ENGLISH (XII)

SET A
MARKING SCHEME

SECTION - A (READING)

1.1 Choose the correct option: (1x4=4)

(a) The word ., in paragraph 2, means tranquil.

(i) calm
(ii) serene
(iii) both (i) and (ii)
(iv) retreat
ans: (iii) both (i) and (ii)

(b) The word hewn, in paragraph 3, is the past participle form of the verb .
(i) how
(ii) hew
(iii) hone
(iv) honed
ans: (ii) hew

(c) The rock cut caves of Ajanta are famous for _______________.
(i) their murals
(ii) artistic sculpture
(iii) degree of skills of the Indian craftsman
(iv) all of the above
ans: (iii) their murals

(d) . is a form of sculpture.

(i) Bas relief
(ii) Jataka
(iii) Monumental
(iv) sanchi
Ans: jataka

1.2 Answer the following questions briefly: (1x6=6)

(a) Where are the Ajanta caves situated?
(b) How do the Ajanta caves get their name?
(c) Who was Hiuen Tsang?
(d) When was the boom in the activities at Ajanta?
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 (e) The Vakatakas were the contemporaries of which famous Indian imperial
dynasty?
(f) What are the characteristics of the first phase of Ajanta paintings?
Ans:

a) The site of the caves, situated at a distance of 107 kilometres north of

Aurangabad, is an important tourist destination in the world.
b) The caves get their name from a nearby village called Ajanta.
c) Hiuen Tsang, the famous Chinese traveller who visited India during the first
half of the seventh centuryAD
d) The boom in activities at Ajanta was between the mid fifth century AD and the
mid sixth century AD.
e) imperial Guptas
f) The first phase is noticed in the form of fragmentary specimens which can be
dated to the second century BC. The headgear and the other ornaments of the
images in these paintings resemble the bas relief sculpture of Sanchi and
Bharhut.

1.3 A. Pick out the words from the passage that mean the same as:
(2)
(a) scholarly (para2)
(b) detailed (para4)
ans:

(a) intellectual
(b) vivid

2.1 Choose the correct option: (2)

(i) More than a of Indias population is below the age of 15.

(a) half
(b) third
(c) fifth
ans: (b) third

(ii) . is the belief that religion should not be involved in the

organization of society, education, etc.
(a) Secularism
(b) Democracy
(c) Quagmire
Ans: Democracy

2.2 On the basis of your reading of the passage, answer the following questions
briefly:
(6)

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 (i) What makes the author think India is on the verge of joining the select band of
developed nations? (2)
(ii) The author feels that if certain problems are not arrested, India would lose its
opportunity. Why would India lose this opportunity? (2)
(iii) What hinders employment growth in India? (1)
(iv) Who/ what in the passage are referred to as the Lilliputians? (1)
Ans:

(i) Today, India looks to be on the course to join the league of developed nations.
It is beginning to establish a reputation not just as the technology nerve
centre and back office of the world, but also as its production centre. Indias
secularism and democracy serve as a model for other developing countries.
That India easily integrates with the global economy, while maintaining its
unique cultural identity, is a matter of great pride.
(ii) If the youth of India are not properly educated and if enough jobs are not
created, India will have forever lost its opportunity. There are danger signs in
abundance.
(iii) India is stuck in a quagmire of labour laws that hinder employment growth,
particularly in the manufacturing sector. Inflexible labour laws inhibit
entrepreneurship, so it is quite ironic that laws ostensibly designed to protect
the labour group actually discourage employment.
(iv) like the Lilliputians that kept the giant Gulliver tied down, there are some 30,
000 statutes in India, of which only a portion is operational, and these keep the
employment creation engine tied down.

2.3 Pick out the words from the passage which mean the same as the following:(2)
(i) association (para 1)
(ii) saving (para 3)
ans:

(i) league
(ii) thrift

3.1 On the basis of your reading of the above passage, make notes using points only. Use
abbreviations wherever necessary (minimum five). Supply a suitable title. (5)
Ans:
Value points:
title
main points
sub points
sub sub points (if any)
alignment of the main, sub, and sub sub points
use of abbreviations
abbreviation key

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3.2 Write a summary of the passage in about 80 words. (3)
SECTION - B (ADVANCED WRITING SKILLS)

4. You are Aryan/ Asha of 467, VikasMarg, Jaipur. You wish to sell your old car. 4
Prepare an advertisement to be published in the For Sale column of a newspaper in
about 50 words.

Ans:
Value points:
Heading
Complete information about the car
No complete sentences to be used
Recognizable abbreviations to be used
The advertisement to be put inside a box

5. You are KavitaPuri, Computer Incharge of DPS, Panipat City. Your school wishes 6
to buy 20 computers and computer accessories from Apple Inc., 126, Ambiences
Palace, New Delhi. Draft a letter placing the order, giving all the specifications of the
products and the quantity.

