Question

A red blur covered his eyes as he ran. But halfway down the block a sharp pain under his rib cage stopped him. He doubled up and leaned against a tree. He waited for the pain to pass but it only grew sharper. His breath pushed out of his lungs in painful spurts. He could feel the pulse beat at his temples. Sweat broke out through his pores, wetting his shirt, which clung to
s him. With difficulty he unbuttoned his shirt so that the breeze found his bare chest. He waited. Minutes went by. A bird chirped in a tree. He heard the flow of cars on the street behind him. The red blur lifted; his breath eased. At last the pain stopped.

Imamu looked over the darkening, tree-lined street. What was he doing here in this strange land, far away from New York? Far from everything he had ever known? A stranger on foreign
10 turf. Brooklyn. He bit his lips to keep down the tears. What had he been doing in that house, with those people? What did they have to do with him? The tears kept pushing up. To stop them he hissed loudly to the tree, "What the hell was that chick talking about, anyway?"

Imamu flattened himself against the trunk of the tree and closed his eyes, glad that the leaves on the branches bowing over him were full enough to screen him from passers-by.

15 Slowly he let the scene at the dinner table replay through his mind. He saw Mrs Ainsley, playing for time so that he could get to know the family -and they could get to know him. Mr Ainsley, trying to try. Perk, with her round face and gummy smile. He looked long at her face. He saw her bright eyes flashing her intention of being Perk, of being smart, open, letting her thoughts hang out. He sort of liked her: liked the fact that she didn't keep anything hidden
20 -unlike Gail.

Rosa Guy, The Disa p pearance. Penguin Books Limited, 1979, p. 38.





(a) What caused Imamu to stop running? (1 mark)


(b) What effect does the writer achieve in paragraph 1 by using short sentences?(2 marks)


(c) Which sentence in paragraph 1 indicates a contrast between what Imamu is feeling and the atmosphere of the natural environment? (2 marks)

(d) Apart from the short sentence, what literary technique does the writer use in paragraph 2 to show that Imamu is reflecting on his experiences? (2 marks)

(e) (i) Identify ONE emotion which Imamu experiences in paragraph 2.
(ii) Quote an appropriate expression to support your answer. (2 marks)

(f) Why does Imamu ask himself several questions and replay the scene at the dinner in his mind? (2 marks)

(g) Quote the sentence which indicates that Imamu thinks he understands Perk. (2 marks)

(h) Why was Imamu running away?

Answer 1

Answer:

Because of the sharp pain under his rib cage