In the Midst of Hardship by Latiff Mohidin He Had Such Quiet Eyes by Bibsy

Soenharjo
C. struggle to find meaning
1. Which word tell us when they got home? D. ways to become cynical
A. torn
B. soak
C. dawn
D. returned
2. Why were their clothes soaky?
A. They had been out for a swim 1. In stanza 1, we know that the boy has
B. They had been in the flood A. beautiful eyes and a kind smile
C. They had been working hard B. captivated the girl with his eyes
D. They were anxious about a lost C. scolded the girl with his eyes
possession D. ice in his eyes
3. What was missing? 2. What look does he give her?
A. Their son A. Innocent
B. Some trees B. Ignorant
C. An albino buffalo C. Sweet
D. Bloated carcasses D. Silly
4. Why was there no sign of despair on their 3. The phrase two pools of lies means
faces? A. there was betrayal
A. They were unaffected by their B. there were deceptions
experience C. he was lying and stealing
B. They were unaware of their D. he cheated and lied to her
injuries 4. From stanza 1, we can conclude that the
C. They had learnt to be tough persona
D. They were too tired A. is feeling happy
5. In the first stanza, the calmness on their B. has fallen in love
faces is contrasted with C. has enchanting eyes
A. The wounds and scratches on their D. is pleading with her boyfriend
bodies 5. The persona wishes that she had been
B. The despair in their hearts wise because she has
C. Their desperation A. not compromised
D. Their hope B. followed her heart
6. How long had they been out? C. listened to advice
A. The whole day D. loved the boy
B. Half a day 6. Line 13 She’d be free from “the hows
C. 12 hours and whys” implies that the persona
D. 24 hours A. is full of regret
7. How do they cope with life’s difficulties B. is a curious person
and disappointments? C. is uncertain of her future
A. They share jokes and smoke D. is asking too many questions
B. They sigh about life’s problems 7. Which of these words describe the
C. They complain about their persona in the second stanza?
hardship A. Soft
D. They gather in the kitchen for a B. Naive
meal C. Trustworthy
8. The line They were born amidst D. Happy-go-lucky
hardship implies they 8. The word dice in stanza 3 suggests
A. had experienced hardship A. a chance or risk that one takes in
B. were fated to be poor a situation
C. had to face hardship B. a type of game for two people in a
D. were in difficulty contest
9. The bloated carcasses (line 11) are C. taking advantage of another
symbols of person
A. their son’s loss D. playing a losing game
B. disappointment 9. What is the persona trying to say in
C. dead animals stanza 3?
D. death A. Be nice to everyone
10. From the title of the poem we can predict B. Do not fall in love
that it is about the C. Do not lose in a game
A. people that gave up completely D. Be careful in a relationship
B. discovery of inner strength
10. The overall purpose of the poem is to 10. At the end of the story, we can conclude that
advise the readers not to Lucy is after all
A. trust anyone A. sweet and nice
B. go out with boys B. smart and helpful
C. brave and intelligent
C. listen to advice D. fierce and demanding
D. be tempted by good looks

QWERTYUIOP by Vivien Alcock

1. QWEWRTYUIOP is about Lucy and Miss

Broome who
A. are working at Ross and Bannister’s The Fruitcake Special by Frank Bennan
B. work as secretaries at Ross and
Bannister’s 1. Anna is
C. fight each other to stay at Ross and A. a designer
Bannister’s B. attractive and creative
D. want to prove that they are excellent C. confident of her abilities
and efficient secretaries D. a chemist in a cosmetics factory
2. The following are Lucy’s characteristics except 2. What did Anna discover?
A. lacking in confidence A. The fruitcake special
B. low self-esteem B. The perfume Intrigue
C. ignorant C. An amazing fruitcake recipe
D. timid D. Her feelings for David Amos
3. The first person Lucy meets when she reports 3. Anna’s boss preferred to be with
for work is A. beautiful women
A. Mr Ross B. ordinary-looking girls
B. Uncle Bert C. the chemists at his factory
C. Harry Darke D. his friends at the golf club
D. Miss Broome 4. David Amos invited Anna out for the evening
4. What frightens Lucy when she starts typing? because
A. The office A. he was attracted to her
B. The volume of work B. she was an attractive woman
C. Miss Broome’s appearance C. she had worked hard for the company and
D. The typewriter moves by itself he wanted to reward her
5. What does Lucy think when she first sees the D. he had been affected by the smell of the
mistakes on the paper? perfume she was wearing
A. There is something wrong with the 5. When David Amos came to pick up Anna for the
typewriter dinner date, he was
B. Her skill as a typist is a A. under the effect of the perfume
disappointment B. quiet and withdrawn
C. She has been very careless C. extremely loving
D. She has gone mad D. nice and friendly
6. Who was Miss Broome? 6. A perfume that caused men to go mad with
A. A new secretary
love would
B. A friendly ghost
A. not sell well
C. Lucy’s best friend
B. have a short life span
D. The late Bannister’s secretary
C. bring in lots of money
7. Uncle Bert is hurt with Lucy’s harsh words and
D. incur a lot of expense and loss
he says that she is
7. Which trait best describes Aunt Mimi?
A. understanding
A. Selfish
B. judgmental
B. Curious
C. selfish
C. Concerned
D. timid
D. A busy body
8. Miss Broome is nasty and angry because
8. Anna visited Aunt Mimi to
A. Ross and Bannister did not appreciate
A. learn how to make fruitcake
her long service
B. find out more about the fruitcake she had
B. Ross and Bannister asked her to leave
given them
when Lucy came
C. learn more about the perfect boy Aunt
C. Lucy is younger and prettier
Mimi had found for her
D. she is getting old
D. tell her what had happened on her dinner
9. Lucy manages to persuade Miss Broome to
date with David Amos the night before
leave by
9. When Anna returned to work, David Amos wanted
A. applying lots of liquid paper each time
to see her to
she typed
A. explain why he had behaved in a strange
B. getting Harry to tell her about her past
way
C. telling her that Mr Bannister needs her
B. offer her money as compensation
D. fighting with her in the office
C. tell her he was in love with Sabina
 D. discuss the evening date
10. Anna finally
A. returned to her job at the factory
B. went to work for another company
C. married David Amos
D. made fruitcake

