Maranatha Combined Private School
Grade 9 literature controlled test: Term 3
ENGLISH HOME LANGUAGE
Marks: 30
Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Examiner: CN Guduza
Moderator: O Luwani
INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Write your NAME, SURNAME and GRADE on your answer sheet.
2. Answer ALL the questions on the paper provided.
3. Read ALL the instructions clearly before answering the questions.
4. The paper consists of EIGHT pages.
5. The paper consists of THREE questions.
Question 1: Poetry [10]
Question 2: Short story [10]
Question 3: Folklore [10]
6. Start each section on a new page.
7. Number your answers correctly.
8. Leave a line open after each answer.
9. Write neatly and legibly.
10.Write with a BLUE pen.
QUESTION I: POETRY [10]
Read the poem “Fifteen” by Miranda Rajah and answer the questions that follow.
Fifteen By Miranda Rajah
When I was five I always thought
Ten more years and I’ll be
Fifteen.
The perfect age when you
Can wear make-up,
The perfect age when you
Can stay out till twelve or even one,
The perfect age when you
Have lots of books to carry home from school,
The perfect age when you
Can kiss-properly-
And even swear!
It seemed all a dream and adventure.
But now that I’m fifteen I wish I were
Five again.
The innocent age when you’re
Not heartbroken and confused over boys,
The innocent age when you
Don’t get pimples and spots,
The innocent age when you’re not blown up about being in late,
The innocent age when you
Don’t have so much work to do,
The innocent age when you
Aren’t teased about the way you kiss.
But, I wonder, being twenty-one must be
...
1.1. The structure of the poem is neat: the poet starts in the past and looks
forward; then she moves to the present and looks back to the past, and she
ends by… complete this sentence. (1)
1.2. Which is the adjective that the poet uses to characterize each of the two
ages? Label them:
a) For age 15, and
b) For age 5 (2)
1.3 When looking at the advantages of being 15, what are the three aspects she
mentions that relate to boys. Label them a), b) and c). (3)
1.4 Quote the two school-related issues she mentions in the poem. Label them a)
and b).
1.5 Rate the poem on this scale:
1 Weak, 2 Poor, 3 Average, 4 Good, 5 Outstanding
Explain why you have given it that rating. (2)
Total: [10]
QUESTION 2: SHORTSTORY [10]
Read the shortstory “Dead men’s path” by Chinua Achebe and answer the questions
that follow.
DEAD MEN’S PATH
Michael Obi’s hopes were fulfilled much earlier than he had expected. He
was appointed headmaster of Ndume Central School in January 1949. It had
always been an unprogressive school, so the Mission authorities
decided to send a young and energetic man to run it. Obi accepted this
responsibility with enthusiasm. He had many wonderful ideas and this
was an opportunity to put them into practice. He had had sound
secondary school education which designated him a ‘pivotal teacher’ in
the official records and set him apart from headmasters in the mission
field. He was outspoken in his condemnation of the narrow views of these
older and often less-educated ones.
“We shall make a good job of it, shan’t we?” he asked his young wife when
they first heard the joyful news of his promotion.
“We shall do our best,” she replied. “We shall have such beautiful garden
and everything will be just modern and delightful…” In their two years of
married life she had become completely infected by his passion for
“modern methods” and his denigration of “these old and superannuated
2.1 Write down two qualities of Michael Obi from paragraph 1. (2)
2.2 What do you notice about the way that Michael and his wife speak? (2)
2.3 What is the attitude of Michael and Nancy towards old and traditional people?(1)
2.4 Why was the path important to the villagers? Choose three correct answers from the
list below. (3)
A It was easy and convenient for them to use.
B It was important for spiritual reasons.
C They would not get run over by cars.
D It was the link between the village shrine and the brutal ground.
E It was the route for the ancestors and those to be born.
F The children could get to school quickly.
2.5 What was the conflict between the headmaster and the villager? (1)
2.6 What is the moral behind this story? (1)
Total: [10]
QUESTION 3: FOLKLORE [10]
Read the extract from the folklore “The mother who turned to dust” and thereafter
answer the questions that follow.
