AHSEC – Class 12 Question Papers: Alternative English’ 2014

by
HS 2nd YEAR ALTERNATIVE ENGLISH
PAPER 2014
Full Marks: 100
Pass Marks: 30
Time: 3 hours
The figures in the margin indicate full marks for the questions.
GROUP – A
(NEW SYLLABUS)
1. Answer any five of the following: 1×5=5
  1. Who is the author of the prose piece, ‘The Testament of a Walker’?
  2. Who was Dr. B.R. Ambedkar?
  3. Dees Carlyle regards Napoleon to be ‘great’?
  4. What is the name of Narayan’s fictional town?
  5. What is Narayan’s most ambitious work that he had been planning for years?
  6. Name one of the best known works of Jawaharlal Nehru.
  7. Apart from being a wise politician, what other quality did Nehru have?
  8. Name the person whose disciple Nehru was.
  9. Name the essay from which the prose piece ‘The Scientific Technique’ has been extracted.
  10. Who does Dante place in the lowest-circle of Hell?
2. Answer any five of the following: 2×5=10
  1. Who were the architects of Indian Constitution?
  2. What according to Carlyle is the sign or test of a great or heroic man?
  3. Why is Narayan indifferent to the mention of any petrol ‘hike’?
  4. What do you understand by the term ‘fanatic’ in the context of ‘The Testament of a Walker’?
  5. What is the Mahatma’s latest ‘self-imposed order’?
  6. Why does Forster say, ‘So Two Cheers for Democracy’?
  7. Who are Forster’s law givers?
  8. What is the essential novelty about the scientific technique?
3. Answer any three of the following: 4×3=12
  1. What according to Ambedkar is the hallmark of a great man?
  2. How is Narayan’s car damaged?
  3. What aspect of Nehru’s personality is revealed in his letter to the Mahatma?
  4. What is the difference between the world of personal relationships and the world of business?
  5. What is the most essential characteristic of the scientific technique?
  6. Enumerate the stages in the progress of the scientific technique down the ages.
4. Explain the reference to the context: (any two) 4×2=8


  1. ….If greatness stands for natural power, for predominance, for something beyond humanity then Napoleon was assuredly great. Besides that indefinable spark which we call genius, he represents a combination of intellect and energy which has never perhaps been equaled, never certainly surpassed.
  2. I lack automobile sensibility and do not regret, I have a strong belief that man’s ultimate destiny lies in walking, that is why he is endowed with a pair of legs, which can operate without petrol or gears. It is this philosophy that leaves me indifferent at the mention of any petrol ‘hike’.
  3. I felt terribly lonely in this wide world. I have always felt a little lonely almost from childhood up. But a few bonds strengthened me, a few strong supports held me up. The loneliness never went, but it was lessened. But now I felt absolutely alone, left high and dry on a desert island.
  4. Democracy has another merit. It allows criticism, and if there is not public criticism there are bond to be hushed-up scandals.
5. Answer any five of the following: 1×5=5
  1. Who is the poet of ‘In Time of The Breaking of Nations’?
  2. Where is the phrase, ‘The Breaking of Nations’, borrowed from?
  3. Where does the parting take place in the poem ‘Taking Leave of a Friend’?
  4. What is the colour of the mountain in the poem ‘Taking Leave of a Friend’?
  5. Where are the three ‘happy children’?
  6. Who is the ‘poet anchorite’ referred to in the poem ‘Sita’?
  7. Whose ‘arms and legs are wholly literate’?
  8. How will the ‘tattoo’ stand ‘when all else is gene’?
6. Answer any four of the following: 2×4=8
  1. What does Hardy seem to point out in the poem ‘In Time of ‘The Breaking of Nations’?
  2. What is a simple? Mention the similes used in the poem ‘Taking Leave of a Friend’.
  3. How does the poet bring out the painful experience of the parting of friends?
  4. Do you think the children will ever gather by their mother’s side again?
  5. What ‘mythic past’ does Dutt try to bring out in her poem?
  6. What does Ramanujan imbibe from Dante?
  7. Who is the subject matter of the poem ‘Rickshaw-Wallah’?
7. Answer any three of the following: 4×3=12
  1. What are the things that Hardy regards as permanent in human life? Why?
  2. Discuss the significance of the title of the poem ‘In Time of The Breaking of Nations’.
  3. What are the different images used by the poet to express the idea of ‘leave taking’?
  4. How does Dutt relate the past and the present in her poem?
  5. Analyze the poetic description of the poverty and misery of the Rickshaw-Wallah in the poem by A.K. Ramanujan.
8. Explain with reference to the context any one of the following: 5×1=5
  1. War’s annals will cloud into night.
  2. Our horses neigh to each other as we are departing.
  3. His arms and legs are wholly literate in green and in red.
9. Change the following sentences as per the directions given in the brackets without changing the meaning: (any five) 1×5=5


