INTRODUCTION

Name - Vaibhav Ranjan

Class - VIII

Sec - C

Roll No - 35

Subject - Biology
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I have taken efforts in this project; however, it wouldn't have been

possible without the kind help of many individuals. I would like to thank
my class teacher, Mrs. Pooja Tiwari, and my school for providing me
with the facilities required to do my project. I am highly indebted to my
history teacher, Mr. Karan, for his invaluable guidance which has
sustained my efforts in all the stages of project work.
 MAGGIE CUTS HER HAIR - Full Story
Maggie Tulliver, a spirited and impulsive girl, is tired of being constantly
criticized-especially about her appearance. She longs for a sense of freedom
and decides to cut her own hair with a pair of scissors, just like cutting a horse's
mane. She cuts it unevenly, and though it looks rough, Maggie initially feels a
strange sense of pride and release, as if she'd escaped from a trap.

When her brother Tom sees her, he bursts out laughing. "Oh my buttons! Look
at yourself in the glass!" he says. Maggie's heart sinks. She had imagined
triumph, but instead, she faces mockery. Tom keeps laughing and clapping his
hands, and Maggie's feelings turn from boldness to shame and pain. Her
cheeks pale, and her lips tremble.

Tom continues teasing her and tells her to go down for dinner. Maggie,
humiliated, begs him not to laugh, and even pushes him. Tom calls her a
"spitfire"-a word meaning someone who gets angry quickly.

Tom leaves for dinner, and Maggie is left alone in her misery. She realizes how
foolish she has been. Unlike Tom, she is always the one criticized. She sits
helpless on the floor, weeping. Kezia, the servant, enters and is shocked by her
appearance. Maggie angrily tells her to go away, but Kezia insists-her mother
has ordered her to come down.

Still refusing, Maggie tells Kezia, "I shan't come." Kezia leaves. Later, Tom
returns, still joking, and tells her about the sweets and how their mother wants
her to come. Maggie, starving and hurt, begins to feel her sorrow soften a little
when Tom gently asks if she wants pudding. She agrees quietly. As Tom
leaves, he reminds her, "There's fruit, you know, and nuts."

Maggie's tears stop. Tom's kindness eases her pain. Slowly, she stands up and
makes her way downstairs.

At the dining room door, Maggie stops and peeks in. She sees Tom and Lucy at
the table-and the sweets. Overcome with emotion, she quietly walks to the
empty chair. But the moment she sits down, she regrets it.

Mrs. Tulliver, her mother, screams at the sight of Maggie's hair and drops her
spoon in shock. She hadn't been told what Maggie had done. Everyone at the
table turns to look. Maggie's cheeks and ears burn with shame. Uncle Glegg
asks who this strange-looking girl is.

Mr. Tulliver, trying not to laugh, tells him it's Maggie-she's cut her own hair.
Uncle Pullet adds that she looks very funny.

Then Aunt Glegg, in her harshest voice, says, "For shame!" She declares that
girls who cut their hair should be whipped and fed only on bread and water-not
allowed to sit with their elders.

Uncle Glegg, trying to lighten the mood, jokes that she should be sent to prison
to have the rest of her hair cut off.

Mrs. Tulliver cries, saying Maggie is a naughty child who will break her mother's
heart. Maggie hears all this quietly. At first, she feels angry, but then tries to be
brave. Tom, seeing her struggle, whispers kindly, "I told you you'd catch it."

But Maggie thinks he's laughing at her too. Her strength breaks. She runs to her
father, hides her face in his chest, and cries.

Her father gently comforts her: "Come, my child... never mind, you were in the
right to cut it off if it troubled you. Stop crying. Father will take your part."

These kind words stay with Maggie forever. She never forgets the moment
when her father stood by her, even years later when people said he had been
badly treated by his children.
 Summary of "Maggie Cuts Her Hair"

Maggie Tulliver is a young, sensitive girl who often feels misunderstood and criticized, especially

about her looks. Wanting to improve her appearance and express her independence, she

impulsively cuts her hair. However, her new haircut turns out uneven and awkward, leading to

embarrassment and ridicule from her brother Tom and others in the family.

Tom teases Maggie but later shows kindness by encouraging her to join the family dinner and

offering sweets and pudding. This softens Maggie's sorrow, and she goes downstairs. But when the

adults see her hair, they react with shock and disapproval. Her mother cries, her aunt scolds her

harshly, and others laugh at her.

Overwhelmed, Maggie runs to her father, who gently comforts her and tells her she had the right to

cut her hair if it troubled her. His kind support deeply touches Maggie, and she treasures his words

for the rest of her life.

 Moral of the Story

The story highlights the importance of empathy, the pain of being misunderstood, and how a

small act of kindness-especially from a parent-can leave a lasting impact on a child's heart.

Author: George Eliot

This story is an excerpt from Eliot's novel *The Mill on the Floss*, which explores family,

identity, and the struggles of a young girl in a judgmental society.