SSLC MODEL EXAMINATION, FEBRUARY 2018

ENGLISH

Answer Keys

1. Martha heard voices raised in anger as if in some sort of argument.

2. She came back to her class to take her PE shorts.
3. There were in the class Mr. Schmidt, Martha’s history teacher and Mr. Boone, her Math
teacher.
4. The subject of their discussion was whether the Scholarship Jacket should be given to
deserving Martha or to Joann by falsifying the records.
5. The word ‘graffiti’ means ‘writing on the wall’.
6. The argument heavily shocked Martha.
7. The plot given to the girl alone was not enough of a garden. It should be prepared,
plowed and fertilized by her own hands.
8. She plowed the garden plot by her own hands.
9. The dung to fertilize the garden plot was referred to as ‘not-nice’ load.
10. ABCB is the rhyme scheme of the first stanza.
11.
Blowin’ in the Wind – a brief appreciation
These lines are from the poem ‘Blowin’ in the Wind’ by Bob Dylan. Bob Dylan is an
American singer and song-writer. In this poem, the poet asks nine questions to which no
specific answers are given or expected. Out of the nine questions, here there are three
questions in these lines.

The poet asks first “how many roads must a man walk down before you call him a man?”
He asks actually how much a man should experience in life or how long a man should
endure in life before he is recognized as a human being. He asks, how many seas a white
dove should cross before it can peacefully rest or sleep finally in the sand. White doves
are symbol of peace, and when we are going to get really the symbolized peace. “How
many times must the cannon balls fly before they are forever banned?” is a similar
question. White doves and banning of cannon balls are signals of the arrival of peace and
end of wars and conflicts; but when will the symbolized peace be realized? The answers
to all these questions are known to all and blowing in the wind. People need only open
their eyes and ears to catch them.

These questions are the best example of the literary device Rhetorical question. The
poet talks about the answers which are available or known easily to whoever actually
wants them. He keeps on asking questions and talks about answers repeating the same
 lines “the answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the wind, the answer is blowin’ in the wind”
without actually answering, and making use of another poetic device Refrain.
12. The loud and terrible cry of ‘fire!’, ‘fire!’ from someone made the narrator wake up from
his sleep.
13. He could feel the heat of the floor easily because his feet were bare.
14. He fell down on a bundle of clothes with which he protected his face.
15. The narrator was surprised to hear a thin cry from the bundle of clothes in his hands.
16. Although it was a coincidence, the mother of the baby and the people assembled there
thought that the narrator had risked his own life and saved the baby in a heroic effort. So
they cheered much and made him a hero.
17. Chicken Garlic is the most expensive item on the menu card.
18. Rupees 50 is the price charged for Masala Dosa.
19. He can buy Paneer Butter Masala.
20. Fish Biriyani and Paneer Butter Masala have the same price on the menu card.
21. Fish Curry Meals is the item which is costlier than Aloo Gobi and cheaper than Chicken
Biriyani.
22. Vanka- A Pitiful Orphan
The renowned Russian writer Anton Chkhov’s story ‘Vanka’ is a miserable story of a
nine year old boy namely Vanka. By the death of his mother he became an orphan and his
grandfather sent him to Moscow to apprentice to a shoemaker Alyakhin. Under his
master he had to lead a miserable life which was worse than that of a dog. The master
together with his wife punished him severely for silly matters. The other apprentices also
treated him cruelly. It had been only three months since he reached there. But the tortures
he underwent were beyond description.

Saddened by the loneliness and miseries he experienced there, he decided to write a letter
requesting his grandfather to come and save him. The nostalgic feelings of his joyful life
with his mother and grandfather in the village, especially at the time of Christmas,
doubled his mental pains. He had secretly made arrangements for writing a letter, and he
wrote it when the others had gone to church on the Christmas eve. He imploringly wrote:
“come to me dear Granddad and take me away from here”. This single sentence is
enough for the readers of the story to know about the plight of a child labourer like
Vanka. The poor little child somehow completed writing the letter and ran out to post it.
He even did not know the fact that a letter should have a proper address and enough
postage stamps to reach it to the destination.

