2019

HIGHER SECONDARY QUESTION PAPER

ENGLISH
(New Syllabus)

PART-A
(Marks : 60)

1. Answer any two of the following questions, each in

about 100 words: 6 ´ 2 =12
(a) “...the girl got up and began to collect her
things.”
Who is the girl? When did she get up? Why did
she get up to collect her things? What had the
speaker thought about the brief encounter he
had with the girl? 1+1+1+3
(b) “His answer filled me with a strange energy and
enthusiasm.”
Who is the speaker? Whose answer is being
referred to here? What was the answer? 1+1+4
(c) “You gonna take me to jail?”
Who asked this question and to whom? When
did the speaker ask this question? What reply
did the speaker get? 2+3+1
(d) How was the wounded man revived and nursed?
Why did he ask forgiveness of the Tsar? What
did the Tsar do when he had gained the man for
a friend? 2+2+2
[1]
2. Answer any two of the following questions, each in
about 100 words: 6 ´ 2 =12
(a) How does the poet describe the growth of a tree
over the years? What are the different steps
taken for killing the tree? 4+2
(b) “...His smile
Is like an infant’s...”
Whose ‘smile’ is being referred to here? Why is
his smile compared to the smile of an infant?
How does Nature take care of him? 1+3+2
(c) “But thy eternal summer shall not fade”
Who is being referred to as ‘thy’? What is meant
by ‘eternal summer’? Why shall not ‘thy eternal
summer’ fade? 1+1+4
(d) How does Keats show that the ‘poetry of earth’
never cease? 6
3. Answer any one of the following questions in about
100 words: 6 ´ 1 =6
(a) “Why are you so formal in your get up?”—Who
is the speaker? Who is being spoken to? What
led the speaker to make this comment? 1+1+4
(b) Lomov came with a proposal to marry Natalya
Stepanovna. What logic does he give for his
decision? 6
(c) “I’m the most unhappy of men!”
Who said this? Why did he say so? How did the
speaker get rid of his unhappiness? 1+3+2
4. (a) Do as directed: 1 ´ 6 =6
(i) I don’t intend to give up what I have. (Use
the underlined word as a noun and rewrite)
[2]
 (ii) The Tsar said, “I come to you, wise man, for
an answer to my questions.” (Change into
indirect speech)
(iii) The man would have attacked you. (Change
the voice)
(iv) The door was open. (Turn into a negative
sentence)
(v) The sun began to sink behind the trees, the
Tsar stuck the spade into the ground at last.
(Turn into a complex sentence)
(vi) The most important thing in the world was
science. (Change into positive degree)
(b) Fill in the blanks with appropriate articles and/
or prepositions: ½ ´ 6 =6
When my father (i) the mosque after the
prayers, people of different religions would be
sitting outside, waiting (ii) him. Many of
them offered bowls of water (iii) my father,
who would dip his fingertips (iv) them and
say (v) prayer. This water was then carried
home (vi) invalids.
(c) Correct the error in the following sentence by
replacing the underlined word with the right one
from the options given below: 1 ´ 1 =1
You might run that comb through your hair so
you will look present.
[Options: presently/presentable/presenting]
[3]
5. Read the following passage and answer the
questions that follow:
Sometimes it is hard to believe that I’ve been up
here in the hills all these years—fifty summers and
monsoons and winters and Himalayan springs (there
is no real spring in the plains)—because when I look
back to the time of my first coming here, it seems
like yesterday.
That probably sums it all up. Time passes, and yet it
doesn’t pass; people come and go, the mountains
remain. Mountains are permanent things. They are
stubborn, they refuse to move. You can blast holes
out of them for their mineral wealth; or strip them
of their trees and foliage, or dam bridges; but no
matter how hard they try, humans cannot actually
get rid of the mountains. That’s what I like about
them; they are here to stay.
I like to think that I have become a part of this
mountain, this particular range, and that by living
here for so long, I am able to claim a relationship
with the trees, wild flowers, even the rocks that are
an integral part of it. Yesterday, at twilight, when I
passed beneath a canopy of oak leaves, I felt that I
was a part of the forest. I put out my hand and
touched the bark of an old tree, and as I turned
away, its leaves brushed against my face, as if to
acknowledge me.
(a) State whether the following statements are True
or False. Write ‘T’ for True and ‘F’ for False. (You
need not write the sentences, write the
numbers only) 1 ´ 4 =4
(i) The oak leaves formed a roof over the author.
[4]
 (ii) The author does not like the fact that
mountains are permanent things.
(iii) The author means to say that he has lived
through all the seasons in the mountains.
(iv) Humans cannot do away with the
mountains.
(b) Answer each of the following questions in about
30 words: 2 ´ 3 =6
(i) What can man do to mountains?
(ii) What does the author claim a relationship
with?
(iii) Why is it hard to believe for the author that
he has lived in the hills for fifty years?
6. (a) Write a report on a campaign on ‘Educate the
Girl Child’ organised by your school. Mention
the role of both students and teachers, purpose
of this campaign, participation, response and so
on. The report will be published in your school
magazine. (Word limit: 150 words) 2 + 8 =10
OR
(b) Write a letter to the headmaster/headmistress
of your school requesting him/her to make more
variety of books available in the library. (Word
limit: 150 words) 2 + 8 =10
OR
(c) Write a precis of the following passage. Add a
suitable title: 2 + 8 =10
Charlie Chaplin once said, “In this age of scientific
inventions, we think too much, we feel too little.”
Science boosts up the modern craze for material
[5]
 prosperity. It has revolutionized our lives. It has
made life more comfortable with various
amenities. It is undoubtedly the driving force
behind any human excellence. But it kills the soul
of a man. Our skills and habits are changed by
science. Excessive mechanization brings
unhappiness because human faculties are
slighted. A person starts believing that machines
will do all for him, and this tendency becomes
fatal in this high-tech world. But none can doubt
that science has helped us to discover the hidden
truth in nature. Can we ever imagine the modern
age without computers, lasers, antibiotics,
biotechnology or different electronic gadgets?
That is why it is said that science gives knowledge
and power but not wisdom.

