Learning Objectives
- Understand the humorous narrative about a doctor's encounter with a snake
- Identify elements of humour, irony, and self-deprecation in the story
- Analyse the character of the narrator (the homoeopathic doctor)
- Learn about the narrative technique and building of suspense
- Build vocabulary and comprehension skills
Key Concepts
About the Story
Author: Vaikom Muhammad Basheer, a renowned Malayalam writer known for his simple, humorous, and deeply human writing style.
Genre: Humorous narrative; autobiographical fiction.
Theme: Vanity and self-importance can be deflated by unexpected events. The story also shows how fear can reveal our true, humble selves.
Story Summary
The narrator is a young, unmarried homoeopathic doctor who has just started his practice. He lives in a small rented room that is not electrified. One night, after dinner, he sits in his chair reading a medical book while admiring himself in a mirror. He begins to think about how he should appear more presentable and decides to grow a thin moustache and always keep a smile on his face to look handsome.
While lost in these vain thoughts and admiring his reflection, a snake falls from the ceiling onto his shoulder and coils around his arm. The doctor is frozen with fear. He cannot move, shout, or do anything. The snake slowly moves from his arm to the mirror and begins looking at its own reflection in the mirror.
The doctor uses this moment to escape. He runs to his friend's house. When he returns the next morning with others, he finds that all his belongings have been stolen by a thief â except his dirty vest. Even the thief did not think it was worth taking.
Character Analysis
- The Doctor (narrator): Young, vain, poor, and self-absorbed. He is full of plans to improve his appearance. However, the encounter with the snake humbles him completely, stripping away all his vanity.
Humour and Irony in the Story
- The doctor is busy admiring himself when a snake appears â his vanity is interrupted by danger.
- The snake appears to admire itself in the mirror â as if it too is vain.
- The thief takes everything except the dirty vest â even thieves have standards.
- The doctor is a homoeopath with no effective medicines â he admits God saved him, not his medical knowledge.
Important Terms
- Homoeopath: A doctor who practises homoeopathy (alternative medicine)
- Meagre: Small in quantity; inadequate
- Earthen: Made of baked clay
- Lurked: Waited in hiding
- Coiled: Wound in loops or spirals
- Slithered: Moved smoothly with a sliding motion (like a snake)
Quick Revision
- Author: Vaikom Muhammad Basheer (Malayalam writer)
- Narrator: a young, vain homoeopathic doctor in a small, poor room
- A snake falls on his shoulder while he admires himself in the mirror
- The snake coils around his arm, then moves towards the mirror
- He escapes; later finds a thief has taken everything except his dirty vest
- Theme: vanity humbled by fear; humour through irony and self-deprecation