He posted it in the letter-box and came back. He went to sleep lulled by the rosy thoughts
of his grandpa coming to his rescue and dreamed of going to have his happy days once
again in his village.
23. Wild is ever wild
‘Adolf’ is a very beautiful story of a wild little rabbit told by the renowned man of letters
DH Lawrence. Once his father brought home a tiny rabbit. He found it in the field lying
by the side of its dead mother and siblings. If he had not taken it home, it would have
been died there. They, the children at home, were very much delighted but their mother
was not so happy on the arrival of the rabbit.

In the beginning it was motionless and refused to drink milk. But as days passed it
became tamed and started growing mischievous. They named it Adolf and they loved him
to take meals with them. He would take tea with them and sometimes hobble up to the
sugar-basin. The mother kept an indifferent approach towards Adolf and always
complained. She wanted it to be sent back to the woods. But day by day the children
grew enchanted with it. For the mother it was worse than having a child to look after
when she was alone at home. She could not keep Adolf away from the front door and
there were cats prowling outside. One day as part of his mischievous play he brought
down the curtain rod over mother’s beloved pelargonium.

It was his own doom he brought for himself and a heartless wildness had come over him.
They understood that he must go and they decided to send him back. Once again the
father stowed him into the great pocket of the pit-jacket and took him back into the
wilderness.
24.

Wed, 14 February 2018

10:30pm

Today is really a fruitful day for me! Quite unexpectedly my 25 years’ search
came to an end today. Dr. AJ Cronin, the savior of my life, the donor of my
second birth, appeared in front of me. Thank God, You’ve brought him in front of
me! It’s sad he couldn’t recognize me in the beginning. I thought he wouldn’t
have ever forgotten me. It’s okay, he recollected everything when I explained. It’s
been a quarter of a century since the incident happened. He is a doctor and how
many people and incidents in his life! It’s my foolishness to expect him to
recognize me at a single sight. Anyhow, he appreciated the changes happened in
my life and he valued my present deeds. He also became very much glad to know
that his efforts didn’t go wasteful. Thank God once again, for showing my wife
the savior and mender of my life!
25.

NOTICE
Satyajit Ray Film Festival
Dear friends,

The English Club of our school has decided to conduct a three day film festival in
our school starting from 25 February to 27 February 2018. The actor-cum-director
Sri. Sreenivasan will inaugurate the show. The inauguration ceremony will take
place at 11:00 am on 25 February 2018. Everyday there is a Satyajit Ray film as
detailed below.
All are welcome to the inaugural functions and the film show.

Kochi Secretary,
14 Feb 2018 English Club
XYZ HSS, Kochi

Inaugural Programme Details

Time and Date: 11:00am, 25 Feb 2018

Venue: School Auditorium
Welcome: Club Secretary
Presidential Address: Principal
Inauguration: Sri. Sreenivasan
Vote of thanks: School leader.

Film Show Details

Name of the Film Date of Show Time of Show

1. Pather Panchali 25 February 2018 12:00 Noon
2. Apur Sansar 26 February 2018 12:00 Noon
3. Aparajito 27 February 2018 12:00 Noon

26.
I: Good morning doctor! You are happy in this new house, aren’t you?
Doctor: Yes, of course. I’m very happy here.
I: Have you ever visited your old house after the incident?
Doctor: Yes, the following day I went there to take my things.
I: Did you see the snake again there?
Doctor: No. Nothing was there. Even my dress and other things were not there.
I: Oh, what happened to them?
Doctor: Some thieves have stolen everything.
 I: I think you haven’t lost anything valuable, have you?
Doctor: No. I lost only some used dress. By the way, If my friends like you hadn’t
helped me, I would not have been able to find this new and comfortable house. Thank
you!
I: Don’t mention. It’s our pleasure. See you then, bye!
Doctor: Bye!
27. William Blake
William Blake was a very famous English poet, painter and engraver. He was born on 28
November 1757 in London, United Kingdom. As a writer and painter he published many
literary and art works. The most important of his works are ‘Songs of Innocence and
songs of Experience’, ‘The Marriage of Heaven and Hell’ etc. His poems clearly mark
the sparks of romanticism and he is ever considered as one of the most famous Romantic
poets of England. William Blake left this world at the age of 69, on 12 August 1827.

28.

Park Street,
B. Lefroy Road
Kolkata.
14 February 2018

The Manager
Bharat Circus Company Ltd.
Marqus Square
Kolkata.

Dear Sir,

I am Satyajit Ray, a film director from Kolkata. I believe that your company is now
settled in the same city. I am in need of your help.

