INDIAN SCHOOL AL WADI AL KABIR

PRE MID TERM REVISION PAPER (Answer Key 2018)

CLASS-VIII ENGLISH Max.Marks:30

Time: 1 Hr.

Instructions:

The question paper is divided into four sections.

Section A:Reading 10 marks

Section B: Writing 5 marks

Section C:Grammar 7 marks

Section D : Literature 8 marks

SECTION- A- READING (10 Marks)

  1. Read the following passage carefully:

When my maternal uncle was alive, his only son quietly made plans to settle in Germany with his wife. Without informing his father or sister he bought tickets and sold all moveable things at home. A week before he left, everyone was informed of his plans. People criticized him for abandoning his father. The married daughter who was settled in Bhopal, shifted to Delhi to look after her father. A year later the father was admitted to a private hospital and died. The son came from Germany, paid the bills and performed all the death ceremonies.

People now said that after all he had come all the way, so he was not a bad son. No word about how he had neglected his father or how his sister had to disrupt her personal life to take care of old dad.

This is what life teaches every daughter. Our society values a son more because he has the religious sanction to perform death ceremonies and grant them liberation. A daughter may have given them love, care, sensitivity, time, service, but the son gets preference because he carries forward the family name and performs the rites. He may be uncaring, arrogant and indifferent but for parents a son is their treasure.

Two years back in our neighbourhood a man died without leaving a will. His only son sold the bungalow and took away his sick mother without informing his three sisters who then approached the court for a share of the property. Is this the family structure we boast of to the world? Where does love and laughter vanish when siblings become adults? Are we right in blaming a newlywed for poisoning a son’s brain? Love for a daughter has to come from within. Saints repeatedly clarify that death ceremonies need not be performed only by one’s own son. And what guarantee is there that a son will perform the rites? If parents do not reciprocate a daughter's love, won’t heaven, which claims to be just and fair, reproach them for their insensitivity?

A1.1Answer the following questions briefly: (1x 4 = 4 marks)

  1. Do you think that society is insensitive to a daughter’s love for her parents? Give an example.

Yes, society is insensitive to daughters because she is not allowed to perform the rites.

  1. Daughters are the gifts for the parents. Do you agree? Give reason.

Yes, daughters are gifts for parents because they are caring, sensitive and affectionate.

  1. Why do the parents consider their son as a treasure?

Parents consider their son a treasure because they carry forward thefamily name.

  1. What made the girl shift her residence from Bhopal to Delhi?

The girl shifted her residence from Bhopal to Delhi as she wanted to look after her father.

A1.2 Find words from the passage which mean the same as- (½ x 2 = 1 mark)

  1. leave permanently - abandon
  2. disappear suddenly– vanish
  1. Read the following passage carefully: (1 x 5 = 5 marks)

The sun descending in the west,

The evening star does shine;

The birds are silent in their nest.

And I must seek for mine.

The moon like a flower

In heaven’s high bower,

With silent delight

Sits and smiles on the night.

Farewell green fields and happy grove,

Where flocks have took delight:

Where lambs have nibbled, silent move

The feet of angels bright;

Unseen they pour blessing

And joy without ceasing

On each bud and blossom,

And each sleeping bosom.

They look in every thoughtless nest,

Where birds are covered warm;

They visit caves of every beast,

To keep them all from harm:

If they see any weeping

That should have been sleeping,

They pour sleep on their head,

And sit down by their bed.

A2. Answer the following questions by choosing the most appropriate option: -

  1. The poet compares moon to
  1. a flower
  2. a bird in the nest
  3. an evening star
  4. an angel
  1. The angels come down on earth to
  1. spread moonlight
  2. give blessing and joy
  3. make people dance and have fun
  4. take blessing and joy
  1. Birds’ nest is described as ‘thoughtless’ because
  1. the angels are blessing the birds to be happy
  2. the birds are covered in the warmth of their nest
  3. it is made without any thought
  4. the occupants are asleep without any care
  1. The figure of speech used in the line ‘In heaven’s high bower’ is
  1. metaphor
  2. personification
  3. alliteration
  4. simile
  1. The word ‘bower’ used in the poem represents
  1. a potted plant
  2. a framework that supports climbing plants
  3. a bouquet of flowers
  4. a flower vase

SECTION- B- WRITING: (5 Marks)

Q3. You are Mitali/ Sanjay. You recently participated in Science India Forum organized in your school where you stood first in model making competition. Record your experience in the form of a diary entry in not more than 60 – 80 words.

SECTION C- GRAMMAR (7 Marks)

Q4. Fill in the blanks using the correct form of the verbs: - (½ x 7 = 3½ marks)

(a)Hardly had the minister finished his speech when gunshots stormed(storm) the stadium.

(b)Everybody will be at the office at about 08:30 tomorrow as the meeting starts (start) at nine o'clock.

(c)I was going to play(play) tennis tomorrow but I won't be able to do that because I have injured my right ankle.

(d)We had visited (visit) the seashore many times before but last summer we enjoyed ourselves more than ever.

(e)Nothing in my life has been (be) so strong to stop me achieve my goals so far and i don't think anything will be.

(f)By the year 2020, linguists will have been studying (study) the Indy-European language family for more than 200 years.

(g)When I came (come) home this evening, my parents had gone out for a walk.

Q5. Choose the correct form of the verb that agrees with the subject: - (½ x 7 = 3½ marks)

  1. The committeeleadsvery different lives in private.
  2. The Prime Minister, together with his wife,greetsthe press cordially.
  3. Either my shoes or your coatisalways on the floor.
  4. The dog or the catsareoutside.
  5. Nobodyknowsthe trouble I've seen.
  6. The players, as well as the captain,wantto win.
  7. The man with all the birdsliveson my street.

SECTION D- Literature: (8 Marks)

Q6. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow: (1x3= 3 marks)

Half sunk, a shatter’d visage lies, whose frown

And wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command

Tell that its sculptor well those passions read…

(a)Name the poet and the poet.

Ozymandias by P.B. Shelley

(b)Explain: ‘And wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command’

These lines describe the statue of King Ozymandias. The statue has a serious and commanding look marked by a frown, which reflects that theKing seem to hold the world in contempt. The sculptor understood the king well and represented his character clearly through the statue.

(c)What had happened to the statue?

The statue was broken and a part of it was lying in the sand.

Q7. Answer the following questions in 30-40 words each: (2½ x 2 = 5 marks)

(a)What was the condition of the city after the earthquake?

Everything made of bricks and mortar crashed to the ground. Many government buildings like the Government House, the post office and the jail all tumbled down. Railway lines and roads had been badly damaged. Minor shocks took place at regular intervals. People were rushing about. Brahmaputra burst its banks and many cultivators were drowned in the flood.

(b)Why did the man ask for the king’s forgiveness? How did the king respond?

The man had come there to kill the king but was wounded at the hands of the king’s bodyguard. It was the king’s attention that saved him from death. He was touched by the fact that he was saved by the man he wanted to kill, and hence asked for forgiveness and promised to be loyal to him always. The king was happy to make peace with his enemy and to have the man for a friend, and immediately forgave him and promised to restore his property.