PRACTICE EXAMINATION 2024 — 2025

Subject: Literature in English Date: November 26, 2024

Std: XA Time: 2 hours
Marks: 80

Answers to this paper must be written on the paper provided separately.

You will not be allowed to write
during the first 10 minutes,
This time
is to be spent in reading the question paper.
The time given at the head of this paper is the time allowed for writing the answers

This paper has four Sections.

Section A is compulsory — Alll questions in
Section A must be answered.
You must attempt one question from each of the Sections B, C and D and one
other question from any Section of
your choice.
This paper has 7 questions on 10 pages.
The intended marks for the questions or parts of questions are given in brackets [ ]

Section A

(Attempt all questions from

this Section)
Question 1

Choose the correct answers to the questions from the given options. (16)
(Do
not copy the question, write the correct answers only.)
(i) What does Antony use as a prop during his speech to sway the crowd?
(a) Caesar's crown
(b) Caesar's letter
(c) Caesar's blood-stained robe
(d) Caesar's dagger

(i) What does the crowd’s shift in loyalty from Brutus to Antony suggest
about public opinion in Rome?
 (a) Itis fickle and easily influenced by powerful rhetoric.
(b) Itis not deeply loyal to Brutus,
(6) Itis indifferent to political leaders.
(q) Itis firmly rooted in tradition and resistant to change.

(ii) How does Caesar's declaration, “I am constant as the Northern Star,”

suggest about his view of himself?

(@) Caesar feels secure about his political position.

(b) Caesar sees himself as unchanging and reliable.
(c) Caesar believes is
easily influenced by others
he

(d) Caesar thinks he is unpredictable yet consistent

(iv) The cause of the conflict between Brutus and Cassius in Act IV Scene
3is_
(a) disagreement over battle strategy
(b) the decision to include Lepidus in the triumvirate
(©) the division of power in the new government
(d) personal insults and accusations of dishonesty

() What is Cassius's reaction to Brutus's decision to march to Philippi in

Activ?

(a) He agrees with Brutus and supports the decision

(b) He wants to wait and fortify their position before fighting.
(0) Hesuggests negotiating with Antony and Octavius.
(d) He suggests retreating to a more secure location

(wi) How does Brutus react to the news of Portia's death in Act IV Scene 3?

(@) He is devastated and immediately contemplates abandoning his

plans for battle.
(b) He
refuses to believe the news and demands confirmation.
 vase
xi
(c) He expresses his sorrow but accepts it as a part of life, focusing
on
his duties,
(@) He blames himself for her death and becomes withdrawn

(vil) Through his poem "Haunted Houses,” H. W. Longfellow conveys the

idea that
(a) houses are alive with the memories of their inhabitants.
(b) ghosts are literal presence in abandoned homes.
(0) time
erases all traces of human existence.
(d) abandoned homes hold no value or meaning

(viii) Which
of the following
is not an effect of great trees falling, as
described in Maya Angelou's poem ‘When Great Trees Fall’?
(a) Rocks on distant hills tremble and break.
(b) Lions crouch low in the
tall grasses.
(©) Elephants move away to seek safety.
(d) Small things gather together and mourn.

(ix) Which of the given options contain the

figure of speech that appears in
the following line from H. W. Longfellow’s poem ‘Haunted Houses’: ‘The
spirit-world around this world of
sense, floats like an atmosphere.’

(a) ‘April is the cruellest month.’

(b) ‘The water, like a witch's oils,
Bumt green, and blue and white’
sadness of farewell,

|
(c) ‘And may there be no

When embark.’
(d) ‘Itis the star to every wandering bark.”
& How does ‘The Considerable Speck’ reflect the poet Robert Frost's
philosophical outlook?
() It dismisses the importance of small creatures
(b) It critiques scientific observation and analysis
(©) It values individual thought and intelligence in all forms of life
(d) It emphasizes human intelligence as the only intelligence
(xi) How does Maami's perspective on education contrast with Nana's?
(a) Maami values self-worth over physical traits.
(b) Maami believes education can empower Adjoa.
(©) Maami is indifferent to Adjoa’s future.

(d) Maami agrees with Nana on most issues.

xii) Leonard Mead’s evening ritual reveals the following about his
character, except
(@) his love for the outdoors
(b) his desire for freedom
(©) his resistance to societal norms
(d) his dislike for human connection

xii) Choose the option thatlists the sequence of events from William
Sleator's short story ‘The Elevator’ in the correct order.
1. Though he wants to run past her, Martin can only wait for
to
her turn and move slowly out into the lobby.
2. The fat lady only watches him, breathing loudly, until the
elevator reaches the first floor.
3. Without caring what she thought of him he runs nearly all
the way to school.
4. Martin meets the fat lady who gets into the elevator on the
fourteenth floor.
 Tis
OY
aa

cares
(a) 2,1, 3,4
(b) 4, 3,2,1
(©) 3,1,4,2
(d) 4, 2, 1,3

(xiv) Adjoa’s win is of great significance in the village because

(a) It brought pride and honour to her family.
(6)
It settleddisputes related to childbirth in the village
(c) It changed societal views about physical traits.
(d) It secured her a place in the school's sports squad
(xv) Select the option that shows the correct relationship between
statements (1) and (2) from William Sleator's short story, ‘The Elevator’.