PART-B
(Marks : 20)
1. Complete each of the following sentences, choosing
the correct option from the alternatives provided :
1 ´ 4 =4
(i) The wounded man was actually
(a) enemy of the hermit (b) enemy of the Tsar
(c) friend of the Tsar (d) disciple of the hermit

(ii) On entering her room Mrs. Jones asked Roger to

(a) eat dinner (b) comb his hair
(c) wash his face (d) take rest for a while

[6]
 (iii) Abdul Kalam’s father would convey complex
spiritual concepts in simple, down-to-earth
(a) Arabic (b) Urdu
(c) Tamil (d) Telugu
(iv) The girl in the train compartment thought the
narrator to be
(a) gallant (b) serious
(c) gallant and serious (d) pretentious
2. Answer any four of the following questions, each in
a complete sentence : 1 ´ 4 =4
(i) What did Abdul Kalam’s father use to avoid?
(ii) What was the hermit doing when the Tsar came
to take leave of him?
(iii) What, according to the hermit, is the most
important thing to do?
(iv) Where was the girl in the story ‘The Eyes Have
It’ getting off?
(v) Who did the narrator of ‘The Eyes Have It’ think
to be formidable creatures?
(vi) What shoes and jeans was Roger wearing?
(vii) Whom did Kalam consider to be a very close
friend of his father?
(viii) When and where did Roger and Mrs. Luella Bates
Washington Jones meet?
3. Complete each of the following sentences, choosing
the correct option from the alternatives provided :
1 ´ 4 =4
(i) “...his gold complexion dimmed.” Here ‘his’
refers to
(a) the sun (b) the sky
(c) poet’s friend (d) poet himself
[7]
 (ii) Green twigs that rise from close to the ground are
(a) straight (b) curled
(c) crooked (d) crinkled
(iii) Being tired, the Grasshopper rests beneath
(a) green hedge (b) bushes
(c) pleasant weed (d) grassy hills
(iv) Nature is pleaded to keep the soldier
(a) pleasant (b) warm
(c) asleep (d) peaceful
4. Answer any four of the following questions, each in
a complete sentence : 1 ´ 4 =4
(i) “Slowly consuming the earth”—What does the
expression ‘consuming the earth’ mean?
(ii) Where does the stream leave ‘long strands of silver’?
(iii) What shall death not brag about in
Shakespeare’s poem?
(iv) What might one hear on a lone, cold and silent
winter evening?
(v) Where do the birds hide when they are ‘faint
with the hot sun’?
(vi) What kind a poem is ‘Shall I compare thee to a
summer’s day’?
(vii) Where does the soldier lie stretched?
(viii) Where does the tree’s strength lie?
5. Complete each of the following sentences, choosing
the correct option from the alternatives provided :
1 ´ 4 =4
(i) The worst of Lomov’s physical problems is
(a) the way he sleeps (b) his palpitations
(c) his headache (d) his limp
[8]
 (ii) Chubukov said that Lomov’s younger aunt had
run away with
(a) a hunter (b) a drunkard
(c) a count (d) an architect
(iii) Lomov wanted to remind Natalya that her dog
was
(a) ugly (b) old
(c) overshot (d) lame
(iv) Natalya suggested that Lomov should not go
after foxes but
(a) catch black beetles (b) go after horses
(c) shoot partridges (d) go to the doctor

