English FAL Grade 10 Paper 2 November Mock Exam 2 2026 Memo

Mock hlayiso mock exams Practice Series: Grade 10 Exam Preparation WWW.HLAYISO.COM NATIONAL SENIOR CERTIFICATE GRADE 10 ENGLISH FIRST ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE P2 NOVEMBER EXAMINATION 2026 (MOCK) MARKING GUIDELINES MARKS: 70 These marking guidelines consist of 14 pages. Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 2 Hlayiso/Mock 2026 NSC – Marking Guidelines INSTRUCTIONS TO MARKERS 1. Candidates answer TWO questions, ONE question each from ANY TWO sections. If a candidate answers more than two sections, mark only the first two sections answered. 2. These marking guidelines are a guide. Many questions are open-ended; credit any relevant, well-substantiated response, even if it is not listed here. 3. Because the focus is on understanding, spelling and language errors should not be penalised unless they change the meaning of the answer. 4. For open-ended questions, no marks are awarded for YES/NO or AGREE/DISAGREE alone. The substantiation is what is credited. 5. When TWO/THREE facts/points are required and more are given, mark only the first TWO/THREE. 6. For multiple-choice and matching questions, accept the letter AND/OR the answer written out in full. 7. For ‘Explain why the statement is FALSE’ questions, award the mark only for a correct reason/correction; do not award a mark for the word ‘False’ alone. 8. For figure-of-speech questions, the figure of speech must be correctly identified; the explanation must refer to BOTH the comparison/device AND its relevance in the extract/poem. Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 3 Hlayiso/Mock 2026 NSC – Marking Guidelines SECTION A: NOVEL QUESTION 1: TREASURE ISLAND 1.1 1.1.1 (a) Spy-glass✓ (4) (b) Bristol✓ (c) cook✓ (d) mutiny✓ (4 x 1) 1.1.2 He is charming/friendly/likeable/a natural leader✓ (Accept: cunning/manipulative). He talks to every man and does each one a special favour, so the whole crew respects and even obeys him; he is very kind to Jim and always welcomes him in the galley.✓ NOTE: Accept ‘manipulative’ if the candidate explains that he wins the men’s loyalty on purpose, for his own (pirate) plans. NOTE: Award 1 mark for an answer that is not well-substantiated. (2) 1.1.3 ‘as clean as a new pin’✓ NOTE: Accept only these six words. (1) 1.1.4 C/polished until shiny.✓ (1) 1.1.5 (a) Friendly/warm/welcoming/kind/fatherly✓ (1) (b) He wants to win Jim’s trust and friendship (so that Jim will not suspect him/will be on his side).✓ (1) 1.1.6 (a) The famous pirate captain/buccaneer who buried the treasure on the island (whose map Jim found in Billy Bones’s sea-chest).✓(1) (b) Silver seems to mean that the voyage will be a success for everyone on board/for the Squire’s party✓; but he really means success for the pirates, who plan to mutiny and seize Flint’s treasure for themselves.✓ NOTE: Also accept: it is ironic that the parrot is named after the pirate whose treasure the honest men are looking for (1 mark only). (2) 1.1.7 A person who spends time with wicked/bad people becomes wicked too (the parrot learnt to swear from the pirates it sailed with).✓ It applies to Silver because he sailed with pirates (he was Flint’s quartermaster) and has become a wicked, dishonest pirate himself.✓ NOTE: Accept: it is ironic, because Silver is himself the ‘pitch’ who will lead the crew into mutiny. (2) Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 4 Hlayiso/Mock 2026 NSC – Marking Guidelines 1.1.8 Open-ended. Accept a suitable answer, e.g. Yes. Jim thinks Silver is ‘the best of men’, but Silver is the leader of the pirates. From the apple barrel Jim hears him plan to kill the honest men once the treasure is found, and Silver murders Tom on the island. Silver changes sides whenever it suits him. OR No. Silver is so charming that everyone, even the Squire and the doctor, is fooled at first. Jim stops trusting him once he hears the truth, and later Silver does protect Jim from the other pirates when Jim is captured. NOTE: Do not award a mark for YES/NO or AGREE/DISAGREE alone. Award 3 marks for a well-substantiated discussion that refers to the text as a whole; award 1–2 marks for a partially substantiated answer. Accept a mixed response. (3) 1.2 1.2.1 Jim left the stockade without permission and found Ben Gunn’s small boat (coracle).