Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
Read the text below and answer Questions 1–3 on the question paper.
TEXT 1
This text is from a BBC magazine article about international travel with pets.
Travelling the world with cats and a dog
It's 26 years since I set off to try my luck as a journalist in Moscow. I had a rucksack, a Russian phrasebook, and the expectation of adventure. What I hadn't anticipated was… pets.
Within a year there was an insistent scratching sound on my apartment door. I opened it to find a scrawny stray ginger cat.
Grace strolled in from a dark, pungent stairwell and declared (in that blank, unimpressed way that Russians often have with strangers) that this would do just fine.
Oh, and she was pregnant.
Nearly 10 years later - still serenely unimpressed by life - Grace, and one of her sons, flew with us from Moscow to Nairobi.
Kenya meant good weather, the unfamiliar pleasure of friendly strangers, birds big enough to grab an inexperienced cat, and a house with a garden.
Suddenly a dog seemed possible. Maybe even necessary.
Like most of our neighbours in Nairobi, we had a night guard who wandered around the garden holding a big stick until we were asleep and then settled down on two chairs to snore his way through the rest of the night. Perhaps a dog would help.
We found Lily in languid, rural Karen, on the edge of the Rift Valley. Puppies from the same litter ended up with Nairobi diplomats and soon grew uncomfortably plump on the crust-less sandwiches they sourced at garden parties.
Lily quickly made it clear that guarding was not in her skill set. She enjoyed eating unfamiliar objects and playing with our young children - but she was understandably terrified of Grace the cat, and equally scared of the dark. And of strangers. And of wildlife.
Not that it seemed to matter. In much of Africa dogs are not generally perceived according to their breed or temperament. They are simply dogs. Things to be wary of. Things that police and guards tend to set on people.
So it's possible, I suppose, that blonde, enthusiastic Lily may inadvertently have given a few Nairobi burglars second thoughts.
Either way, four years later, we moved to Singapore. Small, safe, steamy.
We had a garden, once again - now frequented by large snakes, and by larger lizards with their wide, grotesque mouths.
Lily stayed indoors. Grace too. And over time I became properly acquainted with the complex, haphazard, expensive world of international pet transportation.
Moving around the former Soviet Union had been rather easy. Vets, for instance, were often happy to backdate or forge whatever certificates seemed appropriate. Bribery
5
10
15
20
25
30
wasn't just an option, it was an integral part of the process.
In Singapore, then Thailand, then briefly in France, and now in South Africa, it's a more unpredictable affair.
Nine years ago, I sat with Grace on my lap, in a Bangkok vet's office, quietly pleading with him to put her down. She was 18 years old, had days to live, and was in obvious pain. The vet nodded, smiled sympathetically, and then explained that that wasn't part of Thai culture.
I took Grace home. She died. And a week later she was given a proper send-off at a local Buddhist temple - one catering specially for pets. I like to think she would have been unimpressed.
Then, of course, there's the paperwork, and what I've discovered to be the fundamental, immutable law of pet migration. The stricter and more extensive the requirements ahead of travel - for passports, jabs, microchips, special crates, transit fees and all the rest of it - the bigger the smiles of the customs officials at the destination airport, as they wave away your dossier full of hard-won paperwork without a glance, and crouch down to stroke the new arrival.
Last week I took Lily to the vet here in Johannesburg. She's 16 now - Lily, that is - and getting a little unsteady. She's also quite happily deaf, which means the summer thunderstorms here no longer send her frantic with fear.
Unlike their Thai counterparts, South Africans vets always seem to be offering to put pets down. It's as if they have a quota to fill. But all Lily needed was her nails clipping.
She's sitting with me here as I write this at home. Her large ears lifting inquisitively. An elderly, cosmopolitan Kenyan.
35
40
45
50
Read the text below and answer Questions 4–7 on the question paper.
TEXT 2
Gerald Durrell moved from Britain to the Greek island of Corfu with his family. In this extract from his autobiography, he tells the story of a pigeon who he cared for as a young boy.
