The Blue Bead Summary by Norah Burke
The story The Blue Bead shows the life of the people living in the vicinity of the forests. They have to face new dangers and challenges everyday. Their life is full of hardships. They live in muddy houses. They have no facilities of pure water, roads and hospitals. They use sticks and dung as fuel for fire. The smoke can result in respiratory problems. Besides this, they are threatened by the wild animals and epidemics like cholera and influenza which break out rather frequently. For earning their livelihood, they have to struggle hard. Hence it becomes difficult for them to sustain their existence in such a challenging and horrible surroundings.
In the story, Sibia, her family and people in Gujar encampment have to struggle for daily survival in a hostile environment. Sibia, her mother and other women of the village have to climb the cliffs to get paper grass to sell in the market. They have to carry a great load back home. Since, there are no bridges to cross the river, the women need to jump from stone to stone and have to shout or make noise to frighten the crocodiles. Gujar women have to come to the river to fetch water for daily needs and their lives are always at risk from wild animals.
The Blue Bead Summary Introduction
The story, before shifting to Sibia, a twelve years old girl, begins with an elaborate description of a powerful and ferocious animal, a mugger (crocodile). It (crocodile) lived in a great Indian river which flowed though the forest of hilly area. It was larger than a tall man. Because of being very strong, it remained fearless. It had no least fear from human beings and other animals.
It rested in the glassy shallows, among logs and balanced there on tiptoe on the rippled sand. It was blackish brown above and yellowy white under. It was lying without making any commotion. It could wait until its prey came to it. When it was small, it protected itself escaping the birds of prey and the great carnivorous fishes that eat baby crocodiles. But now it had prospered, catching all the food it needed.
Over the years, it had become so powerful and strong that it was impossible to pierce its inch-thick armoured hide. Its eyes and soft under arms were the only vulnerable areas. The big crocodile fed mostly on fish but also on deer and monkeys that came to drink the water at the banks of river. Sometimes, it fed on a duck or two. Sometimes it went to the ghats where it found the half- burnt bodies of Indians cast into the stream. Beside it, as it lay waiting for its food, glimmered a blue bead. Actually it was not a blue gem (bead), but it was a sand-worn glass that had been rolling about in the river for a long time. By chance it was perforated.
In the shrill noisy village above the ford, out of a mud house the same colour as the ground came a little girl named Sibia. She was a twelve years old girl. She was a thin stravelling child. She was dressed in an earth-coloured rag. She had torn the rag in two to make skirit and sari.
She was eating the last of her meal. In her meal, she was eating chapatti wrapped round a smear of green chili and rancid butter and she divided this also, to make it seem more and bit it, showing straight white teeth.
With her ebony hair and great eyes, she was a happy immature child-woman. In all her life, Sibia had never owned anything but a rag. She had never owned even one anna—not a pice, not a pi, even, to buy, say, a handful of blown glass beads from that stall in the bazaar where they were piled like stars, or one of the thin glass bangles that the man kept on a stick. She visited the bazaar with her parents and brothers. In the bazaar, she stood before the sweetmeat stall and gazed at the brilliant confections. She stood before the cloth shop and liked satin with real silver thread. She had seen the tin trays and a sari which got chips of looking glass embroidered in the border. She liked them. She had seen several other wonderful things of the world in the bazaar, but there was no end to the wonders of the world.
Sibia was bom to toil. Since her childhood, she had husked com, gathered sticks, put dung to dry, cooked, weeded, fetched water and cut grass for fodder. One day, she went with her mother and some other women to get paper grass from the cliffs above the river. Cutting the grass and selling it to the agent was the source of their income. When they had enough of it, they took it down by bullock cart to the railhead and sold it to the agent. Though they often toiled all day, they could get a very little. Thus the agent deprived them of their fair share earned by hard labour. But they could do nothing before the circumstances. On the other hand the agent enjoyed the luxuries. Sitting on silk cushions, he enjoyed to smoke hookah.
