The Last Look At Dawa...Before the Mid-Year Exam.

Yesterday I had two periods with IXE. On the previous day, I had asked the students to go through the text very carefully before the examination and ask me their doubts regarding anything related to the text in the class yesterday.

At the start, I was quite disappointed. Despite my repeated requests, the class or most of them did not seem to have gone through the novel as I had requested them to. But once Abinash asked me the first question, the rest of the class acted as if on a clue and asked me questions till the end of the gong. Actually, I promised to give them another chance so that they could ask me the rest of the questions in the last period, but as classed were called off in the afternoon the promise remained unfulfilled. Anyway, it was a good experience for me as I realized for the first time in my life that I could deal with Dawa Koto, as Dawa is popularly known as in the students’ per lance.

I would love to reproduce the questions for the benefit of the students across the country:

       I.          Who was Dawa?

Ans:  Dawa was a yellow-brown dog, with a ragged coat. He is the protagonist of the novel entitled “Dawa, the Story of a Stray Dog” by Mrs. Kunzang Choden.

     II.          Who is an ‘underdog’?  (Sonam Zangmo A)

Ans:  A fallen, disgraced leader is an underdog. Once a leader failed to discharge his duties properly, he was made to resign from his post and became an underdog. The life of an underdog was unbearable.

    III.          Why was Dawa appointed as The Leader of Howling in Thimphu?

Ans:  There were various reasons why Dawa was appointed as The Leader of Howling in Thimphu. Firstly, the previous Leader of Howling was taken to the pound due to sheer negligence on the part of The Leader of Warnings and Signals. Secondly, in the absence of the Leader of Howling, there was none to lead the nocturnal howling. This task was assigned to Dawa as he was a stranger in the city. Thirdly, Dawa had a gifted voice and trained himself for leading the nightly howling sessions in Paro.

   IV.          Why did Dawa invent the story about his lineage?  (Abinash)

Ans: Dawa had to invent the story about his lineage mainly to impress the beautiful female dog, Singyemo, who left him for the more boisterous Katu. He realized that without a proper background, survival in a city like Thimphu was going to be a bit bothersome.

     V.          Why did Dawa have a vision of a human jumping out to catch him near Dochula?

Ans:  Dawa had a vision of a human jumping out and catching him near Dochula as like many other dogs in Thimphu, he dreaded the dog pound there.

   VI.          Can you please give a brief description of Moley?  (Dhan Bdr.)

Ans:  Moley was a very ancient dog in Paro and very beautiful as her name suggests – the beautiful female. She claimed that nearly half the dog population in Paro had descended from her. Surprisingly, not much is written in the text about her physical features.

Moley liked Dawa as he always asked intelligent questions. It was Moley who directed Dawa to Thimphu.

  VII.          How did the skinny dog greet Dawa when he arrived at Wangduephodrang?

Ans:  The skinny dog, on Dawa’s arrival in the town, greeted him by remarking if Dawa knew that Wangduephodran happens to be the cleanest town in the country.

Contd on pg 2/-