TheAuthor

MargaMincoisthepennameofSaraMenco.In1942,
herparentswereforcedtomoveintothecity'sJewish
Quarter. The parents, her brother and sister were all
deportedandMarga/Saramanagedtosurvivethewarin
hiding. Thus, her stories often revolve around the
existentialproblemsoftenfacedbysurvivors.
TheBackground
WorldWarIIranitscoursefrom1939945.Mostofthe
nationsoftheworlddividedthemselvesintotwogroups:
theAlliesandtheAxis.TheAlliesinitiallycomprisedof
France,PolandandUKbutsoonbecamethegroupled
by"thebigthree"USA,theBritishCommonwealth,the
Soviet Union. Other allies were China, Australia,
Canada, New Zealand, South Africa and other third
worldnations.TheaxiswereformedofGermany,Italy,
Japanandtheareastheypresidedover(PartsofEurope,
Africa, East and South East Asia and islands of the
Pacific).TheAllieseventuallywonbutintheinterim,
about5070millionliveswerelost.
The most devastating aspects of this war were the
HolocaustandtheBombingofHiroshimaandNagasaki.
The Holocaust was the genocide of about six million
EuropeanJewsundertheNazireignofAdolfHitler.The
holocaustbeganwithlawsbeingestablishedtoremove
Jewsfromcivilsociety.Theyweresenttoconcentration
camps and used as labour or for medical experiments
untodeath.Oftenmassshootoutstooklives.Somewere
senttoexterminationcampsbyfreighttraintobekilled
inthenowinfamousgaschambers.

Although it is proven that Hitler was an illegitimate

child,thereisonlyspeculationtoaJewishbirthfather.
Scholars still debate whether Hitler's antisemitism
(hatredfortheJews)wasduetohisabandonmentissues
orwasaproductofthelossofGermanyinWorldWarI
duetothecivilianJewishleadersandMarxistswithin
Germany.Inanycase,havinglivedinantisemiticareas
inhisyouthandservedintheGermanarmy,Hitlergrew
uphatingJewsandeventuallydevised"thefinalsolution
totheJewishproblem".
Our story begins after the Holocaust when our
narrator,aJewishsurvivorwhohadlostherentire
family,hadreturnedtofindhermother'sthingsat
46,MarconiStreet.
TheSynopsisandkeypoints
The narrator arrives at 46, Marconi Street, a house
ownedbyacertainMs.Dorling.Thedoorisopeneda
mere inch by a woman who seems not to know the
narrator and treats her with cool incivility. However,
during the course of the interaction, three important
realisationsoccur:
1)Thenarratorrealisesthatsheisatthecorrectaddress
asMrs.Dorlingiswearinghermother'ssweater.From
thefadedbuttons,itisevidentthatthesweaterhasbeen
wornfairlyoften.
2)ThenarratorknowssheisunwelcomeasMrs.Dorling
doesnotevenletthenarratorcomeintothehouse.The

narrator goes away disappointed and unsuccessful in

collectingherthings.
3)Thenarratorhearsadooropenandclosewithinthe
housebehindMrs.Dorling.Thereadersknowthenthat
thereisanotherpersoninthehouse, someonewhom
Mrs.Dorlingisanxioustokeepawayfromthenarrator.
Asthenarratorwalksbacktothetrainstation,sherecalls
howonceonreturninghomefromtheuniversityduring
thefirsthalfofWorldWarII,shehadfoundseveralof
their household items missing. Her mother had then
informedherthatMrs.Dorling,anoldacquaintanceof
hermother's,hadrenewedtheircontactandinsistedthat
she(Mrs.Dorling)keeptheirthingssafeduringthewar.
Thenarratoralsorecallsanotherincidentwhenshehad
seen Mrs. Dorling for an instant in a brown coat and
shapeless hat, before the woman left with yet another
instalmentofthenarrator'sthings.
Thenarrator'smother,anapparentlygulliblewoman,
did not seem to suspect Mrs. Dorling of any ulterior
motive.Mrs.S,thenarrator'swomanwasmoreworried
aboutMrs.Dorlinghurtingherselforbeingattackedby
someone while carrying their things back to Marconi
street for safekeeping. She asked her daughter to
rememberMrs.Dorling'saddressincasethenarratorwas
theonlyonewhosurvivedthewar.
Afterthefirstunsuccessfulvisit,thenarratorruminates
aboutwhyshetooksolongtoreturnforhermother's
things.Thewarandthelossofherfamilyhadsettled
heavily on the narrator's heart. She only felt fear and
hesitationwhenshethoughtaboutthethingskeptatMrs.

