- Fill in the blank spaces .(Solved)
Fill in the blank spaces .
The broadened freedom of speech bestowed upon people --------------------------- the rise of social media
platforms does have its merits, as many now --------------------------a platform where they can ---------------------
their concerns about injustices within the society. -----------, everything has its good things and bad things as ------
----------------. The freedom on social media has also rendered these avenues ------------------------grounds for hate
--------------------. Many use it to promote their bigoted ideology. They encourage hatred ------------------------
warring individuals or parties simply because they are ----------------------- to the views, beliefs, or behavior that
differ from ---------------------------
Date posted: May 24, 2019. Answers (1)
-
Short Stories, When the sun Goes Down and other stories.
The reason that makes people want to leave home and go abroad is that their...(Solved)
Short Stories, When the sun Goes Down and other stories.
The reason that makes people want to leave home and go abroad is that their mother country pushes them away. Using illustrations from leaving by Moyez G, Vassanji, show the validity of this statement.
Date posted: May 24, 2019. Answers (1)
- Read the excerpt below and answer the questions that follow.(Solved)
Read the excerpt below and answer the questions that follow.
Read the excerpt below and answer the questions that follow: (25mks)
INKEEPER: Your worship, it’s a question of the family honour. I wish to bring an action on behalf of
my son, who’s away on business on the other side of the mountain. This is the offending
stable man, and here is my daughter in law.
(Enter the Daughter in law, a voluptuous wench. She is veiled)
AZDAK: (Sitting down): I accept (sighing, the Inkeeper hands him some money). Good. Now the
formalities are disposed of. This is a case of rape?
INKEEPER: Your honour, I caught the fellow in the act. Ludovica was in the straw on the stable
floor.
AZDAK: Quite right, the stable. Lovely horses! I especially liked the little roan.
INKEEPER: The first thing I did, of course, was to question Ludovica. On my son’s behalf.
AZDAK: (Seriously) I said I specially liked the little roan.
INKEEPER: (Coldly): Really? Ludovica confessed the stableman took her against her will.
AZDAK: Take your veil off: Ludovica (she does) Ludovica, you please tell the court. Tell us what
happened.
LUDOVICA: (Well schooled). When I entered the stable to see the new foal the stableman said to
me on his own accord, “It’s hot today!” and laid his hand on my left breast. I said to him,
“Don’t do that!” But he continued to handle me indecently, which provoked my anger.
Before I realized his sinful intentions, he got much closer. It was all over when my father-inlaw entered and accidentally trod on me.
INKEEPER: (explaining) On my son’s behalf.
AZDAK: (to the stableman). You admit you started it?
STABLEMAN: Yes
AZDAK: Ludovica, you like to eat sweet things?
LUDOVICA: Yes, sunflower seeds.
AZDAK: You like to lie a long time in the bathtub?
LUDOVICA: Half an hour or so.
Questions
(a) Explain what happens before this excerpt.
(b) 'I accept.' Explain what is implied by this statement.
(c) 'Your honour, I caught the fellow in the act.' Identify and explain one theme that can be deduced from the
statement.
(d) '(Sighing, the innkeeper hands him some money.) Good now the formalities are disposed of.' What turns out to
be ironic about this statement?
(e) Who is the public prosecutor in this case?
(f) Why do you think Azdak asks Ludovica to remove her veil?
(g) Describe any other three cases adjudicated by Azdak.
(h) Basing your answer on the excerpt, identify and illustrate any two character traits of Ludovica.
(i) Identify an instance of humour used in the except.
(j) Give the meaning of the following words as used in the excerpt.
(i) Roan:…………………………………………………………………………………………
(ii) Stable:…………………………………………………………………………………………
Date posted: May 24, 2019. Answers (1)
- Read the following comprehension passage and then answer the questions that follow.(Solved)
Read the following comprehension passage and then answer the questions that follow.
Aristotle, the father of Western critical thought, Leonardo da Vinci, Oprah Winfrey, Marie Curie, Albert
Einstein, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, Fidel Castro, George Bush, Julius Caesar, Alexander the Great, Napoleon
Bonaparte, Bill Gates, Barack Obama and Uhuru Kenyatta all have one thing in common. Not that they are great
men and a woman, but because all of them are left-handed!
Is there something special about being left handed? It is a question that has given rise to many myths about
left handed people.
