- Shreds of tenderness
Wak is more of a patriot than Odie despite the fact that he went on exile. Discuss this observation in the view of...(Solved)
Shreds of tenderness
Wak is more of a patriot than Odie despite the fact that he went on exile. Discuss this observation in the view of the conduct of the two brothers
Date posted: April 3, 2019. Answers (1)
- Shreds of Tenderness
John Ruganda: Shreds of Tenderness describe the problems faced by refugees in the play.(Solved)
Shreds of Tenderness
John Ruganda: Shreds of Tenderness describe the problems faced by refugees in the play.
Date posted: April 3, 2019. Answers (1)
- Imagine you are John and you have planned to meet Wamuhu later in the evening to persuade her not to reveal her pregnancy to her...(Solved)
Thiongo's A meeting in the dark' write a composition on what you would do to ensure that this remains a secret until you leave for college.
Date posted: April 3, 2019. Answers (1)
- 'Society places great expectations on women,' with reference to Wangui wa Goro's Heaven and Earth, write a composition in support of this observation(Solved)
'Society places great expectations on women,' with reference to Wangui wa Goro's Heaven and Earth, write a composition in support of this observation
Date posted: April 3, 2019. Answers (1)
- Female genital mutilation (FGM) goes against the principle of pleasure. Using Saida Hagi-Dirie Herzi's story, 'Against the pleasure principle' explain why FGM should never be...(Solved)
Female genital mutilation (FGM) goes against the principle of pleasure. Using Saida Hagi-Dirie Herzi's story, 'Against the pleasure principle' explain why FGM should never be carried out on women.
Date posted: April 3, 2019. Answers (1)
- What are the features that enable the writer to reveal the miseries in John's life in the story,'Meeting in the Dark' by Ngugi wa Thiongo.(Solved)
What are the features that enable the writer to reveal the miseries in John's life in the story, 'Meeting in the Dark' by Ngugi wa Thiongo.
Date posted: April 3, 2019. Answers (1)
- John Ruganda, Shreds of Tenderness
'During a civil war, those who flee their country suffer as much as those who remain behind.'
Drawing illustrations from Ruganda's Shreds...(Solved)
John Ruganda, Shreds of Tenderness
'During a civil war, those who flee their country suffer as much as those who remain behind.'
Drawing illustrations from Ruganda's Shreds of Tenderness, write an essay in support of this statement.
Date posted: April 3, 2019. Answers (1)
- Macmillan (Ed.), Half a day and other stories
With illustrations from Fatmata Conteth's short story 'Letter to my Sisters', show how traditions have been used to...(Solved)
Macmillan (Ed.), Half a day and other stories
With illustrations from Fatmata Conteth's short story 'Letter to my Sisters', show how traditions have been used to oppress women
Date posted: April 3, 2019. Answers (1)
- Outline the Techniques of narration.(Solved)
Outline the Techniques of narration.
Date posted: March 21, 2019. Answers (1)
- Give two problems you are likely to encounter when collecting oral literature genre. How would you solve these problems?(Solved)
Give two problems you are likely to encounter when collecting oral literature genre. How would you solve these problems?
Date posted: March 21, 2019. Answers (1)
- Read and answer the questions to the narrative below.(Solved)
JACKAL AND HEN
This is a story that the old people tell. They say that hen flew to the top of a stack of wheat one day to find food. From where she stood on the stack she could see far out over the fields. She could see far and she saw Jackal coming from afar. She saw him coming towards her, she saw him out of the corner of her eyes, but when he came closer she did not look up at all. She went on hunting for food.
'Good morning, mother of mine,' Jackal greeted her.
'Yes, I greet you,' she replied.
'Are you still living?' He asked, according to the correct way in which one person greets another.
'Yes, I am still living. And you? Are you still living also?'
'Yes, I too am still living, mother, 'he replied. And then he asked as the custom was, 'Did you wake well this morning?'
And she answered, as it is proper, 'Yes, I woke well.'
