HISSAN CENTRAL EXAMINATION 2079 (2023)



Grade: XII Time: 3 hrs.      F.M.: 75

ENGLISH (0041 MI)

Candidates are required to give answers in their own words as far as practicable. The figure in the margin indicates full marks.

Attempt ALL the questions:

1. Read the following passage and answer the questions given below. [5 x 3-15]

No one would have believed in the last years of the nineteenth century that this world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man's and yet as mortal as his own; that as men busied themselves about their various concerns they were scrutinized and studied, perhaps almost as narrowly as a man with a microscope might scrutinize the transient creatures that swarm and multiply in a drop of water. With infinite complacency men went to and fro over this globe about their little affairs, serene in their assurance of their empire over matter. It is possible that the infusoria under the microscope do the same. No one gave a thought to the older worlds of space as sources of human danger, or thought of them only to dismiss the idea of life upon them as impossible or improbable. It is curious to recall some of the mental habits of those departed days. At most terrestrial men fancied there might be other men upon Mars, perhaps inferior to themselves and ready to welcome a missionary enterprise. Yet across the gulf of space, minds that are to our minds as ours are to those of the beasts that perish, intellects vast and cool and unsympathetic regarded this earth with envious eyes, and slowly and surely drew their plans against us. And early in the twentieth century came the great disillusionment.

The planet Mars revolves about the sun at a mean distance of 140,000,000 miles, and the light and heat it receives from the sun is barely half of that received by this world. It must be, if the nebular hypothesis has any truth, older than our world; and long before this earth ceased to be molten, life upon its surface must have begun its course. The fact that it is scarcely one seventh of the volume of the earth must have accelerated its cooling to the temperature at which life could begin. It has air and water and all that is necessary for the support of animated existence. Since Mars is older than our earth, it necessarily follows that it is not only more distant from time's beginning but nearer its end. The cooling that must someday overtake our planet has already gone far indeed with our neighbour. In its equatorial region, the midday temperature barely approaches that of our coldest winter. Its air is much more attenuated than ours, its oceans have shrunk until they cover but a third of its surface. That last stage of exhaustion, which to us is still incredibly remote, has become a present-day problem for the inhabitants of Mars. The immediate pressure of necessity has brightened their intellects, enlarged their powers, and hardened their hearts. And looking across space with instruments, and intelligences such as we have scarcely dreamed of, they see, at its nearest distance only 35,000,000 of miles sunward of them, a morning star of hope, our own warmer planet, green with vegetation and grey with water, with a cloudy atmosphere eloquent of fertility, with glimpses through its drifting cloud wisps of broad stretches of populous country and narrow, navy-crowded seas.

Adapted from The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells (1898)

A. Answer the following questions choosing the most appropriate option. [5]

i. What does the word complacency in the first paragraph mean?

(a) intelligences greater than man’s

(b) having excess pride in oneself or one’s achievements

(c) it is mindless and mechanical

ii. The meaning of scrutinised in the first paragraph means….

(a) Inspected closely or thoroughly

(b) carried a huge burden

(c) expanded areas of the mind to greater possibilities

iii. Hypothesis in the second paragraph means....... 

(a) Intended to convey a particular meaning

(b) A statement declared by the government

(c) a proposition made as a basis for reasoning

iv. The meaning of attenuated in the last paragraph means ...........

(a) Diminished the quality

(b) Made more noticeable or prominent

(c) subsided in a way

( EXTRA Question: The meaning of accentuated in the last paragraph means ...........

(a) Diminished the quality

(b) Made more noticeable or prominent

(c) subsided in a way )

V. The word ‘eloquent’ in the last paragraph means....

(a) Clearly indicating something

(b) Transitory in its form (c) lasting long


B. Answer the following questions in brief. 5

 (i) What was the world unaware towards the end of the nineteenth century?

Ans:- The world was unaware towards the end of the nineteenth century that this world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man's and yet as mortal as his own.

(ii) Describe the fanciful idea of men.

Ans:-  The fanciful idea of men was that there might be other men upon Mars, perhaps inferior to themselves and ready to welcome a missionary enterprise.

(iii) What is the condition of the equatorial region in Mars?

Ans:- . The condition of the equatorial region in Mars is that the midday temperature barely approaches that of our coldest winter. Its air is much more attenuated than ours, its oceans have shrunk until they cover but a third of its surface.

 (iv) Is there any possibility of life in Mars? Give a reason to your answer.

