An event is what happens. Its significance is what that happening shows, changes or decides in the story. A strong answer states the event briefly and spends most of its words on the significance.
This lesson is part of SPM subjects and learning resources. It follows choosing evidence for an interpretation.
What is the so-what test?
After writing a sentence about an event, ask: so what? If the next sentence can answer it, you have significance. If you cannot answer, the sentence is plot only.
For example: “Murugan sells his bullock.” So what? “It shows that the drought has forced him to give up the animal he depends on.”
Worked example: an original farmer story
An original outline. Murugan, a farmer, struggles in a drought.
First he skips his own meal to feed his bullock. Next he sells the bullock to pay a debt. At the end, he pulls the plough himself in the first rain.
| Event | Significance |
|---|---|
| He skips his meal to feed the bullock. | Shows that he values the animal almost like family, before the loss. |
| He sells the bullock. | Turning point: hardship forces him to give up what he loves, and the tone becomes sadder. |
| He pulls the plough himself in the first rain. | Shows his determination: he continues with his own effort, and it gives the ending hope. |
From retelling to analysis. Retelling: “Murugan sells the bullock to pay his debt.” Analysis: “When Murugan sells the bullock to pay his debt, the story reaches its turning point, because hardship forces him to give up the animal he cared for most, and it prepares the reader for the effort he shows at the end.”
The analysis still names the event but adds what it means and how it connects.
The mistake to avoid
The typical weak answer is a chain of “and then”. It could be copied from a plot summary and would earn little for analysis.
Repair it by adding “because” or “which shows” after each event. Limit yourself to two or three events and explain each one properly.
Check yourself
Original events: (a) The shopkeeper hangs a new sign over the old one. (b) He covers the old sign with cloth and does not remove it.
Write one significance sentence for (b), starting with the event.
Answer
A sample: “When the shopkeeper covers the old sign with cloth but does not remove it, it shows that he wants a new start but cannot let go of the past.”
Any sentence works if it links the event to a feeling or idea and does not merely restate covering the sign. You can test it by asking so what.
What to study next
Put the skill into a full paragraph with planning a supported analytical paragraph. Then try the original Tamil Literature practice set. The structured-answer self-review tool can help you check that each answer has significance as well as events.
Set texts and assessed requirements come from your school and the curriculum. For one-to-one help moving from summary to analysis, see online one-to-one Tamil Literature tuition.