And all the while he was talking, talking, talking, Jackal was looking closely at hen and saw that she was young and that her flesh would taste sweet. He thought of how he would get at her. But now she was standing on top of that stack of wheat, where he could not reach her. He could not get hold of her at all, not while she was on top of the stack of wheat, and would have to think of a way to get her down.
Jackal had many plans. He was a man who was not just a little bit clever. No, he was very clever. He asked her. 'Mother, have you heard of that there is peace among everybody on earth? One animal may not catch another animal any more, because of that peace.
'Peace?' She asked.
'Yes, mother, peace. The chiefs called together a big meeting, and at that meeting they decided this business of peace on all the earth.'
'Oh yes,' said hen. But she wondered about it. She wondered whether this Jackal could be telling the truth. He was a man with many clever stories, and many times those clever stories were nothing but lies.
'You say there is peace now?' 'Yes, mother. The big peace. There has never been such a big peace. You can safely come down from that stack of wheat. Then we can talk about the matter nicely. We shall take snuff together. Come down. Mother! Remember the peace!'
But hen was not quite as stupid as Jackal thought she was. She wanted to make sure first that Jackal was telling the truth and that he was not telling her lies again. She turned around and looked far out over the fields behind her. Then she went to stand on the highest point of the stack and kept staring out over the fields until Jackal asked: 'What is it that you see from up there that you stare so: me?'
'What do I see? Why do you want to know what I see? It does not matter what I see, for there is no danger anymore for any animal on earth. Is it not peace among the animals? It is only a pack of dogs that are running towards us.'
“Dogs! A pack of dogs!' he cried. And his fear was very great. 'Then I shall have to greet you, mother. I am a man who has a lot of work waiting.'
'Kekekeke!' hen laughed. 'I thought it was peace among all animals on earth? Have you forgotten it? The dogs will do nothing to harm you. 'Why do you want to run away, grandfather?' I don’t think this pack of dogs came to the meeting on peace!' and jackal ran so fast that the dust rose in great clouds from the road behind him.
'Kekekeke!' laughed hen, for then she knew the story of the peace was just a big lie. And she knew that if she had taken snuff with that fellow he would have caught her so she made up a story herself and with it she had caught him beautifully.
'Kekekeke!' she laughed. 'I caught the story teller with another story.' And that is the end of this story
a) State the category of this Oral narrative and give a reason for your answer. (2mks
b) What does the conversation between the Jackal and Hen in the first part of the narrative reveal about the social conduct of the community in which this story originated? (2mks)
c) Compare and contrast the character of Hen and Jackal. (4mks)
d) Quoting examples from the story to support your answer, identify four features that are characteristic of oral narratives. (4mks)
e) List and illustrate two techniques of narrative more interesting if it were told orally.
f) Give two problems you are likely to encounter when collecting this type of oral literature genre. How would you solve these problems?
Date posted: March 21, 2019. Answers (1)
- Read the following oral narrative and answer the questions that follow(Solved)
Read the following oral narrative and answer the questions that follow
JACKAL AND HEN
This is a story that the old people tell. They say that hen flew to the top of a stack of wheat one day to find food. From where she stood on the stack she could see far out over the fields. She could see far and she saw Jackal coming from afar. She saw him coming towards her, she saw him out of the corner of her eyes, but when he came closer she did not look up at all. She went on hunting for food.
'Good morning, mother of mine,' Jackal greeted her.
'Yes, I greet you,' she replied.
'Are you still living?' He asked, according to the correct way in which one person greets another.
'Yes, I am still living. And you? Are you still living also?'
'Yes, I too am still living, mother, 'he replied. And then he asked as the custom was, 'Did you wake well this morning?'
And she answered, as it is proper, 'Yes, I woke well.'
And all the while he was talking, talking, talking, Jackal was looking closely at hen and saw that she was young and that her flesh would taste sweet. He thought of how he would get at her. But now she was standing on top of that stack of wheat, where he could not reach her. He could not get hold of her at all, not while she was on top of the stack of wheat, and would have to think of a way to get her down.