✓ At night he cut the Hispaniola’s anchor rope/cable and the ship drifted away.✓ The two pirates on board (Hands and O’Brien) were drunk and fought; O’Brien was killed and Hands was wounded.✓ Jim took command of the ship, and Hands agreed to help him sail it to the North Inlet in return for food, drink and a bandage.✓ NOTE: Accept any TWO points. (2) 1.2.2 What Jim was doing (re-loading his pistols) greatly surprised/shocked Hands.✓ (1) 1.2.3 (a) Confident/threatening/triumphant/mocking✓ (1) (b) He feels safe high up on the cross-trees with two loaded pistols, while the wounded Hands is below him/He has the upper hand.✓(1) 1.2.4 No. He only pretends to surrender to make Jim relax/drop his guard✓; a moment later he throws his dagger at Jim and pins him to the mast.✓ NOTE: Do not award a mark for ‘No’ alone. (2) 1.2.5 (a) Simile✓ (1) (b) Jim is compared to a proud rooster strutting on a wall✓. It shows that Jim is too proud of himself/over-confident and not careful, so Hands is able to take him by surprise.✓ (2) 1.2.6 C/Hands’s dagger.✓ (1) 1.2.7 Both pistols go off by accident/without Jim aiming when he is struck by the dagger.✓ (1) Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 5 Hlayiso/Mock 2026 NSC – Marking Guidelines 1.2.8 Jim beaches/hides the ship in the North Inlet, so the pirates cannot use it to escape with the treasure.✓ The pirates lose their only way off the island, so Silver later has to bargain with the doctor/the honest party.✓ The honest party uses the Hispaniola to sail home to England with the treasure.✓ NOTE: Accept any TWO points. (2) 1.2.9 At the start of the novel Jim is a frightened boy at his parents’ inn who has nightmares about the one-legged man. During the adventure he has to make his own decisions and face real danger: he discovers the mutiny plot, meets Ben Gunn, takes the Hispaniola on his own and outwits Israel Hands. By the end he keeps his word to Silver and is accepted as an equal by the men. The adventure turns him into a responsible young man. NOTE: Award 3 marks for a discussion that clearly links the theme to events/characters in the text; award 1–2 marks for a partial discussion. Accept other relevant, well-substantiated responses. (3) [35] Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 6 Hlayiso/Mock 2026 NSC – Marking Guidelines SECTION B: DRAMA QUESTION 2: JULIUS CAESAR 2.1 2.1.1 (a) E✓ (4) (b) D✓ (c) A✓ (d) C✓ (4 x 1) 2.1.2 He is proud/arrogant/stubborn/sees himself as above others.✓ He refuses to give the Senate any reason except that it is his will; he expects his word alone to be enough for them.✓ NOTE: Award 1 mark for an answer that is not well-substantiated. (2) 2.1.3 (a) Simile✓ (1) (b) Caesar’s statue is compared to a fountain with a hundred spouts that pour out blood✓. The dream warns Calphurnia of danger and foreshadows Caesar’s murder: the conspirators stab him many times and then bathe their hands in his blood.✓ (2) 2.1.4 B/signs of something that will happen.✓ (1) 2.1.5 The Senate plans to give Caesar a crown today.✓ If he does not come, the senators may change their minds.✓ People will mock Caesar/say that the Senate must wait until his wife has better dreams.✓ People will whisper that Caesar is afraid.✓ NOTE: Accept any TWO points. (2) 2.1.6 Decius says that his love for Caesar and his concern for Caesar’s success make him speak so openly✓; the audience knows (but Caesar does not) that Decius is one of the conspirators who is leading Caesar to his death.✓ (2) 2.1.7 Decius persuades Caesar to go to the Senate-house/Capitol, where he is murdered.