I obtained another pet. This time it was a pigeon. He was still very young and had to be force-fed on bread-and-milk and soaked corn. He was the most revolting bird to look at, with his feathers pushing through the wrinkled scarlet skin, mixing with the yellow down that covers baby pigeons, and makes them look as though they have been peroxiding their hair. Owing to his repulsive and obese appearance, Larry suggested we call him Quasimodo and, liking the name without realising the implications, I agreed. For a long time after he could feed himself, and when all his feathers had grown, Quasimodo retained a sprig of yellow down on his head which gave him the appearance of a rather pompous judge wearing a wig several sizes too small.
Owing to the fact that he had no parents to teach him the facts of life, Quasimodo became convinced that he was not a bird at all, and refused to fly. Instead he walked everywhere. If he wanted to get on to a table, or a chair, he stood below it, ducking his head and cooing until someone lifted him up. He was always eager to join us in anything we did, and would even try to come for walks with us. This, however, we had to stop, for either you carried him on your shoulder, which was risking an accident to your clothes, or else you let him walk behind. If you let him walk, then you had to slow down your own pace to suit his, for should you get too far ahead you would hear the most frantic and imploring coos and turn round to find Quasimodo running desperately after you, his tail wagging seductively, his iridescent chest pouted out with indignation at your cruelty.
Quasimodo insisted on sleeping in the house; no amount of coaxing or scolding would get him to inhabit the pigeon-loft I had constructed for him. He preferred to sleep on the end of Margo's bed. Eventually, however, he was banished to the living-room sofa, for if Margo turned over in bed at night Quasimodo would wake, hobble up the bed, and perch on her face, cooing loudly and lovingly.
One sad day we found, on waking Quasimodo, that he had duped us all, for there among the cushions lay a glossy white egg. He never quite recovered from this. He became embittered, sullen, and started to peck irritably if you attempted to pick him up. Then he laid another egg, and his nature changed completely. He, or rather she,
5
10
15
20
25
became wilder and wilder, treating us as though we were her worst enemies, slinking up to the kitchen door for food as if she feared for her life.
Quasimodo: the name of a character in ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’ who was abandoned at birth.
SECTION A – Reading
Read Text 1. Then answer Questions 1–3.
You should spend about 1 hour 15 minutes on the WHOLE of Section A (Questions 1–7).
Write your answers in the spaces provided.
1. In lines 1–5, identify two things we learn about the cat.
1 ...............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
2 ...............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
(Total for Question 1 = 2 marks)
2. Give one example from lines 14–19 of how the writer uses language to show that the puppies were not ideal guard dogs.
Support your example with a detailed text reference.............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................
(Total for Question 2 = 2 marks)
3. Analyse how the writer uses language and structure to interest and engage readers. Support your views with detailed reference to the text.
(Total for Question 3 = 15 marks)
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
Read Text 2. Then answer Questions 4–6.
Write your answers in the spaces provided.
4. Why was the pigeon named Quasimodo?
.............................................................................................................................................................................
(Total for Question 4 = 1 mark)
5. Give one example from lines 5 to 9 of how Gerald Durrell uses language to show how ridiculous the bird’s appearance was.
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
(Total for Question 5 = 1 mark)
6. Gerald Durrell attempts to engage the reader through the description of the bird and what it did.Evaluate how successfully this is achieved.Support your views with detailed reference to the text.
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
(Total for Question 6 = 15 marks)
Question 7 is about Text 1 and Text 2. Answer both parts of the question. Refer to both texts in your answers.
Write your answer in the space provided.7 (a) The two texts show the points of view of different pet owners and their petsWhat similarities do the pets and their owners share in these texts?Use evidence from both texts to support your answer.
(6)
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
(b) Compare how the writers of Text 1 and Text 2 present their ideas and perspectives about dealing with pets.Support your answer with detailed reference to the texts.
(14)
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
.............................................................................................................................................................................
(Total for Question 7 = 20 marks)
TOTAL FOR SECTION A = 56 MARKS