Jackal had many plans. He was a man who was not just a little bit clever. No, he was very clever. He asked her. 'Mother, have you heard of that there is peace among everybody on earth? One animal may not catch another animal any more, because of that peace.
'Peace?' She asked.
'Yes, mother, peace. The chiefs called together a big meeting, and at that meeting they decided this business of peace on all the earth.'
'Oh yes,' said hen. But she wondered about it. She wondered whether this Jackal could be telling the truth. He was a man with many clever stories, and many times those clever stories were nothing but lies.
'You say there is peace now?
'Yes, mother. The big peace. There has never been such a big peace. You can safely come down from that stack of wheat. Then we can talk about the matter nicely. We shall take snuff together. Come down. Mother! Remember the peace!'
But hen was not quite as stupid as Jackal thought she was. She wanted to make sure first that Jackal was telling the truth and that he was not telling her lies again. She turned around and looked far out over the fields behind her. Then she went to stand on the highest point of the stack and kept staring out over the fields until Jackal asked: 'What is it that you see from up there that you stare so: me?'
'What do I see? Why do you want to know what I see? It does not matter what I see, for there is no danger anymore for any animal on earth. Is it not peace among the animals? It is only a pack of dogs that are running towards us.'
'Dogs! A pack of dogs!' he cried. And his fear was very great. 'Then I shall have to greet you, mother. I am a man who has a lot of work waiting.'
'Kekekeke!' hen laughed. 'I thought it was peace among all animals on earth? Have you forgotten it? The dogs will do nothing to harm you. 'Why do you want to run away, grandfather?' I don’t think this pack of dogs came to the meeting on peace!' and jackal 'Kekekeke!' laughed hen, for then she knew the story of the peace was just a big lie. And she knew that if she had taken snuff with that fellow he would have caught her so she made up a story herself and with it she had caught him beautifully.
'Kekekeke!' she laughed. 'I caught the story teller with another story.' And that is the end of this story
a) State the category of this Oral narrative and give a reason for your answer. (2mks)
b) What does the conversation between the Jackal and Hen in the first part of the narrative reveal about the social conduct of the community in which this story originated? (2mks)
c) Compare and contrast the character of Hen and Jackal. (4mks)
d) Quoting examples from the story to support your answer, identify four features that are characteristic of oral narratives. (4mks)
e) List and illustrate two techniques of narrative more interesting if it were told orally.
f) Give two problems you are likely to encounter when collecting this type of oral literature genre. How would you solve these problems? (4mks)
Date posted: March 21, 2019. Answers (1)
- Read the poem below and then answer the questions that follow.(Solved)
Read the poem below and then answer the questions that follow.
THE BEARD
By Proscovia Rwakyaka
In the pulpit he swayed and turned
Leaned forward, backward
His solemn voice echoed,
Lowly the congregation followed;
'Do you love your neighbour?'
Meekly they bow at his keen eye
Now examining a grey head
Hearing under her sobs.
His heart kept assured
'Her sins weigh on her'
So with her he chats outside;
'Weep not, child you are pardoned,'
'But sir, your beard conjured up
The spirit of my dead goat!'
a) Identify and describe two speakers in this poem. Illustrate your answer with evidence from the poem. (4mks)
b) Relate the title of the poem to what exactly happens in this poem, supporting your answer with specific examples from it. (4mks)
c) Referring closely to the poem, identify and explain how the poet develops any two moods in the poem. (8mks)
d) Comment on the lines
‘His heart kept assured
'Her sins weigh on her'. (4mks)
Date posted: March 21, 2019. Answers (1)
- Read the oral Narrative below and answer the questions that follow(Solved)
Read the oral Narrative below and answer the questions that follow
THE WARRIOR WHO HAD EIGHT LOVERS
A long time ago there was a warrior whose bravery and handsome looks made the girls of the village fall in love with him. Eight girls, at least, were known to want to marry the young warrior, for they had composed many songs in his praise.