✓ (1) Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 7 Hlayiso/Mock 2026 NSC – Marking Guidelines 2.1.8 Open-ended. Accept a suitable answer, e.g. Yes. Caesar ignores every warning (the Soothsayer, Calphurnia’s dream, the augurers, Artemidorus’s letter) because he does not want to look afraid. Decius wins him over by flattering him and mentioning the crown. At the Capitol he proudly says that he is as constant as the northern star and refuses Metellus Cimber’s plea, which gives the conspirators their chance. OR No. Caesar is killed because of the envy and plotting of Cassius and the other conspirators; even a humble ruler would have been in danger from them. NOTE: Do not award a mark for YES/NO or AGREE/DISAGREE alone. Award 3 marks for a well-substantiated discussion that refers to the text as a whole; award 1–2 marks for a partially substantiated answer. Accept a mixed response. (3) 2.2 2.2.1 The ghost told Brutus that it was his evil spirit and that Brutus would see it again at Philippi.✓ Now that the ghost has appeared again at Philippi, Brutus believes that his death is near/that fate has decided he must die.✓ (2) 2.2.2 His army has been defeated/his enemies have ‘beat us to the pit’.✓ He believes that it is more honourable to kill himself than to be captured and led through Rome as a prisoner.✓ The ghost of Caesar has appeared to him, so he believes his hour has come.✓ NOTE: Accept any TWO points. (2) 2.2.3 (a) Proud/grateful/content/calm✓ (1) (b) All his life, every man was true/loyal to him; he believes that he will have more glory in defeat than Octavius and Antony have in victory.✓ (1) 2.2.4 (a) Metaphor✓ (Accept: personification) (1) (b) Death/weariness is compared to night falling over his eyes✓. Brutus is exhausted after the battle and knows that his death is near; he is ready to ‘rest’.✓ (2) 2.2.5 Caesar’s spirit/ghost can now rest, because Brutus’s death pays for Caesar’s murder.✓ Brutus kills himself more willingly than he killed Caesar: he was unwilling/sad to kill his friend and now regrets it.✓ (2) 2.2.6 B/Strato holds his sword and Brutus runs onto it.✓ (1) Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 8 Hlayiso/Mock 2026 NSC – Marking Guidelines 2.2.7 Kneel beside/look down at Brutus’s body and bow his head/remove his helmet✓ – to show respect for an honourable enemy. Speak in a quiet, sincere, admiring tone (not a sarcastic one)✓ – because, unlike his funeral speech, he now truly means that Brutus was honourable. NOTE: Accept any TWO relevant instructions (body language/tone) that are explained. Award 1 mark for two instructions without explanation. (2) 2.2.8 Open-ended. Accept a suitable answer, e.g. Yes. Antony says that Brutus was the only conspirator who acted for the good of Rome and not out of envy. He loved Rome more than his friend, was honest, kept his word and was loved by his men, who were true to him. OR No. Brutus murdered his friend Caesar, who loved and trusted him. He was easily manipulated by Cassius’s forged letters, and his poor decisions (allowing Antony to speak, marching to Philippi) caused the deaths of many Romans. NOTE: Do not award a mark for YES/NO or AGREE/DISAGREE alone. Award 3 marks for a well-substantiated discussion that refers to the text as a whole; award 1–2 marks for a partially substantiated answer. Accept a mixed response. (3) [35] Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 9 Hlayiso/Mock 2026 NSC – Marking Guidelines SECTION C: SHORT STORIES QUESTION 3 ‘THE OPEN WINDOW’ 3.1 3.1.1 (a) country✓ (4) (b) sister✓ (c) fifteen✓ (d) snipe✓ (4 x 1) 3.1.2 He believes Vera’s story that Mrs Sappleton’s husband and brothers died in a bog three years ago.✓ Mrs Sappleton talks cheerfully about the men coming home, so Framton thinks that she has lost her mind because of grief.✓ (2) 3.1.3 The three men carry guns, one has a white coat/waterproof over his shoulders, the brown spaniel is with them and one sings ‘Bertie, why do you bound?’, exactly as Vera described✓; so Framton believes that he is seeing the ghosts of men who died in the bog three years ago.