CLASS X

ENGLISH- COMMUNICATIVE (CODE 101)

(SAHODAYA PAPER 2018-19)

TIME – 3 HOURS MAXIMUM MARKS- 80

GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS

I. The question paper is divided into three sections :

SECTION A : Reading 20 MARKS

SECTION B : Writing and Grammar 30 MARKS
SECTION C : Literature 30 MARKS
II. All questions are compulsory.
III. You may attempt any section at a time.
IV. All questions of that particular section must be attempted in the correct order.

SECTION –A: READING (20 Marks)

Q1. Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow:
History of Halloween
1) Straddling the line between fall and winter, plenty and paucity, life and death,
Halloween is a time of celebration and superstition. It is thought to have originated with
the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, when people would light bonfires and wear
costumes to ward off roaming ghosts. In the eighth century, Pope Gregory III
designated November 1 as a time to honor all saints and martyrs; the holiday, All
Saints‟ Day, incorporated some of the traditions of Samhain. The evening before was
known as All Hallows‟ Eve and later Halloween. Over time, Halloween evolved into a
secular, community-based event characterized by child-friendly activities such as trick-
or-treating. In a number of countries around the world, as the days grow shorter and the
nights get colder, people continue to usher in the winter season with gatherings,
costumes, and sweet treats.

2) Halloween‟s origins date back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced
sow-in). The Celts, who lived 2,000 years ago in the area that is now Ireland, the United
Kingdom, and northern France, celebrated their new year on November 1. This day
marked the end of summer and the harvest and the beginning of the dark, cold winter, a
time of year that was often associated with human death. Celts believed that on the night
before the new year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became
blurred. On the night of October 31 they celebrated Samhain, when it was believed that
the ghosts of the dead returned to earth. In addition to causing trouble and damaging
crops, Celts thought that the presence of the otherworldly spirits made it easier for the
Druids, or Celtic priests, to make predictions about the future. For a people entirely
dependent on the volatile natural world, these prophecies were an important source of
comfort and direction during the long, dark winter.

3) To commemorate the event, the Druids built huge sacred bonfires, where the people
gathered to burn crops and animals as sacrifices to the Celtic deities. During the
celebration, the Celts wore costumes, typically consisting of animal heads and skins,
and attempted to tell each other‟s fortunes. When the celebration was over, they re-lit
their hearth fires, which they had extinguished earlier that evening, from the sacred
bonfire to help protect them during the coming winter. (390 words)

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1.1 Attempt any eight of the following questions on the basis of the passage you have read (1X8=8)

i. What is the inception of Halloween?

ii. When is Halloween celebrated?

iii. How did Halloween evolve over time?

iv. What is the significance of Samhain?

v. What is the origin of Halloween?

vi. What is the significance of November 1 for the Celts?

vii. How were certain prophecies a cause of comfort to The Druids, or Celtic priests?

viii. What did the Celts attempt to do during the celebration?

ix. Which word in paragraph no.2 means the same as „predictions of what will happen in the
future‟?

Q2. Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow:

Low Women Workforce a Setback to Development

1) Gender equality/disparity has become one of the most important indicators of a developed
society. Women work participation is a „gender lens‟ to look at this problem (phenomenon).
According to International Labour Organization statistics, societies still having feudal ethos
in the 21st century have the least women labour participation rates, and hence the highest
gender disparity ratios.

2) Afghanistan, Algeria, Iran, Iraq and Jordan have the least female participation rates (around
16 per cent), but globally the rate is 50 per cent. India and Pakistan record only 27 per cent,
but Bangladesh has crossed the global average and achieved 57 per cent. Relatively small
nations like Indonesia and Malaysia also have touched the global average, but Vietnam,
Zambia, Tanzania and Uganda have the maximum rates around 75 per cent.

3) This shows that the correlation between women‟s work participation rate and gender
equality is complex. No doubt, the least women participation in work is a clear indication of
sharp disparity. But mere increase in work participation is not enough for gender equality
since in some of the least developed countries with high rates of work participation, women
are forced to get involved in back-breaking agriculture labour and deprived of good
education and health care. Their families will be starved if they are not in the fields, often
with very low wages. India has to think about its low women workforce participation if it
wants to get into the real development orbit.

4) Skilling the working population, especially the women, must be the top priority. China
could break the barriers of low women work participation, and it is one of the reasons for
their excellence in manufacturing, especially in the small and medium enterprises.

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5. Non-farm women‟s work participation can only push their status up. The Vietnamese experience
provides more insights. Even with very high women participation, the gender pay gap has widened
while it declined in many countries. „Equal pay for equal work‟ has to be ensured if we are serious
about gender inequality. (329 words)

2.1 On the basis of your reading of the passage, answer any four of the following questions in
about 30-40 words each. (2x4=8)
i. What is International Labour Organisation statistics?
ii. Which countries have the least women work participation rates?
iii. Which country has crossed the global average? Name two countries which have
achieved the maximum rates in women‟s work participation.
iv. Why is mere increase in work participation not enough for gender equality?
v. Why is „equal pay for equal work‟ important?
vi. What is needed to push women‟s status up?

2.2 On the basis of your reading of the passage, fill in any two of the following blanks with
appropriate words/phrases. (1X2=2)
i. Least women labour participation rates is an example of _________.
ii. By involving more women in the workforce, India will get into
____________________.
iii. Gender inequality can be resolved with ___________________.