Now, this warrior was one time getting ready to go on alone raid in faraway country. Before he set off for the raid, he called the youngest of his eight lovers and told her to put fresh milk in a small guard. He also instructed her to keep checking on the colour of the milk every day.” Should the milk turn red, “ the warrior told the girl, ‘ it would mean that I have been killed or I am seriously wounded.’
The young girl was so touched by the departure of her lover that she composed the following song for him.
My warrior whom I love
For whom I open the sweet curdled
Milk of my father’s herd,
And to whom I give fat rams
Of my father to slaughter,
To whom I give my slender
Thighs to lie on,
With whom are you going on a raid next?
It happened that many days after the departure of the warrior, the girl noticed that the milk was turning red. She wept bitterly, for she knew that her lover was either dead or dying in a faraway country. Without telling anyone, the girl set off to look for her dying lover.
For many days she traveled, and as she walked through plains and forests she sang the song she had composed for her warrior. She travelled on and as she travelled she checked the colour of the milk in the gourd. Each day that she saw the milk turn a little more red, she traveled faster. And each day she hoped that she would find her lover alive.
On the ninth day the girl sang louder and louder as she traveled. Each time she sang she would listen to hear if their was any reply. Any as she listened at one time, she heard a faint voice. There was no mistake about it. It was her lover’s voice. She ran and ran and after a while she found her lover. He was extremely weak and badly wounded. When the dying warrior saw her, he told her; ‘When I am finished, you take my attire and weapons home. When you get a son give them to him And with that the warrior seemed to be dying.
But the girl did not listen to him, she quickly looked for water and washed his wounds. And after that she began to look for food for him. It did not take long before she saw a deer passing by. With her lover’s spear she killed it, and wasted the meat for her lover. For many months the young women washed the wounds of her lover and fed him until he was well again.
Back at home everybody thought that the young woman and her lover were dead, and they insisted that their death rites be performed. However, the father of the warrior kept postponing the death rites. But at last the old man agreed to perform the rites because his youngest son was to be circumcised, and could not be circumcised before the rites were performed.
So preparations for the death rites for the lost warrior were made. But on the morning of the day that the rites were to be performed, and as people were gathering, one of the people in the gathering heard a war song coming from the other side of the valley. He asked other people to listen. The father of the warrior could not mistake his son’s voice. He was almost crying as he gazed on the other side of the valley. The singing voice became clearer and before long the warrior and his lover emerged, driving a large herd of cattle. The bells that were tied around the necks of the oxen played to the tune of the war song.
There was great rejoicing as people ran to meet the lost warrior and his young lover. On their arrival back home a big bull was slaughtered and there was a great feast. People at and drank. And the warrior and his lover were married. The two became man and wife and lived happily. And my story ends.
From Oral Literature. A Junior Course
By A. Bukenya and M. Gachanja,
Longhorn Kenya.
Questions
1. What kind of a narrative is this? (2mks)
2. Identify two instances of repetition in the passage (2mks)
3. What are the character traits of? (4mks)
(i) the warrior
(ii) the youngest lover
4. Give two functions of the song. (2mks)
5. Show instances of irony in the passage (2mks)
6. What are the economic activities of this community? (2mks
7. Which devices have been used to start and end this story? What are their functions? (4mks)
8. With one proverb, summarize the teaching or moral lesson in the story. (2mks)
Date posted: March 21, 2019. Answers (1)
- Read the narrative below and answer the questions that follow.(Solved)
Read the narrative below and answer the questions that follow.
THE CRUEL STEP – MOTHER
Once upon a time, there was a man and wife who had a baby girl. Unfortunately, the wife died and so, the man married again. He got another girl with the second wife.
The two girls became extremely close, so close that whenever the mother sent one on an errand, the other was sure to accompany her. The mother, however, did not like the child of the deceased. She would always show her dislike by denying her certain favours. Her feelings became so bad that she decided to get rid of the girl. To do this, she dug a hole in her bedroom on a day when the husband was absent and covered the hole with a cow’s hide. She then called her daughter and sent her to the house of a friend some kilometers away. As usual, the two girls wanted to go together but the woman refused, giving the excuse that she wanted to send the other one elsewhere.