All the women who brought the paper grass from the cliffs, had grudges against the agent. But such thoughts never troubled Sibia. It seemed as if she was contented with her lot or may be her innocence did not allow her to have such thoughts. As she was an immature child-woman, she remained in her own world. She had nothing to do with the practical world. The only luxury for her was that she wanted to make a necklace for herself with shiny scarlet seeds. She had been collecting the seeds for a long time, but she could not be able to make the necklace. The seeds were as hard as stones and they needed to be drilled with a red-hot needle. But Sibia had no needle to be drilled them as the family needle had been broken and she had to wait for the new needle.
While going to get the paper grass from the cliff, the women passed a Gujar encampment of grass huts where the nomadic graziers lived for a time until their animals had eaten up all the grass or may be all their sources of livelihood had dried up. Sibia glanced at the Gujar women as she went past. The women wore tight trousers and large silver rings on their ears. The men and boys were out of camp just now with the herd or gone to the bazaar to sell produces but one or two buffaloes were standing about.
The Gujars were junglis, as Sibia was too, bom and bred in the forest. For countless centuries, their forebears had lived like this, getting their living from animals, from grass and trees, as they scratched their food together and stored their substance in large herds and silver jewelry. They were man in the wandering Pastoral Age, not Stone Age Hunters and not yet cultivators.
Now, there was the river, twinkling between the trees, sunlit beyond dark trunks. The women could hear it rushing along. The women came out on the shore and made for the stepping-stones. They had plenty to laugh and bicker about, as they approached the river in a noisy crowd. They girded up their skirts, so as to jump from stone to stone and they clanked their sickles and forks together over their shoulders to have ease of movement. They shouted their quarrels above the gush of the river. Noise frightened crocodiles. The big mugger (crocodile) did not move and all the women crossed in safety to the other bank. Thus the women made their way to the hills.
When evening came, it was time for the women to return home for their animals and the evening meal. The woman, loaded with their bundles of paper grass, set out to cross the river again. The women had crossed the river, but Sibia stayed back as she wanted to check the clay cups, if they were dry enough to be painted and used. After being satisfied, she moved on.
She stepped onto the first stone. Halfway through, she felt tired due to carrying heavy load. Then she thought to have rest for some time. She put down her load on a big boulder to rest. At the same moment a Gujar woman came down with two gurrahs to the water on the other side. In order to get the good clear water which would quickly fill both gurrahs to the top without sand, she walked onto the stepping- stones.
The Gujar woman was within a yard of the crocodile when it lunged at her. The woman screamed, dropped both brass pitchers with a clatter on the boulder. The Gujar woman recoiled from the crocodile but its jaws gripped her leg as she slipped and fell on the bone-breaking stone and clutched one of the timber logs to save herself. As soon as Sibia heard her scream, she, without wasting a single moment, rushed towards her with her hay fork and the next moment, she was beside the shrieking woman. As the crocodile had grown violent, it made its tight grip on the leg of the Gujar woman and also seemed to be determined not to leave its prey at any cost. It was trying to its best to take its prey into the river.
As Sibia reached to it, it was furious. It was clearly visible from its eyes when it rolled its eyes on Sibia. Sibia was very well aware of the fact that one slap of the tail could kill her. It struck up shot the water, twenty feet and fell like a silver chain. But in the daily heroism of the jungle, as common as a thorn tree, Sibia did not hesitate. She took aim at the reptile’s eyes and with all the force of her little body, Sibia drove the hayfork at the eyes of the reptile. Fortunately one prong went in—right in—while its pair scratched past on the homy cheek.
It was unbearable for the crocodile, the crocodile reared up in convulsion, till half its lizard body was out of the river, the tail and nose nearly meeting over its stony back. Then it crashed back, exploding the water and in an uproar of bloody foam it disappeared. It would die. Not yet, but presently, though its death would not be known for days ; not till its stomach, blown with gas, floated it. Then perhaps it would be found upside down among the logs at the timber boom, with pus in its eyes.
After giving serious injury to the crocodile, Sibia went to help the Gujar woman who was still in the water and was growing unconscious and it was profusely bleeding from her leg. Sibia wrapped her arms round the fainting woman and somehow dragged her from the water. She stopped the bleeding of her wounds with sand and bound them with rag and helped her to reach the Gujar encampment where the men made a litter to carry her to someone for treatment.