✓ (2) 3.1.4 (a) Happy/excited/cheerful/relieved✓ (1) (b) She sees her husband and brothers coming home from the shooting, in time for tea.✓ (1) 3.1.5 She is a good actress/deceitful/mischievous/a skilful liar.✓ She pretends to stare at the men with ‘dazed horror’, so that Framton will believe that they are ghosts.✓ NOTE: Award 1 mark for an answer that is not well-substantiated. (2) 3.1.6 ‘headlong retreat’✓ NOTE: Also accept ‘grabbed wildly’. (1) 3.1.7 A/about to happen.✓ (1) 3.1.8 She does not know about Vera’s story; she thinks that Framton is a strange, rude man who only talks about his illnesses and left without saying goodbye.✓ (1) 3.1.9 The open window is at the centre of Vera’s made-up story: she tells Framton that it is kept open for the dead men to return.✓ When the men really do walk in through the open window, Framton believes that he is seeing ghosts and runs away.✓ The window also suggests Vera’s open, active imagination/an opening between the real world and her fantasy.✓ NOTE: Award 3 marks for a well-explained answer that links the title to the plot. Accept other relevant points. (3) Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 10 Hlayiso/Mock 2026 NSC – Marking Guidelines ‘THE MONKEY’S PAW’ 3.2 3.2.1 He wished for his son (Herbert) to be alive again.✓ His wife begged/forced him to make the wish after Herbert’s funeral, because she remembered that the paw had two more wishes.✓ (2) 3.2.2 B/quiet and secret.✓ (1) 3.2.3 He is terrified/panic-stricken.✓ He drops the matches, stands still holding his breath and then runs back to his room and shuts the door, because he fears that the knocking is his dead, mutilated son.✓ NOTE: Award 1 mark for an answer that is not well-substantiated. (2) 3.2.4 At the beginning she does not believe in the paw/she makes fun of it (she jokes about wishing for four pairs of hands).✓ In these lines she believes in it completely and is desperate/frantic to open the door to her son.✓ (2) 3.2.5 (a) Desperate/terrified/pleading/panic-stricken✓ (1) (b) He fears that the thing outside is Herbert’s dead, mutilated body (not the son his wife remembers), and he does not want it to come in.✓ (1) 3.2.6 (a) Metaphor✓ (Accept: hyperbole) (1) (b) The knocking is compared to rapid gunfire (a fusillade of shots)✓. It shows how loud, fast and violent the knocking becomes, which increases the suspense/terror and shows why Mr White must find the paw quickly.✓ (2) 3.2.7 He wished that his son would be dead again/go back to his grave/that the thing outside would go away.✓ The knocking stops suddenly and, when the door is opened, the road is quiet and empty.✓ (2) 3.2.8 The Whites wish for things they want, but every wish brings disaster. The wish for two hundred pounds is granted only when Herbert is killed and the firm pays compensation. The wish to bring Herbert back to life almost brings a terrible, mutilated body to their door, so the last wish is used to undo it. The family is left far unhappier than before. The story warns that trying to change fate/being greedy has terrible consequences. NOTE: Award 3 marks for a discussion that clearly links the theme to events/characters in the text; award 1–2 marks for a partial discussion. Accept other relevant, well-substantiated responses. (3) [35] Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 11 Hlayiso/Mock 2026 NSC – Marking Guidelines SECTION D: POETRY QUESTION 4 ‘SYMPATHY’ 4.1 4.1.1 (a) cage✓ (4) (b) spring✓ (c) bars✓ (d) prayer✓ (4 x 1) 4.1.2 (a) Simile✓ (1) (b) The river is compared to glass because it is clear, smooth and shining✓. It shows how beautiful and free nature is outside the cage, which the caged bird cannot enjoy; this makes its imprisonment more painful.✓ (2) 4.1.3 The bars are described as if they were a cruel person (personification) who hurts the bird on purpose✓; the bird’s imprisonment is harsh, painful and unfair.