Section A (30 marks)
Answer both questions in this section in the spaces provided.
1. POETRY
DEAD LOSS
He waltzed into the club
With the poise and energy
Of a productive youth
Found a seat at the corner
His favourite spot
Bar man, one bottle of dry gin please!
And one more... and one more...
The clock struck mid-night
Time to go home
I had watched him
With the recklessness
Excused for youthfulness
Stagger towards his expensive car
Carefully parked
Contrary to the carelessness
That defined his life
An old grey-haired watchman like me
What do I know about enjoyment
A death trap sought by the youth?
I opened the gate
Within minutes.... Vroom! Crash! Coupled by the rhythmic sound
Of shattering glass
The BMW was squashed
Another young life lost
What a dead loss!
Questions
a. Who is the persona in the poem?
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(1 mark)
b. What is ironic about the expression, "enjoyment, a death trap sought
by the youth...?"
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(2 marks)
c. Identify any one of the following poetic devices in the poem:
i. Onomatopoeia
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(1 mark)
ii. Imagery
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(1 mark)
d. Explain the meaning of each of the following expressions in the poem:
iii. "... recklessness excused for youthfulness"
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(2 marks)
iv. "...dead loss..."
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e. Describe any two themes portrayed in the poem.
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(4 marks)
f. Describe any one character of the persona in the poem.
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(2 marks)
2. Read the passage carefully and answer questions that follow
HIDDEN TREASURE
I cannot disguise my hatred for him. He wasted 10 years in the South
working for a white man but never remembered us. Surely, it is true what
people say in this village that he wasted his money and energy on the Zulu
women, for he came back poor and tired. Grandpa left home when I was a
little brat. He sojourned the foreign land with hope of transforming the
compound.
“I left home to change home,” his letters always had that catchy phrase. We
believed him but time was running short. All his colleagues were sending
chubby amounts of money for their families. But Grandpa always said he was
saving for the family. What I hated the most was the lie that he was saving
for me.
Three rains ago, he came back home. I asked him about my savings but he
never gave me a decent response. He simply said he would make the funds
available when I finish my secondary school education. He asked me to seek
wisdom and not money. But I am not King Solomon.
One day, I went to the garden with a hoe. My sister, Rhudo, cooked some
kind of relish that I detested so I thought of hunting for some mice. I went
straight to Grandpa’s garden. I was terrified of the idea of digging mice in a
stranger’s garden. Rumours were strife about children who disappeared
mysteriously in other people’s gardens. Dead people came back to life in
form of some wild animal and hunted down children to take them to the dark
world underground.
I started digging under the only mango tree in the field. I had noticed some
marks of mice footprints thereabout. The cruel sun of that afternoon seemed
to be mocking me with its unusual temperature. Suddenly, I hit a wooden
box which seemed a bit worn out. It was covered in four thick plastic bags to
preserve it from weather and termites. At first, I was afraid. I thought some
cruel people had placed 'nyanga' in Grandpa’s garden, probably to bewitch
him and confuse him. No wonder he never took good care of us.
After a lengthy period of reflection, I took heart and resolutely made a
decision to open the box. I tore the four covers and found out that the box
had a lock. A very serious looking lock. I recognized the lock because it was
the same make which Grandpa brought from the South and he used it to
secure kraals of goats.
I smashed the box with the hoe and unboxed the contents. I did not believe
my eyes at first. I pinched myself to make sure I wasn’t dreaming. I even
slapped myself and I was fully sure that I was fully awake. The box had lots
of money. Lots and lots of money in foreign currency.
“So, Grandpa thought of hiding the money from us? I am always struggling in
school and he hid the money from us? Does he know that being in Form Four
means I need to have lots of pocket money?,” these thoughts raced in my
mind for several minutes. Then I thought of teaching him a lesson. A lesson
he would remember for the rest of his short life remaining.
“I will change the money into local currency bit by bit. I will use all this
money. After all Grandpa is sick and is always asleep. He won’t notice my
new lifestyle,” I reassured myself. That is how I started drinking and having
multiple partners. I used to drink in expensive bars and took girls to
expensive hotels. I was the new king on the campus. I did not care that I was
in term three of Form Four. The term to decide my fate in academics.
All I cared about was having fun and proving to be the richest and coolest kid
on the campus. I wrote my final exams and went back home. But I never
went home to be specific. I was in town finishing off the money with my
newly found friends.
We hired cool vehicles and visited places rich people go to. “This is living,” I
thought with utmost satisfaction. Coincidentally, the money ran out around
the same time when national examination results were out. I failed
embarrassingly. I will not lie that I was shocked. I knew exactly what was
coming for me. I went back in the village, empty handed. Poor and tired.
The very same day I reached home was the day Grandpa became very sick
with old age. He had lost too much weight, looking at him one would think he
saw a pencil on the bed. He called all of us into his hut.
“My Grandson, I have heard that you haven’t done very well in national
examinations. I have also heard that you haven’t been at home ever since
you wrote your exams. I am disappointed but I know life must go on. I am
very sick and I will join my ancestors any time. Since you have failed exams,
you need to start a business to support yourself and your relatives. I kept
enough money for this family,” he struggled to utter the words. “Where is
the money?” I queried impatiently.
“My grandson, go in my garden and dig under the only mango tree. You will
find a wooden box covered in four plastics. I kept around four million kwacha
in that box if you exchange the currency. Please use the money wisely to
change this home,” he said the words and breathed his last.
Questions
a. Describe the geographical setting of the story.
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(2 marks)
b. (i) From what point of view is the story told?
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(1 mark)
(ii) Justify your answer in b (i).
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(1 mark)
c. Describe how suspense has been used in the story.
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(2 marks)
d. Describe one character of the narrator as portrayed in the story.
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(2 marks)
e. What figure of speech has been portrayed by the following expression;
"cruel sun"
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(1 mark)
f. Why is the narrator reluctant to open the box?
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(2 marks)
g. Describe any two themes the story portrays.
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(4 marks)
Section B (20 marks)
Answer the question in this section on the spaces provided.
3. THE PEARL by John Steinbeck
a. Using four points in each case, discuss the character of each of the
following in the book, "The Pearl."
(i) Juana
(ii) Kino
(20 marks)
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END OF QUESTION PAPER
