NCERT Solutions Class 11 English Snapshots Chapter 7 Birth

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By A.J.Cronin

About the Author

Image Reference: en.wikipedia.org

Archibald Joseph Cronin was a Scottish novelist, dramatist, and non-fiction writer. He was born on July, 1896 in Dunbartonshire, Scotland, in 1896. In 1914 he entered Glasgow University to study medicine, but his studies were interrupted by World War I, in which he served in the British Navy as a surgeon sub lieutenant. He received his M.B. and Ch.B. in 1919, and took a job as a ship’s surgeon on a passenger liner. He afterwards took positions at several hospitals, and in 1921 he married Agnes Mary and moved to south Wales to start a medical practice. He received his MD degree in 1925 from the University of Glasgow, and he moved to London to start a practice there. In 1926, Cronin opened a medical practice in London’s fashionable West End, but soon after ill health forced him to take a leave of absence. In 1930 he was diagnosed with an ulcer, and ordered to take six months complete rest on a milk diet.

A.J. Cronin was one of the most renowned storytellers of the twentieth century. His best-known works are The Citadel and The Keys of the Kingdom, both of which were made into Oscar-nominated films. He also created the Dr. Finlay character, the hero of a series of stories that served as the basis for the long-running BBC television and radio series entitled Dr. Finlay’s Casebook.

Cronin died on 6 January 1981 in Montreux, Switzerland.

Introduction

This chapter is an extract from A.J Cronin’s novel “The Citadel”. This extract describes how a young doctor revives a child that is born lifeless.

Joe Morgan and his wife are a middle -aged couple. They have been married for 20 years, but have not get any child so far. Now Mrs. Morgan is expecting her first child. Both her husband and her mother are feeling very nervous because the delivery of the child is going to be before time. A young doctor named, Andrew is called in. The doctor has to put in hard labour in the delivery of the child. When the child is born, it seems to be still-born. This shock could be too much for the Morgans to bear.

While the doctor is attending to the mother, the nurse places the baby under the bed among dirty newspapers. After assuring himself that the mother is safe, the doctor looks for the baby. Finding it under the bed, he at once pulls it out. It was a boy, perfectly formed. The body was warm but was not breathing. At once the doctor sets to revive the child’s breath. After half an hour’s terrible effort, he is at last successful. He thanks god and hands the child to the nurse.

Characters

1. Dr. Andrew Manson – Newly qualified, takes a job as assistant to Dr. Page in a small mining town. On arrival, he finds to his surprise that Page is partly paralyzed and will never work again. This means Dr. Andrew Manson will have to do most of the clinic’s work in this mining town at a meagre pay.

2. The Midwife – an experienced nurse to help in the birth of the child. The midwife and Andrew are contrasting personalities. The midwife is a foil to Andrew. She feels hopeless, resigned, helpless, fearful and untrained. On the other hand, Andrew proves to be more optimistic, diligent, efficient, self-sufficient, spontaneous and well-trained.

3. Joe Morgan – a well-built person in forties, lives in a small Welsh town of Blaenelly, works as a driller at the mines, he has been married for 20 years, but have not got any child so far.

4. Mrs. Morgan – wife of Joe Morgan, is expecting her first child, Both her husband and her mother are feeling very nervous because the
delivery of the child is going to be before time.

5. Christine – a school teacher, Andrew falls in love and contemplates marrying her.

6. Morgan’s mother – a tall, grey-haired woman of nearly seventy.

Summary in Points

1. Andrew returns home after a disappointing visit with his lady love, Christine Barlow.

2. Exhausted, he finds Joe Morgan, anxious and somewhat scared, waiting for him.

3. Morgan’s wife was in labour, before the expected date. This is their first child in a marriage of nearly twenty years.

4. Andrew reaches the house of Morgan and waits in the kitchen.

5. The labour leads to a stillborn baby.

6. He instinctively decides to save the mother first, handing the baby over to the midwife.

7. The midwife, who has had no medical training, sees the body in her arms as a lifeless lump and places it under the bed among sodden newspapers.

8. Andrew draws the baby out from under the bed and quickly diagnoses the most probable cause for the still birth i.e. Asphyxia, pallida.

9. He recalls a method he had once observed through which a child had been successfully resuscitated.

10. He tries the simultaneous hot and cold dips to shock the body and get the heart to jump start, then rubs the baby’s body with a rough towel crushing and releasing the little chest.

