QER Practice ans

QE Qn Type RevisionName: ____________________________________ ( )Class: _______Date: __________Question 1YTSS Prelims 2023I remembered Lila and sought her with my gaze. She was standing in the middle of the room, body leaning forward, head down, eyes narrowed, brow furrowed. I called to her but she did not respond. Her ears did not hear, her throat did not inhale air and her mouth did not open. It was as if she had entered a state of paralysis. ‘Lila,’ I called again to no avail. She seemed to have erased every feeling. I moved to grab her and drag her away. It was the most urgent thing to do. To reach her was a challenge, and yet it was just a step. The writer claimed that Lila seemed to have ‘entered a state of paralysis’ (line 15). Explain how this claim is supported with reference to three pieces of evidence from Paragraph 3. QuoteExplanation‘I called to her but she did not respond’OR ‘(Lila,) I called again to no avail’suggests that Lila had no reaction / was oblivious to the writer (who was trying to get her attention.) suggests that Lila did not respond to / ignored the writer‘Her ears did not hear, her throat did not inhale air and her mouth did not open’suggests that she had seemed to have lost her bodily functions / lost control of her body / seemed to have shut her body down / lost her senses.‘She seemed to have erased every feeling’ suggests that Lila seemed as if she was emotionless / numb to emotions / incapable of experiencing any emotions / sensations / unable to feel anything.Students should not simply do a word-for-word paraphrasing, but should capture the idea of how Lila entered this state of paralysis or what this state of paralysis looks like. Question 2BWSS Prelims 2023As he turned back to the house, his eye caught mine and he winked. He did not do it in the way that adults usually did, at once arrogant and ingratiating. No, this was a conspiratorial wink. It was as if this moment that we, two strangers, had shared, although outwardly without significance, had meaning. His eyes were an extraordinary pale transparent shade of blue. He went back inside then, already talking before he was through the door. "Damned thing," he said, "seems to be …" and was gone. I lingered for a moment, scanning the upstairs windows. No face appeared there.In Paragraph 6, the writer said the man’s wink was not “arrogant and ingratiating”. Explain how this claim is supported with reference to two pieces of evidence from Paragraph 6.QuoteExplanation‘this was a conspiratorial wink’suggests that the man was in cahoots / colluding with the writer. ‘It was as if this moment that we, two strangers, suggests that the man was trying to connect with

2had shared, although outwardly without significance, had meaning’ the writer.Question 3ANDSS Prelims 2023The truth was that Shackleton felt rather out of his element. He had proved himself on land. He had demonstrated there beyond all doubt his ability to pit his matchless tenacity against the elements – and win. But the sea is a different sort of enemy. Unlike the land, where courage and the simple will to endure can often see a man through, the struggle against the sea is a direct and demanding confrontation with the elements. It is a battle against a tireless enemy in which man never actually wins. It gave Shackleton a feeling of uneasiness. He now faced an adversary so formidable that his own strength was nothing in comparison, and he did not enjoy being in a position where boldness and determination count for almost nothing. But more than anything he was dreadfully tired, and he wanted simply for the journey to be over, and as quickly as possible.In Paragraph 4, Shackleton claimed that ‘the sea is a different sort of enemy’ (line 20). Explain how this claim is supported, with reference to three pieces of evidence from Paragraph 4. QuoteExplanation‘(Unlike the land, where courage and the simple will to endure can often see a man through,) the struggle against the sea is a direct and demanding confrontation with the elements’suggests that the challenges posed by the sea is more physical then psychological.‘it is a battle against a tireless enemy in which man never actually wins’suggests that the sea is relentless and cannot be defeated / and the best outcome against the sea is not victory but survival‘an adversary so formidable that his own strength was nothing in comparison’Suggests that sea is a force so intimidating / powerful / dangerous that it is incapable of being matched/ equalled/ rivalled Question 4BWSS Prelims 2023I wonder why the house was built like that, sideways, with a windowless white wall along facing the road; perhaps in former times, before the railway, the road ran in a different orientation altogether, passing directly in front of the front door. Anything is possible. Miss Vavasour, the landlady, is vague on dates but thinks a cottage was first put up here early in the last century and then was added on to haphazardly over the years. That would account for the jumbled look of the place, with small rooms leading to bigger ones, and windows facing blank walls, and low ceilings throughout. The pine floors sound a nautical note, as does my spindle-backed swivel chair.Miss Vavasour claimed that the ‘cottage was first put up here early in the last century and then was added on to haphazardly’. Explain how this claim is supported with reference to two pieces of evidence from Paragraph 2QuoteExplanation

3‘jumbled look of the place’suggests that the place looks disorganised / messy due to a lack of planning / poor planning over the years‘the pine floors sound a nautical note’suggests that the floors of the house have started creaking due to its old age(X) ‘the house was built like that, sideways, with a windowless white wall along facing the road…’This suggests that the house was initially positioned to accommodate the previous road alignment but does not show what was added on haphazardly.Question 5ZHSS Prelims 2023There were endless rounds of sanding and skim-coating the walls. By the time the walls were finished with their final coat of eggshell white, they had achieved a kind of sacred status. We were not allowed to touch them lest we should leave smudges or stains. We moved through the house at a distance from these pristine white walls. The walls were to be respected and feared, in the same way one pays homage to a deity, and as with all sacred objects made for the purpose of humble prayers, if we were careless and caused them damage we could bring down upon ourselves grave consequences, beginning with our father’s wrath. Only when I was a little older, and first saw photos of buildings bombed during the war, their ruined interior walls exposed to the exterior, did our father’s obsession with restoring the house back to its former glory take on a more nuanced meaning.The writer claimed that the walls ‘had achieved a kind of sacred status’ (line 38). Explain how this claim is supported with three pieces of evidence from Paragraph 7.QuoteExplanation‘not allowed to touch them lest we should leave smudges or stains’suggests the perceived purity of the walls as touching the walls was prohibited to avoid blemishes being left on them.‘moved through the house at a distance from these pristine white walls’suggests a deliberate and cautious approach to the walls, which in turn suggests a sense of ritualistic care to prevent the walls from being tainted. ‘The walls were to be respected and feared, in the same way one pays homage to a deity’suggests the walls were expected to be treated with utmost reverence/awe/caution, like an awe-inspiring god. ‘if we were careless and caused them damage we could bring down upon ourselves grave consequences’ suggests the perceived importance and sanctity of the walls, so much so that should they be treated tardily, there might be serious and punitive measures meted out to them.