Then Sibia went back for her grass and sickle and fork. The fork was lying in the river, not carried away, luckily and as she bent to pick it up out of the water, she saw the blue bead lying there. Picking it up, she felt great joy and happiness. She rushed to her home. On the way, she met her mother who was coming to look for her. She told Sibia that she was worried about her because she (the mother) had reached home but she was not there. Sibia, instead of narrating her mother her heroic tale, showed her mother the blue bead and cried in joy that she got a blue bead for neckplace. Indeed, Sibia was so happy that she did not give importance to her encounter with crocodile as it was related to her daily heroism.
The Blue Bead Summary Stanzawise Word-Meanings
Whirlpools = water moving rapidly in a circle so as to produce a depression in the center into which floating objects may be drawn. Shallows = a shallow place or area in a body of water. Stepping-stones = large, flat stones used to step on to cross a stream. Sleepers = a piece of timber, stone, or steel on or near the ground to support a super structure, keep railroad rails in place.
Dislodge = to forcefully remove (something or someone) from a place or position. Floods = a large amount of water covering an area of land. Jostled = pushed against someone or something while moving forward. Logs = usually bulky pieces of a cut or fallen tree. Tip -toe = the position of being balanced on the balls of the feet and toes with the heels raised. Rippled = lightly ruffled or covered with small waves. Nostrils = the two openings of the nose. Cliff = a very steep, vertical or overhanging face of rock, earth or ice. Flycatcher = a type of bird that catches and eats flying insects. Flirting = flittering here : flying quickly from one place to another. Trilling = turning or spinning around and around. Mugger = a usually harmless freshwater crocodile of the Indian subcontinent with a broad heavy snout. Antediluvian = of or relating to the period before the flood described in the Bible. Saurian = any of a suborder (Sauria) of reptiles including the lizards and various extinct forms (as the dinosaurs and ichthyosaurs) that resemble lizard. Prehistoric = very old or outdated. Juggemant = something that is extremely large and powerful. Ferocious = very fierce or violent. Formidable = very powerful and strong. Propelled = pushed or driven forward.
Irresistible = impossible to resist especially because of strength. Throb = a strong, steady beat. Tinged = coloured with a slight shade or stain. Hatched = emerged from an egg. Sand bank = a raised area of sand in a river, ocean, etc. Shell = the hard outer covering of an egg. Snap = to close (something with a fastener and especially with a snap). Putrid = decayed with usually a very bad or disgusting smell. Tepid water = moderately warm water. Rotted = slowly decayed. Armoured hide = the skin of an animal which is protected with a hard covering. Sunning = sitting or lying in the light of the sun. Plop = to drop (something) into a liquid so that it makes a splashing sound. Alarmed = disturbed, excited. Ford = a shallow part of a body of water that may be crossed by wading. Parasites = animals or plants that live in or on another animals or plants and get food or protection from them.
Glimmered = shone faintly or unsteadily. Perforated = having a hole or a series of holes. Shrill = having or emitting a sharp high-pitched tone or sound. Starveling = being a starveling; also marked by poverty or inadequacy. Rancid = having a strong and unpleasant smell or taste from no longer being fresh. Smear = a dirty mark, spot, streak, etc., made by touching or rubbing something. Ebony = very dark or black. Toil = to work very hard for a long time. Rag = a waste piece of cloth. Anna = a former monetary unit of Burma, India and Pakistan equal to 1/16 rupee; a coin representing one anna. Piled = having a pile or heap. Finery = ornament, decoration, especially dressy or showy clothing and jewels. Railhead = a point of railroad at which traffic may originate or terminate. Fleas = very small insects that live on animals and that have strong legs used for jumping; small wingless bloodsucking insects.
