LITERATURE IN ENGLISH

Half Yearly Assessment-2024 (English Paper – 2) Std X

Maximum Marks 80
Time allowed : Two hours

Answers to this paper must be written on the paper provided separately.

You will not be allowed to write during the first 15 minutes.

This time is to be spent in reading the Question paper.

The time given at the head of the paper is the time allowed for writing the answers.
The Paper has four sections

Section A is compulsory – All questions in Section A must be answered.

You must attempt one question from each of the Sections B, C and D and one other question from
any

Section of your choice.

SECTION A

Question 1

Read the following questions and choose the most appropriate response from the choices given
below ( Please do not copy the question – simply write out in correct serial order the appropriate
word or phrase.) [16]

(i)Where did Caesar fall after he was stabbed by the conspirators?

(a) In his garden

(b) On the steps of the Capitol

(c) Near the steps of Pompey’s theatre

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(d) At the foot of Pompey’s statue

(ii) Who opposes Antony’s request to speak at Caesar’s funeral?

(a) Brutus

(b) Cassius

(c) Metellus Cimber

(d) Casca

(iii) My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar

And I must pause till it come back to me.
The lines given above tell us that Antony is

(a) annoyed

(b) anxious

(c)frustrated

(d)sorrowful

(iv) When Metellus Cimber says to Caesar, ‘’Metellus Cimber throws before thy seat An
humble heart’’, he is begging that his ______ may be recalled from banishment.

(a) brother Lepidus

(b) brother Publius

(c) brother Cinna

(d) cousin Lucilius

(v) Antony makes it a point to mention Caesar’s will in his speech. This shows that he

(a) understands the greedy nature of the commoners

(b) understands military strategy

(c) understands the cunning nature of the conspirators

(d) understands that the people might believe him to be utterly loyal to Caesar
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(vi) When Cassius says, 'My life is run his compass', he means that

(a) it is the day on which he was born

(b) his life had come full circle

(c) his life could be measured with a compass

(d) his life could be compared to a race

(vii)Which of the following lines contain the same literary device as the line in Robert Frost’s
poem ‘’A Considerable Speck’’ 'This was no dust speck by my breathing blown,"

(a) 'Your eyes are like the diamond bright,'

(b) 'Suddenly the black night showed its teeth in a flash of lightning."

(c) ‘’ I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;’’

(d) ‘’They stretched in never ending line along the margin of a bay.’’

(viii)Which of the following statements is True of the effect of Bhishma Lochan Sharma’s
singing?

(a) The sky weeps tears

(b) The trees whisper and the branches make a soft sound

(c) The people retire enthralled by the melody

(d) The turtles whine and stare

(ix) When the poet in Robert Frost’s poem ‘’A Considerable Speck’’ wanted to obliterate the
speck he saw on his sheet of paper, he stopped because he realised

(a) it was a tiny piece of silver

(b) it was a dead butterfly

(c) it was a living mite

(d) it was a tiny picture of a clover leaf

(x) There is a tide in the affair of men Which taken at the flood leads on to fortune …’’ Name
the speaker.

(a) Antony

(b) Cassius
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(c) Octavius

(d) Brutus

(xi) The theme of Maya Angelou's poem 'When Great Trees Fall' is

(a) the impact of the death of a loved one on those left behind

(b) the effect of felling trees on the environment

(c) how the death of trees affects humanity

(d) the importance of conservation of nature

(xii) In Stephen Leacock’s story ‘’The Photographer’’, the narrator while waiting to be
photographed

(a) reads a few old journals

(b) stares out of the window

( c) stands at the window and looks down at the passing cars

(d) looks admiringly at some photographs on the wall

(xiii)’’His corporal motion govern’d by my spirit’’ says Antonio. Here he means that

(a)he controls his servants

(b)he controls the movement of his troops

(c)he will control a large part of Italy after he becomes one of the triumvirate.

(d)he controls the movement of his horse

(xiv) Choose the option that lists the sequence of events in Alphonse Daudet’s story ‘’The
Last Lesson’’ in the correct order.

1. When I arrived at school I saw my classmates already in their places.

2. When I passed the town hall there was a crowd in front of the bulletin board.
3. I jumped over the bench and sat down at my desk.
4. ‘’Go to your place quickly, little Franz. We were beginning without you.’’

(a) 2,3,1,4

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(b) 2,1,4,3

(c )1,4,3,2

(d)2,4,3,2

(xv) Mark Antony stirs the emotions of the crowd in his ____.
(a) citation
•
(b)eulogy

(c ) prologue

(d) epilogue

(xvi) Select the option that shows the correct relationship between statements I and II
Statement I: They will fire the traitors’ houses with brands.
Statement II: The people of Rome have just heard Antony read out Caesar’s will to them.
(a) Statement I is true, and Statement II is false.
(b) Statement II is the cause of Statement I.
(b) Statement I and Statement II are independent of each other.
(c) Statement II is true, and Statement I is false.