Interestingly, in a majority of cultures the world over, left-handed people are a stigmatised minority. Left is
associated with femininity while right in linked to masculinity.In many of our cultures, when giving direction, we
talk about the female side and male side of the road. Patriarchal structures have ways of twisting the truth to
preserve masculine hegemony.
In some cultures of Africa, people view left-handedness as a sign of evil, while in Japan it can be enough
reason for divorce. Many myths in our cultures in Africa regard left-handedness as something unacceptable and
evil. Languages have ways of carrying these beliefs about left-handedness. In Latin, the word left is synonymous
with “sinister”, while in Spanish the word for left is linked with “malicious”. The French word for left is
synonymous with “awkward”. In English, the word left comes from the Anglo-Saxon word ‘luft’, which means
weak or broken.
The holy books have not been left out in stigmatising left-handedness. The Bible, specifically the book of
Judges, associates left-handedness with war-like tendencies.
We also know of many sayings that are negative in reference to left handedness, for instance left wing and a lefthanded compliment.
It is, therefore, possible to argue that left handed people are a minority that deserves attention. They suffer at
the hands of right handed people who do not recognise their special needs
Some insensitive teachers are known to punish left handed children and force them to write using their right
hands. It is, however, notable that in Western cultures, the discrimination of left-handed people is almost over due
to the enlightenment of the society.
But what brings about left handedness? Experts remain unsure of how handedness emerges in children.
However, a number of reasons have been advanced to explain why majority of people in all societies are righthanded. In terms percentage, less than 10 percent of the world population is left handed and majority of them are males.
Evolutionary theory attempts to explain this phenomenon by suggesting that during the early ages, primitive
hunters needed to protect their most vital organ of the body — the heart — and their left hand was used to hold the
shield. The right hand was used to hold the sword or knife and because of this it acquired greater agility, which
was passed down through the generations.
This theory, therefore, explains why more men would be right-handed than women. Other studies have also
revealed that the left-handedness of children is an inherited trait. It is common if one parent is left-handed and
more common if both parents are left handed.
An equally useful theory that tries to explain this phenomenon is the brain hemisphere theory. It postulates
that the preference of using one side of the body more than the other in performing special tasks depends on which
brain hemisphere is dominant. In most people, the left hemisphere controls speaking and handy work and that is
why right-handedness is common. It further argues that left-handed people are controlled by the right hemisphere
of the brain.
Some researchers claim that left-handed people are more intelligent and eloquent than the right-handed
people. It is argued that there are more left-handed people with IQs of over 140 than right-handed people.
Captivatingly, other studies reveal that left-handed people are more unlikely to suffer from disorders of the
immune system.
In view of the fact that studies have found that this group of individuals comprise of intelligent and creative
people, we need to revisit our curriculum in order for it to take care of their unique potentialities. We have to put
in place structures that will create a learner-friendly environment for left handed children. Desks should also be
designed to cater for their unique needs. Special pens and writing materials should be provided specifically for this
group of children. More importantly, we should re-train teachers to appreciate the fact that pupils are gifted in
different ways, and it is their duty to help pupils to put to use these gifts.
Adapted from Saturday Nation 28/02/2015 Pg. 39
By Prof. Egara Kabaji and Dr Misigo Lushya.
Questions
(a) Why do the writers give a long list of people who were / are left-handed?
(b) How are the left-handed people discriminated against in the society they live in?
(c) What makes left-handed people unique?
(d) According to the passage, why do we have fewer females being left-handed than males?
(e) Distinguish the functioning of the left-handed people from the right-handed ones?
f) Make notes on the various ways left-handed individuals can be accommodated by the learning institutions.
(g) Rewrite the following sentence as instructed.
Desks should also be designed to cater for their unique needs.
Begin: Their unique needs:
(h) Explain the meaning of the following words as used in the passage.
(i) Agility:…………………………………………………………………………………………………
(ii) Hemisphere:……………………………………………………………………………………………
(iii) Postulates:………………………………………………………………………………………………..
Date posted: May 24, 2019. Answers (1)
- Consider the following dialogue and describe the shortcomings of Orgon’s listening skills.(Solved)
Consider the following dialogue and describe the shortcomings of Orgon’s listening skills.
ORGON: Ah, good morning, brother.
CLEANTE: I was just going. I’m glad to see you back again. There isn’t much life in the
countryside just now.