11. On the verge of giving up, a miracle happens.

12. The child breathes. Andrew redoubles his efforts till the baby breathes freely.

13. While leaving the house, he feels that he has done something ‘real’, at last.

Detailed Summary

Andrew Manson was a young doctor. He had newly passed out of a medical school and joined as an assistant to Dr. Edward Page. Their clinic was in the small Welsh town of Blaenelly. It was a mining town. Joe Morgan was a resident of this town. He was a well-built person and worked as a driller at the mines. He lived with his wife. They had been married for about twenty years, but so far they didn’t have any child. Now Mrs. Morgan was expecting her first child.

After spending a disappointing evening with his ladylove, Christine, Andrew came back home. He found Morgan waiting for him restlessly. He told the doctor that he had been waiting for him for an hour. He said that his wife needed his presence because the child was expected to be born before time.

Together they set out for Morgan’s house. Andrew was feeling very dull and tired. He had no idea that this night call would prove unusual and influence his whole future in Blaenelly.

When they reached the door of Number 12, Morgan stopped outside the door. He said that he won’t go in. Inside, a narrow stair led up to a small bedroom. It was clean but poorly furnished. It was lit only by an oil lamp. Mrs. Morgan’s mother was sitting beside the patient. She was a tall, grey-haired woman of nearly seventy. An elderly midwife was also there. Both of them watched Andrew’s expression as he moved about the room.

Since there was a period of waiting, Andrew waited in the kitchen. Soon he was lost in his thoughts about Christine. An hour later he went upstairs again. He noted the progress made and came down once more. He sat down by the kitchen fire.

At last the nurse’s voice was heard calling from the top landing. Andrew looked at the clock. It now showed half-past three. He rose and went up to the bedroom. He saw that he could now begin his work. An hour passed. It was a long, hard struggle. Then, as the first rays of dawn appeared, the child was born, lifeless.

As Andrew looked at the lifeless form, a shiver of horror went through his body. He couldn’t decide whether to resuscitate the child first or attend to the mother who herself was in a serious state. Instinctively, he gave the child to the nurse and turned his attention to Susan Morgan who now lay collapsed, almost pulseless. He gave her an injection, and after a few minutes of
feverish effort, Susan’s heart gained strength. Now he could safely leave her.

Swinging round to the nurse, he asked, “Where’s the child?” When Andrew looked at the child, he at once knew that it was a case of asphyxia. Instantly he was on his feet. “Get me hot water and cold water,” he said to the nurse. “And basins too. Quick! Quick!” He took a blanket and laid the child upon it. Then he began the special method of respiration. The basins arrived. Andrew put cold water into one basin; into the other he mixed water as hot as his hand could bear. Then, like a crazy juggler, he hurried the child between the two basins. Now he plunged it into the icy water, now into the hot one. Fifteen minutes passed. Sweat was now running into Andrews’s eyes. His breath was coming pantingly. But no breath came from the body of the child.

A terrible sense of defeat came on him. Having laboured in vain for half an hour, he still made one last effort. He rubbed the child with a rough towel. He pressed and released the little chest with both his hands. Thus he tried to get breath into that limp body.

And then a miracle happened. The little chest gave a short heave. Andrew continued with his efforts feverishly. The child had started gasping, deeper and deeper. A bubble of mucus came from one tiny nostril. The limbs were no longer boneless. The head no longer lay back spinelessly. The skin was slowly turning pink. And then, exquisitely came the child’s cry. Andrew handed the child to the nurse. He went downstairs, and took a long drink of water. He took his hat and coat and left the house. Outside he found Joe standing on the pavement with a tense, expectant face. “All right, Joe,” said Andrew. “Both all right.”

It was quite light. Nearly five o’clock. A few miners were already in the streets. As Andrew walked with them, he kept thinking unconsciously, “I’ve done something; oh, God! I’ve done something real at last.”

Short Answer Type Questions

Q1. Why was Andrew so serious and tense that evening?

Ans. That evening Andrew was tense and serious. He had a disappointing evening with his girlfriend Christine. Moreover, he had seen some painful incidents of husbands’ suffering at the hands of their wives. He was short of sleep as well.

Q2. Who was Joe Morgan? Why was he so tense and waiting anxiously for Dr. Andrew that night?

Ans. Joe Morgan was in dire need of Dr. Andrew’s help. His wife Susan was in labour. She was going to deliver their first child after 20 years of marriage. Joe and Susan were keen to have the child delivered safely. So he stood waiting anxiously for the doctor.

Q3. That night proved unusual and it influenced Dr. Andrew’s whole future in Blaenelly. What miraculous thing happened that night?