SECTION B

(Answer one or more questions from this Section)

DRAMA

(Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare)

Question 2

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:

Cassius: I know not what may fall, I like it not.

Brutus: Mark Antony, here, take you Caesar’s body.

(i) What does Cassius not like? What is the reason for his dislike?
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  Cassius does not like that Antony wishes to be allowed to take Caesar’s
body to the market-place and in the pulpit as is fitting for a friend, speak a
few words at the funeral ceremony.
 Cassius is suspicious of Antony. He knows that Antony a ‘’shrewd contriver’’
who has a ‘’deep ingrafted love’’ for Caesar would make the most of this
opportunity to address the people and turn them against the conspirators.
[1+1+1]
(ii) On what three conditions does Brutus agree to allow Antony to speak at the funeral?
 Brutus tells Antony that he Brutus will address the people first after which
Antony would speak.
 Antony in his funeral speech must not blame them.
 Antony must tell the people that he was speaking by their permission or he
could not participate in Caesar’s funeral. [1+1+1]
(iii) Mention two prophecies Antony makes as he grieves over the ‘’bleeding piece of
earth.’’
Antony makes several prophecies as he grieves. (Any two)
 He says that a curse would fall upon the people and there would be bad
blood between brothers and civil war would spread throughout Italy.
 Blood and destruction would be so common and dreadful events become so
commonplace that even mothers would smile when they beheld their
babies cut to pieces.
 Evil deeds would be so common that the people would forget compassion
and become hard-hearted.
 Caesar’s spirit with Ate, the goddess of revenge from hell by his side would
cause havoc and cry ’’ruin’’ and let loose the horrors of war, unleashing
famines and ruin.
 Dead bodies would rot and groan for burial but there would be no one to
give them burial. [3]
(iv) Later at the end of the scene, who enters and with what news?
 A servant of Octavius enters.
 He brings the news that Octavius on receiving Caesar’s letter was coming to
Rome.
 He has set camp that night seven leagues from Rome. [1+1+1]
(v) What instructions does Antony give to this person at the end of the scene?
 Antony tells Octavius’ servant to tell his master that Rome is in mourning and is a
dangerous place now.
 He has to tell Octavius that he will not be safe in Rome at this moment.
 He tells the servant to help him carry Caesar’s body to the market-place.
 Antony will try to find out what the people think of Caesar’s assassination and
accordingly the servant shall inform Octavius of the state of affairs.[1+1+1+1]
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Question 3

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:

Brutus: The name of Cassius honours this corruption,

And chastisement doth therefore hide his head.

Cassius: Chastisement!

(i) Where are Brutus and Cassius at this point of time? What is “this corruption” that
Brutus accuses Cassius of? [1+1+1]
 Brutus and Cassius are in Brutus’ tent at Sardis.
 Brutus accuses Cassius of having an ‘’itching palm’’,
 that he has been selling positions in his army to undeserving men.

(ii) Cassius tells Brutus, ‘’In such a time as this it is not meet
That every nice offence should bear his comment.’’. Explain what he means by this?
Which aspect of Cassius’character is evident here? Give a reason for your answer.
[1+1+1]
 Cassius means that during times of crisis one has to be practical and
expedient even if it meant compromising with one’s principles. [1]
 Cassius was practical. He knew that to fight a war they needed money to
pay the troops and for buying supplies/, and at such times one could not be
too scrupulous or take a high moral ground as to how the money was
obtained. [2]

(iii) Why according to Brutus has Cassius not been punished yet?
According to Brutus, Cassius has a good reputation/ and is known as an
honourable man/. This masks his corruption, therefore he has not been
condemned/punished yet. [1+1+1]

(iv) Later Brutus reminds Cassius of the ides of March. What significance
does this day have for the two men? How does Brutus justify what
they had done that day?

 The Ides of march was the day the conspirators , foremost among whom were
Brutus and Cassius, had assassinated Julius Caesar.
 Brutus justifies the assassination by saying that all those who had played a
role in it had been fired with the zeal to save Rome from Caesar’s tyranny
 so that Romans would live as free men. [1+1+1]

(v) What other charge does Brutus lay against Cassius later? How did Cassius defend
himself against this charge? Was Brutus’ accusation fair? Give two reasons for your
answer.

 Brutus accuses Cassius of not lending him money to pay his troops.

