VII.
The duchess and the Jeweller
Virginia Woolf
Ques 1)
How was the old Oliver different from the
young Oliver ?
Answer :
Young Oliver was
born and brought up in a dirty little lane. He sold stolen dogs to fashionable
ladies. He was once caught also. His mother scolded him for doing so. Then he
sold cheap watches at a shop and worked as a courier. Once he stole three
diamonds from the bag. With this capital he set up a shop in Hatton Garden.
Since then he had not looked back. He became the famous Jeweller of the city.
He enjoyed a good reputation in the market. He had much range of Jewellery-pearls,
rubies, diamonds . He had all luxurious things at home. Though his mother was
not alive to see his prosperity, he often stood beneath her picture with folded
hands to tell her that he had won the bet as far as money making was concerned.
Ques 2)
What exactly was the ruse she made use of to
cheat Oliver and what was the effect on him ?
Answer :
The Duchess cheated
Oliver by selling him ten fake pearls for twenty thousand pounds. She was very
clever and smart. She did not give him the time to test whether they are real
or false. She showed no fear or nervousness during this process. She kept a
close watch on him. Moreover she knew that Oliver liked her daughter, Diana.
She took him to the world of imagination of her daughter. She told him that he
would enjoy the company of Diana alone in the woods during week-ends. As a
result, Oliver lost in the world of imagination of Diana. He thought how
enjoyable time would be with Diana. This stopped him from testing the genuiness
of the pearls. Finally he was cheated by the Duchess as all the
pearls were fake.
Reference to Context
1)
They were
friends, yet enemies .
Reference to Context :
The above lines has been taken from the lesson The Duchess and the Jeweller
written by V. Woolf . It tells us how the clever duchess befools the Jeweller.
Explanation :
They refer to the Duchess and the Jeweller. Whenever the Duchess needed
money, she always come to Oliver, the Jeweller for help and Oliver always
helped her by buying Jewellery – fake or genuine. This he did because he loved
her daughter Diana. This was the bond of friendship between them. But both
always tried to cheat each other. The Duchess tried to sell fake Jewels and Oliver
tried to pay her less even for genuine. They feared each other because they
knew each other’s weakness. So they were enemies also.
2)
“Alone in
the woods with Diana”. Riding alone in the woods with-Diana.
Reference to Context :
The above lines has been taken from the lesson The Duchess and the Jeweller
written by V. Woolf . It tells us how the clever duchess befools the Jeweller.
Explanation :
These words are thought by Oliver, the Jeweller . Diana was the daughter
of the Duchess and Oliver loved her very much. At the time of selling the
pearls to Oliver. The Duchess told him that he would enjoy the company of
Diana. This sent him to the world of imagination. He started thinking how enjoyable
time would be when he would be riding alone with Diana. This stopped him from
testing the genuiness of the pearls. Though he suspected the to be fake.
3)
Forgive
me, Oh, my mother ! he sighed raising his hands as if he asked pardon of the
old woman in the picture. And again he was a little boy in the alley where they
sold dogs on Sundays.
Reference to Context :
The above lines has been taken from the lesson The Duchess and the Jeweller
written by V. Woolf . It tells us how the clever duchess befools the Jeweller.
Explanation :
This extract tells us how the clever Duchess sold false/fake pearl to Oliver,
the Jeweller. But the Jeweller ignored the warning of the old lady in the picture,
not to buy pearls from the Duchess. It was a timely warning to avoid the
Duchess. But Oliver failed to hear the warning given to him by his mother in
the picture and finally he was cheated by the Duchess. He was feeling remorse.
He raised his hands and requested his mother to forgive him because he could
not pay attention to her warning. Thinking this, he was reminded of the days
when he sold dogs on Sundays in the little street.
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