Sample Question Paper - 18

English Language And Literature (184)

Class - X, Session: 2021-22
TERM II
Time allowed : 2 Hours Maximum marks : 40
General Instructions :
1. The Question Paper contains Three Sections-Reading, Writing & Grammar and Literature.
2. Attempt questions based on specific instructions for each part.

SECTION-A (READING)
1. Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow:
(1) In Indian homes, the floor of the house is always the best maintained element, cleaned twice a day and wiped
down to a sparkling state. In front of the threshold of the home the floor often is decorated with Rangoli
and other ritual diagrams. This is true in rural as well as in many urban homes in metropolitan cities. When
building a new home people spend as much money per sq. foot for a beautiful floor as they would spend
on the entire structure. Yet, this pride and obsession for a clean floor suddenly vanishes as we step out into
the street: the floor of the city.
(2) In Delhi where 80% of the people are pedestrian in some stage of their commuting, least attention is paid
to pedestrian paths. Delhi’s sidewalks are too narrow, very poorly maintained and full of potholes, poles,
junction boxes and dangerous electrical installations, not to speak of the garbage dumps that stink and stare
at the pedestrian. Ashram Chowk is a good case in point where thousands of pedestrians change direction
from the Mathura Road radial to the Ring Road. A flyover facilitates the automobiles while the pedestrian is
orphaned by the investment-hungry authorities. One corner of the Ashram Chowk has a ridiculous imitation
wood sculpture with an apology of a fountain and across the same Chowk, you have the open mouthed,
massive garbage dump right on the pedestrian path, in full exhibition for the benefit of the public. These
symbols of poor taste and abject apathy are then connected by narrow dangerous and often waterlogged
footpaths for the hapless pedestrians to negotiate. In the night, street lighting in the central median light up
the carriageway for cars and leave the pedestrian areas in darkness.
(3) Delhi’s citizens leave home and want to get to their destination as fast they can. No one wants to linger on
the road, no leisure walks, no one looks a stranger in the eye. It is on the pedestrian path that the citizen
encounters head-on the poor public management and the excuse called ‘multiplicity of authorities’. One
agency makes the road, another digs it up to lay cables, third one comes after months to clear up the mess
and the cycle of unaccountability goes on. Meanwhile crores are spent in repairing the carriageway for
vehicles and in construction of flyovers without a care for the pedestrians below. Solution offered is to
make an expensive underpass or an ugly footover bridge, ostensibly for facilitating the pedestrian, while
in reality they only facilitate the cars to move faster at the expense of the pedestrians. Take Kashmiri Gate,
ITO, Ashram Chowk, AIIMS or Dhaula Kuan. At all these important pedestrian cross-over points the story
is the same : They have pulled the sidewalk from under the pedestrians feet.
(4) In modern cities across the world, the pedestrian is the king. The floor of the city is designed and maintained
as an inclusive environment, helping the physically challenged, the old and the infirm, children and the
ordinary citizen to move joyfully across the city. Delhi aspires to be ‘world class city’. Hopefully the authorities
would look once again at the floor of Delhi. The pleasure of strolling on the road is deeply connected to our
sense of citizenship and sense of belonging. Pride in the city grows only on a well designed floor of the city.
On the basis of your understanding of the passage, answer ANY FIVE questions from the six given below:
 (1 × 5 = 5)

(i) What is the most important element of Indian home?

(ii) How are the sidewalks of Delhi?

(iii) Describe the street lighting.

(iv) No one wants to linger on the road, no leisure walks, no one looks a stranger in the eye. Replace the
underlined phrase without changing the meaning of the sentence.

(v) What is the solution for pedestrian?

(vi) What is the difference between roads of India and other countries?