Ans. Dr. Andrew had first begun his medical practice in the mining town of Blaenelly. The successful handling of Mrs. Joe’s case proved a turning point in his life. It was no less than a miracle. He restored life in a stillborn child.

Q4. Why were Susan and her old mother equally so tense that night?

Ans. Susan was in labour after 20 years of marriage. It was natural for her and her husband Joe to be tense. Susan’s old mother also stood beside her tense and hopeful.

Q5. Susan’s mother was wise in experience. What hints did she give of her wisdom?

Ans. Susan’s mother was a tall, grey-haired woman of nearly seventy. From her personal experience, she knew that the childbirth would take some time. She was wise enough to fear that Dr. Andrew might not wait for long. So she tried to make him stay by offering him tea and sitting beside him.

Q6. Why and when did a shiver of horror pass over Dr. Andrew?

Ans. Dr. Andrew was shocked and horrified as he looked at the lifeless newly born baby. He also noticed Susan sinking. He was in a dilemma, whom to save first.

Q7. Dr. Andrew faced the biggest dilemma of his life that night. How did he act and save two lives?

Ans. Dr. Andrew was called to supervise the first and crucial delivery of Susan Morgan. He was tense and short of sleep. Still, he decided to wait. He gave a promise to Joe and his wife that all would be well. But he became nervous to find both the mother and her baby in trouble. He first gave injection to Susan. Next, he lifted the stillborn baby, put him in hot and cold water and pressed the child’s chest. Luckily, he saved both of them.

Q8. Comment on the behaviour and role of the midwife attending on Susan Morgan.

Ans. The midwife attending on Susan showed lack of experience and professional attitude. She declared at once that the baby was stillborn. She pushed it under the bed. Even when Andrew was trying to bring back life into the baby, she showed disbelief and even discouraged Andrew from making feverish effort. The cry of the baby made her exclaim with
joy.

Q9. What did Andrew do to restore life in the stillborn child?

Ans. Andrew recalled a similar case in the past. He gave the same treatment to the stillborn baby. He asked for hot and icy cold water. He placed it into cold and warm water alternately. He rubbed the child with a rough towel and pressed and released the little chest with his hands. The miracle happened. Its skin turned pink and it cried.

Q10. Describe the moments when the stillborn child gave a short heave and slowly revived.

Ans. Andrew for a while felt beaten and disappointed. But he made one last effort. He pressed the baby’s chest gently and then released. The technique was successful. He felt the little heart beating. A bubble of mucus came from one nostril. The child was gasping and then came a cry.

Q11. What was Andrew’s greatest achievement and satisfaction as he walked out of the House Number 12, Blaina Terrace?

Ans. Dr. Andrew was called to handle a critical case of delivery. He was tired. He felt defeated. He was in a dilemma because of the sinking condition of Susan and the lifeless form of her baby. But he saved both the lives. He called it his greatest reward and success.

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Long Answer Type Questions

Q1. Why was Andrew feeling so dull and listless that evening? How did that evening influence his whole life and career?

Ans. Andrew returned home after midnight. His experience with Christine that evening was not happy one. Moreover, several episodes of unhappy married couples also saddened him. Outside his house was Joe Morgan waiting anxiously for the doctor. He led Andrew to his house where his wife Susan was in labour. Both were set upon the child. Andrew decided to wait and give medical aid. He had no idea that the incident of that night would give him not only supreme satisfaction but also name and fame. He worked hard and very intelligently saved the life of mother as well as her stillborn child.

Q2. What was Andrew’s dilemma after the delivery? How did he solve the problem so successfully?

Ans. The child was born at daybreak. Dr. Andrew was filled with horror as he looked at the lifeless baby. He had now two patients on his hand. Susan was fast losing her pulse. The baby was white, lax and lifeless. Andrew was in dilemma whom to give his attention first. Going by instinct, he gave an injection to Susan and pulled her out of danger. Then he pulled out the child, with warm body but no breathing. He gave it an unusual treatment using cold and hot water and the pressure of his hands. And there was a miracle. He thanked God when the child gave out a cry.

Q3. Narrate the story in about 100 words of your own. What message does it convey?

Ans. This story narrates an incident in which a young doctor saves two lives. Both the mother and her still born baby were in a critical condition. It highlights the miracle that a physician can perform.