Ans:- Yes, there is possibility of life in Mars as the fact that it is scarcely one seventh of the volume of the earth must have accelerated its cooling to the temperature at which life could begin. 

(v) What has the immediate pressure of necessity done to the Martians according to HG Wells?

Ans:- According to HG Wells, the immediate pressure of necessity has brightened the Martians' intellects, enlarged their powers, and hardened their hearts. 

C. Insert not more than THREE WORDS in the blanks below: 5

 (1) With ….... men rush into their little affairs, calm in their assurance of their empire over matter. (Ans:- infinite complacency )

 (ii) At its best …….. .... there might be other men upon Mars. (Ans:- terrestrial men fancied )

(iii) The light and heat the Mars receives from the sun is ………. that this world receives. (Ans:- barely half of )

(iv) The ….......of necessity has expanded all the greater possibilities of these aliens. (Ans:- immediate pressure )

(v) The equatorial region of Mars during the midday temperature ............. that of our coldest winter. (Ans:-barely approaches ) 

2. Answer the following questions in short: [5×2=10]

a. Describe the expository scene of 'The Treasure in the Forest".

b. What does the poet mean by ‘a new world”? (The Awakening Age)

c. "Do we live in the age of inequality? Give a reason to your answer. (Human Rights and the Age of Inequality)

 d. How did the neighbours help the young couple in the kitchen garden? (Neighbours)

 e. Describe the plot of 'The Bull'.

3. Write long answers to the following questions: [2×5-10]

a. Discuss ‘Every Morning I Wake’ as a prayer to God.

b. Yuval Noah Harari debunks humanity’s illusions of superiority and mastery in his essay ‘Humility’. Demonstrate how he does that extracting few examples from the text.

4. Write a couple of paragraphs on your memories of childhood days not exceeding 150 words. [7]

5. Based on the given notice, create a professional Curriculum Vitae (Bio-Data) fulfilling the criteria for the post. [8]

Wednesday, 1 May 2022

Vacancy announcement from The Embers Restaurant

The Embers Restaurant set up in Krishna Galli, Lalitpur seeks application for the post of Hotel Manager.

 Requirements: The post requires completion of BHM, 3 years of relevant experience and fluency in written and spoken English. Please email us your applications in HRM Department not later than 10th May 2022.

Only short-listed candidates will be called for an interview.

The Embers Restaurant

Email: ktm.hotels@gmail.com Phone: 5547890


6. Write a biography in about 300 words on a celebrity you are always in inspired by. [10]

7. Follow the instructions as given in parentheses and rewrite the sentences. [10×1=10]

a) Why do you always sneer …………. me? (Insert the correct preposition.) Ans:- at

b) He has not contributed …………. the development of education. (Insert the correct preposition) Ans:- to

c) My father ….… always read me bedtime stories before bed. (Choose one : used to/would)

d) I’m looking for (golden / a / stylish / Japanese) watch. (Arrange the adjectives in the right order.) (Ans:- a stylish golden Japanese watch. Or a stylish Japanese golden watch)

e) His step-mother was not very kind to him. He had been staying with her. (Join the sentences with an appropriate relative pronoun)  (Ans:- His step-mother with whom he had been staying was not very kind to him.)

f) The clock has struck four………… (Choose one: hour / hours)

g) The salesman said to Mr. Thomas, “You won’t regret if you buy this product.” (Choose one: assure/inquire and transform it into Indirect speech) Ans:- The salesman assured Mr. Thomas that he would not regret if he bought that product. )

h) The old woman fell down. She was climbing up the stairs. (Join these sentences using while) Ans:- The old woman fell down while he was climbing up the stairs. 

i) Do you remember? Did I lock the door? (Combine both to construct an indirect question) ( Ans:- Do you remember if I locked the door? )

j) I was really tired. I could not sleep a moment. (Use Despite to connect these two.)  (Ans:- Despite being really tired, I could not sleep a moment. )


8. Follow the instructions and do accordingly. (5 x 1=5)

a. They have arrived their country home quite lately at midnight. (Which Part of speech is the boldfaced word?) Ans:- Adverb

b. Use the preffix mono and form one word. (Ans:- Monopoly / monochrome )

c. Make a compound word for rattle from the given options: work/spider/snake 

Ans:- rattle snake 

d. Before falling asleep, Kim ……. ……(Choose one: lies / lays) her golden bracelet on the table.

e) Which among the following is used for the transcription of the underlined letters in the word ‘both”?

i. /^/

ii. /n/

iii. /Q/थ

iv. /  £/