[9]
 ANSWER
PART-A
1. [a] The girl is the fellow passenger of the narrator in
Ruskin Bond’s short story, ‘The Eyes Have It’.
When the engine’s whistle shrieked, the carriage
wheels changed their sound and rhythm, signaling
the arrival of Saharanpur, the girl got up.
As the train was nearing her destination,
Saharanpur, the girl got up to collect her things.
The narrator was so impressed by the girl that he
wanted to continue listening to her voice. So he
felt sad when the train was arriving at Saharanpur,
the girl’s destination. She departed, leaving
behind the tantalising smell of her perfumed hair
and making the narrator spellbound by her sweet
voice. At this stage, being away from the girl, the
narrator felt that the girl would forget him on
leaving. But her memory would remain with him
for quite some time.
[b] APJ Abdul Kalam is the speaker.
The answer given by APJ Abdul Kalam’s father to
his son’s query is being referred to here.
Once Dr. Kalam’s father was explaining man’s
position in the universe and the positive role of
adversity. On hearing this, Kalam wanted to know
why he did not say that to the people who came
to him for help and advice. Jainulabdeen
answered that every recurrent anguish, longing
and desire demands its own special helper. For
the people in distress, he was a mediator in their
[ 10 ]
 attempts to please demonic forces with prayers
and offerings. He himself did not approve of this
approach. Then he gave a two-fold vision of
destiny—(i) the fear-ridden vision of destiny and
(ii) the vision of finding out the enemy of
fulfilment within ourselves. This answer filled
Kalam with a strange energy and enthusiasm.
[c] The boy, Roger, asked this question to Mrs. Luella
Bates Washington Jones.
When Mrs. Jones asked Roger to go to the sink to
wash his face, Roger went to the sink. She then
advised him to let the water run until it got warm
and pointed to a clean towel there. While washing
his face bending over the sink, Roger asked this
question.
Mrs. Jones replied that with that face she would
not take him anywhere. Rather she would prepare
supper for herself.
[d] The Tsar washed and bandaged the wound
several times till the blood stopped flowing.
The man begged for forgiveness from the Tsar
because the Tsar saved his life when he was
severely wounded although he had intended to
kill the Tsar.
The Tsar was extremely pleased to gain the
friendship of an enemy so easily. He forgave the
man. He promised to send his servants and his
own doctor to attend to him. He also promised to
give back the man’s property.
2. [a] In the first stanza of the poem, ‘On Killing a Tree’,
Gieve Patel describes the growth of a tree.
[ 11 ]
 According to the poet, a tree grows slowly by
consuming the nutrients from the earth. The tree
takes essential nutrients from the earth’s upper
crust and prepares its food. It also absorbs
sunlight, air and water, the three elemental forces
of nature, to produce food. This food reaches all
parts of the tree as a result of which the tree
grows. Thus, taking in nutrients from the earth
and the atmosphere, the tree grows gradually.
The poet describes the growth of a tree to suggest
its vivacity.
In order to kill a tree, it has to be uprooted. So the
tree is roped, tied and pulled out. It is now cut off
from the earth. Finally, in the presence of sun and
air, the roots pass through the processes of
scorching, choking, browning, hardening, twisting
and withering. In this way, the killing of a tree is
complete.
[b] The smile of the soldier, sleeping in the valley, is
referred to here.
The soldier, sleeping peacefully in the valley, has a
beautiful smile on his face. His face has no guile. It
appears that after tiring labour in the battlefield,
he has got a chance to rest his weary limbs. The
peace the soldier is enjoying during his sleep,
makes his smile as innocent as that of a child.
The sufferings of the soldier seem to be removed
by the comforts provided by the Nature. Nature
provides a sun-soaked bed for the tired soldier
and supports his head on a pillow made of ferns.
[ 12 ]
 Moreover, Nature places flowers at his feet to
show her respect for the dead soldier.
[c] The poet’s friend is being referred to as ‘thy’.
The group of words ‘thy eternal summer’ means
the eternal youth and beauty of the poet’s friend.
The poet wants to save his friend from the
onslaughts of time. The beauty of his friend is
better than that of a summer’s day. The beauty of
a summer’s day is often inconsistent. So, the poet