2. Read the following passage carefully.

(1) Here are some questions to ponder. Do you know why a certain film star received an arsenal of weapons
from a gangster terrorist? Do you know why witnesses who turn hostile do not get prosecuted for either
perjury or wasting police time, or both? Do you know why it takes a decade or longer to try a criminal case
in India?Have you ever thought any solutions to these problems? If you haven’t it might be because of the
type of education you received!
(2) Most of us reluctantly accept the way things are because we have been educated to be accepting. We are not
educated to be openly critical. We are not educated to argue, protest or confront. The Brits made no bones
about it - in their schools we were educated to accept given values and ways of doing things. We were trained
to be loyal servants to the status quo.
(3) Most of us oldies were subjected to the traditional approach of learning that focused on mastery of content,
with little emphasis on the development of analytical skills and the nurturing of inquiring attitudes. We
were the receivers of information, and the teacher was the dispenser. The passivity encouraged by teachers
was typified by one of my principals who implored all the girls to be like ‘limpid water in a crystal vase’.
(4) These days I am kept very busy by schools that are running teacher-training courses to introduce the ‘inquiry
approach’ to learning. Unlike traditional learning, this approach is focused on using and learning content as a
means to develop information-processing and problem-solving skills. This system is more student-centered,
with the teacher as a facilitator of learning. There is more emphasis on “how we come to know” and less on
“what we know”. Students are more involved in the construction of knowledge through active analysis and
investigation. They are encouraged to ask questions, and give opinions and share what they know. They are
encouraged to criticise and argue, and confront the conventional wisdom.
(5) At the moment, this new approach is restricted to a few schools. However this year the ability to critically
analyse has been introduced as part of the CBSE school syllabus. It is a small start but it is a move towards
introducing thinking skills into all of our schools. It is the start of a big change.
(6) Our government and bureaucracy are full of old, well-educated people of a traditionalist background, who
also see, read and hear the news reports about hostile witnesses, gangsters and film starts, and murders by
politician’s sons. Like us they find them outrageous, but they don’t know how to change things. Critical
analysis, change management and innovation were not part of their schooling, and in adult life they have
not become freely critical, outspoken analysts capable of applying the fruits of their analysis to increasingly
complex problems.
(7) We often come across the shortcomings of our government, judiciary and media. With very little effort
these shortcomings will become a thing of the past. But they will be a long time coming. Not because our
‘leaders’ and societal managers are unfeeling, immoral, self-seekers but because they were educated and excel
in consulting a textbook, and regurgitating someone else’s opinion and knowledge. As the newly educated
might say: we can expect the same for a long time to come.
On the basis of your reading of the passage, answer ANY FIVE questions. (1 × 5 = 5)

(i) Why do we reluctantly accept things?

(ii) What kind of education did Brits provide us during their reign?

(iii) How does the author feel about the ability to critically analyse introduced by CBSE?

(iv) Why do the government and bureaucracy not challenge the injustice?

(v) We were trained to be loyal servants to the status quo. Replace the underlined phrase without changing the
meaning of the sentence.

(vi) How are the girls implored to be like?

SECTION-B (WRITING AND GRAMMAR)

3. Attempt any one of the given questions. (5)

Write a letter in 100-120 words to the Manager of Grand Hotel located in Shimla, asking him to reserve for
you a double room from 5th April to 15th April 20XX. You are Aditya/Anandhi of Mysore.

OR
Given below is a graph that shows comparison of the sale of 4 brands of sunscreen in Delhi this summer in
rupees. Write an analytical paragraph based on the information provided in the graph in 100-120 words.

6
Amount in lakh rupees

Ayur Lakme Lotus Himalaya

Sunscreen brands

4. The following paragraph has not been edited. There is an error in each line. Identify the error and write
its correction against the correct blank number. Remember to underline the correction. The first has been
done for you. (1 × 3 = 3)
Error Correction
Summer camps develop a child e.g., child child’s
confidence.
They also encourages children (a) _____ _____
to do things by their own. (b) _____ _____
The camps is beneficial for aggressive (c) _____ _____
children as they promote understanding.
5. Read the conversation between Reema and Ganesh and complete the passage that follows: (1 × 2 = 2)
Reema : What is your lucky charm?
Ganesh : My lucky charm is my locket. My grandmother gave this to me and her blessings are in it, I
believe.
Reema (a) __________, lucky charm was. Ganesh replied that his lucky charm was his locket. He further
said that (b) _____________ to him and he believed that her blessings were in it.