ORGON: Dorine – (to Cleante) a moment brother, please – excuse me if I ask the news of
the family first and set my mind at rest. (To Dorine).
Has everything gone well the few days I’ve been away? What have you been doing? How is everyone?
DORINE: The day before yesterday, the mistress was feverish all day. She had a dreadful
headache.
ORGON: And Tartuffe?
DORINE: Tartuffe? He’s very well: hale and hearty: in the pink.
ORGON: Poor fellow!
DORINE: In the evening she felt faint and couldn’t touch anything, her headache was so
bad.
ORGON: And Tartuffe?
DORINE: He supped with her. She ate nothing but he very devoutly devoured a couple of
partridges and half a hashed leg of mutton.
ORGON: And Tartuffe?
DORINE: Feeling pleasantly drowsy he went straight to his room, jumped into a nice warm
bed, and slept like a top until morning.
ORGON: Poor fellow!
DORINE: Eventually she yielded to our persuasions, allowed herself to be bled, and soon felt
much relieved?
ORGON: And Tartuffe?
DORINE: He dutifully kept up his spirits and took three or four good swigs of wine at
breakfast to fortify himself against the worst that might happen and to make up for the blood the
mistress had lost.
ORGON: Poor fellow!
DORINE: They are both well again now so I’ll go ahead and tell the mistress how glad you
are to hear that she’s better.
(From the Misanthrope and other Plays by Moliere)
Date posted: May 24, 2019. Answers (1)
- Read the Oral Narrative below and answer the questions that follow.(Solved)
Read the Oral Narrative below and answer the questions that follow.
In a town called Irandunwo, lived a loose talker called “Elenuobere” – “sharp mouth.” One day it was
rumored that a man had seduced the Oba’s wife. He went and said he had designed the plan by which that act
was accomplished. He was taken to court and convicted of talking rubbish hence fined one pound and five
shillings. He had no money and so went to prison.
But a kind farmer agreed to bail him out if he would work on his farm for five days. The next day on
the way to the farm, they heard a sound in the bush. Elenuobere burst out, “surely that is a horse grazing, and
its left eye is blind.” The farmer betted with him that if that was true he would strike off five shillings from the
debt. If not, the debtor would give one extra day of work. When they reached the animal, Elenuobere was
proved right and so his debt was reduced.
Soon afterwards, they came across a wet spot and he claimed it was the piss of a pregnant woman.
Once again, he was right and the debt was reduced. At the farm when they sat to eat, the farmer sighed three
times and each time Elenuobere claimed he knew what was in his thoughts. The argument that ensued led
them to the king’s court for a settlement. The farmer all the time was confident that he could deny whatever
Elenuobere would say.
Before the royal assembly, Elenuobere then stated: “The first thought was: May God Almighty give
long life to the king. Your second thought was: may this royal family continue to rule long in our town. And
your third thought was: May God grant the king’s heir who will rule after him.” The whole gathering,
including the farmer, affirmed saying “Amen.” The could not deny lest he annoyed the king.
Elenuobere got his acquittal and relief from the labour. “The mouth that commits an offence must talk
itself out of punishment.” The story illustrates the quoted final adage
QUESTIONS
(i) State three things that the narrator must do in order to capture the audience’s attention before beginning to tell
the story.
(ii) The narrator mid-way of the story telling session notices signs of inattentiveness among the audience. What
are the signs of inattentiveness?
(iii)How do you say Eleneuobere’s words, 'surely, that is a horse grazing, and its left eye is blind.'
(iv) Give an example of a proverb that can be used to describe Eleneuobere’s behaviour.
Date posted: May 24, 2019. Answers (1)
- Read the passage below and fill in the gaps using the most appropriate words.(Solved)
Read the passage below and fill in the gaps using the most appropriate words.
The classification (1) _________ any material refers to (2) _________ division of such materials into specific
classes according to established (3) _____. The categories developed should (4) ____ be able to accommodate all
manner of material considered. We can then talk of literary classification as a (5) __________ of categorizing,
characterizing, describing, typifying, labeling etc. In literature (6) _________, classification is done according to
the content or (7) ________ of the material. Content refers to the subjects, ideas, people, objects and situations
presented in the work. The latter refers to the how, the shapes, patterns, appearances, dimensions and textures.
Written literature comes to us in the form of novels, short stories, poems (8) __________ plays. They are in a
graphic form. But oral literature comes (9) __________ the form of narratives, poetry, riddles and proverbs.
