CBSE CLASS 12 — ENGLISH (Elective)

Previous Year Question Paper CBSE Board Class 12 

General Instructions:
Read the following instructions very carefully and strictly follow them: 

1.    This question paper has five sections — Section A, B, C, D and E. 

2.    It is compulsory to attempt each section. 

3.    Section A - Reading is of 14 marks. 

4.    Section B - Creative Writing Skills is of 5 marks. 

5.    Section C - Applied Grammar is of 5 marks. 

6.    Section D - Literature is of 11 marks. 

7.    Section E - Fiction is of 5 marks. 

SECTION A (Reading) — [14 Marks]
1. Read the passage given below carefully and answer the questions that follow: [8 Marks]
1 Through several decades, Lata Mangeshkar sang for the righteous and chaste Indian woman on-screen, while her sister Asha Bhosle sang numbers that called for sensuality. Mangeshkar had such charisma that film-makers and composers realised very early on that having her in a project signalled credibility and impeccable standards. Much before a film was shot, the composer, lyricist and singers were signed on for the project. This meant that several films that did badly at the box-office had outstanding music helmed by Mangeshkar, that reached listeners through radio, a universal mode of entertainment in those early days after Independence. In fact, it was radio that took her voice to different parts of the country and made her synonymous with Hindi playback singing. 
 4
2 Mangeshkar never took her talent for granted. She would spend time on her rehearsals, practise her diction and ensure immaculate renditions. Once, when superstar Dilip Kumar told her to improve her diction, she asked a family friend, an Imam, to come and teach her to read and write Urdu. She sang in a range of Indian languages - from Bengali to Marathi her mother tongue to Punjabi. She was a unifying factor, who brought the nation together as a repository of its culture, entertainment and, of course, music. 
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3 As films moved to less formulaic tropes, Bollywood, too, underwent changes. Directors moved towards authencity in representation, and, here Mangeshkar was a huge success, setting standards in playback singing. She sang the way her heroines spoke, moving from the thick, nasal 'gayaki' popularised by Noor Jehan or Shamshad Begum, that had till then been the standard. She could sing for an entire range of characters from a poetry-loving village girl in a prison, to a witty and defiant courtesan in Akbar's Sheesh Mahal, to an emotional mother trying to fend her children by ploughing the field, or to a young woman who had just broken away from the shackles of a claustrophobic relationship. And who can forget Kavi Pradeep's seminal Aye Mere Watan Ke Logo, in the wake of the Sino-Indian War of 1962 that brought tears in the eyes of people. This song has been a fixture at every patriotic function for nearly five decades. 
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(Adapted from "The Indian Express")

Answer any three out of the given four questions: (3 x 2 = 6)

•    (i) What makes Lata Mangeshkar different from her sister Asha Bhosle in terms of songs? 

•    (ii) What did the filmmakers and composers realise about the project in which Lata Mangeshkar sang? 

•    (iii) Which song of Lata Mangeshkar brought tears in the eyes of people? 

•    (iv) In what way was Lata Mangeshkar instrumental in national integration? 

Pick out the words/phrases from the passage which are similar in meaning to the following: (2 x 1 = 2)

•    (i) Seeming to be everywhere (Para 1) 

•    (ii) Abnormal fear of being in an enclosed space (Para 3) 

2. Read the given case-based passage on 'Malaria' carefully and answer the questions that follow: [6 Marks]
 1
1 One of the most exciting races ever run is now in progress between doctors fighting malaria, and mosquitoes. According to the most recent count, 225 million people a year suffer attacks of malaria and more than two million die. Public health workers around the world are doing all they can to destroy malaria before the mosquitoes that pass on the disease become resistant to the chemicals now used against them. It is a race against time and against difficulties, with millions of lives in danger and the chances of winning not in man's favour. 
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2 Malaria, it is true, has been practically wiped out in thirteen countries, including the United States, and is under attack in many others. But it is equally worrying that in some parts of the world certain types of malaria-carrying mosquitoes have already become immune to the sprays. 
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3 The World Health Organization is helping national governments to get rid of malaria before resistance among the mosquito population becomes so great that new chemicals will have to be found to replace those in use at present. Most of the countries in the world have started, or are planning campaigns against mosquitoes. If the race against resistance is won by man, it is possible that ten years from now this fatal disease will have disappeared completely from the world. 
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4 Malaria is the world's oldest recorded disease. It is referred to in old Chinese and Indian writings. It was one of the causes leading to the downfall of both the Greek and Roman empires. People recognized a long time ago that there must be some connection between malaria and swamps, and some believed that insects living near swamps might be the carriers of the disease. The Romans dried the swamps and reduced the mosquito population. This was the best method used for the next fifteen centuries. 
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5 Not until 1632 did Europeans find a successful treatment for the disease. The Spanish discoverers of the New World learned from the Indians of Peru that the bark of one of the trees growing there, often ended a patient's attack of malaria. The Dutch planted quinine trees in the East Indies and in time established almost complete control of the medicine made from it. When the East Indies supply was cut off during the two World Wars, two other drugs were developed which proved even more successful than quinine. Today, most of the world uses these newer drugs. 
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After studying the passage on Malaria, answer any three of the following questions: (3 x 2 = 6)