SECTION-C (LITERATURE)
6. Answer ANY SIX of the following in about 30-40 words. (2 × 6 = 12)

(i) What are the ‘tokens’ that the poet says he may have dropped long ago and which the animals have kept for
him?

(ii) How did Mme. Loisel know the life of necessity?

(iii) Describe the life of Siddhartha Gautama before enlightenment.

(iv) In what ways is China related to tea?

(v) What kind of a mother was Ramlal’s wife?

(vi) What does the narrator in The Hack Driver describe as “pretty disrespectful treatment”?

(vii) Why does Amanda seem moody most of the time?

7. Answer ANY TWO of the following in about 120-150 words each.  (4 × 2 = 8)

(i) The principle ‘Forgive and Forget’ helps a lot in maintaining cordial relations with our neighbours. Do you
think the author proves this message in the play “The Proposal”?

(ii) Ostentation and vanity often land people in trouble. Matilda is an apt example of this. Justify.

(iii) In life, people who easily trust others are sometimes made to look foolish. One should not be too trusting.
Describe how Oliver Lutkins made a fool of the young lawyer.
 Solution
ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE - 184
Class 10 - English Language And Literature

1. (i) The floor is the most important element, I along with my partner shall be visiting Shimla for
always best maintained, cleaned twice and wiped eleven days—5th April to 15th April to be exact. You
down to a sparkling state. Often the front of home is are requested to reserve a deluxe double room for us,
decorated with rangoli. for eleven days from 5th April to 15th April 20XX.
(ii) The sidewalks of Delhi are too narrow, poorly
I am enclosing herewith a bank draft for 5000 as
maintained full of potholes, poles, dangerous electrical
advance for reservation charges and partial room
installations and huge stinky garbage dumbs.
rent.
(iii) The street lighting, in the might only lightens
This letter follows in continuation with my telephonic
up the central median up the carriage way for cars but
conversation. Kindly confirm the booking on Mysore
leaves the pedestrian in darkness.
Telephone No. 532601.
(iv) No one wants to linger on the road, no leisure
Hoping for an early response.
walks, no one looks directly at a stranger.
Yours sincerely,
(v) The only solution offered for pedestrian is either
to make an expensive underpass or an ugly foot over Aditya
bridge. 4. Error Correction
(vi) In other countries floor of city is designed and
(a) encourages encourage
maintained as an inclusive environment for old and
physically challenged people. Sidewalks are given (b) by on
importance so that the ordinary citizen moves across (c) is are
the city joyfully.
5. (a) asked Ganesh what his
2. (i) We reluctantly accept things because we have
(b) his grandmother had given that
been educated to be accepting and not be openly
critical or confront things. 6. (i) Humans and animals have similar basic
(ii) We were educated to accept given values and ways instincts. While civilization has changed the man, but
of doing things and trained to be loyal servants to the these basic instincts are preserved in the animals and
status quo. help the humans to reconnect to their true self; so man
(iii) The author feels positive about it and calls it a seeks comfort in the company of animals.
start of a big change. (ii) Matilda had lost the precious diamond necklace
(iv) The government and bureaucracy do not challenge
she had borrowed from her friend. Since the necklace
the injustice because they have not become freely
could not be retrieved, it had to be replaced with
critical, and outspoken analysts capable of questioning
things. another equally expensive necklace. Her husband had
(v) We were trained to be loyal servants to the existing to borrow a huge amount of money apart from using
conditions. up his entire life’s saving to buy the necklace. In order
(vi) The girls are implored to be like limpid water in a to pay off the debt money, Matilda had to change her
crystal vase. lifestyle.
3. (iv) There are two legends associated with the origin of
tea. One of them tells us about the Chinese emperor
D-2/47 Court Road
who accidentally dropped a few leaves from the twigs
Mysore
25 March 20XX used to light the fire under the pot in which he was