They are transmitted by (10) ___________ of mouth and therefore have an oral form.
Date posted: May 24, 2019. Answers (1)
- Explain the meaning of the following sentences.
i. Lydia found the empty room.
ii. Lydia found the room empty.(Solved)
Explain the meaning of the following sentences.
i. Lydia found the empty room.
ii. Lydia found the room empty.
Date posted: May 24, 2019. Answers (1)
- Punctuate the following sentence.(Solved)
Punctuate the following sentence
1. Cherotich why do you always quarrel Paul he asked
Date posted: May 24, 2019. Answers (1)
- Supply correct question tags to the following.(Solved)
Supply correct question tags to the following.
i. Let us go home.........................................
ii. I am pleased with you................................
Date posted: May 24, 2019. Answers (1)
- Replace the underlined word with the correct phrasal verb. (Solved)
Replace the underlined word with the correct phrasal verb.
i. The class teacher promised to solve the problem.(sort)
ii. He tried all his dirty tricks on us but he did not succeed .(come)
Date posted: May 24, 2019. Answers (1)
- Use the correct form of the word in brackets in the sentences that follow.(Solved)
Use the correct form of the word in brackets in the sentences that follow.
i. She ...........................the teachers advice in everything she did. (seek)
ii. He has ......................... across the muddy river. (swim)
iii. They............................. in amazement. (spin)
iv. The senator was popular for his....................... .........character. (conscience)
Date posted: May 24, 2019. Answers (1)
- Rewrite the following sentences as instructed.(Solved)
Rewrite the following sentences as instructed.
(i) No one likes to be sick. (change the infinitive into a gerund)
(ii) Many students do not benefit if they read late into the night. (Rewrite using present simple)
(iii) My examination results were released only after I had cleared the fee balance.
(Begin: Not until......)
(iv) The teacher was annoyed by the students. He punished them severely. (rewrite using past participle)
Date posted: May 24, 2019. Answers (1)
- Read the poem bellow and answer the question that follows
My grandmother by Elizabeth Jennings(Solved)
Read the poem bellow and answer the question that follows
My grandmother
by Elizabeth Jennings
She kept an antique shop-or it kept her.
Among Apostle spoons and Bristol glasses,
The faded silks, the heavy furniture,
She watched her own reflection in the brass
Salvers and silver bowls, as if to prove
Polish was all, there was no need for love.
And I remember how I once refused
To go out with her, since I was afraid.
It was perhaps a wish not to be used
Like antique objects .Though she never said
That she was hurt, I still could feel the guilt
Of that refusal, guessing how she felt.
Later, too frail to keep a shop, she put
All her best things in one long, narrow room.
The place smelt old, of things too long kept shut,
The smell of absences where shadows come
That can’t be polished. There was nothing then
To give her own reflection back again.
And when she died I felt no grief at all,
Only the guilt of what I once refused.
I walked into her room among the tall
Sideboards and cupboards-things she never used
But needed: and no finger-marks were there,
Only the new dust falling through the air.
a) Identify the persona in the above poem.
b) In note form, summarize what each stanza is talking about
c) Identify and briefly explain the use of any two images in the poem
d) What does the persona feel towards the subject matter?
e) What do the following lines mean in the poem?
'too frail to keep a shop'
'Only the new dust falling through the air'
f) Describe the tone the persona uses in the poem above
g) Explain the paradox in the line:
-things she never used
But needed
h) Explain the persona’s sense of guilt?
Date posted: May 24, 2019. Answers (1)
- Read the passage below and answer the questions that follow(Solved)
Read the passage below and answer the questions that follow.
Terrorism is a real and urgent threat to nations and their interests a threat that could become perilous if terrorists
acquire nuclear or biological weapons. The policies pursued by the bush administration have too often been
counterproductive and self-defeating. In the name of an ‘offensive’ strategy, they have undermined the values and
principles that made the United States a model for the world, dismayed cooperative nations around the world and
jeopardize their cooperation with us, and provided ammunition for terrorist recruitment in the Middle East and
beyond. To achieve our long-term objective we must go beyond narrow counterterrorism policies to embed
counterterrorism in an overarching national security strategy designed to restore American leadership and respect
in the world. This leadership must be based on a strong commitment to our values and to building the structures of
international cooperation that are needed to only fight terrorists, but also to meet key challenges of our time:
proliferation; climate change and energy security; the danger of pandemic disease; and the need to sustain a
vibrant global economy that lifts the lives of people everywhere.
