Passage 1<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Question 1.<\/span><\/strong> The old banker was walking up and down his study and remembering how, fifteen years before, he had given a party one autumn evening. There had been many clever men there, and there had been interesting conversations. Among other things they had talked of capital punishment.<\/p>\n Who had thrown a party?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Question 2.<\/span><\/strong> The old banker was walking up and down his study and remembering how, fifteen years before, he had given a party one autumn evening. There had been many clever men there, and there had been interesting conversations. Among other things they had talked of capital punishment.<\/p>\n Who attended the party?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Question 3.<\/span><\/strong> The old banker was walking up and down his study and remembering how, fifteen years before, he had given a party one autumn evening. There had been many clever men there, and there had been interesting conversations. Among other things they had talked of capital punishment.<\/p>\n What is capital punishment? When is it used?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Question 4.<\/span><\/strong> The old banker was walking up and down his study and remembering how, fifteen years before, he had given a party one autumn evening. There had been many clever men there, and there had been interesting conversations. Among other things they had talked of capital punishment.<\/p>\n What did the banker think about capital punishment as against life imprisonment?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Passage 2<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Question 1.<\/span><\/strong> “Both are equally immoral,” observed one of the guests, “for they both have the same object – to take away life. The State is not God. It has not the right to take away what it cannot restore when it wants to.”<\/p>\n What was equally immoral? Why?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Question 2.<\/span><\/strong> “Both are equally immoral,” observed one of the guests, “for they both have the same object – to take away life. The State is not God. It has not the right to take away what it cannot restore when it wants to.”<\/p>\n What was the banker’s opinion on the two forms of punishments?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Question 3.<\/span><\/strong> “Both are equally immoral,” observed one of the guests, “for they both have the same object – to take away life. The State is not God. It has not the right to take away what it cannot restore when it wants to.”<\/p>\n Why did the banker feel that death penalty was more moral than life imprisonment?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Passage 3<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Question 1.<\/span><\/strong> “It’s not true! I’ll bet you two million you wouldn’t stay in solitary confinement for five years.” Where and between whom did the above conversation take place?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Question 2.<\/span><\/strong> “It’s not true! I’ll bet you two million you wouldn’t stay in solitary confinement for five years.” What were the terms of the bet?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Question 3.<\/span><\/strong> “It’s not true! I’ll bet you two million you wouldn’t stay in solitary confinement for five years.” What led to the two men betting their money and freedom respectively?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Passage 4<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Question 1.<\/span><\/strong> The agreement provided for every detail and every trifle that would make his imprisonment strictly solitary, and bound the young man to stay there exactly fifteen years, beginning from twelve o’clock of November 14, 1870, and ending at twelve o’clock of November 14, 1885.<\/p>\n Between who was the agreement signed? What did it say?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Question 2.<\/span><\/strong> The agreement provided for every detail and every trifle that would make his imprisonment strictly solitary, and bound the young man to stay there exactly fifteen years, beginning from twelve o’clock of November 14, 1870, and ending at twelve o’clock of November 14, 1885.<\/p>\n What would happen if the lawyer broke any condition of the agreement?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Question 3.<\/span><\/strong> The agreement provided for every detail and every trifle that would make his imprisonment strictly solitary, and bound the young man to stay there exactly fifteen years, beginning from twelve o’clock of November 14, 1870, and ending at twelve o’clock of November 14, 1885.<\/p>\n What were the conditions of the solitary confinement?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Question 4.<\/span><\/strong> The agreement provided for every detail and every trifle that would make his imprisonment strictly solitary, and bound the young man to stay there exactly fifteen years, beginning from twelve o’clock of November 14, 1870, and ending at twelve o’clock of November 14, 1885.<\/p>\n How did the lawyer complete his first year of solitary confinement?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Passage 5<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Question 1.<\/span><\/strong> In the fifth year music was audible again, and the prisoner asked for wine. Those who watched him through the window said that all that year he spent doing nothing but eating and drinking and lying on his bed, frequently yawning and angrily talking to himself. He did not read books. Sometimes at night he would sit down to write; he would spend hours writing, and in the morning tear up all that he had written. More than once he could be heard crying.<\/p>\n How did the lawyer become the prisoner? How many years did he have to spend in the prison?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Question 2.<\/span><\/strong> In the fifth year music was audible again, and the prisoner asked for wine. Those who watched him through the window said that all that year he spent doing nothing but eating and drinking and lying on his bed, frequently yawning and angrily talking to himself. He did not read books. Sometimes at night he would sit down to write; he would spend hours writing, and in the morning tear up all that he had written. More than once he could be heard crying.