Statement 1; The poor lighting, dirty walls and the elevator’s clanging
noise foreshadow a sense of impending danger for Martin
Statement 2: Martin's fear of the dark stairs and the loud footsteps echoing
on
the cement contribute to his sense of hopelessness.

(a) (1) is true and (2) is false.

(b) (2) is true and (1) is false.
(©) (1) is the cause for (2)
(d) (1) and (2) are independent of each other.

(xvi) What does the interaction between Leonard Mead and the automated
police car primarily illustrate?
(a) The advancement of technology in maintaining law and order
(b) The conflict between individuality and societal control
(c) The importance of conformity for societal
progress
(d) The efficiency of automated systems over human officers
 Section B

(Answer one or more questions from this Section)

DRAMA
(Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare)

Question 2

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
Antony
This is a slight unmeritable man,
Meet to be sent on errands. Itis fit,

The threefold world divided, he should stand

One
of the three to share it?

(i) Where does this scene take place? Who

is Antony speaking to? B]
What does he mean by ‘the threefold world divided’?
(i) Whom does Antony describe as a ‘slight unmeritable man’? What [3]

does he believe this individual is suited for? What does Octavius

describe this individual's military background?

(i What errand does Antony assign to the unmeritable man? Why

is it B)
significant to Antony?
(iv) What is the
first decision taken by the second triumvirate?
executing that decision important to the second triumvirate?
Why
is B)

wy) In this scene, Antony comes across as a man who has no regard for (4)

friendship or principles. Support this statement with relevant

references from the scene. {!

6.
 "ass
hIRUAHAT AMBAKI

Question 3
Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:

----
Antony
But here’s a parchment with the seal of Caesar;
| found it in his closet, ‘tis his will
(i) What did Caesar leave to the Roman citizens in his will? BI

(i) Why does Antony express reluctance to reveal Caesar's will to the [3]

common people?
(iii) Where does Antony go
at the end of this scene? What happens to [3]

Brutus and Cassius?

(iv) Why does Antony name the conspirators while displaying Caesar's [3]

mantle to the common people?

(vy) In his speech at the forum, Antony repeatedly praises the [4]

conspirators. Discuss the impact of this element of his speech on both

the common people the conspirators.
and

Section C

(Answer one or more questions from this Section)

PROSE - SHORT STORIES
(Treasure Chest — A Collection of ICSE Poems and Short Stories)

Question 4

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
When | went home to
tell my mother and Nana, they had not
believed it at first. So Nana had taken it upon herself fo go
and ‘ask into it properly’. She came home to tell my mother
that it was true.
() Whois Nana? What is her main concer regarding Adjoa? Why does [3]

she feel this way?

(i) What was Nana's justification for letting Adjoa attend school? What [3]
did she now want to ‘ask properly’ about at school?

(iii) How did Adjoa react to the five-kilometre walk to school? What does 13]
her reaction reveal about her character?

(iv) What tasks did Nana take on after she received the school’s
8
confirmation about Adjoa's selection?

(v) Discuss how Nana’s act of carrying the gleaming cup

like a baby (4
symbolizes
a
shift in her traditional mindset.

Question 5

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
He tumed back on
a side street, circling around toward his home.
He was within a block of his destination
comer quite suddenly and flashed a fierce white
when
a lone car turned a
cone of light upon
him.
() What did Leonard Mead most dearly love to do every evening?
(ii) What did Mead observe in the cottages and homes while his way on
8)
every evening?
(iii) Describe the night-time setting of Mead’s city. How does this setting BI
highlight the nature of interactions among its citizens?
(iv) What is ‘Psychiatric Center for Research on Regressive Tendencies’ {3]
in the story? What does it symbolize?
(v) The absence of a human officer in an automated police car's highlights [4]
the theme of Ray Bradbury's ‘The Pedestrian’. Justify the statement
with supporting evidence from the
story.
 Section D

(Answer one or more questions from this Section)

POETRY

(Treasure Chest — A Collection of ICSE Poems and Short Stories)

Question 6
Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
Great souls die and

to
our reality, bound

them, takes leave of us.

When Great Trees Fall, Maya Angelou
(i) What happens to ‘our reality’ when great souls die? Why? Bl

(i) How does our memory of loved ones evolve after their passing? In [3]
what ways does it
serve as a tool for reflection on
their lives?
(iii) What is the effect of the death of great souls on
the air around us? [3]
What does
it suggest?
(iv) How does the
loss of great souls impact us, personally? In what ways. [3]
can these great souls be likened to majestic trees in
a forest?
(v) Explain with two examples from the poem where the trees are used [4]
as metaphors.

Question 7
Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
It paused as with suspicion of my pen,
And then came racing wildly on again
To where my manuscript was yet dry; not
(i) Whatis the ‘it’ being referred to, in this extract? When does the [3]

speaker notice ‘it’? What did ‘it’ suddenly become suspicious of?
 a
il) What did ‘it’ seem to have of its own? How does the speaker come to B)
that conclusion?

(ii) What according to the speaker did ‘it not have room for? How
did ‘it [3]

prove the speaker wrong?

(iv) Why does the speaker choose to spare the life of ‘it’? 13]

) Discuss the speaker's preference when he

tenderer-than-thou collectivistic regimenting love’.

says ‘I have none of the
What kind of a
[4]

mindset is he criticizing?

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