Dorling'shouse.Eachofthosethingscarriedmemories
ofherlifebeforethewar.Thepainoflossstoppedher
fromreturningforherthingssooner.
Theimpactofwaroncivilians hasbeenportrayedin
several books and movies including 'The Diary of a
Young Girl: Anne Frank', 'Sarah's Key' by Tatiana de
Rosnay,'TheBoyintheStripedPyjamas'byJohnBoyne
andmoviessuchas'Schindler'sList'.Thetortureofthe
concentrationcamps,thelossoflovedonesleftapainful
everlasting impact. The narrator's observation of the
lightcoloured bread, familiar views and unthreatened
sleepimpliesthecoarsestalefoodofthecamps,theview
of barren land and barbed wires and a sleep forever
threatened with pain and death.
Afterthefirstfailedattempt,thenarratortriedtovisit
Mrs. Dorling again. This time, the woman was not at
home and she was greeted by her fifteen year old
daughter.Thegirlshowedofftheantiquesinherhouse
tothenarratoroblivioustothefactthattheyhadonce
belongedtothenarrator'sownhome.Whenthenarrator
findsthatherthingshadnowbecomepartofsomeone
else'slifeandmemories, shedecidesnottotakeher
things after all. The memories associated with her
thingswereoverwhelming,therewasnospaceforsuch
fancy items in the small room where she lived now,
everythingwasnowapartofsomeoneelse'shomeand
life creating new memories each day. The visit was
actually successful in the sense that the narrator was
finallyabletofindthestrengthtomoveonandfeltthat
ofallthememoriesleftbehindbythewar,theaddress

with her mother's old things would be the easiest to

forget.

QUESTIONBANK
Q.1. Whydidthenarrator,Mrs.Ssdaughter,specially
madeatripto46,Marconistreet?Didsheachieveher
purpose?
Q.2. Describethesecondvisit ofMrs.Ssdaughterto
thehouseofMrs.Dorling.Whydidshenotwaittomeet
Mrs.Dorling?
Q.3. Why did the narrator say that forgetting Mrs.
Dorlingsaddresswouldbeeasy?
Q.4. Compare the lifestyle of Mrs. S before the war
withherdaughtersafterthewar?
Q.5.JustifythetitleofthestoryTheAddress
Q.6. WhowasMrs.Dorling?Whydid shevisitMrs.
Sshousefrequently?
Q.7. Whatwerethenarratorsfeelingsinitiallyabout
thethingsthathadbeenleftwithMrs.Dorling?
Q.8.WhydidthenarratorsayIwasinaroomIknew
anddidnotknow?
Q.9.Whatistheimpactofwaroncivilians?

Q.10.CouldMrs.Ssdaughtergetbacktoheroldlife
aftershecomebacktothecitywhereshelivedbeforethe
war

The Address
By Marga Minco

Introduction
During World War II, the Germans (the Nazis under Hitler) invaded Holland
where ninety percent of the people were Jews. Many of the Jews fled in fear
to other countries. Thousands were imprisoned in concentration camps. A
woman and her little daughter had also to leave their home. The woman left
all her things with a woman known to her. After some time, the woman died.
However, her daughter remembered the place where she used to live with her
mother. Long after the war, she came to the town where she used to live with
her mother. She went to meet the woman with whom her mother had left all
her things. But the woman refused to recognize her because she didnt want
to return the things she had taken. In this story, the daughter describes how
she felt during that visit and later on another visit.