<\/p>\n What did the prisoner do in the second year of his confinement?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Question 3.<\/span><\/strong> In the fifth year music was audible again, and the prisoner asked for wine. Those who watched him through the window said that all that year he spent doing nothing but eating and drinking and lying on his bed, frequently yawning and angrily talking to himself. He did not read books. Sometimes at night he would sit down to write; he would spend hours writing, and in the morning tear up all that he had written. More than once he could be heard crying.<\/p>\n How was the prisoner’s conduct different in the first and the fifth year of his imprisonment?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Question 4.<\/span><\/strong> In the fifth year music was audible again, and the prisoner asked for wine. Those who watched him through the window said that all that year he spent doing nothing but eating and drinking and lying on his bed, frequently yawning and angrily talking to himself. He did not read books. Sometimes at night he would sit down to write; he would spend hours writing, and in the morning tear up all that he had written. More than once he could be heard crying.<\/p>\n How did the prisoner’s behaviour change during the sixth year?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Passage 6<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Question 1.<\/span><\/strong> “My dear Jailer, I write you these lines in six languages. Show them to people who know the languages. Let them read them. If they find not one mistake I implore you to fire a shot in the garden.<\/p>\n How was the prisoner able to write in six languages?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Question 2.<\/span><\/strong> “My dear Jailer, I write you these lines in six languages. Show them to people who know the languages. Let them read them. If they find not one mistake I implore you to fire a shot in the garden.<\/p>\n Why did the prisoner ask the banker to fire a shot in the garden?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Question 3.<\/span><\/strong> “My dear Jailer, I write you these lines in six languages. Show them to people who know the languages. Let them read them. If they find not one mistake I implore you to fire a shot in the garden.<\/p>\n What did the prisoner understand after learning many languages?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Question 4.<\/span><\/strong> “My dear Jailer, I write you these lines in six languages. Show them to people who know the languages. Let them read them. If they find not one mistake I implore you to fire a shot in the garden.<\/p>\n What did the prisoner read in the last two years of imprisonment?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Passage 7<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Question 1.<\/span><\/strong> The old banker remembered all this, and thought: Who is the ‘he’ in the above extract? Why would his regaining freedom ruin the banker?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Question 2.<\/span><\/strong> The old banker remembered all this, and thought: What did the banker decide to do to avoid paying the lawyer two million?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Question 3.<\/span><\/strong> The old banker remembered all this, and thought: Where was the watchman when the banker came to the lodge?<\/strong><\/p>\n Answer:<\/span><\/strong> Question 4.<\/span><\/strong> The old banker remembered all this, and thought: Describe the scene when the banker set out for the lodge.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nAn old banker had thrown a party fifteen years ago.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nThe party was attended by many clever men who engaged in interesting conversations.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nCapital punishment is punishment by death sanctioned by government. Capital punishment is used by the government to punish criminals who have committed capital offenses.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nThe banker thought that capital punishment was better than life imprisonment. While capital punishment killed a man at once, life imprisonment meant a slow death. He felt that life imprisonment drags the life out of a person in the course of many years.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nAccording to one of the guests, both capital punishment and life imprisonment were equally immoral. Both form of punishments had the same objectives – to take away life.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nAccording to the banker, death penalty was more humane and moral than imprisonment for life.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nThe banker was of the opinion that while capital punishment killed man at once, life imprisonment meant a slow death. He felt that life imprisonment drags the life out of a person in the course of many years.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n“If you mean that in earnest,” said the young man, “I’ll take the bet, but I would stay not five but fifteen years.”
\n“Fifteen? Done!” cried the banker. “Gentlemen, I stake two million!”
\n“Agreed! You stake your millions and I stake my freedom!” said the young man.<\/p>\n
\nThe conversation above took place between the banker and a young lawyer at a party which the banker had thrown.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n“If you mean that in earnest,” said the young man, “I’ll take the bet, but I would stay not five but fifteen years.”
\n“Fifteen? Done!” cried the banker. “Gentlemen, I stake two million!”
\n“Agreed! You stake your millions and I stake my freedom!” said the young man.<\/p>\n
\nThe banker placed a bet of two million which he would give the lawyer if he stayed in solitary confinement for five years. The lawyer claimed that he would stay alone for not five but fifteen years and still win those two million.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n“If you mean that in earnest,” said the young man, “I’ll take the bet, but I would stay not five but fifteen years.”
\n“Fifteen? Done!” cried the banker. “Gentlemen, I stake two million!”
