101/2 · ENGLISH · Paper 2 (Comprehension, Literary Appreciation and Grammar) · Nov. 2025 · 2½ hours
Instructions: Answer all the questions.
1. Comprehension (20 marks)
Read the passage below and then answer the questions that follow.
Fighting without Fighting
In 1910, William James wrote an essay explaining human's apparent love of warfare. James argued that war is prevalent because it has certain effects on people. It makes people feel more alert and alive. Both soldiers and civilians feel a sense of purpose. It enables the expression of higher human qualities which often lie dormant in ordinary life. Such qualities include discipline, courage and self-sacrifice. In the face of a common threat, warfare creates a powerful sense of community. However, because war causes untold suffering and results in destruction, James said that human beings urgently need to find a substitute which has the same positive effects, but which does not lead to devastation.
One likely substitute has been football. Football certainly provides a sense of belonging and unity. Fans of a football team feel a strong sense of allegiance to the team. Once they have formed an attachment to a team, they support it loyally through thick and thin. The team forms part of their identity: they feel bonded to it. Football also enables the expression of higher human qualities which often lie dormant in ordinary life. A football match is a place of heroism; team members can display courage, loyalty and skill. It creates an artificial "life and death" situation which generates a lot of excitement. At the end of a game, both players and fans feel emotionally and physically drained.
Is there evidence that football has served as a substitute for war? In the mid 19th Century, the city of Manchester, in England, was gripped by an epidemic of youth gangs, large parts of the city were unsafe. But during the 1890s, enlightened people realised that the youths needed to be offered other outlets for their energy other than gang violence. They set up "working lads" clubs throughout the city. These gave youths access to sport and recreation. The clubs led to a new craze for football that spread rapidly through the city. Indeed, this is when Manchester's two famous football teams — Manchester United and Manchester City — were established. As a result, youths who had previously fought against each other in gangs were "fighting" each other in football teams. This led to a marked reduction in crime and violence.
War still exists but has steadily declined in the last century. This is partly because the excitement which was once derived from warfare can be gained from local, national and international football competitions. The sense of belonging and allegiance between soldiers or the sense of togetherness of being a nation at war can now be gained through playing for or supporting your football team. Governments should make football accessible and attractive to young people, particularly in areas where gang violence flourishes.
Adapted from: Steve Taylor, "Sports and the Decline of War", Psychology Today, 2014.
(a) Which are the two consequences of warfare? (2 marks)
(b) Identify three similarities between warfare and football. (3 marks)
(c) What is the purpose of the writer in paragraph three? (2 marks)
(d) Why do you think the word "fighting" in paragraph three is within quotation marks? (2 marks)
(e) Identify a word in paragraph one that has the same meaning as 'event'. (1 mark)
(f) Identify two points in the last paragraph that you can use to convince county governments to support youth football clubs in areas affected by social vices. (2 marks)
(g) War still exists but has steadily declined in the last century. Rewrite the sentence beginning: Though … (1 mark)
(h) Relate the title "Fighting without Fighting" to the message of the passage. (2 marks)
(i) Why is a football match described as a "life and death" situation? (2 marks)
(j) Explain the meaning of the following as used in the passage: (i) untold (ii) through thick and thin (iii) marked (3 marks)
2. Excerpt from drama — John Lara, The Samaritan (25 marks)
Read the excerpt below and then answer the questions that follow.
(Same day, Thursday, late afternoon in the Sky Room at the Madingo Golf Club. Sky Room is a replica of the Jungle Room and is furnished and arranged in the same way. The Deputy Mayor, Hon. Ramdaye, Hon. Seymour and Hon. Ted, are standing around the table on which are bottles of Gold, White and Dark Rum. The trio is sipping from their glasses and gesticulating as they converse.)
Ramdaye: Aaa, aah, aah, aah that was serious mayhem! It never occurred to us that Mayor Mossi would violently disrupt our meeting. The message is now very clear: he will not allow any meeting to discuss his ouster!
Seymour: It certainly was. The hooligans were very brutal. (Demonstrating) But I drew my gun and refused to run away. I dared them to touch me!
Ted: One of them aimed a rock at my head. I never thought anybody could handle such a huge stone. It flew past my head like a rocket-propelled grenade. It missed my head by the thickness of a pig's bristle!
Seymour: (Looking at Hon. Ramdaye) I was shocked you could run as you did, at your age! You whizzed past me like an express train! I never thought you would ever come to a stop!
Ted: I doubt they were just hooligans.