2.3. Attempt any two of the following. Find out the words that mean the same as under: (1x2 =2)

i. „measures‟ (Paragraph 1)
ii. „multiplex‟ (Paragraph 3)
iii. „perceptions‟(Paragraph 5)

SECTION B: WRITING AND GRAMMAR (30 Marks)

Q3. (a)You are Ami/ Amit Thakkar, Math Lab assistant of Arya Public School, Bhopal. You
bought a new printer from M/s Digital Express, Cunningham Road, last week for the Math
Lab. Now you find that the printer makes an unbearable noise while printing. Write a letter to
the dealer complaining about the same and requesting him to change the machine as early as
possible. Invent other necessary details. (100-120 words, 8 Marks)
OR
Q3.(b)You are the In-charge of the Infirmary of Aurobindo Public School, Patiala. Your stock of
gauze pads, antiseptic wipes, adhesive tapes and bandages, a splint, cold packs, calamine lotion
etc are about to finish .Write a letter to the Manager of Universal Medical Store,
Patiala ,ordering the required items. Ask for discount on bulk order .Invent other necessary
details. (100-120 words, 8 Marks)

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 Q4.Write a short story, in about 200-250 words, with any one set of the cues given. Give a
suitable title to the story . (10 Marks)

It was 6 o‟clock in the evening and there was a lot of traffic on the road. Rajni was driving
her way home from office when suddenly two teenagers on bike overtook her car….

OR

“….Ultimately I won it as I was determined to achieve my goal.” The closing of the story is
given above. You can start your own story but you cannot change the end. Write the story in
200- 250 words.

Q5. Fill in any four of the following blanks with the most appropriate word. Write the answers in
your answer sheet against the correct blank numbers. (4 Marks)
Reading a novel (a) ______ a short story in second language (b) ______ dramatically reduce
physiological responses (c) _______ emotions such as smiling. It (d) _____ encourages (e)
_____ think globally.
Q6. The following passage has not been edited. There is an error in each line. Write the incorrect
word and the correct answer against any four of the corresponding blanks. (4 Marks)
Incorrect Correct
The Amazon rain forest gets its life from a majestic (a)
Amazon river, which runs directly from the heart of the (b)
region. The rainforest itself was simply the drainage basin (c)
for the river and its tributaries. The vast forest consist of (d)
four layers, all featuring its own ecosystem. (e)

Q7. Rearrange any four of the following word clusters to make meaningful sentences. (4 Marks)
(a) your/ in/ keeping/ check/ anger/ challenging/ can/ be
(b) it/ difficult/ definitely/ is/ not/ but/ impossible
(c) anger/ uncontrolled/ create/ can/ havoc
(d) can/ it/ stress and/ lead to/ hypertension
(e) help/ physical/ stress/ activity/ create/ that/ can/ anger/ reduce/ may

SECTION C LITERATURE (30 Marks)

Q8. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow. Write the answer in your
answer sheet in one or two lines only. (4 Marks)
A. Tortured by doubt and remorse, he sat down in the glow of the charcoal sigri to wait.
(i) Who sat by the charcoal sigri ?
(ii) Why is he tortured by remorse ?
(iii) What was his doubt ?
(iv) What is he waiting for and why ?
OR

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B. Be off now, and change your dress before your aunt Elizabeth and your uncle Ben come. It will
never do for them to find you in colours.
(i) Who speaks these lines and to whom ?
(ii) Why does she disapprove of the listener being in colour ?
(iii) Why are Aunt Elizabeth and Uncle Ben coming ?
(iv) Bring out the irony in the above statement?

Q9. Answer any 4 of the following questions in 30-40 words. (2x4=8 Marks)
(i) The sailors were fickle minded. Justify this statement with reference to the poem, „The
Rime of the Ancient Mariner‟.
(ii) What problems did Helen the ghost, cause in John Hallock‟s life ?
(iii)Why did the poet call his act of throwing a log of wood at the snake, „a pettiness‟ ?
(iv)How does the traveler describe the statue of Ozymandias in the first part of the poem ?
(v) How does Saki portray Louisa Mebbin in the story Mrs Packletide‟s Tiger?

Q10. Attempt any one of the two following long answer type question in about 100-120 words.(8m)
(a) The story of Patol Babu highlights the importance of passion and satisfaction. Justify.
OR
(b) The poem „Snake‟ teaches us the lesson that to move forward one needs to forget old age
prejudice and love nature and its creation fully. Explain.

Q11.A. Answer the following questions based on prescribed novel text for extended reading in
about 200-250 words. (10m)

The Diary of a Young Girl

(a) Give a brief description of the changes Anne felt in her life in the secret annexe till the end
of the year 1943.
OR

(b) How did Anne describe the character of Mrs.Van Daan in her letter dated 29 July 1943?

OR

B. Answer the following questions based on prescribed novel text for extended reading in about
200-250 words.
The Story of My Life
(a) Helen had a very memorable experience of her first Christmas. Give an account of how she
enjoyed herself on the occasion.

OR

(b) Describe Helen‟s nature before Miss Sullivan came to her life. What changes took place in
her after she spent a few days with Miss Sullivan?