Idling = spending time doing nothing or nothing useful. Gossiping = talking about the personal lives of other people. Spitting = ejecting (as salvia) from the mouth. Betel = the dried leaves of a climbing plant chewed by some people in southeastern Asia. Clonking = making a dull hollow thumping sound. Lumped = moved noisily and clumsily, a loud mixture of sound or voices. Amazed = surprised; filled with wonder. Confections = a very sweet food. Abuzz = filled with a buzzing sound. Crunced = made the loud sound of something being crushed. Sugarcane = a tall grass that is grown in warm places as a source of sugar. Satin = cloth that has a smooth, shiny surface. Turquoise = bluish-green stone used in jewellery. Opals = white or clear stones that reflect changing colours and that are used in jewelry. Tinkled = made sounds like the sounds of a small bell. Toddle = to walk with a short tottering steps in the manner of a young child. Husked = removed the thin, dry layer that covered seeds. Weeded = removed weeds from (an area of land such as a garden). Fetched = brought. Fodder = food given to horse, cows, etc. Hookah = bottle of a water pipe. Skipped = moved with leaps. Sickle = a tool with a curved metal blade attached to a short handle that is used for cutting grass, grain, etc. Rattling = lively brisk.
Encampment = the place where a group is encamped. Nomadic = roaming about from place to place aimlessly. Gaunt = very thin usually because of illness or suffering. Forebears = ancestors, forefathers. Clanked = made or caused (something) to make the loud, sharp sound of metal hitting against something solid. Sweating = producing a clear liquid from skin. Swooping = arriving at a place suddenly and unexpectedly. Moulded = gave shape. Dawdle = to move on act too slowly. Gorge = a narrow passage through the land. Yelled = Made a short, high-pitched cry or noise. Boulder = a detached and rounded or much-worn mass of rock. Lunge = a sudden forward movement. Darkling = in the dark. Clattered = made a quick series of short loud sounds. Screamed = cried out in a loud and high voice because of pain. Clatter = a rattling sound. Bob = to move up and down in a short quick movement. Recoiled = sprang back. Clutched = held onto tightly with hand. Clinging = holding on to very tightly. Threshing = striking repeatedly. Smacking = done with quickness and energy. Flail = to move or swing in a wild and uncontrolled way. Drag = to pull. Deeps = far into or below the surface of something.
Coursed = moved or flowed quickly. Shrieking = making a high-pitched cry. Fastered = attached. Tugging = pulling hard. Prong = one of the long points of a ford or similar object. Reared up = rose higher in the air. Convulsion = a sudden violent shaking of the muscles in body. Exploding = suddenly breaking apart in a violent way. Presently = during the time that is happening now; at the present time. Litter = a device (as a stretcher) for carrying a sick or injured person. Wobbling = moving with an unsteady side-to-side motion. Smudged = made dirty marks, spots, streaks, etc. on (something). Wriggle = a formation or marking of simuous design. Marose = a very serious, unhappy and quiet.
The Blue Bead Summary About the Writer
Norah Aileen Burke was born in Bedford on August 2, 1907. Her parents had previously lived in India for many years. The family again returned India when the baby Norah was only two months old, and she spent the next twelve years travelling around the jungle at the foothills of the Himalayas where her father, Redmond St. George Burke, worked as forest officer with the Imperial Forest Service. Constantly changing camps, carrying their belongings by elephant, made her education difficult, but she learnt to write at the age of eight, and started writing stories straight away. She also read as much as she could, including bound volumes of Chums and Boy’s Own Paper, and even wrote and edited her own little magazine titled The Monthly Dorrit.
She returned to England in 1919 to attend a school in Devonshire. Her first novel, Dark Road, was published in 1933. After a second novel dealing with a European dictator (The Scarlet Vampire), she wrote Merry England, which was set in historical Suffolk.
Her next few novels, romances, appeared from Gerald Swan during the war and post-war years and, according to an article published in The Writer in January 1950, she had by then published 11 novels and her short stories and articles had appeared in more than 100 periodicals. Her work was published in France, Denmark, Holland, Sweden, Irish Free State, Australia, America and Canada. In 1954, she was the winner of the New York Herald Tribune World Short Story Contest.
In addition to fiction, Norah Burke was also an enthusiastic travel writer, relating many of her early adventures in autobiographical travel books Jungle Child (1956), Tiger Country (1965) and Eleven Leopards (1965). She also wrote about wildlife in King Todd (1963) and The Midnight Forest (1966) and numerous short stories. She collaborated with her father on his book of big game hunting and camp life in the Indian jungles, Jungle Days (1935).
She got married to Henry Humphrey R. Methwold Walrond (1904-1987), a lawyer, and had two sons. She lived for many years at Thorne Court., in Cockfield, near Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk. She died in 1976.
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