The Manager boiling his drinking water. It made the water taste
Grand Hotel delicious. Those leaves were said to be tea leaves. The
Shimla other legend is from India, in which a buddhist ascetic
Dear Sir, named Bodhidharma cut off his eyelids to prevent
Subject : Reservation of a double room himself from falling asleep during meditation.
(v) Ramlal’s wife was a typical village woman who to call Lomov back. When he comes back this time he
believed that girls are not supposed to go to school and Natalaya start abusing each other and have heated
as it would lessen their chances of getting married. fight over dogs. But in the end, they compromise, they
She was not a good mother. She always favoured her forget their issue and forgive each other. The proposal
good looking, perfect children whereas Bholi was changes into marriage. Hence we see that the principle
neglected and treated indifferently by her own mother. helped them unite.
Bholi’s mother discriminated against her because she (iii) In life, people who easily trust others are
stammered, was slow witted and had ugly pock marks sometimes made to look foolish. One should not be
on her entire body. too impressionable or unsuspecting. The gullible
(vi) The narrator describes the treatment given to them young lawyer became a victim of Oliver Lutkins’ prank
by Lutkins’ mother as a pretty disrespectful treatment. as the latter made a fool of the former in the story, ‘The
She insulted them. She marched towards them with a Hack Driver’.
hot iron rod. She laughed at them when they retreated He arrived in New Mullion to deliver a court summons
with a fear from there. She went to the kitchen and on a man named Oliver Lutkins. He had never seen
came out with an iron rod. She marched towards them Lutkins, therefore he did not know what to expect at
with a threat. They had to retreat from there. the time of making the delivery. Fortunately, the lawyer
(vii) Amanda seems moody most of the time because found a hack driver, who promised to take him around
she is trying to get away from her reality where she is the town and help him catch Lutkins no matter how
being nagged most of the times. It is indeed a sorry long it took. The hack driver claimed to know almost
state for a small child like Amanda. The only respite all the places where Lutkins could be found. Impressed
from such reality is her imagination where she often with his friendly manner, the lawyer agreed to hire
escapes to. Hence, it makes her look moody and him. Little did the lawyer know that the hack driver
uninterested. was Lutkins himself. Owing to his helpful and friendly
7. (i) Letting go of anger and bitterness can work nature, the young lawyer came to believe that the
wonders both for our attitude and for our health. people of the town were equally friendly, helpful and
Anger may spoil anything like poison. One cannot trustworthy. Lutkins charged a high price for the hack
afford to remain wallowing in the marsh of anger or and the food. Lutkins even alerted Fritz and his other
sad feelings. Life has to move on and if one wants to friends, and his mother not to reveal his identity to the
get ahead one has to imbibe “forgive and forget”. Only lawyer. As promised, Lutkins drove the lawyer all over
sensitive and great people can follow this gospel. the town, meeting the town’s people, searching for
In the present play “The Proposal” we find that Lomov Lutkins, until it was afternoon and time for the lawyer
visits the house of Chubukov with a proposal to marry to leave. Lutkins even went to the railway station to
his daughter Natalaya. Chubukov’s joy knows no see him off and the young lawyer felt a special bond
bounds, to hear this. But in course of their common of friendship developing between the two. He thought
talk, they pick up nonsensical issues and stand fighting of settling down in New Mullion amongst the simple,
and abusing each other. Even Natalaya also jumps friendly, trustworthy folks of the town and start his
into the ring of verbal quarrel. When things become own practice only to realise on his second visit that he
normal after the sudden departure of Lomov, Natalaya had been befooled not only by Lutkins but by the same
comes to know about the proposal, she asks her father trustworthy people of the town as well.