St.

Aloysius’ College – Galle

G.C.E. (O/L) Seminar
Appreciation of English Literary Texts
Part I

Section A

Answer all questions (Each question carries 5 marks)

I. POETRY

I. (i) They left him just as dusk was falling

With a hunchback moon and screech - owl’s calling.
(a) From where are these lines taken? Who is the writer?
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(b) Who are ‘they’ here?
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(c) Who is referred to as ‘him’?
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(d) Name two literary devices found in the second line.
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I. (ii) They would put her on a throne

where I could not go to see her.

(a) Name the work from which these lines are taken? Who wrote them?
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(b) Who are ‘they’ here?
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(c) Who is referred as ‘her’?
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(d) What is the hope of the speaker? What is the tone of the speaker?
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II. PROSE
II. (i) “They were both lying on the gravel now, but I didn’t call out to the driver to
wait for them”
(a) From where is this extract taken? Who is the writer?
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(b) Who are ‘they’ here?
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(c) What can you say about ‘I’ here?
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(d) Why didn’t the speaker call out to the driver to wait for them?
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II. (ii) “I told you not to, and now I tell you that you may”, ………………… rather impatiently.

(a) In which work do these words appear? Who is the writer?

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(b) Who says these words?
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(c) Where is the speaker?
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(d) Give two characteristics of the speaker here?
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III. DRAMA

III. (i) “Oh, Lord, have mercy and save her…I’ll go and find the coachman and the gardener….. Why
has this infliction come on us….

(a) From where are these lines taken? Who wrote them?
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
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(b) Who is the speaker here?
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(c) Who is referred as ‘her’ here?
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(d) Explain the situation
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III. (ii) “This is it………… This is it – everything comes from this stuff………………

(a) From which text is this line taken? Who is the writer?
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(b) Who speaks these words?
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(c) To whom are they spoken?
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(d) What is referred to as ‘it’? What is the tone of the speaker?
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Section B
Read the following extract and answer the questions given below it.

The night was hot; and still air and heat were suffocating. He saw his house beyond
the statue; unless he went and switched on a light, there would be no light in it. It
stood up, sinister and silent. There was a time when it had seethed with life, lamps
burning in every room, and during the festivals hundreds of mud lamps would be lit
and arrayed all along the parapet. Theirs had been the brightest home in those days.

(i) Who is ‘he’ here?

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. (2marks)
(ii) Where is ‘he’?
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… (2 marks)
(iii) Explain the following in your own words
(a) Sinister and silent
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(b) Seethed with life
……………………………………………………………………………………………… (1 mark)
(iv) What is the technique used here?
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… (2 marks)
What can you say about the feelings of ‘he’?
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… (2 marks)

Part II
(Answer only one question from each section. Each question carries 15 marks)

POETRY
1. Out of the poems you have studied under the theme “Nature”, what was the
most appealing to you? Discuss taking examples from the poems.
2. People deal with nature, changing it the way they want. How is this revealed in
the poem, “The Earthen Goblet”?
3. How has Jacques Prevert discussed the importance of communication in a
marriage through the poem, “Breakfast”?
4. “The Camel’s Hump” is a punitive effect. Elaborate this statement with
reference to the poem.
5. ‘I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings’ is all about the privileged and the
underprivileged classes in the society. Do you agree?

DRAMA
6. ‘Twilight of a Crane’ is a criticism against capitalism in Japan. Elaborate this
statement taking examples from the drama.
7. How is the close relation between anger and passion brought out in the drama,
‘The Bear’?

PROSE
8. How is ‘human behaviour in a crisis’ reflected in the prose, ‘Wave’?
9. ‘Nicholas is more powerful than the aunt at the end of the story’. Examine this
statement with reference to the events in the story, ’The Lumber Room’.
10. ‘A sense of patriotism and love for the citizens are reflected in Sangakkara’s
speech’. Do you agree?
11. How can you discuss ‘The Nightingale and the Rose’ as a fable of love, sacrifice
and selfishness.

FICTION
12. Out of the characters in the fiction, ‘The Vendor of Sweets’, whom do you
sympathize with? Justify your answer taking examples from the novel.

Prepared by: Aruni Koswatta