realizes the futility of immortalising his friend by
comparing him to a summer’s day. He perceives
that only the verses written by him can eternalize
the beauty of his friend. His verses are
imperishable and therefore the beauty and
virtues of his friend will be retained forever
through these verses.
[d] By ‘the poetry of earth’ Keats means the music of
nature. The poet mentions the song of the birds
and the voice of the Grasshopper and the Cricket.
Here the poet says that songs and music of nature
will never stop. They will go on without any break.
Any change in season or weather will not affect
this. In summer, the song-birds, being tired in the
hot sun, take shelter in cooling shade and stop
singing. Even then the song of Nature is heard as
the tiny Grasshopper sings merrily while moving
about from hedge to hedge in the meadow.
Similarly, in the midst of frosty, silent, bleak
winter evening, the poetry of earth continues. The
shrill cry of the Cricket breaking the silence of the
[ 13 ]
 winter evening reminds the drowsy man of the
Grasshopper’s delightful song among the grassy
hills.
3. [a] In Anton Chekhov’s one-act play ‘The Proposal’,
Chubukov says this.
The person who is asked to is Lomov who has
come to Chubukov’s house.
Lomov enters wearing formal dress—a dress-
jacket and white gloves. This formal dress is
generally worn as an evening dress for ball or such
other occasions. Chubukov asks Lomov why he is
in his evening dress. It seems to Chubukov that
Lomov has come for a New year’s Eve visit.
Though it is still unknown to Chubukov, Lomov has
worn such dress for a special purpose. He has
come to Chubukov to ask the hand of his
daughter, Natalya, in marriage.
[b] At the age of 35, Lomov has come to a point in his
life when it is not possible for him to remain a
bachelor. He cannot wait for an ideal or real love.
He suffers from palpitations and insomnia, so he
needs somebody to support him. Lomov chooses
Natalya not because he has fallen in love with her,
but because of a practical necessity. He thinks
that Natalya is ‘an excellent housekeeper, not
bad-looking, well-educated’, so he chooses her.
He has no cordial emotion for her.
[c] Chubukov says this.
Chubukov finds himself to be an unhappy man as
he is the father of a grown-up daughter. His
happiness at Lomov’s proposal does not last long
[ 14 ]
 as Lomov leaves his house in rage after a quarrel
over Oxen Meadows. His whimsical daughter,
Natalya, again develops a second quarrel with
Lomov when he returns. Now the quarrel is over
their hunting dogs, Guess and Squeezer. A patient
of insomnia and palpitations, Lomov suddenly
loses his consciousness as he cannot keep up his
nerves. Being afraid of Lomov’s death Natalya
starts screaming. Lomov does not drink. At this
point, Chubukov also loses his nerves. In utter
helplessness he considers himself unhappy.
When Lomov comes round, Chubukov asks him to
hurry up and get married as Natalya is willing.
Although Lomov still cannot manage himself, he
goes on following Chubukov’s instructions and
gets married. Thus Chubukov gets rid of his
unhappiness.
4. [a] (i) I have no intention to give up what I have.
(ii) Addressing the wise man, the Tsar said
politely that he came to him for an answer to
his questions.
(iii) You would have been attacked by the man.
(iv) The door was not shut.
(v) As the sun began to sink behind the trees, the
Tsar stuck the spade into the ground at last.
(vi) No other thing in the world was as important
as science.
[b] (i) of (ii) for (iii) to
(iv) in (v) a (vi) for
[c] presentable
[ 15 ]
5. [a] (i) T (ii) F (iii) T (iv) T
[b] (i) Man can blast holes out of mountains for their
mineral wealth; or strip them of their trees
and foliage, or dam their streams and divert
their currents; or make tunnels and roads and
bridges.
(ii) The author claims a relationship with the
trees, wild flowers, even the rocks that are an
integral part of the mountain.
(iii) For the author it is hard to believe that he has
lived in the hills for fifty years because when
he looks back to the time of his first going
there, it seems like yesterday.
6. [a] “Educate the Girl Child” Campaign at ABC School
On 8 March our school conducted a campaign
entitled ‘Educate the Girl Child’ as a part of
observation of Women’s Day at school. The
programme was inaugurated by local MLA at
10.30 am. The school organized a rally that
marched through neighbouring locality with
posters and placards. About one thousand
students and teachers attended the rally that