We have to demonstrate that the model of liberty and tolerance embodied by the United States, are the enemy of
these universal ambitions. We must pursue an integrated set of policies- on non-proliferation, energy and climate,
global public health and economic development- which reflect recognition that in an independent world, the
American people can be safe and prosperous only if others too share in these blessings. Our policies must
demonstrate a respect for differences of history, culture and tradition, while remaining true to the principles of
liberty embodied in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This kind of enlightened self interest led others to
rally to American leadership in the Cold War and offers the best hope for sustaining our leadership in the future.
The world is filled with terrorist organizations. While the State Departments list of designated groups includes
almost four dozen, numerous well known ones are still omitted because of issues related to designation process.
Yet to many organizations, only one subset currently poses a serious and sustained threat to the United States and
its allies: the Sunni jihadist organization known by the shorthand ‘al Qaeda’
The group merits this special status because it is the only terrorist organization with the ambition and the
capability to inflict genuinely catastrophic damage, which can provisionally be defined as attacks that claim
causalities in the four digits or higher. The group is also unique in that it may eventually be able to carry out a
campaign of repeated attacks that would have a paralyzing effect on American life and its institutions. Its ability to
foil fundamental U.S. strategic goals-as it did in Iraq and as it threatens to do together with the Taliban in
Afghanistan-has been amply demonstrated. As the turmoil in Pakistan has demonstrated, its capacity for upsetting
the geopolitics of major regions of the world today is also unrivalled among non-state actors. The evidence
provided by September 11, 2001 is sufficient to demonstrate the groups’ capability and its determination. Unlike
most terrorist, it eschews incremental gains and seeks no part of a negotiation process; it seeks to achieve its
primary ends, including mobilization of a large number of Muslims, through violence
The Bush administration has fundamentally misunderstood the nature of the jihadist movement and its actions
have made the threat considerably worse. The administration has hyped the threat and subordinated foreign
security policy into the ‘Global War on Terror.’ It has relied on the wrong tools –principally the military- and
vastly overemphasized tactics at the expense of strategy. To the extent that it has a strategy for reducing the appeal
of jihad, it is the ‘freedom agenda’ which has backfired. Counter terrorism requires a shift away from a foreign
and security policy that makes counterterrorism the prism through which everything is evaluated and decided. It
requires a policy that must go beyond uncompromising efforts to do away with those who seek to harm us today.
International engagement is essential in meeting this threat since it will ensure that new terrorist recruits do not
come to take the place of those that have been defeated.
(Adapted from ‘strategic Counterterrorism’ by Daniel Benjamin, Policy Paper Number 7, 2008)
Questions
1. In what ways were the policies pursued by the Bush administration counterproductive and self-defeating?
2. What according to the author is the essence of American counterterrorism leadership?
3. Make notes on what ought to be done to uphold American leadership?
4. In the following sentence, replace the underlined expression with one word
It requires a policy that must go beyond uncompromising efforts to do away with those who seek to harm us
today.
5. Why is Al-Qaida a unique group?
6. What is needed in the fight against terrorism?
7. In your opinion, what is the most dangerous aspect of terror a threat?
8. Explain the meaning of each of the following words as used in the passage
a) Embed
b) Designated
c) Foil
d) Prism
Date posted: May 24, 2019. Answers (1)
- Complete the telephone conversation below between a parent and a student acting as a receptionist at her school.(Solved)
Complete the telephone conversation below between a parent and a student acting as a receptionist at her school.
Mrs. Wanjau: ………………………………………………………………………………
Joan: Hallo. Yes, this is Makutano High School. How can I help you?
Mrs. Wanjau: ………………………………………………………………………………….……
………………………………………………………………………………………………
Joan: I am sorry the Principal is not in at the moment. Can you leave a message?
Mrs. Wanjau:………………………………………………………………………………
Joan: I am Joan, a form 4 student stepping in for the receptionist who has gone out shortly.
Mrs. Wanjau: ………………………………………………………………………………
Joan: Yes once in a while students of office practice and typing are allowed to step in for the receptionist as part of
their practice.
Mrs. Wanjau: ………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………
Joan: Thank you very much. I will let the Principal know that you will call tomorrow.
Date posted: May 24, 2019. Answers (1)
- Read the following poem and then answer the questions that follow.