Andrew was a young doctor. He was called upon to supervise a case of childbirth. Joe and his wife Susan had been married for nearly twenty years. They were expecting their first child. Two women were already at Susan’s bedside—Susan’s old mother and a midwife. Andrew decided to wait till the work was completed. When Susan gave birth to the baby, her own condition became critical. The baby was stillborn, limp and boneless. Andrew first restored the mother to a safe point. Then he picked up the child. He dipped it into hot and ice cold water alternately. He applied mild pressure on the little chest. And it came back to life.

Q4. There is a great difference between textbook medicine and the world of a practising physician. Discuss.

Ans. Bookish knowledge is very important as it imparts theoretical knowledge. It teaches a man intricacies of a problem and its probable solutions. If a man having theoretical knowledge has no practical experience he may fail in his job. On the other hand, a man with practical knowledge and experience only may fail to achieve the desired results. In our day to day life we meet compounders surpassing the doctors and the physicians. A physician who has read the process of administering an injection but has not done it with his own hands will fail in his attempt to administer injection. On the contrary, a compounder can surpass the physician because he has practical experience. Similarly, if you have minutely observed a man doing his job to perfection you can apply that very practical experience based on your keen observation and achieve success. Dr. Andrew could save the child because he had observed somebody saving an almost lifeless child. He applied that practical experience and knowledge and did his job efficiently. So for success especially in medical field especially both bookish knowledge and practical experience are indispensable.

Q5. “I have done something, oh, God! I’ve done something real at last.” Why does Andrew say this? What does it mean?

Ans. Andrew was fresh from the medical school. He was still working as an assistant to Dr. Edward Page in Blaenelly. He had yet to prove his merit. He got a chance soon to test all his learning. He knew that a doctor’s job was to save life. He got a golden opportunity unexpectedly one evening. He was called upon to supervise the delivery case of Susan Morgan. He waited all night. But he was horrified to find the newborn baby almost lifeless. The mother was also collapsing. He first saved the mother’s life by giving an injection. Then he turned to the stillborn baby. He applied treatment he had once seen at school. He dipped the baby first in warm water and then in icy cold water. His effort was crowned with success. The child began to gasp and then cry. Andrew had supreme satisfaction because he had saved two lives.

NCERT Solutions For Class 11 English Snapshots Birth

QUESTIONS FROM TEXTBOOK SOLVED

A. Reading With Insight

Question 1:
“I have done something; oh, God! I’ve done something real at last.” Why does Andrew say this? What does it mean?
Answer:
The young doctor Andrew Manson had done a commendable work. His exclamation is justified. He had not only helped the middle-aged lady in the safe delivery of a male child but also restored them to perfect health. Susan Morgan’s strength was ebbing after the delivery. She was almost pulse less. Andrew gave her an injection and worked severely to strengthen her heart.
The major achievement of Andrew was to resuscitate the stillborn child. First, he laid the child of a blanket and began the special method of respiration. Then he tried the hot and cold water treatment dipping the baby alternately. He laboured in vain for half an hour. He then made another last effort. He rubbed the child with a rough towel. He went on pressing and releasing the baby’s little chest with both his hands. At last the baby responded. His chest heaved. Andrew redoubled his efforts. The child was gasping now. A bubble of mucus came from his tiny nostril. The pale skin turned pink. His limbs became hard. Then came the child’s cry.
Andrew called upon God as witness of his act which was no less than a miracle. It was not mere theoretical talk but a practical achievement—something real and solid.

Question 2:
‘There lies a great difference between textbook medicine and the world of a practising physician.’ Discuss.
Answer:
Normally, the medicines prescribed in the textbooks are used by the practising physicians. However, in extreme cases of emergency, the physician’s experience, resourcefulness and practical approach become far more important than the theoretical knowledge. For example, a victim of bum-injury, snakebite or suffocation through drowning needs immediate help. The nearest available doctor may not have all the facilities needed for the case. In such a situation first-aid is a must to save the patient’s life before rushing him to the hospital for proper care. With limited resources at his command, the practising physician exercises all his practical experience to control the damage to the minimum and check the victim’s state from further deterioration. A stitch in time does save nine in such cases. The practical help comes as a boon.

Question 3:
Do you know of any incident when someone has been brought back to life from the brink of death through medical help? Discuss medical procedures such as organ transplant and organ regeneration that are used to save human life.
Answer:
Yes, I have seen and heard of incidents where people have been brought back to life from the brink of death through medical help. Surgical operations, life saving drugs and organ transplant play a leading role in modem medical science. Leading hospitals in advanced countries have facilities for medical procedures such as organ transplant and organ regeneration. Blood bank and eye bank are quite common. Nowadays people willingly donate various organs of their body to the hospitals after their death. The techniques of organ regeneration help to preserve them for certain period and use them for transplanting the defective organ of another patient. Nowadays eye, heart, kidney and liver are being transplanted. The time is not far off when artificial human organs will be made in laboratories from non-human sources.

