Section - A : Reading Comprehension (Seen)
1. Choose the correct answer from the given alternatives (1×8=8):
1. Mamzelle Aurlie received a marriage proposal at the age of-
(i) twenty
(ii) sixteen
(iii) nineteen
(iv) sixty
Ans: (i) twenty
2. Mamzelle Aurlie used to shoot-
(i) eagles
(ii) crows
(iii) chicken
(iv) chicken hawks
Ans: (iv) chicken hawks
3. Mamzelle Aurlie told her cook that she would rather manage-
(i) plantation
(ii) cattle
(iii) dogs
(iv) cats
Ans: (i) plantation
4. The sack of hickory nuts appeared on the-
(i) Front steps
(ii) courtyard
(iii) back yard
(iv) dining hall
Ans: (i) Front steps
5. The narrator's mother gave him the book-
(i) Coral Island
(ii) Sophy of Cravonia
(iii) The Viper of Milan
(iv) The Invisible Man
Ans: (iii) The Viper of Milan (From Graham Greene's "The Lost Childhood")
6. Walter Cunningham did not bring his-
(i) lunch
(ii) books
(iii) bag
(iv) homework
Ans: (i) lunch
7. One whistle means-
(i) station
(ii) railroad crossing
(iii) sudden danger
(iv) bridge ahead
Ans: (i) station
8. Suriar's father drank water from the-
(i) village tank
(ii) tubewell
(iii) well
(iv) pitcher
Ans: (i) village tank
A. Answer the following questions in not more than fifteen words (1×3=3):
1. What were the names of Odile's children?
2. What did Nathan supply?
3. Who was the boy without lunch in the classroom?
1. Odile's children were Elodie, Ti Nomme, Marceline, and Marclette.
2. Nathan supplied cement to fill the knot-hole in the tree.
3. Walter Cunningham was the boy without lunch in the classroom.
B. Answer any two of the following questions in not more than 150 words (7×2=14):
1. Briefly describe the character of Mamzelle Aurlie as given in the story "Regret".
2. Who was Vela Mudaliar? What did he do during the drought? What did Suriar do to punish him?
3. How did Cunningham pay the debt to Atticus?
1. Character of Mamzelle Aurlie:
Mamzelle Aurlie is a strong, independent woman who possesses a "good strong figure" and a masculine determination. She manages her own farm and is quite content with her solitary life, having declined a marriage proposal at the age of twenty. She wears a man's hat and blue army overcoat, symbolizing her self-reliance. However, beneath this tough exterior lies a dormant maternal instinct. When Odile's children are left in her care, she initially finds them burdensome but gradually grows attached to them. Their departure leaves her feeling a deep sense of loneliness and regret, revealing the softer, emotional side of her character that she had long suppressed.
2. Vela Mudaliar:
Vela Mudaliar was the selfish village headman or a wealthy landlord in the story. During the severe drought, when the villagers were suffering from a lack of water, he selfishly hoarded water and resources for himself, ignoring the plight of the common people. He restricted access to the water sources he controlled. To punish him, Suriar (likely the protagonist representing the villagers' anger) mobilized the community or took direct action to expose his greed, potentially breaking the barriers to the water source or publicly humiliating him to ensure justice for the suffering villagers.
3. Cunningham's Debt:
Mr. Cunningham, a poor farmer, paid his debt to Atticus Finch not with money, but with the produce from his farm. Since the Cunninghams had no cash due to the economic depression, he would leave items like stovewood, a sack of hickory nuts, similax and holly, or a crate of turnip greens on Atticus's back steps. This method of payment highlights the Cunninghams' pride and integrity; they never took anything they couldn't pay back, even if they had to pay in kind rather than currency.
Section - B : Poetry
I. Choose the correct answer from the given alternatives (1×7=7):
1. The creatures that are sleeping in the poem "Reapers" are-
(i) cows
(ii) flies
(iii) birds
(iv) bees
Ans: (iii) birds (Or typically, the poem mentions "field rats" that are startled, not sleeping. If referencing "The Snail" or another poem in syllabus, answer may vary. Based on "Reapers", rats are startled.)
