The Luncheon | Class 11 English Notes
By ConceptScroll Team · Published on 17 July 2026 · 3 min read
The Luncheon – this guide gives you a concise, exam-ready overview of The Luncheon from Class 11 English, written by ConceptScroll editors and reviewed against the latest NCERT textbook.
Appreciation
This section analyzes the story’s literary qualities and the author’s humor. William Somerset Maugham is recognized as a humorist, and 'The Luncheon' reflects his wit through ironic situations and the narrator’s self-deprecating tone. The story’s humor arises from the contrast between the woman’s claims of eating lightly and her extravagant orders, the narrator’s financial distress masked by polite conversation, and the final ironic twist regarding the woman’s weight gain. The first-person narrative enhances the literary effect by providing direct insight into the narrator’s thoughts and feelings, creating intimacy and immediacy. The story’s economy of words and clear depiction of character and situation exemplify Maugham’s craftsmanship. This appreciation helps students understand how humor and irony can be used to critique social behavior while entertaining readers.
🧪 Activity: Analyze passages for examples of humor and irony; discuss how narrative perspective affects reader engagement.
🔗 Connection: Leads to language work focusing on vocabulary related to the narrator’s financial situation.
Frequently asked questions
In “The portrait of a Lady” the author talks about his
Grandmother
1. Although the author was not a vindictive man he was very happy to see the twenty one stone lady who had impoverished him twenty years ago, and says he had finally had his revenge. What makes him says this? 2. There are quite a few places where the author uses the expressions ‘my heart sank’, ‘panic seized’ etc. What was the reason for this? 3. Locate instances of irony in the story.
1. The author says he had his revenge because the lady who had caused him financial distress by ordering an expensive luncheon without caring about the cost has now become very overweight, weighing twenty-one stone. This is a form of poetic justice or irony that gives the author a sense of satisfaction.
2. The expressions ‘my heart sank’, ‘panic seized’ reflect the author's anxiety and fear about whether he would have enough money to pay the bill for the expensive luncheon. He was worried about
1. People with foibles are often not conscious of them. 2. The author's attempts at keeping up his pretence of friendliness while he was mentally preoccupied with the expense of the luncheon.
1. People with foibles (minor weaknesses or eccentricities) often do not realize their own faults or shortcomings. In the story, the lady is unaware of her selfishness and extravagance.
2. The author tries to maintain a polite and friendly demeanor throughout the luncheon despite being anxious about the cost. He discusses neutral topics like the drama in the Balkans to mask his inner turmoil and maintain social decorum.
1. The author is a humorist a. How does the story reflect his sense of humour? b. What makes his lady friend remark—‘you are quite a humorist’? c. Give instances of the author's ability to laugh at himself. 2. How does the first person narrative help in heightening the literary effects of the story?
1a. The story reflects the author's sense of humour through witty observations, irony, and self-deprecating remarks. The humorous contrast between the lady's gluttony and the author's financial worries adds to the comedic effect.
1b. The lady calls the author 'quite a humorist' when he jokes about eating nothing for dinner after the expensive luncheon, showing his attempt to cope with the situation with humour.
1c. The author laughs at himself by admitting his anxiety, his plan to pretend the
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