Question 41 humour and connection · core
The last chair — a short play
[Three students are setting up a display. Two chairs stand beside the table. A third chair is in the doorway.]
TARA: Put it here. We need another seat.
BEN: [Lifts the chair, then stops.] But if I put it there, nobody can reach the model.
TARA: We promised three seats.
LUC: [Moves the table slightly.] What if the table turns this way?
BEN: [Carries the chair around the table.] Now there's a path!
TARA: [Sits, then stands quickly.] And we can all see the model.
LUC: Good. We built a bridge model. It would be a pity if nobody could get to it.
[They laugh and begin putting out the labels.]
Why is Luc's final remark humorous?
Choose one answer
A bridge is about access, but their display almost blocked access.
All the chairs have disappeared.
The model is secretly a real bridge.
The labels contain a hidden joke.
Question 42 text form · core
Read the shared text above ↑
Why might this scene work well as a performance?
Choose one answer
No character ever responds to another.
Every important event happens far away offstage.
The movement of chairs and the table makes the problem visible.
It contains only a list of equipment.
Question 43 shared literary features · core
Two original tiny tales
A — The boastful lantern: A lantern boasted that its light reached farther than any candle. When the wind rose, its loose door swung open and its flame went out. A candle inside a jar kept burning. “A strong cover matters too,” said the candle.
B — The patient seed: A seed watched a paper flower being admired on the windowsill. “You bloom so quickly,” it sighed. Day after day the seed pushed a root into the soil. When the paper flower faded in the sun, the seedling opened its first living leaf. Neither could do what the other could do.
What feature do the tales share?
Choose one answer
Non-human things speak or think like people.
Both give exact measurements of plants.
Both take place on a sailing ship.
The same child narrates both stories.
Question 44 theme · core
Read the shared text above ↑
Which idea is most clearly explored in Tale A?
Choose one answer
Candles must never be protected.
Doors should never be closed.
Boasting can overlook an important weakness.
Brightness always defeats wind.
Question 45 theme · core
Read the shared text above ↑
Which idea is most clearly explored in Tale B?
Choose one answer
Different things have different strengths and develop in different ways.
A paper flower will eventually grow real roots.
Nothing good ever takes time.
Seeds should try to become paper.
Question 46 comparing structures · core
Read the shared text above ↑
How are the endings different?
Choose one answer
A has no outcome while B gives instructions.
Both end with exactly the same sentence.
A ends with a race; B ends with an argument.
A gives spoken advice; B offers a balanced observation.
Question 47 cause in a plot · core
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Which detail creates a problem for the lantern?
Choose one answer
Its door is loose when the wind rises.
Its cover is stronger than the jar.
It has never seen a candle.
It stands on the windowsill beside the seed.
Question 48 source awareness · core
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Why does the passage label these stories “original”?
Choose one answer
Every story about an object is a historical document.
They are newly written classroom tales, not attributed cultural or traditional stories.
They are copied from the same named author.
They must both be true events.
Question 49 literary devices and wordplay · core
The river said, “I save all my water between my banks.”
Which two meanings create the wordplay?
Choose one answer
A boat and its sail.
A river's source and its mouth.
Water and ice.
River edges and places that hold savings.
Question 50 literary devices and wordplay · core
The tree opened a new office. It called it a branch.
Why is “branch” playful here?
Choose one answer
It means the same as a tree's roots only.
It is a word with no ordinary meaning.
It can only describe a paper envelope.
It can mean part of a tree or part of an organisation.
