Question

Read the following case carefully and answer the questions based upon that.

Pritha was a merit holder girl from a middle class family. She joined a college where majority of students were from a rich backgrounds. Although she was capable of following lectures and was doing well in her studies, she felt lonely as she could not get acceptance in the groups of her classmates coming from affluent families. She tried to dress like them and started asking for extra pocket money from her parents. Her classmates joked at her dressing sense. She could not tolerate the mockery and stopped going to the college. Instead, she started spending time visiting strange places like public parks, railway stations, and shopping malls. She did not appear for any of her exams. Her parents were unaware of all these things and on asking about college or studies, Pritha answered them without revealing the truth. At the end of the year, her parents received her report card by post from her college with a remark that 'Your ward has to take College Leaving certificate.’
On confronting Pritha, she became violent and started damaging the furniture uttering bad words about the middle class people, and thereafter her utterance was incomprehensible for her parents. This continued for a very long time.

1. Which problems did Pritha face in her college?
2. Could Pritha, according to you, have avoided her condition of 'feeling lonely’?
3. What would you do if you were in Pritha’s place?
4. Do you think Pritha should have spoken to her parents about her feelings at college? If yes, how it would have helped her?

Answer 1

1. Pritha faced problems such as not being accepted by her classmates. This lead to her feeling lonely and left out. She was ridiculed by her affluent peers.
2. Pritha could have concentrated on her studies or tried to find some trustworthy friends. She should have maintained her own identity instead of trying to mould herself like her classmates or feeling insecure about her socio-economic status.
3. If I was in Pritha's place, I would have confided in my parents about my predicament and sought their advice. I would have proved my merit in studies and extracurricular activities so that those who were mocking me would be no longer so rude.
4. Yes, she should have spoken to her parents instead of hiding the truth from them. Their support and guidance would have helped her faced the situation, in a better way.