The Bride.(Solved)
Read the following poem and then answer the questions that follow.
The Bride.
Why do you wear that dress so white?
Why do you wear that veil so light?
Why do your young eyes shine so bright?
Is it your wedding?
I wear dress and veil to show
That gladly to my love I go
My young eyes shine because I know
It is my wedding.
(i) Identify the rhyme scheme of this poem?
(ii) Using illustrations show how rhythm has been achieved in the poem.
(iii) Would you use the rising or the falling intonation in reading line 3 in stanza one in this poem? Give reason.
(iv) How would you say the last line of the second stanza?
Date posted: May 24, 2019. Answers (1)
- Fill in the following cloze test.(Solved)
Fill in the following cloze test.
CLOZE TEST 10 MARKS
There is this bizarre preoccupation with 1………………………… class among us such
2…………………………. what happened at Langa’ta was bound to happen. Our greed 3………………………
wealth and standing considers nothing sacred, nothing immoral, nothing offensive to everyone, which is why
some people were wondering why the children were protesting 4……………………… they were supposed to be
in class! Our preoccupation with private academies for our children is partly what made the “private developer”
target public school 5…………………….., only that for the “developer’”, the police who came to secure the
interests of one against many used tear gas on children.
If most of us decided to 6………………………. our children to public schools and worked collectively to make
them better, chances are this particular “private developer” and many 7……………………….. would avoid
school land for fear of reaction. But many of us have 8………………………. to this mess by avoiding public
facilities— schools, hospitals 9………………………. even parks — because using them does not speak
10……………………..of our social standing.
Date posted: May 24, 2019. Answers (1)
- Read the following narrative and then answer the questions that follow(Solved)
Read the following narrative and then answer the questions that follow.
Once upon a time there lived a man who was very old and as poor as a church mouse. The old man his living by
cutting trees and burning charcoal. He would then sell to the villagers for small amount of money. Business was
very low because they were very few, poor and as a result he could go home hungry. Despite this, the old man
never despaired but worked even One day the old man woke up very early in the morning and headed to the forest where he worked. Suddenly he
heard a voice, “who is that who wants to destroy our house?” The old man was so scared that the axe fell down
from his hand. He answered with a shaky voice. “It’s me a poor old man and I have not eaten since yesterday. I
have come to look for trees, burn them into charcoal and sell.” The voice said sympathetically, “Go to that cave
inside you will find a pot. Take it home and instruct it to cook food. He rushed to the cave and found the post as
he had been told. He hurriedly took it home. On reaching home he repeated what he had been told. “Pot cook
food” and Alas! There was plenty of food. He ate and ate until he could eat no more.
The man was very happy and forgot his old business. This continued for months. Then one day the pot did not
cook the food. He carefully checked the pot for cracks but he found none. After a thorough check he saw a tiny
hole at the bottom of the pot. He
“Oh dear vulture,” said the hen with confusion and great regret, “forgive me; I am so sorry for this my negligence.
I really intended to return you razor very soon, but I put it in my leather bag, and forgot it completely. Let me go
and take it; you will have it in half a minute.”
“Yes, I know you are forgetful creature, but look at the damage you have caused me. You have deprived me of
my sustenance for many days. Mind you, if you have lost it, you will pay for it very dearly,” said the vulture. The
hen rushed into the hut to fetch the razor. She plunged her hand into the leather bag, alas! It was empty; there was
no razor in it. She was very shocked at the unpleasant discovery. She started searching on the floor to see if by
chance it had dropped from the bag but there was not finding it. She looked under the children’s bed, near the
firestones, in the store; but there was no sign of it. Tired and defeated, she came out and imploring, said, “O dear
friend and master, I can’t find it. Have mercy on me! I will search better. I am ready to demolish my hut
altogether, and search diligently until I find and return it to you.”
“I told you to be very careful, and I repeat again, I want my razor back! But mind, I want the very one I gave, and
no substitute!”
The poor hen spent all the day searching, but nothing came to light. She demolished her hut, and started searching
in the roof grass among the rubble of the walls, between the poles, in the ashes and even in the rubbish pit, but
nothing was found.
The following day the vulture came to see the results of the searching. He found the hen still scratching the ground
among a heap of dry grass and ox dung; but no razor was yet discovered.
“I am very sorry, dear hen,” said the vulture, “but I can’t wait any longer without compensation for my razor. For
today you must give me a chicken. Tomorrow I will return and see what has happened in the mean time.