✓ (2) 4.1.4 ‘And a pain still throbs in the old, old scars’✓ NOTE: Also accept ‘And they pulse again with a keener sting’. (1) 4.1.5 The repetition emphasises that the speaker truly understands the bird’s suffering✓ because he suffers in the same way/he is also not free (this is the ‘sympathy’ of the title).✓ NOTE: Accept: it creates a refrain that links the stanzas and stresses the speaker’s certainty. (2) 4.1.6 (a) Sad/sorrowful/pleading/desperate✓ (1) (b) The bird’s song is not a happy song but a desperate prayer to be set free, and the speaker shares this pain.✓ (1) 4.1.7 C/a person who is not free and suffers like the bird.✓ (1) Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 12 Hlayiso/Mock 2026 NSC – Marking Guidelines 4.1.8 Open-ended. Accept a suitable answer, e.g. Yes. In the poem the bird sings while its wing is bruised and its chest is sore. Its song is ‘not a carol of joy or glee’ but a prayer and a plea to Heaven for freedom. People who hear the song may think the bird is happy, but it is really crying out in pain. In the same way, people who suffer (e.g. people who are not free) may sing or smile to hide their pain or to ask for help. OR No. Singing is usually a sign of happiness; the poem describes one special case of a bird in a cage. NOTE: Do not award a mark for YES/NO or AGREE/DISAGREE alone. Award 3 marks for a well-substantiated discussion that refers to the text as a whole; award 1–2 marks for a partially substantiated answer. Accept a mixed response. (3) Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 13 Hlayiso/Mock 2026 NSC – Marking Guidelines ‘STOPPING BY WOODS ON A SNOWY EVENING’ 4.2 4.2.1 To watch the woods fill up with snow.✓ (1) 4.2.2 (a) Personification✓ (1) (b) The horse is given human thoughts: it ‘thinks’ that it is strange to stop where there is no farmhouse✓. This shows that stopping in this lonely place is unusual; the practical horse wants to go home, while the speaker wants to stay and enjoy the beauty of the woods.✓ (2) 4.2.3 The speaker is in a lonely place between the woods and a frozen lake, with no farmhouse nearby.✓ It is a dark, snowy winter evening/the darkest evening of the year (midwinter).✓ NOTE: Accept any TWO relevant points. (2) 4.2.4 B/soft and light, like feathers.✓ (1) 4.2.5 He stops to watch the woods fill up with snow; it is the horse that thinks the stop is strange/wants to go on.✓ (1) 4.2.6 He is attracted to/charmed by the woods; he finds them beautiful, peaceful and inviting.✓ He describes them as ‘lovely’ and ‘deep’, and he does not want to leave them (they are also ‘dark’ and mysterious).✓ NOTE: Award 1 mark for an answer that is not well-substantiated. (2) 4.2.7 (a) Determined/resigned/regretful✓ (1) (b) He would like to stay, but he knows that he must leave the woods because he has duties/promises to keep.✓ (1) 4.2.8 The repetition emphasises that he still has a long way to travel and many duties to do before he can rest.✓ The second time, ‘sleep’ may also suggest death: he has much still to do in his life before he dies.✓ NOTE: Accept: the repetition creates a slow, tired/dreamy rhythm at the end of the poem. (2) Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 14 Hlayiso/Mock 2026 NSC – Marking Guidelines 4.2.9 Open-ended. Accept a suitable answer, e.g. Yes. The speaker is tempted to stay in the quiet, ‘lovely, dark and deep’ woods, but he remembers that he has ‘promises to keep’ and ‘miles to go’. He leaves the peaceful woods to carry on with his responsibilities, even though he is tired. OR No. The poem does not show him leaving; he only says that he has promises to keep. The repeated last line suggests that he is very tired and still longs to rest. NOTE: Do not award a mark for YES/NO or AGREE/DISAGREE alone. Award 3 marks for a well-substantiated discussion that refers to the text as a whole; award 1–2 marks for a partially substantiated answer. Accept a mixed response. (3) [35] GRAND TOTAL: 70 Copyright reserved