I have a plan to shoot a film namely ‘Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne’ in which there is a
scene of the hero meeting a wild tiger in the forest. A trained tiger is required to shoot
this scene. I came to know that you can help me by providing a tiger with its trainer. I
need the tiger only for a couple of hours. I and my crew are well aware of the
restrictions of the Animal Welfare Board in connection with wild animals. I have
already availed the approval of the Chairman of the Animal Welfare Board in this
regard.

I will be grateful and obliged to you, if you provide me with a tiger and its trainer.
Thank you in advance.

Yours faithfully,

Sd/
Satyajit Ray.
29.

'Martha' in the story 'The Scholarship Jacket' is a character of mixed feelings. She is a little
sensitive but bold and brilliant. She is 14 years old and an eighth grade student maintaining a
consistent ‘A’ level since her first grade. She is in every sense qualified enough to win the
prestigious scholarship jacket, an award to the class valedictorian of her school. Martha is the
daughter of a poor Mexican farmer. Owing to the poverty at her own family, she has been given
to her grandparents to raise. In appearance she is very lean and her friends call her ‘beanpole’ and
‘string bean’. Once she happens to overhear a heated argument between her two teachers. She
understands that a conspiracy is going on to undermine her winning the jacket. Eventually the
principal asks her to pay 15 dollars for the award. Although bold and brilliant, this incident
makes her cry in despair. But when Martha’s granddad tells her that a paid award is not an award
at all, she accepts his words. She strongly believes that she deserves the award by merit and it
will come her way. She determines to tell the principal looking straight into his eyes that she is
not ready to pay. Here, we see a bold Martha. In front of the strong determination of her
grandfather and bold stand of Martha, the opponents cannot fortify themselves for long and
finally Martha wins the Scholarship Jacket, her life’s dream!

30.

At the age of 19, Adichie left Nigeria to go to university in the United States. In the US
she had an American roommate. The roommate was shocked to hear the excellent
English of Adichie. She had not known the fact that English was the official language of
Nigeria. The roommate had a single idea about Africa in which all Africans are members
of a tribal community having no education and modern culture, simply leading a life of
many rituals accompanied by tribal music and folk dances. The roommate had a
patronizing mentality towards Adichie. In her single story, Africans were never similar
to her and in human relations never equal to her. While in the US Adichie for the first
time began to realize her own identity as an African. She also realized that even if she
were in place of the roommate, she too would think of Africa in the same way as her
roommate thought of it. One of Adichie’s university professors once told her that her
novel was not authentically African. He meant that her characters were like modern, rich
and educated Americans. They should have been poor and uneducated to be authentic.
Adichie understood that the professor had also an incomplete idea, a single story, about
Africans and the single story was only a partial truth.
31.

XYZ School Grabs ‘A’ Grade in Skit Competition

Wed, 14 Feb 2018
Staff reporter

Kozhikkode: Thousands of students, teachers and spectators gathered in the corporation

stadium this morning have witnessed the grand inaugural ceremony of the District level
Sckool ‘Kalolsavam’. The Chief Minister in the presence of other VIP guests and men of
letters inaugurated the function.

Immediately after the one-hour long inaugural session, on the prime arena staged the
comedy skit competition. All the skits were socially and politically relevant, maintained
artistic standard and was really entertaining.

The XYZ School of Kochi has won the first place with ‘A’ grade in the competition.
“The competition was tight and it’s a tremendous victory for us. As a beginning, it is an
encouragement for us to perform our maximum level in all other items”, said the jubilant
winners. The ‘kalolsavam’ is in progress with a wide variety of programmes being
staged on different arenas. The festival of young talents will last two more days rendering
endless entertainments for the city dwellers.

32. a) don’t you? b) How much is for a Kilogram of tomato? c) you won’t get any more
goods from me. / I will not give you anything more. d) Do you think that we will not pay
your money?

33. a) is b) who c) saw d) leaving

34. A) Cronin asked the sergeant where he was taking him to.

B) The sergeant replied that a man in the next house had attempted to commit suicide.

35. a) of b) an c) the d) and

36. a) set out b) came across c) make out d) go on

37 a) Noun Phrase: The big cobra that coiled around the doctor’s arm.

b) Head noun: Cobra.

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Prepared by Mahmud K Pukayoor (englisheduspot.blogspot.com)