•    (a) What are the public health workers around the world busy doing? 

•    (b) What is the cause of worry in regard to malaria eradication? 

•    (c) What is the silver lining in the campaign against eradication of malaria? 

•    (d) What had possibly caused the downfall of the Greek and Roman empires? 

SECTION B (Creative Writing Skills) — [5 Marks]
3. Answer any one out of the given two questions in about 120-150 words: (5 Marks)

•    (a) "Fiddling with mobile (cell) phones can be hazardous for the small children." This is the topic on which Parmeshwaran/Parineeti is required to deliver a speech on the occasion of Children's Day celebration function in your school. Write a speech within the given word limit. 
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OR
•    (b) Recently your school held a seminar on "The Growing Crimes in our Society". You were one of the participants in the seminar. The seminar included a panel discussion, a PPT followed by an interactive session, a short skit and distribution of pamphlets made by the students. Write a report in 120-150 words mentioning date, venue, activities and response of participants for your school magazine. You are Rishabh/Roshni. 
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SECTION C (Applied Grammar) — [5 Marks]
4. Answer any five out of the given six questions as per the instructions given within brackets against each sentence: (5 x 1 = 5)

•    (a) (Should, Would, Shall) you like another cup of coffee? 

(Choose the correct word)

•    (b) The news that the enemy had landed spread like wildfire. 

(Use 'landing' and rewrite the sentence)

•    (c) He is both a fool and a knave. 

(Rewrite by using 'Not only ... but also')

•    (d) I am very busy. I will submit the assignment. 
 1
(Rewrite by using 'nevertheless')

•    (e) What do you wish to have? I will give you everything. 
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(Combine into a single sentence)

•    (f) I have told him something. He knows only that much. 
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(Combine by using 'as much as')

SECTION D (Literature) — [11 Marks]
5. Answer any one out of the given two questions in 30 - 40 words: (1 x 2 = 2)

•    (a) What are the personality traits and family background of Solomon's wife Gretl? 

OR
•    (b) Who were the Senciminers? 

6. Answer any two out of the given three questions in 40-50 words: (2 x 3 = 6)

•    (a) "A Bird sat careless on the fence." Why is the bird careless? ("Trees" by Emily Dickinson) 
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•    (b) What does the poet mean by the expression "Eyeless, silent, a zigzag sky showing"? (Time and Time Again) 
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•    (c) What does the poet mean by the expression "Scatter wheeling in great broken rings"? (The Wild Swans At Coole) 
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7. Answer any one out of the given two questions in 40 - 50 words: (1 x 3 = 3)

•    (a) How does D.H. Lawrence differentiate animate things from the inanimate? 

OR
•    (b) How does Bergman explain the relationship between a film-maker and his audience? 

SECTION E (Fiction) — [5 Marks]
8. Answer any one of the following questions in 120-150 words: (1 x 5 = 5)

•    (a) "You may get in now, Raja, a new life opens before you. Men, women and children, particularly children, hundreds of them will come to see you. You will make them happy." 

Who speaks these words to Raja and what is the occasion? 

OR
•    (b) "I'll look into your case. I can't promise anything. How do you know that there is a tiger around?" Who speaks these words to whom? How does this question reflect on the speaker's attitude towards public grievances? 
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OR
•    (c) "Next to the subject of money, the greatest burden on his mind was his son." Name the son in this sentence. What was the cause of worry in the mind of the protagonist? 
 2
OR
•    (d) "I never thought there was such a wide scope for selling books." Who speaks this sentence to whom and at what occasion? 
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