Princess September Summary
The story is set in Thailand. There live a king and his queen with many daughters. To make it easy to remember the names of his daughter, he kept their names on months. His youngest daughter was named ‘September’.
The king gave away gifts on his birthday. Once he gave green parrots in a golden cage to all his daughters. The princesses were fond of the parrots and taught them to talk. ‘God save the king’ and ‘Pretty Polly’.
One day Princess September found her parrot lying dead in the cage. It was heart-rending to her. She kept on crying at the loss. Her maids of honour tried to comfort her but failed in their effort.
So they went to the queen who did not pay heed to her distress. The maid of honour who was to go to a party left the princess crying in bed with taking supper. Then there entered a little bird and hopped into her room.
It started singing a beautiful song about the lake in the king’s garden, willow trees; goldfish etc. that made September forget all her sadness and hunger. The little bird offered herself in place of her pet parrot. Princess September was delighted to own such a melodious singing bird.
The next morning, he wished her good morning when the maid of honour brought her breakfast; it was fed to him by the Princess. His singing impressed the audience and the princess feels elated.
She then took him to tour to her sisters and parents’. Everyone was delighted by his performance. The queen did not like the parrots saying repeated lines.
Whereas the king admired the parrot saying ‘God save the king’. Yet condemned ‘Pretty Polly’. That discouraged the princesses and their parrot. September enjoyed the song of the bird.
That went on for a few days unless the other sister poisoned the mind. They said that she had to bear the death of her pet and they would arrange a parrot for her.
But September replied that she did not need parrot anymore as she had a better bird. They asked the whereabouts of the bird. To which she replied that the bird flew off to meet his father-in-law.
The princesses tried to scare her that he might not come back because he was not caged. Their persistent nagging made her uncomfortable.
Insecure Princess September felt that something might happen to him. She was worried that hawks or someone might have trapped him. All she wanted was his safety.
Then appeared the bird and started chirping in her ears. She grew angry. The bird told her that he would not have replied as his father - in -law was giving a party.
He wanted him to attend the party. But he knew that she would be worried so he returned. September was not willing to take any chance further, she decided to cage him she put him in the cage.
The bird was shocked at the sudden reaction of her. The reason she gave was that the queen’s cat might harm her. The bird agreed to it but for once only. He wanted to sing after supper but could not continue as he did not feel like.
The next morning he wanted to be free. His desperation grew, he beat against the door and shouted but all his efforts went in vain. Rather eight princesses were delighted to see him in pain.
On the request to set him free, September replied that she knew what was better for him. She wanted him to sing for her and offered him a piece of sugar. He could not sing inside the cage.
He wanted to see the trees, the lake and willow trees all by himself. He was not willing to see through the cage. He gave up eating and singing, then anxious princess turned to her sisters for their opinion.
They called him obstinate and wanted her to conform to her stand. September agreed to their suggestion and felt the same way. She assumed that he might be accustomed to bars of the cage.
The next morning she wished the bird but got no answer. She was shocked to see that the bird was lying unmoved in the cage. She took him out of the cage and started crying. When her tears fell on him, he looked up.
He pleaded that he could not sing inside the cage and if he could not sing, he would die.
She freed him then and there. He promised her that he would return to her. She sobbed and was feeling lonely. Her sisters mocked at her. But he returned to her and sang beautiful songs for her.
She kept her windows open to let him go or come whenever he felt like. She grew beautiful and got married to the king of Cambodia and was carried on a white elephant. Her sisters were married to the councillor only as they were not so beautiful.
Comprehension Check page 38
1. How many daughters did the royal couple have?
Answer: Nine
2. Why were they named after the months of the year?
Answer: To avoid confusion in remembering so many names the king decided to name his daughters on the name of months.
3. The King had a peculiar habit. What was it? Why is it called peculiar?
The kind had a peculiar habit of gifting on his birthday. It was peculiar because on birthday most people only take gifts .
4. (i) What was Princess September’s reaction to the loss of her parrot?
She became sad and started crying.
(ii) What was her mother’s reaction to it?
Her mother thought it is unnecessary and does not make sense to weep so much. She stopped her supper for that night.
(iii) What do the reactions indicate about the nature and temperament of each?
The princess cries after the seat of the parrot shows her inclination toward the parrot. She was a caring person who loves animals.
Her mother’s reaction shows apathy to the current situation. She shows less caring attitude with other living organisms.
5. What pulled the Princess out of her gloom?
The night the parrot died, a little bird came. He sang beautiful songs and amused the processes. As a result, the princess lost his sorrow and anger.
6. How did the Maids of Honour come to know that the Princess and the bird had become intimate friends?
The maid came to the princess in the morning. There, she saw the little bird eating with the princess hand and bathing in the saucer. The little bird was singing for the princess. From these happenings, the maid knew the bird and the Princess had become friends.
7. The new bird was full of new songs but the old parrots always repeated themselves. What did they say?
The parrots knew only a few things. One was to repeat ‘God save the kind’ and the other was to sing ‘Pretty Polly’ in seven oriental languages.
8. What is the King’s opinion about his Councillors? Why did he form that opinion?
The king was talking about the parrots. He compared his parrots with the councillors. He was of the opinion that councillors also do the same “they say the same things in seven different ways and in all they mean nothing”.
9. (i) The eight Princesses made an offer to Princess September. What was it?
The eight princesses came to September and said that they can give own pocket money so that she can buy a new green and yellow parrot.
(ii) Why, in your view, did they do it?
The eight princesses were jealous of the little bird. Because of the little bird, his parrots have no value in front of the king and the queen. By offering September they were trying to make September’s attention away from the little bird.
10. What did the sisters advise the Princess to do about her bird?
The eight princesses came to September and told to put the little bird in prison else he will run away and will never come back.
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