THE MOTHER WHO TURNED TO DUST
Landing on the planet, she saw how it was that it had looked so green
from far off in the sky. The forests and grasslands were so beautiful it
made her heart swell and grow even more gentle than it had been before.
She looked lovingly at all the plants and they grew happily in her sight,
the green becoming more lush. There were shrubs here, trees, there, and
over yonder there were blossoms in the many colours of the light that
had come with her from her home so far away.
“Children, I wish to have children. Many, many children”, she said. “I
want children to love. Children to run in the grass. Children to sing,
children to laugh and voices to echo on the mountainsides. Children to
call and cuddle, and when I grow old and helpless, children to look after
me. Children to be my strength when I grow old and helpless, children to
look after me. Children to be my strength when I grow weak and faint
from living. And when the time comes, children to lay me to sleep”.
Her wish was granted and there were children. Oh, there were children!
All around her. On one side, on the other. In front and behind. There
were sons tall, lithe and so strong they could stand on one leg for hours.
And there were sons gentle and kind who shared warmth and compassion
even with those who couldn’t run very fast or stand for as long. There
were daughters, tall and strong like their brothers, who could run and
leap like grassland gazelles all day long. And there were daughters tender
and lovely like flowers, loving like mothers, kind like brothers and
compassionate like fathers.
3.1 Describe the type of children that were created. (2)
3.2 How would you describe the relationship the mother had with her children? (2)
3.3 Mention three bad things that the children do and explain how these could
symbolize people’s actions in the modern world. (3)
3.4 What message is the story trying to show about people and the world in which
we live? (2)
3.5 Choose the correct answer. The sun predicts that the mother will find peace
where and when she least expects it. This prediction is an example of: (1)
A Dramatic irony
B Foreshadowing
C Conclusion
D Plot
Total: [10]
OVERALL TOTAL: 30 MARKS
MEMORANDUM
QUESTION ONE: POETRY [10]
FIFTEEN BY MIRANDA MARAJ
1.1 The Future√ (1)
1.2 a) Age Fifteen -Perfect age√ (1)
b) Age Five -Innocent age√ (1)
1.3 a) When you go out with boys√
b) When you can wear make-up√
c) When you can stay up till twelve or even one√ (3)
1.4 a) Have lots of books to carry home√
b) Not blown up about being in late√ (2)
1.5 4 or 5 because this poem enlightens us about being a teenager and the reality of it.
It also teaches us a remarkable lesson that you do not have to rush things.
Whatever stage you are experiencing you must embrace it with all the good and bad of
it. Every stage has its challenges and responsibilities√√. (2)
Total: [10]
QUESTION TWO: SHORT STORY [10]
DEAD MEN’S PATH BY CHINUA ACHEBE
2.1 Young; energetic; enthusiastic (Any Two)√√ (2)
2.2 They work together as a team as if they have both received the position of
headmaster√√. (2)
2.3 They prefer new modern ways rather than old and tired ways; they also refer to
traditionalist teachers as “old and superannuated people”. √ (1)
2.4 B, D and E√√√ (3)
2.5 The conflict was based on the fence the headmaster created that served as
restriction towards the access to the ancestral pathway. According to the villagers it
signified disrespect towards their cultural beliefs. √ (1)
2.6 The moral of the story is respecting other people’s culture especially if you are an
outsider, understanding the reason behind them believing in that particular culture.(1)
Total: [10]
QUESTION THREE: FOLKLORE [10]
THE MOTHER WHO TURNED TO DUST
3.1 They were children that possessed strength; love for one another, compassion and
warmth. They shared things with one another, showed respect and supported each
other√√. (2)
3.2 She was nurturing towards them; did everything for them; loved them
unconditionally even though they were different, but she did not treat them differently.
However, they did not reciprocate the same affection or affection towards her while she
had unconditional love for her children√√ (2)
3.3 They would fight and quarrel with one another; demand attention from their mother;
disrespecting each other and killing animals just for fun. This is similar to the modern
world because humanity behave in the same way; they are not kind with one another;
they hate and disrespect each other and their own parents. They kill each other and
demand favour in mother earth while they are not treating it well√√√.(3)
3.4 People are not kind with one another or the planet earth√√. (2)
3.5 B√ (1)
Total: [10]