aimed at creating mass awareness regarding the
importance of women education in our society.
The programme included cultural competition,
recitation and song, panel discussion, and staging
a playlet highlighting the issue. Students
participated in large numbers in poster making,
slogal writing, quiz-contest and debate. Teachers
played important role in organizing the whole
programme. Our headmaster conducted an
[ 16 ]
 interactive session for the students focusing on
the role of Rammohan, Vidyasagar, Vivekananda,
Rabindranath and others in promoting women
education in India through ages. The BDO
delivered her lecture on the role of government
projects such as ‘Kanyashree’ and ‘Beti Bachao
Beti Padhao’ in promoting women education. In
his short speech our English teacher said that an
educated woman would not only contribute to
the economy but also help eradicate social evils
and inequalities in our society. Other speakers
spoke of women education and empowerment.
The campaign was a grand success in infusing the
idea that when we educate a girl, we educate a
nation.
[b] To
The Headmaster,
Rampurhat High School,
Rampurhat, Birbhum
Sub : Request for improvement of school library
Sir,
On behalf of the students of the school, I would
like to bring your kind notice to the following
difficulties that students frequently face while
using our school library.
Firstly, our school library should have a good stock
of textbooks. The students of our school come
mostly from families with low or moderate
income. They cannot buy all the textbooks.
Secondly, the library has no stock of useful
reference books. Most of the reference books are
[ 17 ]
 in tatters because of overuse and mishandling.
The old editions of encyclopedias and dictionaries
are to be replaced by current editions to provide
valid and up to date information.
Thirdly, the library should be properly equipped
with new books, journals and magazines. The
students must develop a habit of reading to enrich
their knowledge. They can spend their leisure by
reading books and magazines.
Lastly, the function of the library is not smooth
and satisfactory. It does not maintain the basic
principles of library science.
I hope you will take up the matter in right earnest
in the interest of the students.
We shall be grateful for your favour.
Yours obediently,
Tirtha Pal
Secretary
Students’ Welfare Subcommittee
Rampurhat
June 20, 2018
[c] Title: Relevance of Science
Science has both good and bad effects. It has
changed man’s life and has made it more
comfortable. However, excessive mechanization
kills human souls. Men become dependent on
machines and become negligent of their faculties.
But science has helped human beings to
understand nature’s truth and so empowers
them. However science does not provide wisdom.
[ 18 ]
 PART-B
1. [i] (b) enemy of the Tsar
[ii] (c) wash his face
[iii] (c) Tamil
[iv] (c) gallant and serious
2. [i] Abdul Kalam’s father used to avoid all inessential
comforts and luxuries.
[ii] When the Tsar came to take leave of the hermit,
he was sowing seed in the beds.
[iii] According to the hermit, the most important
thing to do is to do good to people around us.
[iv] In the story ‘The Eyes Have It’ the girl was getting
off at Saharanpur.
[v] The narrator thinks that aunts are usually
formidable creatures.
[vi] Roger was wearing tennis shoes and blue jeans.
[vii] Kalam considered Pakshi Lakshmana Sastry, the
high priest of Rameswaram Temple, to be a very
close friend of his father.
[viii] Roger and Mrs. Luella Bates Washington met on
the open road at about eleven o’clock at night.
3. [i] (a) the sun
[ii] (b) curled
[iii] (c) pleasant weed
[iv] (b) warm
4. [i] The expression ‘Slowly consuming the earth’
means gradually taking nutrients from the earth.
[ii] In the small green valley, the stream leaves long
strands of silver.
[ 19 ]
 [iii] Death, according to the poet, will never brag of
its omnipotence over his friend.
[iv] On a lone, cold and silent winter evening, one
might hear the Cricket’s song.
[v] In Keats’ sonnet, ‘The Poetry of Earth’ all the
birds hide in the cooling shade of the trees.
[vi] ‘Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day’ is a
Shakespearean sonnet.
[vii] The soldier lies stretched in the heavy
undergrowth of a small green valley.
[viii] The strength of a tree lies in its roots, which keep
it firmly fixed to the ground.
5. [i] (a) the way he sleeps
[ii] (d) an architect
[iii] (c) overshot
[iv] (a) catch black beetles

[ 20 ]