  1. Only students are allowed to enter the hall. [Make it negative]
  2. I shall never forget such a good friend. [Make it interrogative]
  3. Is this the way you should behave? [Make it affirmative]
  4. The beauties of nature are beyond description. [Make it interrogative]
  5. Where in the world will you find a mountain peak higher than Everest? [Make it affirmative]
  6. I came here for the last time. [Mate it negative]
  7. He does not smoke. He does not drink. [Use neither ….. nor]
  8. Nobody asked you to come here. [Make it interrogative]
10. Add question tags to the following: (any five) 1×5=5
  1. You can speak French.
  2. Ravi would like to go there.
  3. Raju is not a good student.
  4. You haven’t read Shakespeare.
  5. The captain did not agree to this.
  6. Please ask the boys to come in.
  7. You are not angry with me.
  8. No one appeared to be honest.
11. Fill in the blanks with suitable prepositions. (any five) 1×5=5
  1. He is ____ his way to college.
  2. He comes ____ a good family.
  3. Your application is ____ consideration.
  4. All the trains are running ____ time.
  5. You must have respect ____ your elders.
  6. He shouted ____ a loud voice.
  7. The building was destroyed ____ an earthquake.
  8. The examination is ____ hand.
12. Rewrite the following sentences using the verbs in the brackets in their correct tenses: (any five) 1×5
  1. The girl ____ when I saw her (play).
  2. The patient ____ before the doctor arrived. (die)
  3. A good boy ____ his parents. (obey)
  4. Perhaps we ____ Mahabaleswar next month. (visit)
  5. Unless we ____ now we can’t be on time. (start)
  6. A strong wind ____ since last night. (blow)
  7. Last year I ____ three lectures on the subject. (deliver)
  8. He thanked me for what I ____ for him. (do)
13. Read the following conversation and answer the questions given below:
Venu: I am surprised that Ramesh has got only a second class while Mohan has got a first class.
Madhu: So am I, The present system of examination is defective and needs reforming.
Venu: Yes, I suppose so. It fails to discriminate between a bright, hard working student and a dull student.
Madhu: What is more, a dull student sometimes gets more marks than a brilliant student. This is exactly what has happened in the present case. Ramesh is very intelligent and hard working. Mohan is only a boy of average intelligence. By memorizing a few select answers he has passed with flying colours.
Venu: Yes, he has. A student who sincerely studies the textbooks gets fewer marks than one who completely relies on Bazar guides.
Madhu: I notice another defect in the examination system. What the student has studied for a year or two is assessed in two or three hours. This system tempts the students to put off his studies until the last months. He doesn’t have to work hard throughout the year.
Venu: You are right. It would be advisable to introduce periodic tests which are spread over the entire academic year.
Madhu: That is a good idea. Periodic tests would compel the student to work hard throughout the year. I also feel that the essay type questions should give way to objective type of questions.
Venu: I quite agree with you. Objective testing would compel the student to read the text-books thoroughly. It would also help measure the student’s abilities accurately. ………….. Oh! It’s time I was going. Good night!
Madhu: Good night!
  1. Why is Venu surprised? 1
  2. What does Madhu say about the present system of education? 2
  3. What is Venu’s opinion about the system of education? 2
  4. How does Madhu analyze the case of Ramesh and Mohan? 3
  5. Who gets the fewer marks? 1
  6. What tempts the students to put off their studies until the last month? 2
  7. How can periodic test be useful? 3
  8. What would compel a student to read the text books thoroughly? 1

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