Word problems!

There was no stumbling block bigger than “word problems” in Mathematics. It required a particular mental acumen, in the absence of which, you walked on quicksand. One question or the other eventually devoured you.

The problems were invariably centered on mangoes regardless of the season. “If 4 mangoes cost Rs 8, how much will one mango cost?” Discussing the question-paper after the exam, my mother was aghast that I had arrived at Rs 32 per mango! I confidently replied, “I cross-multiplied obviously!” What made it worse was my inability to comprehend the blunder!  “But I will get step marks!” I persisted. “For what?” my mother asked. “My first step is correct! I have written 4 mangoes cost Rs 8. I will get marks for that!”

Sometimes, the questions sent you on a day-dreaming trail. “If Ram, Shyam and Alice divided 21 mangoes among them, how many mangoes will each get?” While Ram and Shyam seemed related, the sudden mention of Alice picked your curiosity.  Had Alice stepped out of Wonderland and if so, how was she related to Ram and Shyam? As you pondered over the complicated possibilities in human relationships, precious time in the exam ticked away! You felt it would be amusing to write a fuzzy answer- the number of mangoes depends on how hungry Ram and Shyam were! Or if they ate so many mangoes, they would have a stomach-ache! But you knew the teacher would not tolerate such dark humor.

The age-related problems were agonizing. “10 years ago, father’s age was 7 times as old as his son. 2 years hence, he will be….” This fort could never be conquered. The first step was easy, and you wrote- “Let the father’s age be x and the son’s age be y”. After that, you hit a block. You took some bold strides and arrived at the answer where the father was half the son’s age! It did not look right, so you reversed the values and wrote the final result! Sometimes, you were certain the question was wrong and no wonder, you got funny answers!

Word problems had only one aim- to twist you into needless contorted postures instead of touching your nose straight. The distaste was extreme. As a child, you heard of an afterlife in heaven and hell. You were certain that hell was filled with word-problems that you had to solve eternally. And when it came to heaven, you modified the popular cine song with more relevant lyrics- “jahaan gham bhi na ho, aasoon bhi na ho, word-problem bhi na ho, bas pyaar hi pyaar paley!” (Where there is no sadness, no tears, no word-problems, but filled only with love!)