Summary
After ringing the bell of House Number 46 in Marconi Street, a woman opened
the door. On being introduced, the woman kept staring at her in silence. There
was no sign of recognition on her face. The woman was wearing her mothers
green knitted cardigan. The narrator could understand that she had made no
mistake. She asked the woman whether she knew her mother. The woman
could not deny this. The narrator wanted to talk to her for some time. But the
woman cautiously closed the door. The narrator stopped there for some time
and then left the place.
In the subsequent sections, the memories of the narrators bygone days come
to light. Her mother had provided the address years ago during the war. She
went to home for few days. She could find that various things were missing. At
that time her mother told her about Mrs. Dorling. She happened to be an old
acquaintance of the narrators mother. Lately she had renewed contact with
her and had been coming there regularly. Every time she left their house she
took something home with her. She told that she wanted to save all their nice
possessions. The next day the narrator saw Mrs. Dorling going out of their
house with a heavy suitcase. She had a fleeting glimpse of Mrs. Dorlings
face. She asked her mother whether the woman lived far away. At that time
the narrators mother told about the address: Number 46, Marconi Street.
After many days the after the war, the narrator was curious to take record of
the possessions that must still be at Number 46, Marconi Street. With this
intention she went to the given address.

The concluding part of the story describes the second visit of the narrator. As
the narrators first visit yielded no result so she planned to go once again.
Interestingly, a girl of fifteen opened the door to her. Her mother was not at
home. The narrator expressed her wish to wait for her. The girl accompanied
her to the passage. The narrator saw an old fashioned iron candle holder
hanging next to a mirror. The girl made her sit in the living room and went
inside. The narrator was horrified to find herself in a room she knew and did
not know. She found herself in the midst of familiar things which she longed to
see again but which troubled her in the strange atmosphere. She had no
courage to look around her. But she no longer had desire to possess them.
She got up, walked to the door, and left the room. She resolved to forget the
address and moved on.

Short Answer Questions

Q. The woman looked at me searchingly. She had opened the door a
chink. I came closer and stood on the step. What for did the narrator
ring the doorbell?
Ans. The narrator rang the doorbell to meet Mrs. Dorling, one of her mothers
old friends. She wished to talk to her and get her household things that the
lady had brought home before the war had begun.
Q. Why was Mrs. Dorling cautious while opening the door?
Ans. Mrs. Dorling had committed the crime of misappropriating the narrators
household things a few years ago. She hoped that the war would uproot the
entire family and they would never return. But she also feared one day
someone from the family could turn up and claim the things that she kept at
her home. Hence she was cautious in opening the door.
Q. For a while the narrator thought she had rung the wrong bell but soon
her doubts vanished. Why did the narrator initially doubt that she had
made an error? How did she know that she had rung the right bell?
Ans. The narrator had been absolutely certain about the address of Mrs.
Dorling, Number 46, Marconi Street and she had expected the good lady
waiting for her arrival to return her household things but what happened was
one that was never imagined. Seeing Mrs. Dorling's hostile behavior and her
admitting that she didn't recognize her visitor, Margo doubted if she had rung
the wrong bell but soon her apprehensions died away and she clearly saw
that she had the right address. Mrs. Dorling's asking, "Have you come back?"
dispelled her doubts. Her doubts further melted away when she noticed that
Mrs. Dorling had put on her mothers cardigan.
Q. Why did the narrator go to Number 46, Marconi Street?

