[This question paper contains 16 printed pages.

]
Your Roll No.........s.e

Sr. No. of Question Paper : 2445 G

Unique Paper Code : 2035001004

Name of the Paper English Language Through .

Literature

Name of the Course : Common Programme Group

(GE Language I)
Semester : I

Duration: 3 Hours Maximum Marks: 90

Instructions for Candidates

1. Write your Roll No. on the top immediately on receipt

of this question paper.

2. This question paper contains 3 unseen passages and

questions based on them.

3. The questions are in two parts, A and B, both of

which are compulsory. Students will attempt any
THREE questions from each part.

4. Answers for Part A are to be written in 250-300.

words and for Part B in 350-500 words.

P.T.0.
 2
445

Passage 1

threshold of a new century, a new

We are on the
What will the legacy of this vanishing
millennium.
will it be remembered in the new
century be? How
judged
millennium? Surely it will b judged, and
terms. These
severely, in both moral and metaphysical
humanity: two
failures have cast a dark shadow over
senseless chain
World Wars, countless civil wars, the
of assassinations (Gandhi, the
Kennedys, Martin

Luther King, Sadat, Rabin), bloodbaths in Cambodia

and Algeria, India and Pakistan, Ireland and Rwanda,
Eritrea and Ethiopia, Sarajevo and Kosovo; the
inhumanity in the gulag and the tragedy of Hiroshima.
And, on a different level, of course, Auschwitz and
Treblinka. So much violence; so much indifference.

What is indifference? Etymologically, the word means

"no difference."A strange and unnatural state in which
the lines blur between light and darkness, dusk and
dawn, crime and punishment, cruelty and Compassion,
2445 3

evil. What are its courses and inescapable

good and
philosophy
consequences? Is it a philosophy? Is there a
indifference conceivable? Can one possibly view
of
at times to
indifference as a virtue? Is it necessary
normally,
practice it simply to keep one's sanity, live
wine, as the world
enjoy a fine meal and a glass of
upheavals?
6 around us experiences harrowing
than
Of course, indifference can be tempting - more
that, seductive. It is so much easier to look away
from victims. It is so much easier to avoid such rude

interruptions to our work, our dreams, our hopes. It

is, after all, awkward, troublesome, to be involved in
another person's pain and despair. Yet, for the person
who is indifferent, his or her neighbors are of no

consequence. And, therefore, their lives are

meaningless. Their hidden or even visible .anguish is
of no interest. Indifference reduces the Other to an

abstraction.

Over there, behind the black gates of Auschwitz, the

most tragic of all prisoners were the "Muselmanner,"

P.T.0.
 2445 4 2445 5
as they were called. Wrapped in their tom blankets, specialI for the sake of humanity
because one is angry
they would sit or lie on the ground, staring vacantly at the injustice that one
witnesses. But indifference is
into space, unaware of who or where they were never creative. Even hatred at
times may elicit a
strangers to their surroundings. They no longer felt response. You fight it. You denounce it. You disarm
pain, hunger, thirst. They feared nothing. They felt it. Indifference elicits no
response.
not a response. Indifference is not a Indifference
is
nothing. Rooted in our tradition, some of us felt that
to be abandoned by humanity then was not the an end. And, beginning; it is
therefore, indifference is always the
ultimate. We felt that to be abandoned by God was friend of the enemy, for it
benefits the aggressor
worse than to be punished by Him. Better an unjust never his victim, whose pain is
she magnified when he or
God than an indifferent one. For us to be ignored by feels forgotten. The political prisoner in his
the hungry children, the cell,
God was a harsher punishment than to be a victim of
homeless refugees - not to
His anger. Man can live far from God - not outside respond to their plight, not to relieve
their Solitude by
God. God is wherever we are. Even in suffering? offering them a spark of hope is to
exile them from
Even in suffering. human memory. And in
betray our oWn.
denying their humanity, we
In a way, to be indifferent to that suffering is what
makes the human being inhuman. Indifference, then, is not only a sin, it is a
And this is one of the punishment.
Indifference, after all, is more dangerous than anger most important lessons of this
outgoing century's
and hatred. Anger can at times be creative. One writes and evil. wide-ranging experiments in good
a great p0em, a great symphony. One does something
(644 words)
 6 2445 7
2445
Passage 2 Used by the evil to keep reins,

Rest brings strength,

Attempting to rid liberty's good name.

Strength brings unity, To peace for one and all,

Unity wins freedom, Unity, liberty, for eternity.

Freedom brings rest.

Passage 3
When we forget the few,

Then the many are not whole. [Scene: It is a big room, and rather untidy. The
For there is a hole deep within,
villagers stand talking.]

Aching for intervening relief. (Enter Amal and Gaffer.]

AMAL: (Panting.) How the flowers

We feel the pain of our fellow, bloom on the
bushes!
For we too have felt pain.
GAFFER: (At a loss.) I am old; my
eyes are not so
Though each of its own cause,
good. I do not see the flowers.
It still aches the same.

AMAL: (Eagerly.) They are like the flags

of a King.
We can salvage the remains,
GAFFER: (Approving.) That's right. But where do
Bring peace by breaking these chains, you see them?
al n 8
2445 2445 9
Hiu
AMAL: (After a pause.) I don't see them now. I
see [Amal is quiet.]
nothing. (He begins to weep.)
[Amal falls asleep, his head in Gaffer's lap.]
GAFFER: (Puzzled.) What is it, my dear? What is the
matter? [The Postman enters.)