\n“Agreed! You stake your millions and I stake my freedom!” said the young man.<\/p>\n
\nThere was a discussion at the party over which form of punishment – capital punishment or life imprisonment was better. The banker felt that death penalty was better than life imprisonment. However, the lawyer said that if he had to choose, he would choose life imprisonment as he felt that it is better to live anyhow than to not live at all. This led to an argument, which transformed into a bet.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nAn agreement was signed between the banker and the lawyer. According to the agreement, the young lawyer had to stay in solitary confinement for fifteen years beginning from twelve o’clock of November 14, 1870, and ending at twelve o’clock of November 14, 1885.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nIn the event of the lawyer breaking any condition of the agreement, he would lose the bet and also the two million decided upon.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nIt was decided that the lawyer would stay in one of the lodges in the banker’s garden all alone under strict supervision. The lawyer would have no contact with human beings in any form. He would not talk to humans or hear their voice, or even receive letters and newspapers. The lawyer, however, was allowed to drink wine and to smoke, to write letters, and to have a musical instrument and reads books.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nDuring the first year of confinement, the lawyer suffered severely from loneliness and depression. He was being referred to as a prisoner now. He played the piano continually day and night. The prisoner refused wine and tobacco as according to him, wine excited the desires. And it was very dreary to drink wine and meet no one thereafter. The tobacco, he said, spoilt the air of his room. In the first year, the books he sent for were principally of a light character; novels with a complicated love plot, sensational and fantastic stories, and so on.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nThe lawyer entered into a bet with a banker in which he agreed to spend fifteen years of his life in solitary confinement. He was to receive two million at the end of the fifteen years if he kept all the clauses of the bet.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nThe prisoner stopped playing the piano in the second year and asked only for classics to read.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nIn the first year, the prisoner suffered severely from loneliness as one could judge from his brief notes. He played the piano continually and refused to have wine or tobacco. However in the fifth year, he asked for wine and those who watched him said that he sent all his time eating, drinking and lying on his bed. He would talk angrily to himself while frequently yawing in his bed. Sometimes at night he would sit down to write and after having spent hours writing, he would tear up all that he had written in the morning.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nIn the second half of the sixth year the prisoner began to study languages, philosophy and history with zeal. The prisoner was so engrossed in his studies that the banker got very busy to get him the books that he ordered. In four years the prisoner asked for six hundred volumes and learned six languages perfectly.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nIn his sixth year, the prisoner took serious interest in studying languages. He engrossed himself in studying languages, philosophy, and history. It was because of this that he was able to write in six languages.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nDuring the second half of the sixth year, the prisoner learnt many languages among other disciplines. To test if he had learnt well, he wrote a letter to the banker, whom he addressed as “Jailer” and in it wrote lines in six languages. He wanted the jailer to show them to people who knew those languages. He asked the jailer to fire a shot in the garden if all that he had written was correct. It was a signal that he had learnt the languages perfectly.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nThe prisoner understood that although geniuses from different lands speak different languages, the essence of their communication is the same. He was elated to have been able to understand the languages of the world.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nIn the last two years of his confinement, the prisoner read innumerable books indiscriminately. At one time he was busy reading natural sciences while at the other moment he would ask for Byron and Shakespeare. He demanded books on chemistry, a manual of medicine, a novel, and some treatise on philosophy or theology all at once.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n“To-morrow at twelve o’clock he will regain his freedom. By our agreement I ought to pay him two million. If I do pay him, it is all over with me: I shall be utterly ruined.”<\/p>\n
\nThe word ‘he’ in the above extract refers to the lawyer. The agreement of 15 years of imprisonment was going to come to an end a day later as mentioned in the extract. The lawyer would win the bet and the banker would have to pay him two million. Fifteen years ago two million meant nothing to the banker. However, years of bad investment and gambling had made the banker poor. If the banker gave two million to the lawyer, he would go bankrupt and this would ruin him.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n“To-morrow at twelve o’clock he will regain his freedom. By our agreement I ought to pay him two million. If I do pay him, it is all over with me: I shall be utterly ruined.”<\/p>\n
\nThe banker decided to kill the lawyer in the dark of night to avoid paying him the amount. He decided to go to the lodge and stifle the lawyer with a pillow and imagined that it would be easy to kill the already half-dead man. He also thought that since the watchman guarded the lodge, the suspicion would fall on him.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n“To-morrow at twelve o’clock he will regain his freedom. By our agreement I ought to pay him two million. If I do pay him, it is all over with me: I shall be utterly ruined.”<\/p>\n
\nWhen the banker came to the lodge the watchman was inside the kitchen or the greenhouse seeking shelter from the rain.<\/p>\n
\nRead the extract and answer the questions that follow.<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n“To-morrow at twelve o’clock he will regain his freedom. By our agreement I ought to pay him two million. If I do pay him, it is all over with me: I shall be utterly ruined.”<\/p>\n