After the departure of her daughter, she called the other girl and sent her for her snuffbox in the bedroom. Unaware of what lay ahead, the girl eagerly rushed into the room only to fall into a hole! The mother very quickly filled the hole with soil, completely disregarding the girl’s screams for help.
When the daughter came back, she merely assumed that the absence of her dear companion was justified. After hours of waiting, she, however, became impatient and questioned the mother.
‘Where is my sister?’ she asked.
‘But she followed you. As soon as she did what I wanted, she ran after you. Now stop bothering me,’ the mother retorted.
Time passed and the now anxious girl went round calling out the name of the other one, but all in vain. Alas…. She cried the whole night and the next day and refused to touch any food. The father helped in the search but to no avail.
After three days, the girl still cried and called the other one. She then heard a very weak voice responding in song:
Maalya Maalya
Maalya Maalya
Na mwenyu niwe mwai iiee malya,
Ekwinza muthiko iiee malya,
Wakwisa kunthika iiee malya
Wakwisa kunthika iiee malya
(Maalya Maalya
And your mother is the wise one iiee malya,
She dug a grave iiee malya,
For interring me in iiee malya.)
The girl dashed towards the direction of the voice, repeated her cries and again go the same response. She came to the conclusion that whoever was responding was definitely underground somewhere in the house. Immediately theThe husband then explained the truth of the matter and told his in-laws to take their daughter with them. They said that if that was what she had done to the girl, they couldn’t have such a monster in their house. The woman was disowned by all and chased away.
QUESTIONS
(a) To which audience and when can such a story be told? (2 mks)
(b) Explain three features of style employed in the narrative . (6 mks)
c) Contrast the character of the mother and her blood daughter. (4 mks)
(d) Explain two problems you are likely to encounter when collecting materials for such a genre. (4 mks)
(e) What does the author mean by the following sentences as used in the passage?
(i) 'When the daughter came back, she merely assumed that the absence of her dear companion was justified.' (1mk)
(ii) And your mother is the wise one iiee Malya. (1mk)
(f) What is the moral lesson of this narrative? (2mks)
Date posted: March 21, 2019. Answers (1)
- Read the following proverbs and answer the questions after each.(Solved)
Read the following proverbs and answer the questions after each.
(a) No cleverest person ever saved his own head.
(i) Explain the meaning of the above proverb and give an example of a situation in which it could be used. (2mks)
(b) Authority is the tail of a water rat.
(i) What type of audience would be suitable for the above proverb and why? (3mks)
(ii) Identify and explain the image used in this proverb. (3mks)
(iii) Under what category would you place this proverb? (1mk)
c) Give four characteristics of proverbs
d) Give four functions of proverbs.
e) If you were to carry out field work to collect proverbs, cite three main problems you would encounter. f) Give two similarities between proverbs and oral narratives. (2mks)
Date posted: March 21, 2019. Answers (1)
- The the following piece of oral literature and answer the questions that follow.(Solved)
The the following piece of oral literature and answer the questions that follow.
NJABALA
Once upon a time, a man and his wife had a daughter. The girl’s name was Njabala and she was stunningly beautiful. But she was badly brought up, that girl. She was spoilt. She did not want to do any work in the shamba or around the house. All through her childhood, it was her mother who cooked for her, washed and ironed her clothes for her, did everything for her. But Njabala’s beauty was beyond words.Anyway, Njabala grew up and was soon ready for marriage. She married a young man who took her to his home. But of course she couldn’t do any work. When the time came for her to go and work in the shamba, she didn’t know what to do. She put both her hands on her head and cried out:.
Mamma, mother-of-twins!
It’s you who used to spoil me
Come and dig.
Whereupon the skeleton of her mother, who had died, suddenly appeared. It took the hoe and started clearing the shamba as it sang:
Njabala, this is the way women dig,
Njabala!
