summary and analysis of a triumph of surgery

summary

1. A Triumph of Surgery James Herriot

2. About the Author James Alfred Wight (3 October 1916 – 23 February 1995), known by the pen name  James Herriot , was a British veterinary surgeon and writer. He was a vet in Yorkshire, England, during the 1940s. He used his many years of experiences as a veterinary surgeon to write a series of books each consisting of stories about animals and their owners. He is best known for these semi-autobiographical works, beginning with  ‘ If Only They Could Talk’  in 1970, which spawned a series of movies and television series. James undergoes a variety of adventures during his work, which are just as often caused by the characters of the county.

3. Tricki was a small dog and was excessively loved by his mistress, Mrs. Pumphery.

4. He was greedy and loved food, but no exercise.

5. As a result he became fat & Mrs. Pumphery believed that he became lazy because he suffered from malnutrition.

6. Mrs Pumphery was a wealthy woman.She loved her dog too much.

7. MALT She gave him some little extras between meals to build him up, malt, cod-liver oil and a bowl of Horlicks at night. She gave him lot to eat but no exercise.

8. Once he became ill & she was worried & made a frantic call to Harriot who was a vet. James already had given suggestions regarding Tricki’s balanced diet. But she never followed it.

9. He was a vet. He was shocked to see Tricki hugely fat, like a bloated sausage with a leg at each corner. He advised her to cut down on the sweet things. His expected call came within a few days & it happened. He was called by Mrs. Pumphery as Tricki refused to eat.

10. He told her that Tricki needed immediate hospitalisation for keeping under observation at his surgery for a fortnight.

11. There he gave him no food, no medicine but plenty of water.

12. He had a lot of exercises & fun at the surgery.

13. Gradually he mixed with other dogs & started playing with them.

14. He was completely recovered & transformed into a hard muscled dog.

15. James Harriot treated the dog without medicine or surgery. She was happy & filled with gratitude. She thanked Harriot & said it was a triumph of surgery.

16. Difficult Words Triumph -Success or Victory Bear -Tolerate Relent -To change one’s mind Lumbago -back pain Ring Throw -game played with a rubber ring Harden your heart -Stop being sympathetic Wrung -Pressed hard Regime -routine Totter -To walk with difficulty Drooping -Bending

17. Difficult Words Bloated -Swollen Sausage -a cylindrical dish of meat Rheumy -Filled with water Lolled out -Hanging out Hasten -To do quickly Listless -Lazy Distraught -Worried Scrimmage -friendly fight Convalescing -Improving health

18. Message The lesson imparts a message that our love for our pets should not be expressed by pampering them too much. Such over-indulgence can be life threatening for the poor animal who trusts his master completely. In fact, pets need a balance between indulgence and strictness. Excess of everything is bad, even of love.

19. Title “A Triumph of Surgery” is an apt title for the story. Tricki’s speedy recovery is actually the outcome of appropriate diagnosis and accurate treatment. Such a recovery is usually obtained only after surgical intervention. But Dr Herriot’s wisdom and initiative to keep Tricki away from his owner and bringing him to the surgery to cure him by simple cleansing his system becomes a ‘triumph’ ailment in the real sense.

20. Character sketch Mrs. Pumphrey: She is a fabulous rich and resourceful lady with a large number of servants and maids. She is passionately attached to her little pet dog, Tricki . She is much worried about Tricki’s miserable condition. Mrs . Pumphrey is impractical but very compassionate and caring. She and her staff arrange all comforts, beds, cushions, and toys for Tricki . She constantly enquires about his health from Dr. Herriot. She gratefully thanks him for saving Tricki’s life and calls it ‘A Triumph of Surgery’.

21. Sequence of Events Tricki was a small dog and was excessively loved by his mistress, Mrs. Pumphery . He was greedy & loved food, but did no exercise. As a result he became fat & Mrs. Pumphrey believed that he became lazy because he suffered from malnutrition. Mrs Pumphrey was a wealthy woman. She loved her dog too much. She gave him some little extras between meals to build him up, malt, cod-liver oil and a bowl of Horlicks at night. Once he became ill & she was worried & made a frantic call to Harriot who was a vet. James already had given suggestions regarding Tricki’s balanced diet. But she never followed it. He was a vet. He was shocked to see Tricki hugely fat, like a bloated sausage with a leg at each corner. He advised her to cut down on the sweet things. He expected call came within a few days & it happened. He was called by Mrs. Pumphery as Tricki refused to eat.

22. Sequence of Events He told her that Tricki needed immediate hospitalization for keeping under observation at his surgery for a fortnight. There he gave him no food no medicine but plenty of water. Gradually he mixed with other dogs & started playing with them. He had a lot of exercises & fun. He was completely recovered & transformed into a hard muscled dog. James Harriot treated the dog without medicine or surgery. Mrs Pamphrey was happy & filled with gratitude. When Mrs. Pumphrey got Trickiback she was so happy. She thought the narrator had done some surgery on him. So in gratitude she thanked Harriot & said it was a triumph of surgery.

23. Character Sketch Dr. James Herriot: Dr. James is no doubt a competent veterinary surgeon. He is practical and pragmatic. He doesn’t give any medical treatment to the dog. He feeds the dog with only water. His method works. The grateful mistress thanks Dr. Herriot and calls his feat, ‘A Triumph of Surgery!’ Dr. James is clever enough to enjoy the best of both the worlds. He is tempted to keep Tricki as a permanent guest. It was a happy period for Dr. Herriot and his friends. He used to enjoy eggs for breakfast and wine and brandy for lunch.