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  Cassius answered that he had not refused to lend the money and that the
messenger had interpreted his reply incorrectly.
 Brutus was being unfair to Cassius here. For one he himself could not get
the money using unfair means
 yet he wanted Cassius to lend him money that he accused Cassius
of obtaining unfairly. [1+1+1+1]

SECTION C

(Answer one or more questions from this Section)

PROSE – SHORT STORIES

(Treasure Chest A Collection of ICSE Poems and Short Stories)

Question 4

Read the following extract from the lesson ‘The Pedestrian’ by Ray Bradbury and answer the
questions that follow:

“Hello , in there,’’ he whispered to every house on every side as he moved. What’s up

tonight on Channel 4, Channel 7, Channel 9?’’

(i)Who is the protagonist of this story? What did he love to do every night?
In which year is this story set? [1+1+1]

 Leonard Mead

 He loved to walk along the silent deserted streets.

 The year is A.D.2053

(ii)Why did Mead switch to wearing sneakers when he went for a walk?

 When he wore hard heels, the sound of his footsteps caught the attention of the stray
dogs who would run alongside, barking loudly.

 The noise would startle/ disturb fellow residents/ they would turn on the lights
and stare at him curiously.
 Mead wore sneakers as he did not want to disturb his neighbours and draw
attention to himself. [1+1+1]

(iii) The story shows a dystopian world where people are dehumanized. With the help of three
examples in the story, show how Ray Bradbury explores the theme of how technological
advancement robs people of their essential humanity.

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  The people seem to be like insects as they scurry to their jobs in the daytime. They
stay inside their homes when night falls, glued to their TV sets, in their darkened
rooms.
 In all his years of walking Mead has never met anyone on the streets, it seems as if the
city is a graveyard, silent and lifeless.
 The police car does not have any policemen in it. Only a metallic voice asks questions
with no sign of emotion. [1+1+1]

(iv)Write reason does Mead give for being out alone on the street at night to the police?With
the help of two points, explain why this makes him a suspicious person in the eyes of the
police?
• he enjoys walking, just walking for air and to see
• has no proper profession/ everyone is content to stay home and watch TV,
conform to expectations whereas Mead is the lone figure out walking. This
aberration arouses suspicion. [1+1+1]

(v)Where is Mead taken at the end of the story? Why is he taken to this place? If you had to
describe this story in a single word, what word would you use? Give a reason for your choice of
word.

• Mead is taken to the Psychiatric Centre for Research on Aberrant Behaviour

• His behaviour was considered abnormal/ aberrant/ different from others

• Dystopian/ Dark/ Depressing/ Disturbing/chilling (Any one)

• The story describes a world where everyone is expected to
conform/ behave like everyone else. No freedom./ the state is all powerful
[1+1+1+1]

Question 5
Read the following extract from the lesson ‘The Elevator’ by William Sleator and answer the
questions that follow:

The door closed quickly behind her, and instead of facing it, she turned around and stared at
Martin.

He looked at her for a moment.

(i) Who was Martin? What does Martin’s reaction to the old lady tell us about him?
Your answer to this must have two points.

• Martin was a twelve year old boy.

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 • He was scared / he was a coward/ he suffered from claustrophobia/ he
was not a friendly boy. [1+1+1]

(ii) What things about the elevator could be frightening to a boy like Martin? Your answer must
have three points.

• It was a tiny elevator that could carry only three people and since he was scared
of confined spaces. he would feel very uncomfortable in it and would find it a
scary place
• There was poor lighting.
• The elevator walls were dirty.
• The door never stayed open for a long time and slammed shut with a loud
clanging noise.
• He was scared that it would stop suddenly and he would be trapped.
• He was scared that it would fall. [1+1+1]

(iii)Why did Martin take the elevator instead of the stairs in spite of the fact that he was
frightened every time he had to ride the elevator?

There were no windows. /The lights did not work./ Martin’s footsteps echoed on the
cement as though someone was following him./ Since he lived on the seventeenth floor it
was not possible to climb up every day and the climb would leave him gasping for breath out
of fear and exertion. (Any 3 points to be considered) [1+1+1]

(iv)With the help of three points explain why Martin found the old lady intimidating.

 She continuously stared at him with her blue, piggy eyes which seemed to bore into
him.
 She was so big that she took up all the space in the elevator and he had to squeeze
himself into a corner.
 She had large fleshy cheeks and no chin, just a huge mass of neck. Martin found her
very appearance intimidating
[1+1+1]

(v) This story belongs to the genre of horror stories. Justify this statement with the help of two
suitable examples from the story. Comment on the ending of the story. Why is it effective?

( Please accept other plausible responses) (Any two points)

1. The woman trapping Martin in the elevator
2. The woman stopping the elevator between floors

3. The sinister smile on the woman’s face at the end of the story.
4. She always seemed to be in the elevator as if waiting for Martin

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The story ends on a note of suspense. It is open- ended, a cliff hanger, leaving the readers to
wonder and interpret it any way they like. This makes it effective. [2+2]

SECTION D

(Answer one or more questions from this Section)

POETRY

(A Collection of ICSE Poems and Short Stories)

Question 6

Read the following extract from the poem ‘When Great Trees fall’ by Maya Angelou and
answer the questions that follow:

When great trees fall,

in forests,
small things recoil into silence,
their senses
eroded by fear.