2. The colour of uniform is-
(i) black
(ii) chestnut
(iii) white
(iv) yellow
Ans: (i) black
3. The deathless light is shed on-
(i) hero's grave
(ii) library
(iii) house
(iv) farms
Ans: (i) hero's grave
4. In the brookland the poplar trees stand by the-
(i) pools
(ii) ponds
(iii) rivers
(iv) sea
Ans: (iii) rivers (From "Poplar Field" or similar)
5. John Lennon is of the opinion that above our head there is:
(i) sky
(ii) heaven
(iii) hell
(iv) sun
Ans: (i) sky ("No hell below us, Above us only sky")
6. The little boy lay on the-
(i) sunny hill
(ii) green grass
(iii) mat
(iv) banks of river
Ans: (ii) green grass (From "Childhood")
7. In the poem "Reapers", the colour of the ears of corn is-
(i) azure
(ii) orange gold
(iii) brown
(iv) red
Ans: (ii) orange gold (or implied golden color of corn)
II. Answer the following questions in not more than fifteen words (1×2=2):
1. How many reapers were in the field?
2. What did the boy see from the top of the hill?
1. There were black reapers sharpening their scythes; the exact number isn't specified, but they work one by one.
2. From the top of the hill, the boy saw the beautiful landscape, likely the river or the town below.
III. Answer any two in not more than twenty five words (2×2=4):
1. Why does Lennon say 'You may say I am a dreamer"?
2. "Whose dying eyes no country/Regards with patriot love" Explain.
3. How is the ship described in 'Childhood'?
1. Lennon calls himself a dreamer because he envisions a world of peace, unity, and no possessions, which many might consider unrealistic or utopian.
2. This line refers to a soldier who dies in a foreign land or an unacknowledged war, where his sacrifice is not honored by his own country with patriotic gratitude.
3. The ship in 'Childhood' is often described as a vessel of imagination or adventure, possibly sailing through the seas of the child's dreams.
IV. Answer any one of the following questions in not more than 150 words (1×7=7):
1. Why did the young boy leave his home? Briefly narrate his experience of wars.
2. Describe the reaping scene in 'Reapers".
3. What were the thoughts and fancies that the little boy had in 'Childhood'?
2. Describe the reaping scene in 'Reapers':
In Jean Toomer's poem "Reapers", the scene is set in a field where black reapers are at work. The poem begins with the auditory imagery of steel sharpening against stone, as the reapers prepare their scythes. They place the hones in their pockets and begin to swing their scythes in silence, one by one. The scene then shifts to black horses pulling a mower through the weeds. The mechanical and relentless nature of the work is highlighted when the mower runs over a field rat. The rat is startled, squeals, and bleeds, but the machine continues its work indifferent to the life it has taken. The blade, now blood-stained, continues to cut down weeds and shade, symbolizing the brutal and unceasing cycle of labor and death in nature.
Section - C : Rapid Reader (The Hound of the Baskervilles)
I. Choose the correct answer from the given alternatives (1×5=5):
1. The footprints were made by a-
(i) hound
(ii) pug
(iii) sheepdog
(iv) spaniel
Ans: (i) hound
2. The convict was a relative of-
(i) Beryl
(ii) Stapleton
(iii) Mr. & Mrs. Barrymore
(iv) Watson
Ans: (iii) Mr. & Mrs. Barrymore (Mrs. Barrymore's brother)
3. The only heir of Baskervilles lived in-
(i) Canada
(ii) India
(iii) Spain
(iv) France
Ans: (i) Canada
4. Mr. Stapleton collected-
(i) dogs
(ii) cats
(iii) rats
(iv) butterflies
Ans: (iv) butterflies
5. Stapleton had similarities with-
(i) Charles
(ii) Henry
(iii) Mortimer
(iv) Hugo
Ans: (iv) Hugo (Hugo Baskerville)