Ans. This was the address of Mrs. Dorling, the woman who had carried the
valuable items from the narrators mother to her home giving assurance to
keep them in her safe custody during war time. So the narrator went there to
claim the belongings of her mother.
Q. Who is Mrs. Dorling? Do you justify her behaviour in the story?
Ans. Mrs. Dorling is an acquaintance of Mrs. S, the narrators mother. In the
story Mrs. Dorling exploits Mrs. Ss fears and insecurity during the war. She
insists Mrs. S and took away all her valuable things after giving assurance
that she would keep them safe until the war was over. In fact, Mrs. Dorling
had no intentions of returning the valuables as she was sure that Mrs. S and
her family would not survive the war. So when the narrator, Mrs. Ss daughter,
went to Mrs. Dorlings house to claim those articles to which her mothers
precious memories were associated, she even pretended not to recognize
her. Instead of returning those articles to the narrator, she shamelessly used
them which actually belonged to the narrators mother and also behaved
rudely to the narrator. So, in the context of the above Mrs. Dorlings behaviour
cannot be justified.
Q. Why did the author first hesitate to claim her belongings from Mrs.
Dorling?
Ans. When the war was over and the narrator began to feel a little secure, she
felt like missing her family belongings. On a second thought, she began to
suspect that the presence of her family articles would remind her of her dear
ones who were no more with her so she hesitated to claim those articles from
Mrs. Dorlings house. Besides, she lived in a poor room that looked the oddest
place to accommodate her expensive possessions.
Q. What are the contrasting elements in the characters of Mrs. Dorling
and Mrs. S?
Ans. The mother of the author, Mrs. S was a lady of simplicity. She didnt
seem to have seen the harsh and cruel side of this two-faced world. She
could easily befriend people, and rather more easily, trust them. Thats why
she trusted Mrs. Dorling, who was just an acquaintance of her, and allowed
her to keep all her precious belongings for the time being. Moreover, she was
so kindhearted that she was sympathetic enough for Mrs. Dorling, who had to
carry all her heavy articles all alone.
In contrast, Mrs. Dorling was an absolute thief, a unique combination of
cunningness and betrayal. She cheated Mrs. S and seized her very precious
belongings very wittingly. She can be called a perfectionist in this occupation
of hers.
Q. Why did the author decide against claiming her family possessions
from Dorling?

Ans. Having been treated unpleasantly and having noticed the repulsive
reaction of Mrs. Dorling in her very first visit, the author developed an awful
impression of Mrs. Dorling. On her second visit, the narrator saw how dearly
Dorlings daughter loved those utensils and furniture and how proud she was
of possessing them. Moreover, the author was very shocked to see the
dreadful way in which her precious possessions were preserved. Also, now,
when the author would adoringly look at her belongings, memories of her
parents and her near ones death, rather than her her childhoods happy
memories, would sprout in her. This made her reluctant to claim her family
possessions back from Dorling.
Q. Mrs. Dorling is a typical example of betrayal. Discuss.
Ans. Mrs. Dorling possessed a cunning personality polished by the frequent
instances of befooling people. Her character can be well defined by her
practice of using people for her own benefit.
Knowing the innocence of the authors mother, she turned up at the very time
when her family was facing hardship. Being into her motive of betrayal,
voluntarily or accidently, she offered to carry the precious belongings to her
address until the war was over. Willingly, she agreed and then Dorling
confiscated her possessions, told her children that she bought them, made
them feel proud of those things and later, when the rightful owner came to
acquire them, turned her down the end of a well-planned scheme.
Q. Justify the title of the story, The Address.
Ans. The story revolves around the author, who, after a long period of time,
has come to her former neighbour, Mrs. Dorling, to claim her possessions
back - the possessions that to Mrs. Dorling had misappropriated in the
pretence of extending help to the narrators family at a crucial juncture. Twice
the narrator visited this address and returned with a heavy mind and empty
hands. Though she found reasons to leave her memorable possessions, it is
well expected that the address would again and again resurface in her mind,
throughout her life. Like her mother had once asked her to remember, she
would remember this Marconi Street address whenever reminiscence struck
her.