In the Midst of Hardship by Latiff Mohidin

Practice 1
Explain the meaning of the following lines from the poem.

but on their brows

1
there was no sign of despair

they had to brave the

2
horrendous flood

3 They were born amidst hardship

and grew up without a sigh or a

4
complaint

Practice 2
Read the stanza below and answer the questions that follow.

At dawn they returned home

their soaky clothes torn
and approached the stove
their limbs marked by scratches
their legs full of wounds
but on their brows
there was not a sign of despair

a. Why did they return only at dawn?

b. Why were their clothes soaky?
c. What caused the scratches and wounds on their limbs?
d. What attitude is shown by the couple?

He Had Such Quiet Eyes by Bibsy Soenharjo

Practice 1
Explain the meaning of the following lines from the poem.

They were two pools of lies

1
Layered with thinnest ice

Never to compromise
2
With pleasure-seeking guys

She’d be free from “the hows

3
and whys”
Be sure that nice really means
nice
4
Then you’ll never be losing at
dice

Practice 2
Read the stanza below and answer the questions that follow.

He had such quiet eyes

She did not realise
They were two pools of ice
Layered with thinnest ice
To her, those quiet eyes
Were breathing desolate sighs
Imploring her to be nice
And to render him paradise
a. Why does the lady not realise she has been deceived?
b. What did the man do to deceive the lady?
c. What imagery is used to describe the man’s eyes?
d. What is the attitude of the man towards the lady in the first stanza?
QWERTYUIOP by Vivien Alcock

Read the extract below and answer the questions that follow.
Practice 1

“I don’t make mistakes,” Lucy said; then honesty compelled her to add, ”well, not very many. I’ve been
trained. I’ve got a diploma.”
“Yes. Yes, my dear, so they all had,” he said sadly, and left.

a. Who is Lucy speaking to?

b. Where was Lucy trained?
c. What kind of diploma does Lucy have?
d. Why is Lucy so defensive?
e. What is the tone of the speaker in the last sentence of the extract?

Practice 2

“Did you have trouble with the machine, Miss Beck?” he asked.
“Yes, sir.” (She was afraid to say what trouble in case he thought she was mad.)

a. Who is speaking to Miss Beck?

b. What does the machine refer to?
c. Why does the speaker think there was trouble with the machine?
d. What is preventing Miss Beck from telling the speaker the truth?
e. What kind of trouble does Miss Beck have with the machine?

The Fruitcake Special by Frank Bennan

Read the extract below and answer the questions that follow.

Practice 1

She decided to say what she thought at once – as she always did.
“So when are you going to bring a nice boy home?” she asked, looking me right in the eye.
“There was that boy Armstrong you saw two years ago. He was nice,” said Momma, trying to help me.

a. How many people are involved in the conversation above?

b. Why is Aunt Mimi so concerned about Anna bringing a nice boy home?
c. “She decided to say what she thought at once – as she always did.”
What does the above sentence tells us about Aunt Mimi’s character?
d. Who is Armstrong?
e. Why is Anna not interested in Armstrong?

Practice 2

“Look Anna...” he began.

I knew it. He’d changed his mind and was trying to think of some excuses to get out of our evening together.
“...about today, at the factory,” he continued. “I don’t know why I behaved like that.”

a. Where are Anna and Mr Amos?

b. What happened earlier in the factory?
c. Why did Mr Amos behave in such a strange manner?
d. What are Mr Amos’s feelings towards Anna now?
e. What has happened to make Mr Amos change his mind?