A sacred and touching story of Jacopo and Nicola, two brothers aged 12 and 13 who do odd jobs and live a hard life in the city of Verona, Italy. The two boys re-define the thought of gentlemanliness and humanity. A J Cronin uses the title of William Shakespeare’s famous play, ‘The Two Gentlemen of Verona’ in an ironic manner
The narrator (author) and his friend were stopped by two small boys at the outskirts of Verona, a city in Italy, when they were driving through the lower hills of the mountain range. The boys were brothers, Nicola and Jacopo barely 13 and 12 yrs of age. They were selling wild strawberries. Next time when the narrator comes across the boys, he finds them polishing shoes in the public square. On seeing them, the author starts interacting with them. During the course of his interaction with the boys, he understands that the boys performed various other jobs also like escorting tourists around the city and to see Juliet’s grave. The author is impressed by the boys and hires the boys immediately. On closer interaction, the author realizes that though the boys were very friendly and innocent they had a hint of sadness under their cheerful smiles that defied their age.
One mid night, the author saw the boys resting on the stone of a footpath. Nicola sat with a bundle of unsold newspapers while his brother, Jacopo, was sleeping by putting his head on Nicola‘s shoulder. They had been waiting for the last bus to sell the newspapers. The writer was fascinated by the boy’s nature and wanted to help them.
Before leaving Verona, the author offers them help for which Jacopo asks the author to drop them at Poleta,30 km away, in his car. The writer accepts their request.
The next afternoon they reach the village located on a hill. The author was asked to stop beside a hospital and before he could question anything, the boys leaped out and requested the author to pick them up from the same place, after an hour. After sometime, out of curiosity, the writer follows the boys and finds out from the nurse about the two boys and their sister. She tells him that their father, a famous singer died in the warand a bomb had destroyed their house and rendered them homeless. The boys kept themselves alive by building a kind of shelter with the rubble of their house. The children had to undergo lots of hardships in their life. They had to fight the biting cold and were also starving. In the meantime, their sister, Lucia, was later detected with tuberculosis of the spine. The boys brought Lucia to the hospital and admitted her. They would visit their sister every week and also brought enough money for her treatment. In spite of the scarcity of work after the war, the brothers never delayed in making their payment to the hospital. The nurse also conveys to the narrator that Lucia was now showing signs of improvement and the day was not far off when she would be able to walk and sing. After an hour, the author was rejoined by the boys and they drove back to the city of Verona. The narrator is deeply touched by the story but doesn’t ask the boys about it as the boys didn’t share any of their pains with the author and the author as a mark of respect to the boys’ undaunted courage does not show that he knows their plight. The author leaves the city of Verona with a heart filled with admiration at the courage and relentless efforts of two young boys, who remained determined in spite of the setbacks of the war.
Word meanings:
1) Verona – a city in Italy, Romeo and Juliet are believed to have lived here.
2) Worn – old and damaged
3) Cautious – careful
4) Shabby – in poor condition through long use or lack of care.
5) Disapproval – expression of an unfavourable opinion.
6) Tunic – A loose outer garment that does not have sleeves
7) Brisk – quick and energetic
8) Slackened – less active, reduced
9) Juliet’s tomb – the place where Juliet, the woman Romeo loved, was buried. Romeo and Juliet is a play written by Shakespeare.
10) demeanour – appearance and behavior
11) Artless – guiltless, innocent
12) Hawked – sold
13) Errands – odd jobs
14) emigrate – take up citizenship of another country
15) Vexation – annoyance
16) Put out – offended
17) Scarcely – hardly
18) vestibule – lobby
19) Intrude – enter without permission
20) Scarce – not enough
Textbook questions and answers:
1) What are the qualities of a “gentleman”? Work with your partner and complete the following web-chart by listing the qualities of a gentleman.