MORE QUESTIONS SOLVED

A. Short Answer Type Questions

Question 1:
Who was Joe.Morgan? Why had he been waiting for Dr Andrew Manson?
Answer:
Joe Morgan was a driller in Blaenelly, a mining town. He was a big, strong and heavy middle-aged person. Joe and his wife Susan, who had been married nearly twenty years, were expecting their first child. Joe was waiting for the doctor to help Susan in the delivery of the child.

Question 2:
Where did Joe lead Andrew? Why did he not go in with the doctor?
Answer: Joe Morgan led Andrew to his house, 12, Blaina Terrace. His wife was about to deliver her first child after being married for nearly twenty years. Joe was quite tensed. He refused to go inside the house. Even his voice showed signs of strain.

Question 3:
“Don’t fret, mother, I’ll not run away”. Why do you think Andrew say so?
Answer:
Mrs Morgan’s mother offered to make a cup of tea for the doctor. The experienced woman had realized that there must be a period of waiting. She was afraid that the doctor would leave^ the case saying that he would return later.

Question 4:
Why did Andrew decide to remain there until everything was over?
Answer:
Andrew had reached Bryngower at about midnight. He was very worried and upset. He needed some rest and sleep. He knew that he could not sleep even for an hour if he went home. Secondly, he knew that the case would demand all his attention. He felt lethargic and decided to remain there until everything was over.

Question 5:
What had Andrew been thinking about? How would you like to describe the state of his thoughts?
Answer:
Andrew had been thinking about the unsuccessful married lives of some persons he knew. Bramwell was foolishly devoted to a woman who deceived him immorally. Edward Page was bound to quarrelsome Blodwen. Denny was living unhappily apart from his wife. His thoughts were muddled (confused).

Question 6:
What was Andrew’s view of marriage? Why was he resentful and confused?
Answer:
For Andrew marriage was a peaceful and beautiful state. He loved Christine. The conflict between his steady mind and overflowing heart left him resentful and confused.

Question 7:
Why did Andrew feel surprised while sitting by kitchen fire?
Answer:
Andrew had been thinking about his beloved as he sat by the kitchen fire. He sat still and sadly for a long time. When the old woman sitting opposite him suddenly addressed him, Andrew felt surprised.

Question 8:
Why did a shiver of horror pass over Andrew?
Answer:
Andrew had struggled for more than an hour to help Mrs Susan Morgan in the safe delivery of her first child. At last, the child was born, but it was lifeless. As Andrew gazed at the still form of the baby, a shiver of horror passed over him.

Question 9:
What dilemma did Andrew face?
Answer:
His heart prompted him to resuscitate the stillborn child. His mind dictated him to attend to the mother who was laying in a hopeless state. Andrew faced the dilemma whom he should attend first.

Question 10:
What efforts did Andrew make to revive Susan Morgan?
Answer:
He smashed a glass ampule and injected the medicine. After this he flung down the hypodermic syringe. Then he worked quiet hard to restore the soft and weak woman. Her heart strengthened after a few minutes of feverish effort.

Question 11:
In what state did Andrew find the newborn child? What did he conclude?
Answer:
Andrew found the baby amongst wet newspapers under the bed. Its limp warm body was white and soft. Its head lolled on the thin neck. The limbs seemed boneless. The whiteness over the body meant suffocation caused by the lack of oxygen.

Question 12:
How did Andrew’s practical experience come handy?
Answer:
Andrew had once seen a similar case in the Samaritan. He remembered the treatment that had been used. He at once decided to administer the hot and cold water therapy.

Question 13:
What efforts did Andrew make to revive the newborn baby?
Answer:
First, he laid the child upon a blanket and gave it artificial respiration. Then he dipped the child alternately in hot and cold water. After that he rubbed the slippery child with a rough towel. He pressed and released his chest till it began to breathe and gave a city.

Question 14:
How did Andrew react to the first glimpse of the success of his efforts to help the stillborn child come alive?
Answer:
As a result of Andrew’s persistent efforts, the small chest of the baby heaved up. This short heave was followed by other heart beats. Andrew turned giddy. The sense of life, throbbing under his feelings almost made him faint.