Njabala, this is the way women dig,
Njabala!
Don’t let me be caught by my in-laws.
And it cleared a large patch of the shamba, from here to way, way out there. Then it disappeared back to the grave. This went on for quite some time. Every time Njabala went to the shamba, she would call out:
Mamma, Mother-of-twins!
It’s you who used to spoil me
Come and dig.
Then the mother’s little skeleton would come and clear the shamba, singing;
Njabala, this is the way women dig,
Njabala!
Njabala, this is the way women dig,
Njabala!
Don’t let me caught by my in-laws.
One day, however, a relative of Njabala’s husband saw what was happening. She went and said to the husband. 'You know what? The food we eat in this house is grown by skeletons'.
The husband said, 'Oh dear, Oh dear!' The next day, he went and hid in the shamba. When Njabala arrived, she called out as usual.
Mamma, Mother-of-twins!
It’s you who used to spoil me
Come and dig.
The skeleton came and began to dig as it sang:
Njabala, this is the way women dig,
Njabala!
But suddenly, the man leapt out of his hiding and dealt his mother-in-law’s skeleton a big blow with his stick. The skeleton disappeared immediately. Njabala was almost fainting with shame and shock. Her husband said to her angrily, “So this is what’s been happening? You’ve been feeding us on food grown by skeletons?”
From that day on, Njabala learned to work saying, “What else can I do now that my mother has been beaten and driven away?” And so she became a hard-working woman.
I left her happy with her husband and the rich crop she was harvesting from her shamba, and I came back here. That is what I saw.
i) Which audience would this narrative be most appropriate for? Justify your answer. 2mks
ii) State and explain three functions of song as an aspect of style in this narrative. 6mks
iii) Apart from the song, identify three typical features of oral narratives evident in this narrative. 6mks
iv) Using at least two expressions from the narrative, show evidence that the recorder remained true to live performance of the narrative. 4mks
v) Cite and explain a proverb from any community you are familiar with that comments on either beauty or work
Date posted: March 21, 2019. Answers (1)
- Read the following oral poem and answer the questions that follow(Solved)
Read the following oral poem and answer the questions that follow
The Timi of Ede.
Huge fellow whose body fills an anthill
(Source: Ulli Beier(ed), African Poetry, Cambridge University Press, 1966)
(a) Classify the above poem. 1 mk
(b) What images does the poet use to build up the character of Timi? 6 mks
(c) What is the attitude of the speaker towards Timi? 2 mks
(d) Identify the themes of the poem. 4 mks
(e) Describe the mood of the poem. 2 mks
(f) Mention any three aspects of performance that can be lost if this song is written down. 3 mks
(g) State any four functions of this song. 2 mks
Date posted: March 21, 2019. Answers (1)
- Read the poem below and then answer the questions that follow.(Solved)
Read the poem below and then answer the questions that follow.
a) What event is the speaker describing? Illustrate. (2 mks)
b) Explain how the person gets involved in the event he describes. (4 mks)
c) What is the relationship the persona and the ‘you’? Illustrate. (4 mks)
d) Identify and illustrate any 2 stylistic features in this poem. 4 mks)
e) Explain ‘you catapulted’ 1mk
Date posted: March 21, 2019. Answers (1)
- Read the following poem and answer the questions that follow.(Solved)
Read the following poem and answer the questions that follow.
While outside
The mourners cried
Louder than the Orphan.
By Grace Birabwa Isharaza.
1. What is the poem about? (3mks)
2. Comment on the title of the poem. (2mks)
3. What is the attitude of the persona towards the mourners? Explain your answer.(4mks) 4. Paraphrase the message in the fourth stanza. (3mks)
5. Explain the following lines as used in the poem (2mks)
(i) They cried dutiful tears for the deceased.
(ii) And there was Light in the darkness of the hut
6 Comment on the tone of the poem (2mks)
7. Identify and illustrate two stylistic devices used in the poem. (4mks)
Date posted: March 21, 2019. Answers (1)