Exercise of the Story "Neighbours"

Understanding the text

1. Answer the following questions.

a. Describe how the young couple's house looked like.

Ans: The young couple's house was small, but its high ceilings and paned windows gave it the feel of an elegant cottage. From his study window, the young man could see out over the rooftops and used car yards and garden, where his neighbors walk with their dogs. The young man could see different activities of his neighbors through the broad window of his house.   

b. How did the young couple identify their neighbors in the beginning of their arrival?

Ans: In the beginning, the young couple has lots of prejudices because they only see the strange and sometimes the disgusting customs of their new neighborhood. At first, they act as though they are strangers and refused to speak to anyone. The newlywed couple was uncomfortable with their neighbors because they belonged to different parts of Europe. The culture their neighbors follow was completely new and strange for the couple.

c. How did the neighbors help the young couple in the kitchen garden?

Ans: When the neighbors found that the young couple was clearing all the rubbish from their backyard and turning the soil, they couldn't stop them from helping. They offered different kinds of assistance to them. For example, one of the neighbors who was a butcher gave them a bagful of garlic cloves to plant. Other neighbors advised them about spacing, hilling, mulching (the different processes of cultivation). 

d. Why were the people in the neighborhood surprised at the role of the young man and his wife in their family? 

Ans:  The people in the neighborhood were surprised at the role of the young man and his wife in their family because the husband decided to stay at home to write his thesis on the evolution of the book in the 20th century, whereas his wife worked at the hospital. It was very easy for society to accept a working husband and a housewife. But it's quite difficult to accept a working lady and an unemployed husband. The young couple noticed the disapproval of his neighbors on this. 

e. How did the neighbors respond to the woman's pregnancy?

Ans: The neighbors were very happy to hear this great news. When they knew of the pregnancy they smile tirelessly. Also, they started to give her different varieties of gifts like packets of chocolates. Greek women stopped the young woman in the street pulled her skirt up and felt her belly, telling her it was bound to be a boy. By late summer the women next door had knitted the baby a suit complete with booties and beanie. In short, they all played the best role of a good neighbor.

f. Why did the young man begin to weep at the end of the story?   

Ans: The young man wept at the end of the story after facing a very complicated situation of childbirth. He was cheerful that he was not alone since all the neighbors were standing out of his house. After getting a baby the young man, being emotional, started to weep obviously in a cheerful mood. 

g. Why do you think the author did not characterize the persons in the story with proper names?

Ans: The author of the story has not characterized the persons in the story with proper names because they all are viewed as role models for everyone. They all are known for their different jobs. For example, a Polish widower was pounding nails into the wood. Similarly, other neighbors are engaged in different occupations, and that is their real identity according to the author.