So the vulture flew away with a chicken gripped within its talons under its breast. The following day he returned
to the hen. She was still scratching the ground; but she could not see any razor. Another chicken went with the
vulture. And the same happened in the following days until today. That is the reason why the hen is always
scratching the ground, and the vulture snooping on chickens even in our days. The hen is still searching for the
razor, and the vulture compensating himself for its loss.
(i) With reasons for your answer, categorize the above narrative
(ii) Give and illustrate any character trait of ‘the hen’
(iii)Identify and illustrate two features of style characteristic or oral narratives present in this narrative
(iv) What preparations would you put in place if you intend to carry out a field study in this genre?
(v) Highlight the problems you are likely to encounter during the field study and propose suitable solutions to
them
(vi) What moral lesson do you learn from this oral narrative? Give a reason for your answer
Date posted: May 23, 2019. Answers (1)
- Read the passage below then answer the questions that follow.(Solved)
Read the passage below then answer the questions that follow.
Problem drinkers and alcoholics pay severe penalties for their drinking. It has been estimated that alcoholics are
likely to die ten to twelve years sooner than non-alcoholics half die before the age of fifty, which is one reason
there are so few elderly alcoholics. The mortality rate (that is, the number of persons per 100,000 who die each
year) among alcoholics is more than two and a half times higher than that of the general population.
Alcoholics often die violent circumstances; serious accidents, homicide, and suicide are not uncommon. This,
together with the physical deterioration accompanying alcoholism, helps explain the limits on life expectancy. No
one really knows how many deaths are directly attributed to drinking, and all such statistics are estimates. One
reason for our limited knowledge is that many physicians do not report alcoholism as the main cause of death out
of concern for the feelings of the family of the deceased.
Research on the physiological effects of alcoholism has increased in the last few years. Heavy drinking is known
to be associated with various types of cancer, particularly among persons who also use tobacco. Alcohol abuse
also increases the probability of hypertension, stroke and coronary heart disease. Alcoholics frequently suffer
illness and death from cirrhosis of the liver, a disease in which the liver becomes fatty, scarred, and incapable of
functioning normally. In large urban areas, cirrhosis is the fourth most common cause of death among men aged
twenty-five to forty-five.
Alcohol affects the brain, often permanently damaging the mental functioning of alcoholics. Drinking may reduce
the number of living cells in the brain. Since brain cells do not grow back, alcoholics may suffer from organic
psychosis (a mental illness traceable to brain damages), loss of memory, and poor physical and mental coordination. One out of four persons who are admitted to mental hospitals are diagnosed as alcoholics and 40
percent of all admissions are alcohol related. Many of the alcoholic inmates are unlikely to recover.
The unborn children of female alcoholics are subject to harm from drinking in what is called foetal alcohol
syndrome.
Because alcohol tends to be a substitute for a balanced diet, alcoholics are often malnourished. Consequently, the
infants of alcoholic women are likely to be less healthy and less well developed than other babies. Moreover,
when a pregnant woman drinks, so, in effect, does her foetus. The new born children of alcoholic women may die
shortly after birth unless they are medically treated from the shock to their systems for suddenly being cut off
from alcohol. Furthermore, the impact of alcohol on the woman and her foetus is a major cause of birth defects
and originally based mental deficiency among the newborn. The effects of foetal alcohol syndrome on the
children of female alcoholics are usually chronic and may be permanently disabling.
Clearly, it is not too much of an exaggeration to say that alcohol kills and mains people. When abused, alcohol is
a highly dangerous drug.
Questions
(i) What are the major causes of death among alcoholics?
(ii) Which reason does the writer give as to why physicians do not report alcoholic related deaths?
(iii) One out of four persons who are admitted to mental hospitals are diagnosed as alcoholics. (Rewrite using a
few………………)
(iv) Alcoholics often die under violent circumstances…. (add a question tag)
(v) What is the attitude of the writer towards people who abuse alcohol
(vi) Explain what the following sentence means. Alcohol tends to be a substrate for a balanced diet
(vii) Make notes on the effects of alcohol to expectant mothers and their children
(viii) Supply a suitable title for the passage
(ix) Explain the meanings of the following words and phrases as used in the passage
a) Attributable
b) Scarred
c) Statistics
Date posted: May 23, 2019. Answers (1)