. Moreover, he begged his father to send him some money so that he could buy a bus ticket to go to his father, but he did not respond.
(q) “The streets are now my home.”What does the expression mean?
Ans: The expression means that Amerigo has no home. His parents, separated from each other don’t want him and so he is to live on the streets.
(r) What profession is very popular among the street children and why?
Ans: Shoe-shining is very popular among the street children. Because the work is very easy, simple, and earning is hand sortie in comparison with labour and expenditure.
(t) What is your impression of Amerigo’s parents?
Ans: My impression about Amerigo’s parents is that they are merciless parents because a very small boy like Amerigo has been left on the street to support himself and pushed into an insecure situation by them.
(u) How is Amerigo’s experience of selling ice cream?
Ans: Amerigo has a bitter and painful experience of selling ice cream. This job was very difficult for him. The ice cream box was so heavy that it was very difficult for him to carry it.
(v) How does Amerigo earn his living?
Ans: Amerigo earns his living by doing various jobs. He used to collect trash and sell it to a vendor. But due to a serious infection, he stopped collecting trash. Later on, he got food and shelter by working for an ice cream shop owner and selling ice cream on the beach. After that, he remains unfed and sleeps in the street when there is no work. Thus he earns his living.
(w) Why does not Amerigo live with his parents?
Ans: Amerigo is an unfortunate street boy. His mother being separated from his father, told him to go away. Now she is married to another man. His father lives very far away. Amerigo wanted to go to him, but he wouldn’t take him either. So, he does not live with his parents.
(x) What will you suggest to Amerigo after hearing his story?
Ans: Really, Amerigo is an unfortunate boy. His mother is married to another man and his father living very far away won’t take him either. In the circumstances, I can suggest him to find out. a suitable way to maintain his livelihood.
(y) Generally what happens to the street children?
Ans: Generally, health hazards are the constant companions of street children. Often they do not get payments despite their hard work. Some are often hurt while working in factories. Sometimes they are killed too.
- Read the above text (My name is Amerigo——-cold in the street) and make a flow chart showing the painful experiences a street child has to suffer to survive. (One is done for you.
- Homeless
- Rootless
- Jobless
- Penniless
- Hopeless
- Friendless
Or, Read the above text (My name is Amerigo——-cold in the street) and make a flow chart showing the different activities of a street child has to do to survive. (One is done for you.)
- Searching for work
- Collecting trash
- Sorting trash
- Selling to vendors
- Carrying heavy ice cream box.
- Selling ice-cream
- Sorting rubbish
- Doing shoe-shinning
- Working in factories
- Working in workshops
- Summarize the following passage. U-7, L-4 B, P-118, (My name – sleep at night), Para-1 & 2
Amerigo is a boy of 13 years old. His parents were separated from each other and they did not look after him. So, he lived on the streets. Sometimes he managed to find work, sometimes not. He used to collect trash, but he stopped doing it after a serious infection. Then he worked under an ice cream shop owner, but it was very difficult for him. He was lucky compared to his friends. Some of them faced great problems. One of them died and another boy lost one of his eyes. He always suffered from hunger. He has to suffer greatly from severe cold in winter.