Question 15:
What was the result of Andrew’s feverish efforts after the child’s chest gave a short, convulsive heave?
Answer:
Andrew redoubled his efforts. The child began to gasp deeper and deeper. A bubble of mucus came from a nostril. The limbs were no longer boneless. The pale skin turned pink. Then the child cried. It came alive.

Question 16:
What was the state of the room after the resuscitation of mother and child? .
Answer:
The room was littered with blankets, towels, basins and soiled instruments. The hypodermic syringe was impaled in the linoleum by its point. The ewer was knocked over. The kettle lay on its side in a puddle of water.

Question 17:
Why did Andrew say, “Fill fetch my bag later, nurse.”?
Answer:
Andrew had worked hard single-handedly and constantly to save the mother as well as the stillborn child from the jaws of death. The constant efforts, tension, desperation caused by failure combined to make him weak and dazed. His throat was dry.

Question 18:
How did Andrew assess that night’s work?
Answer:
As Andrew left driller’s house he felt tired. He kept thinking of the work he had done that night. He realised that at last he had done something real. For him it was an achievement.

B. Long Answer Type Questions

Question 1:
Why was Andrew Manson called in? How did he react to the call of duty?
Answer:
Andrew Manson had just begun his medical practice in the small Welsh mining town of Blaenelly. He was called in to attend to Susan Morgan, who was expecting her first child after being married for nearly twenty years. Her husband, Joe Morgan had been waiting for an hour outside the closed surgery. It was nearly midnight when Andrew reached there. As Joe acquainted Andrew with his wife’s condition, Andrew forgot his own affairs. He went inside his house for his bag and immediately left for the driller’s place.
Since his services were not immediately needed by the expecting mother, he decided to wait downstairs. He re-examined her after an hour. It was at 3:30 am when the nurse summoned him. He struggled for an hour before the child was born. Then he worked feverishly to revive the weak mother and the stillborn child. He had to use all his knowledge and experience in discharging his duty. He did not pay attention to his own physical tiredness or mental tension. Duty came first and he responded to it with single-minded devotion.

Question 2:
Give a brief account of the efforts made by Andrew to revive the stillborn baby.
Answer:
A shiver of horror passed over Andrew as he gazed at the still form of the newborn baby. Though it was a perfectly formed boy, its limp warm body was white. The whiteness meant suffocation caused by lack of oxygen. Andrew remembered the treatment given to such a case in the Samaritan. Before the hot and cold water came he had asked for, he laid the child upon a blanket and gave it artificial respiration. Then he dipped the child alternately in hot and cold water. Now, the child was quite slippery. He rubbed it with a rough towel. Then he pressed and released his chest till it heaved up. It was followed by other heaves. Andrew redoubled his efforts. The child started gasping. A bubble of mucus came from one tiny nostril. The pale skin turned pink. The limbs were no longer boneless. His head did not lie back spinelessly. The child gave a cry. It came alive.

Question 3:
Compare and contrast Andrew’s emotional, mental and physical state at the beginning of the story and at the end.
Answer:
At the beginning of the story Andrew is physically tired and emotionally upset. He has just returned from a disappointing evening with Christine, the girl he loved. His thoughts are heavy and muddled. The episode he had witnessed at Cardiff station still filled his mind with sadness. Though he thought of marriage as a blissful state, he couldn’t help remembering the miserable failure of many marriages.
At the end of the story, Andrew is physically exhausted but emotionally cheerful and mentally alert. His mind is filled with joy and self-satisfaction. He has performed an unusual feat, no less than a miracle. He calls upon God as witness that he has done something real at last. This sense of achievement helps him to overcome physical fatigue. His sense of duty towards his patients helps him to attend them whole-heartedly. He forgets his personal feelings and thinks only of reviving the patients.

Question 4:
What impression do you form of Andrew Manson on the basis of the story ‘Birth’?
Answer:
Andrew Manson is a young man who has recently qualified as a doctor and started his medical practice as an assistant to Dr Edward Page in the small Welsh mining town of Blaenelly. He is in love with Christine and thinks of marriage as an idyllic state. His heart is overflowing with love. His steady mind and reason help him see the marriages of many persons as dismal failures.
Andrew is mature enough to keep his private and professional fives apart. Once confronted with his responsibility, he discharges his obligations to the utmost capacity. He is duty conscious. He is not a theorist only. He believes in practical approach. He is pragmatic and is not afraid to try unique methods.
Andrew has a tender heart. He is aware of the feelings of others. He knows how deeply Susan loved her coming baby. He has polite manners and reassuring tone. On the whole, Andrew impresses us as a dedicated doctor.

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