II. Answer the following questions in about ten words (1×5=5):
1. Why did the hound chase Selden?
2. What was the exact year of the manuscript?
3. Who was Laura Lyons?
4. What item was first stolen from Mr. Henry Baskerville?
5. Who was the man on the tor whom Watson saw?
1. The hound chased Selden because he was wearing Sir Henry's old clothes, which had his scent.
2. The exact year of the manuscript was 1742.
3. Laura Lyons was Frankland's daughter, whom Stapleton used to lure Sir Charles to the gate.
4. A new boot was first stolen from Sir Henry Baskerville.
5. The man on the tor whom Watson saw was Sherlock Holmes.
III. Answer any one of the following questions in not more than 100 words (5×1=5):
1. Why did Stapleton give up his teaching job?
2. Briefly describe Watson's experience of the first night at the Baskerville hall.
3. Briefly narrate the events when the spectral hound was seen chasing Henry Baskerville.
2. Watson's First Night:
Watson's first night at Baskerville Hall was eerie and unsettling. The Hall itself was gloomy and shadowed, with a sense of foreboding. After dinner, as he lay in bed trying to sleep, he heard the sound of a woman sobbing uncontrollably in the night. The sound was distinct and sorrowful, echoing through the corridors. This mysterious weeping added to the tension and mystery of the place, setting the stage for the dark events to follow.
Section - D : Grammar & Vocabulary
I. Do as directed (1×6=6):
1. It was raining hard. Abir went to school. (Turn into a compound sentence)
Ans: It was raining hard but Abir went to school.
2. The Nile is the longest river in Africa. It flows through many countries. (Change into a complex sentence)
Ans: The Nile, which is the longest river in Africa, flows through many countries.
3. The girl who lost her umbrella in the storm was weeping bitterly (Analyze the sentence)
Ans:
Principal Clause: The girl was weeping bitterly.
Subordinate Clause: who lost her umbrella in the storm (Adjective Clause modifying 'The girl').
4. Your father has painted a picture which will be sold at an auction. (Identify the clauses)
Ans:
Principal Clause: Your father has painted a picture.
Subordinate Clause: which will be sold at an auction (Adjective Clause).
5. I went to the market. I had to buy a fish. (Join into a simple sentence)
Ans: I went to the market to buy a fish.
6. My brother had broken the window. (Change the voice)
Ans: The window had been broken by my brother.
III. Identify the figures of speech used in the following sentences (1×4=4):
1. Cannons boomed at the battlefield.
2. The water mirrors a still sky.
3. I came to bury Caesar, not to praise him.
4. The thirsty earth drank the water.
1. Onomatopoeia (boomed)
2. Metaphor (mirrors)
3. Antithesis/Irony (bury vs praise)
4. Personification (thirsty earth drank)
Section - E
I. Rewrite the following conversation in indirect speech (1×3=3):
Ramu: What are you doing, Babu?
Babu: I am digging holes for the saplings. Will you give me the bucket?
Ramu: Sure. What saplings are you planting?.
Bumba: There are the marigolds.
Ans: Addressing Babu by his name, Ramu asked him what he was doing. Stating that he was digging holes for the saplings, Babu requested Ramu to give him the bucket. Ramu responded positively (or agreed) and asked what saplings he was planting. Bumba (presumably Babu) replied that they were the marigolds.
II. Write a paraphrase of the poem given below:
Daffodils (William Wordsworth)
I wandered lonely as a cloud...
...Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
Ans: The poet was wandering alone aimlessly, like a cloud floating high over valleys and hills. Suddenly, he saw a large crowd of golden daffodils beside a lake and beneath the trees. The flowers were fluttering and dancing in the breeze, appearing full of life and joy to the poet.
III. Write an essay on any one of the following topics (10 marks):
A) Pollution
B) A Memorable Day in Your Life
C) Benefits of morning exercise
Benefits of Morning Exercise
"Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise." This old saying highlights the importance of starting the day early. Morning exercise is one of the best habits one can cultivate for a healthy lifestyle. It rejuvenates the body and mind, preparing us for the day's challenges.
The fresh morning air is rich in oxygen, which is vital for our lungs and blood circulation. A brisk walk, jogging, or yoga in the morning helps in maintaining a healthy weight, strengthening muscles, and improving cardiovascular health. It boosts metabolism, ensuring that we burn calories efficiently throughout the day. Moreover, morning exercise releases endorphins, the 'feel-good' hormones, which reduce stress and anxiety, keeping us cheerful and energetic.
In today's sedentary lifestyle, where people spend hours in front of screens, morning exercise is a necessity. It improves concentration and productivity in students and professionals alike. Unlike evening workouts, which may be skipped due to exhaustion or work commitments, morning exercise sets a disciplined routine. Therefore, dedicating a small part of the morning to physical activity is an investment in long-term health and well-being.
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