(i)What do ‘’Great trees’’ symbolise in the poem? In what way do the falling of mighty trees in
the forest affect the animals in the forest?

• ‘’Great trees’’ symbolise "great souls"—larger-than-life individuals who nurture

the world around them and whose deaths affect everything in their orbit.
[1]

• Lions hunker down in tall grasses, elephants lumber after safety, small
creatures withdraw into silence, too terrified to make a sound. (Any two points)
[2]

(ii)’’Our eyes, briefly, see with a hurtful clarity. ‘’ Explain what Maya Angelou means by this.
What effect does this clarity have on our memory.

According to the poet, when affected by the death of a great soul, we seem to see with
greater clarity the person who no longer is with us and his impact on our lives. Our memories
of the person have sharper focus.

Our memory: (Any two points for the effect on memory)

• grows suddenly sharp, we go back into the past

• revisits in vivid detail past encounters.
• recalls promises made but not fulfilled. [1+1+1]

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 (iii ) To what does Maya Angelou compare the death of a great soul? Give two reasons to
show that this analogy is appropriate.

• The death of a great soul has been compared to the fall of an old, great
tree.
This analogy is appropriate because the fall of a great tree has
• far reaching effect -affects the entire landscape./nature
• Similarly the death of great souls affect all those who have been influenced
and inspired by them. [1+1+1]

(iv) What assurance does Maya Angelou leave the readers with at the end of the
poem?

• Maya Angelou gives her readers the assurance that others who have felt
grievous pain have healed and become better human beings simply for having known
the great soul.
• The pain and sorrow of loss will never leave us yet their memory and their
influence will linger and help shape our future.
• The poem suggests, then, that although grief may feel all-consuming at first,
survivors can eventually find acceptance and peace by remembering the contributions
of the "great souls" they lost. [1+1+1]

( v)The loss of a loved one impacts people who go through various emotional stages while
grappling with their loss. Trace the various stages of these emotions that Maya Angelou
describes in her poem .

The Stages are:

 Grief
• shock and denial
• regret/ remorse
• finally acceptance [1+1+1+1]

Question 7

Read the following extract from the poem ‘Haunted Houses’ by H.W. Longfellow and
answer the questions that follow:

All houses wherein men have lived and died

Are haunted houses. Through the open doors
The harmless phantoms on their errands glide,
With feet that make no sound upon the floors.

12
 (i) Pick out the word in the given lines that tell us that the presence of the past
denizens of the house evoke no fear. Are these ‘’phantoms‘’ spooky in the usual
sense of the word? Why not?
 Longfellow refers to ‘’phantoms’’ as ‘’harmless’’ which tells us that they
evoke no fear.
 These phantoms are impressions left in the atmosphere, made up of
memories, emotions and experiences of the past. The presence of those
who once lived in these house is felt subtly as something intangible,
rather than the actual manifestation of a ‘’spirit’’ or ‘’ghost’’. [1+2]

(ii) Although the phantoms are unseen and impalpable, the speaker feels their
presence . Mention three places where he does so.
Pick out the figure of speech in the line below and explain why it is
appropriate.
‘’As silent as the pictures on the wall.’’

 The poet says that one feels their unseen presence at the doorway/ on the stair/along
the passages/at the table. (Any two)
 It is a simile. The poet means to say that the phantoms are quiet and inoffensive and
so are appropriately compared to the silent pictures on the wall. [1+2]

(iii) ‘’The stranger at my fireside cannot see the forms I see, nor hear the sounds I hear;’’
Why is it so? Why can the speaker see and hear?

 The stranger has no emotional connection to those who once lived in the
house.
 However, the speaker has a personal, intimate connection, has memories of
the past and it seems to him that he can see and hear things that others cannot.

(iv) The poet uses the imagery of a ‘’bridge of light’’ at the end of the poem. What does
this symbolise? [1+1+1]
The ‘’bridge of light symbolises the connection between the tangible world and the
realm of memory and the influences of the past.

(v) Later in the poem, the poet says: ‘’Our little lives are kept in equipoise.’’ Explain
what the word ‘’equipoise ‘’means.
How according to the poet are our ‘’little lives kept in equipoise’’? Where do these
opposing forces come from? [1+1+1+1]

Equipoise means balance [1]

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Our little lives are kept in balance or equipoise by opposing attractions and desires
– the instinct to enjoy[1] and the nobler instinct to aspire towards spirituality.[1]
These opposing forces come from the influence of unseen stars and undiscovered
planets by which the poem suggests that there are intangible elements that shape
our earthly desires and our nobler aspirations. [1]

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