CBSE Class 12 English Core — Flamingo (Poetry) — Keeping Quiet by Pablo Neruda / A Roadside Stand by Robert Frost

Read the following extracts and answer the questions for ANY ONE of the given two (A) or (B): (A) [Keeping Quiet] 'It would be an exotic moment / without rush, without engines. / we would all be together / in sudden strangeness / Fishermen in the cold sea / would not harm whales / and the man gathering salt / would look at his hurt hands.' (i) What does the phrase 'an exotic moment' in the extract signify? (A) surreal pause from mechanized human activity enabling reflection and unity. (B) ceremonial halt wherein humans acknowledge traditional and ecological wisdom. (C) spontaneous event where all human labour becomes obsolete. (D) rare disruption of routine that highlights cultural diversity and isolation. (ii) Complete the following sentence suitably: The words 'we' and 'together' signify _________. (iii) Select the option from those given in brackets to fill in the blank: The excerpt tells us that the poet _________ (condemns/glorifies) the moment 'without rush, without engines'. (iv) Choose the correct option that BEST reflects the tone of the poet in the given extract: (A) despairing and cynical (B) aggressive and accusatory (C) meditative and hopeful (D) humorous and sarcastic. (v) Complete the sentence: The phrase 'hurt hands' is a symbol of _________. (vi) What message is the poet conveying through the given extract? OR (B) [A Roadside Stand] 'You have the money, but if you want to be mean / Why keep your money (this crossly) and go along / The hurt to the scenery, wouldn't be my complaint / So much as the trusting sorrow of what is unsaid: / Here far from the city we make our roadside stand / And ask for some city money to feel in hand / To try if it will not make our being expand, / And give us the life of the moving - pictures' promise / That the party in power is said to be keeping from us.' (i) What emotion does the speaker reveal when he says, 'if you want to be mean, why keep your money (this crossly) and go along'? (A) curiosity (B) bitterness (C) indifference (D) detachment. (ii) What does the speaker imply in the statement 'The hurt to the scenery wouldn't be my complaint'? (iii) Complete the following suitably: The word 'expand' in the line 'to see if it will not make our being expand' implies an aspiration to _________. (iv) Read the two statements and choose the correct option: Assertion (A): The speaker critiques the governing party for withholding opportunities from the rural poor. Reason (R): The extract praises the government for their promises of a life of the moving pictures'. (A) Both the Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are true, and Reason (R) is the correct explanation of the Assertion (A). (B) Both the Assertion (A) and Reason (R) are true, but Reason (R) is not the correct explanation of Assertion (A). (C) Assertion (A) is true, but the Reason (R) is false. (D) Assertion (A) is false, but the Reason (R) is true. (v) Which of the following concerns is NOT explored in the extract? (A) political manipulation of rural dreams (B) discrimination faced due to different religious policies. (C) transactional disconnection between the city and the village. (D) impact of unfulfilled expectations. (vi) State in one sentence: What advice your address to the politicians from this extract is most likely to include?