The Tribute

Read the following extract carefully and answer the questions that follow by
choosing the most appropriate alternative from those given below : (3 Marks)

Writing on the blanksidg of that slip, I had asked her to deliver it to my elder brother and
stealthily slipped out of our house. I had written 'Brother, What shall I do with the lands ? You
are my land from where I could harvest everything in life. I need nothing save you.
Accept this, please. If you deny, I shall never show my face to you again'.

(a) Babuli stealthily slipped out of the house because

(i) he was in a hurry and didn't want to waste time meeting others
(ii) he was ashamed of himself and didn't want to face his brother
(iii) he wanted to sell his share of land to somebody else and not to his middle brother
(iv) his mother didn't want him to go

(b ) The figure of speech used in the line You are my land... is a
(i) simile (ii) metaphor in the partition.
(iii) paradox (iv) personification

(c) Accept this, please. Babuli wanted his elder brother to accept
(i) the gifts he had brought for him.
(ii) his share of movables that he had got
(iii) the watch of the elder brother which had come in his share
(iv) his share of land.

Read the following extract carefully and answer the questions that follow by
choosing the most appropriate alternative from those given below : (3 Marks)

I tried to be normal with everyone. But there was that abominable lull all around. My second
brother and his wife, in spite of their presence at home showed no emotion. They were all set for
the partition and they cared for nothing else. I could not sleep that night. And the following
morning passed quite uneventfully.

(a) There was an abominable lull all around because

(i) everybody was sleeping at that time
(ii) of the strained relationships and the partition which had to be done the next day
(iii) the children had gone for a picnic with the school
(iv) the mother had ordered everybody not to make any noise and sleep quietly

(b) Babuli couldn't sleep all night because

(i) he was troubled by the thoughts of partition
(ii) he had been used to of sleeping on a nice bed in the city
(iii) there were mosquitoes and lice which bit him and didn't let him sleep
(iv) Babuli's middle brother and his wife were talking very loudly

(c) The phrase abominable lull means

(i) very unpleasant period of little activity
(ii) preparation for a collapse
(iii) beginning of an unhappy event
(iv) anticipation of the disaster ahead

Read the following extract carefully and answer the questions that follow by
choosing the most appropriate alternative from those given below : (3 Marks)

I was silent. My elder sister-in-law was in the backyard. My second brother was often
whispering things into his wife's ear and was there taking his place with us. It was like the
butcher's knife going to the stone to sharpen itself. The elder brother was calm and composed. Like
a perfect gentleman, he was looking at the proceedings dispassionately, exactly as he had
done on the day of my marriage.

(a) The figure of speech used in the line like the butcher's knife going to sharpen itself is

(i) a metaphor
(ii) a personification
(iii) a simile
(iv) an irony

(b) The expression like the butcher's knife going to sharpen itself is used because

(i) Babuli was saying things which would hasten the proceedings of division
(ii) the second brother's wife was instigating him or sharpening him
(iii) Babuli's wife had sent him a telegram to sell his share and return home with the money
(iv) Babuli's elder sister-in-law wanted to stay separately

(c) Babuli's role in the process of partition was that he

(i) asked for the things of his use
(ii) wanted the most fertile piece of land
(iii) sat silently
(iv) took the side of his second brother and his wife

Read the following extract carefully and answer the questions that follow by
choosing the most appropriate alternative from those given below : (3 Marks)

But I became my normal self in two days, I grew used to what had been a shock. Later on, in the market place,
keeping pace with my wife,Ienquired about the prices of the different things
she intended to buy. Buying a fridge was almost certain. A second-hand scooter, a stereo set and some gold ornaments.
I prepared a list of the prices. She kept reminding me about her intentions and was showing lot of impatience.

(a) Babuli had not been his normal self because

(i) he was ill for a long time.
(ii) his friend had met with an accident.
(iii) he had lost his job.
(iv) he had come to know that his family property was to be divided.

(b) Babuli's wife intended to

(i) go and live in the village for some time
(ii) go and sort out the feud and differences between Babuli's twosisters-in-law
(iii) buy a fridge and a scooter and give it to Babuli's elder brother as a tribute.
(iv) sell the share of Babuli's land and buy a scooter, fridge, etc.

(c) This passage tells us that Babuli

(i) loved his elder brother a lot
(ii) had become materialistic and emotionless.
(iii) could do anything to keep his wife happy.
(iv) could sacrifice anything for his brother and mother.

Read the following extract carefully and answer the questions that follow by
choosing the most appropriate alternative from those given below : (3 Marks)

The past was sprouting up in me. The childhood days and the days now! Time has coagulated for
me. I have changed, but my elder brother ? Time could not bring upon him any change. As in those
days, he was still walking in front of me, carrying my bag I felt so small!

(a) The past sprouting up in Babuli was how

(i) he was as a student in the class and how much he loved to study
(ii) his father used to love him and his brother
(iii) his elder brother used to carry his bag of books and notes while escorting him back from his tuitions
(iv) his mother used to make delicious food for all the brothers

(b) How has Babuli changed ?

(i) He has become smarter now
(ii) He now wears different kinds of clothes
(iii) He has forgotten his love for his brother and mother
(iv) He has become a married man now

(c) Babuli felt so small because

(i) his elder brother made him realize his mistakes
(ii) unlike Babuli his elder brother had not changed and had retained the same feelings for him
(iii) his elder brother had become very rich and he couldn't earn enough money
(iv) on the way to home Babuli's elder brother told him how he had made sacrifices for Babuli

Read the following extract carefully and answer the questions that follow by
choosing the most appropriate alternative from those given below : (3 Marks)

I listened to all this like an innocent lamb looking into the darkness. I felt as if the butcher
was sharpening his knife humming a tune and waiting to tear me into large chunks of meat,
and consoling me saying that there is a better life after death.

(a) The figure of speech used in the first sentence is a/an
(i) simile
(ii) metaphor
(iii) irony
(iv) paradox

(b) I in the above lines refers to
(i) Babuli
(ii) the elder brother
(iii) the middle brother
(iv) Babuli's wife

(c) Babuli listened to like an innocent lamb that
(i) his elder brother was a crook
(ii) they should sell their share of family
property and buy luxury items
(iii) his mother should not visit their house
(iv) he should not go to his village.