Seymour: Yes, their organisation and speed suggest there is more than meets the eye. It was like a military operation.
Ted: And there was smoke all over: burning tyres, papers, mattresses and sacks, combined with tear gas smoke. Sadly, we never anticipated this. I think the Mayor is a good organiser.
Ramdaye: He is called Mossi-a-Tunya, the smoke that thunders! He is a master schemer and a go-getter!
Seymour: It is very clear that we are at war. We need to carry on with our plan, to the last detail. We will not be cowed! We must mobilize the entire Municipal Council to pass the no confidence motion against him. (Looking at Hon. Ted) And, to get down to business, you remember we tasked you to talk to Councillors and Aldermen and assess whether they will support the no confidence motion.
Ted: Yes, you did, and as you know, our political landscape comprises Councillors and Aldermen of mixed ethnicity as well as those of the Afo and Ino descent.
Ramdaye: Oh, yes, it does. So?
(a) Briefly explain what happens immediately after this excerpt. (4 marks)
(b) Describe two themes brought out in the excerpt. (4 marks)
(c) Identify and illustrate two character traits of Seymour as brought out in the excerpt. (4 marks)
(d) From the excerpt, what can you conclude about the lifestyle of political leaders? (2 marks)
(e) Give evidence from the excerpt that Ramdaye, Ted and Seymour had underestimated the Mayor. (2 marks)
(f) The following features of style have been used in the excerpt. Explain and illustrate their effectiveness: (i) simile (ii) hyperbole (4 marks)
(g) Apart from the incident cited in the excerpt, give two other incidents of violence in the play. (2 marks)
(h) Explain the meaning of the following expressions as used in the excerpt: (i) "It missed my head by the thickness of a pig's bristle." (ii) "there is more than meets the eye." (iii) "We will not be cowed." (3 marks)
3. Oral literature (20 marks)
Read the oral song below and then answer the questions that follow.
One hand cannot manage work
A threshing stick cannot thresh millet with one hand
Some hands breed hatred at the eating time
Nobody hates being assisted.
Let millet be threshed
Let it be threshed, let it be threshed.Cut a threshing stick for me
A lazy wife
Is taken back to her parents
When the rain fails
It blames the wind
And a lazy woman
Blames the threshing stick.Cut a threshing stick for me
My co-wife cut me a threshing stick.You woman, owner of this occasion
Remember that work is the stomach
Take care not to starve us
The threshing sticks are sounding
Let the millet leave the threshing ground.
From Oral Literature of the Embu and Mbeere by Ciarunji Chesaina
(a) What type of oral song is this? Support your answer. (2 marks)
(b) Identify and illustrate three features of oral songs evident in this song. (6 marks)
(c) What does this song reveal about marriage in the society from which it is drawn? (2 marks)
(d) Identify and illustrate two virtues that the song emphasises. (4 marks)
(e) Identify and illustrate one economic activity in the community from which the song is taken. (2 marks)
(f) Explain the meaning of the following as used in the song: "Remember that work is the stomach." (2 marks)
(g) Describe the mood of this oral song. (2 marks)
4. Grammar (15 marks)
(a) Rewrite the following sentences according to the instructions given after each. Do not change the meaning. (3 marks)
(i) He was very ill. He could hardly walk. (Join into one sentence beginning: So …)
(ii) The cyclist would have lost his leg were it not for the doctor's quick action. (Begin: But …)
(iii) There is no excuse for rudeness. (End with: … excusable.)
(b) Fill in the blanks with an appropriate preposition. (4 marks)
(i) Everybody agreed that her behaviour was ______ reproach.
(ii) The visiting president was delayed ______ traffic.
(iii) Now that power is back, you can blow ______ the candles.
(iv) The farmer and the shopkeeper argued ______ the price of milk.
(c) Use the correct form of the words in brackets to fill in the blanks. (3 marks)
(i) Such a ______ (transform) of a criminal is commendable.
(ii) They spent most of the time ______ (beautiful) their home.
(iii) The police officers were angered by the ______ (defy) of the protestors.
(d) Replace the underlined expressions with one word that means the same. (3 marks)
(i) I am trying to work out how much money I owe the bank.
(ii) The Deputy President stood in for the President at the United Nations summit.
(iii) He promised to look after her flowers while she was away.
(e) Arrange the words in brackets in the correct order to complete the sentence. (2 marks)
(i) The sports department bought ______ (oval, rugby, leather) balls.
(ii) Every morning she fetches water in a ______ (blue, plastic, huge) bucket.