AMAL: (Between his sobs.) I want to see the King's POSTMAN: Well, my friend, what about your house'?
flag. I have never seen a flag.
GAFFER: All gone to pieces.
GAFFER: (Touched.) What does the flag look like?
POSTMAN: And the boy?
AMAL: (Mournfully.) I don't now. (Gaffer gazes at GAFFER: He is still crying.
him in amazement.)
POSTMAN: Poor child, he was in love with the house.
GAFFER: (Kindly.) Poor little soul! Why do youwant You should have brought him here last
night. That
to see the flag? would have distracted his mind.
AMAL: (After a pause.) I want to die. But I have
GAFFER: Ihave brought him now. When the doors
heard that when one is dead, they put a flag on the of the house were tom
down, Icarried him out in my
body. I have never seen a flag. arms. But his eyes were all wet
with tears.
GAFFER: (Soothingly.) You should not speak of dying.
POSTMAN: It was not wise to
weep over one's own
But don't cry. It is wrong to cry. house,
 2445 10 2445 11
child; he does not
GAFFER: Wise or unwise, he is a POSTMAN: (Smiling.) Your love for the child is too
understand these things. great.

weep
POSTMAN: Well, do not weep. If one does not GAFFER: WhenI see his tears, I can
weep for in the next.
hardly breathe.
in this world, there is nothing to How can
endure them? (Enter the
(Enter the Poet, who looks about the
room.) It seems Dairyman,
Sweetseller, and Fisherman.)
that our house will be rebuilt.
DAIRYMAN: Well, Mr. Postman, how is your health?
POET: When will the boy recover?
POSTMAN: Thank God, I am well.
eyes out,
GAFFER: I do not know. He has cried his

but still the tears flow from them. DAIRYMAN: You always seem happy.

POET: (After a pause.) Has he not eaten anything all POSTMAN: It is a

satisfaction to know that one has
always done one's duty.
day?

GAFFER: No. DAIRYMAN: (Smiling.) You know very well what

you have to do.
him?
POET: (Impatiently.) Why do you not feed
(Enter the Priest.)
he
GAFFER: If he does not cat, he will die. When

has wept, he will take food of his own

accord. But if PRIEST: You are always busy.
Ifeed him while he is crying, he will die. POSTMAN: What is your opinion?
2445 12 2445 13

PRIEST: Why should a priest be busy? The Lord is PART A

sufficient for his needs. (Enter the Doctor.) Answer any three of the following : (10x3=30)
POSTMAN: Well, how are you, Doctor?
Questions 1 and 2 are based on Passage 1.

DOCTOR: I am very well. (Pause.) How is the child? Questions 3 and 4 are based on Passage 2.
(Gaffer does not answer.) What is the matter? Question 5 is based on Passage 3.
POSTMAN: (Leaning on the Doctor's shoulder.) The
poor child's house has been tom down.
1. In Passage 1, how does the author define indifference,
and what implications does it have on human perception
DOCTOR: (Impatiently.) And why has the child not
and action? What examples does the author provide
eaten anything all day?
to illustrate the consequences of indifference in

GAFFER: IfI feed him while he is crying, he will die. society?

DOCTOR: (Smiling.) But, my dear sir, it is not right 2. In Passage 1, explain why the author talks about
for a child to fast in this way. (To Amal.) Come various events and tragedies. What kind of emotional
along, my dear. Here are some sweetmeats. (Amal
response is evoked by the use of personal and
sits up.)
historical examples?
AMAL: Idon't want them.
3. In Passage 2, what is the central message of the
DOCTOR: (Laughing.) Why, what is the matter?
poem? What does the author suggest about the
AMAL: Idon't want them. relationship between rest, strength and freedom?
(633 words)
 2445 15
2445 14
Write a dialogue of at least 10 exchanges between
4. In Passage 2, what literary devices does the author
employ to convey their ideas effectively? Discuss the them where they explore their contrasting perspectives
significance of the repeated use of certain words or on the implications of indifference in the context of
phrases throughout the poem. historical events and its impact on society.

5.
In the given excerpt from Rabindranath Tagore's play 7, From Passage 2, create a set of concise and organized
The Post Office,' a poignant scene unfolds in which notes summarizing the key points made by the author
Amal, a young boy, is distraught over the loss of his
in the passage about the consequences and nature of
house and his deep longing to see the King's flag. indifference. Include the author's definition of
Discuss his desire and how the other characters, such
indifference, examples illustrating its impact, and the
as Gaffer, the Postman, and the Doctor, respond to
author's viewpoint on its role in shaping human
Amal's grief and why they offer him sweetmeats.
behavior.

PART B 8 Paraphrase the poem given in Passage 2.

Answer any three of the following : (20x3=60) 9. Imagine you are the Postman in Passage 3, and you
Questions 6 and 7 are based on Passage 1.
are deeply moved by the situation faced by Amal and
Question 8 is based on Passage 2. Gaffer after their house was destroyed. Write a letter
to a close friend, expressing your thoughts and
Questions 9 and 10 are based on Passage 3.
emotions about the incident and the impact it has had

on the community. Describe the efforts being made

6. Imagine two characters, A and B, are discussing the
to help Amal recover and rebuild the community.
concept of indifference as portrayed in passage 1.
2445 16

the child in the

10. Imagine you are Amal in Passage 3,
excerpt. Write a diary entry describing the events
and conversation that took place in the room today.
Include your feelings, thoughts, and reactions to the
people and their discussions.

(5500)