Ans:
Value points:
Formal letter
Senders address
Date
Receivers address
Subject
Salutation
Body (comprising of minimum three paragraphs)
Subscription
Signature
Name in capital inside brackets
Designation

6. Write an article for your school magazine on the topic, Life Without Modern
Gadgets. You are Raman/ Ruchika. 10

7. Corruption is an evil which prevails in each and every nook and corner of our lives.
As President, Students Council, write a speech expressing the need to curb this evil
immediately. 10

SECTION C (LITERATURE & LONG READING TEXT)

8. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow: 4

The stunted, unlucky heir

Of twisted bones, reciting a fathers gnarled disease,
His lesson, from his desk. At the back of the dim class
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 One unnoted, sweet and young. His eyes live in a dream,
Of squirrels game, in tree room, other than this.

i. Who is the unlucky heir and what has he inherited? (1)

ii. What is the stunted boy reciting? (1)
iii. Who is sitting at the back of the class? (1)
iv. How is the one sitting at the back different from the others in his class? (1)

Ans:

i. The boy in the classroom who is suffering from the disease of twisted bones.
ii. His lessons from his desk.
iii. One sweet and unnoticed young boy.
iv. He is physically present and mentally absent. He has not allowed the gloom to
envelop him.

OR

Therefore, on every morrow, are we wreathing

A flowery band to bind us to the earth,
Spite of despondence, of the inhuman dearth
On noble natures, of the gloomy days
Of all the unhealthy and darkened ways
Made for our searching:

i. What does the poet mean by the flowery band? (1)

ii. Explain the meaning of the word wreathing and the context in which it has
been used. (1)
iii. What are the things that the poet mentions, that constitute the normal course of
life? (1)
iv. What has been made for our searching? (1)

Ans:
i. The band which binds us to the earth and nature.
ii. Creating; a bond between the nature and ourselves is being created.
iii. Despondence, dearth of noble natures, gloomy days, unhealthy and over
darkened ways. (any two)
iv. The thing of beauty, which moves away the pall and gloom.

9. Read the following questions and answer any four in about 30 40 words each: 12
(3x4=12)
i. Seemapuri is on the periphery of Delhi yet miles away from it
metaphorically. What does the author mean by this?
ii. Why did the peddler derive pleasure from his idea of the world as a rattrap?
iii. Why was Sophie jealous of Geoffs silence?
iv. Give two reasons why Dr. Sadao was not sent abroad with the Japanese
troops?
v. Do you think the poet, Pablo Neruda, in the poem Keeping Quiet, advocates
total inactivity and death? Why/ why not?
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 Ans:

Value points:

i. The contrasting infrastructure, lifestyle of the people, presence/ absence of

basic amenities.
ii. Thought of idea as an intellectual one. He had never been treated nicely by
anyone. Hence, to think ill of the world gave him unwonted joy.
iii. Geoff did not share anything with Sophie, travelled to the far side of the city.
iv. Sadao was perfecting a discovery which would render the wounds entirely
clean. The old General did not trust any other doctor for his medical condition.
v. No. Only physical inactivity, not the mental one.

10. Answer the following question in about 150 words: 6

Self reliance, Indian independence and help to sharecroppers were all bound together.
Elucidate with reference to the excerpt Indigo.

Ans:
Value points:
Gandhi initially went to help the sharecroppers.
Even after resolving their issues, he chose to stay back at Champaran.
Asked doctors and teachers to volunteer their services.
Kasturbai taught lessons in personal hygiene and sanitation.

11.
11.A Answer the following question in about 150 words: 6

Desire, determination and diligence lead to success. Explain the value of these qualities
in the light of Douglas experience in Deep Water.

Ans:
Value points:
Desire, determination and diligence in the context of Douglas. How he overcame the
adversities to conquer his fear of water.
Description in detail about how these qualities can help us lead a successful life.

12. Describe the scene outside the inn when the strangers luggage arrived at Iping 6
village. What led to the villagers suspecting the stranger? Write the answer in about
120- 150 words.

Ans:
Value points:
A lot of people had gathered to see the thousand and one bottles.
The stranger was very eager.
A stray dog tore off a portion of the strangers trousers.
The stranger rushed inside the inn, lest anybody should notice his invisibility.
Mr. Hall rushes after him to ask for his well being.
The stranger shuts the door in his face.

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13. Compare and contrast Mrs. and Mr. Hall with regard to their views about the 6
stranger who came to stay at the inn. Write in about 120- 150 words.

Ans:
Value points:
Mrs. Hall
Money minded
Only concerned about the money that the stranger had promised her.
Friendly, hospitable woman
Accepts the experimental Investigator theory.

Mr. Hall
First one to suspect stranger
Treated badly by the stranger
Apprehensive about the true identity of the stranger and confronts Mrs. Hall about
the same

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