English HL Grade 10 P2 November Mock 2026 Question Paper (Eng)

Copyright reserved Please turn over Mock hlayiso mock exams Practice Series: Grade 10 Exam Preparation WWW.HLAYISO.COM NATIONAL SENIOR CERTIFICATE GRADE 10 ENGLISH HOME LANGUAGE P2 NOVEMBER EXAMINATION 2026 (MOCK) MARKS: 80 TIME: 2½ hours This question paper consists of 25 pages.

English Home Language/P2 2 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 INSTRUCTIONS AND INFORMATION 1. Read these instructions carefully before you begin to answer the questions. 2. Do NOT attempt to read the entire question paper. Consult the table of contents on page 4 and mark the numbers of the questions set on texts you have studied this year. Thereafter, read these questions and choose the ones you wish to answer. 3. This question paper consists of THREE sections: SECTION A: Poetry (30) SECTION B: Novel (25) SECTION C: Drama (25) 4. Answer FIVE questions in all: THREE in SECTION A, ONE in SECTION B and ONE in SECTION C as follows: SECTION A: POETRY PRESCRIBED POETRY – Answer TWO questions. UNSEEN POEM – COMPULSORY question SECTION B: NOVEL Answer ONE question. SECTION C: DRAMA Answer ONE question. 5. CHOICE OF ANSWERS FOR SECTIONS B (NOVEL) AND C (DRAMA): • Answer questions ONLY on the novel and the drama you have studied. • Answer ONE ESSAY QUESTION and ONE CONTEXTUAL QUESTION. If you answer the essay question in SECTION B, you must answer the contextual question in SECTION C. If you answer the contextual question in SECTION B, you must answer the essay question in SECTION C. Use the checklist to assist you. 6. LENGTH OF ANSWERS: • The essay question on Poetry should be answered in about 200–250 words. • Essay questions on the Novel and Drama sections should be answered in 300–350 words. • The length of answers to contextual questions should be determined by the mark allocation. Candidates should aim for conciseness and relevance. 7. Follow the instructions at the beginning of each section carefully. 8. Number your answers correctly according to the numbering system used in this question paper. 9. Start EACH section on a NEW page. 10. Suggested time management: SECTION A: approximately 40 minutes SECTION B: approximately 55 minutes SECTION C: approximately 55 minutes 11. Write neatly and legibly. Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 3 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 NOTE ON THIS MOCK PAPER (Hlayiso): Grade 10 literature is prescribed per province and school, so this mock uses only works in the public domain that are typical of Grade 10 Home Language lists: the poems 'The Road Not Taken' (Robert Frost, 1916), 'Sonnet 18' (William Shakespeare, 1609), 'I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud' (William Wordsworth, 1815 version), 'Invictus' (W.E. Henley, 1888) and, as the unseen poem, 'Leisure' (W.H. Davies, 1911); the novels A Christmas Carol (Charles Dickens, 1843) and The Hound of the Baskervilles (Arthur Conan Doyle, 1902); and the dramas Romeo and Juliet and Julius Caesar (William Shakespeare). All extracts are reproduced from public-domain editions. Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 4 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 TABLE OF CONTENTS SECTION A: POETRY Prescribed Poetry: Answer ANY TWO questions. QUESTION NO. QUESTION MARKS PAGE NO. 1. 'The Road Not Taken' Essay question 10 6 2. 'Sonnet 18' Contextual question 10 7 3. 'I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud' Contextual question 10 7 4. 'Invictus' Contextual question 10 9 AND Unseen Poetry: COMPULSORY question 5. 'Leisure' Contextual question 10 10 SECTION B: NOVEL Answer ONE question.* 6. A Christmas Carol Essay question 25 11 7. A Christmas Carol Contextual question 25 11 8. The Hound of the Baskervilles Essay question 25 14 9. The Hound of the Baskervilles Contextual question 25 14 SECTION C: DRAMA Answer ONE question.* 10. Romeo and Juliet Essay question 25 18 11. Romeo and Juliet Contextual question 25 18 12. Julius Caesar Essay question 25 22 13. Julius Caesar Contextual question 25 22 *NOTE: In SECTIONS B and C, answer ONE ESSAY and ONE CONTEXTUAL question. You may NOT answer TWO essay questions or TWO contextual questions. Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 5 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 CHECKLIST Use this checklist to ensure that you have answered the correct number of questions. SECTION QUESTION NUMBERS NO. OF QUESTIONS TO ANSWER TICK (✓) A: Poetry (Prescribed Poetry) 1–4 2 A: Poetry (Unseen Poem) 5 1 B: Novel (Essay or Contextual) 6–9 1 C: Drama (Essay or Contextual) 10–13 1 NOTE: In SECTIONS B and C, ensure that you have answered ONE ESSAY and ONE CONTEXTUAL question. You may NOT answer TWO essay questions or TWO contextual questions. Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 6 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 SECTION A: POETRY PRESCRIBED POETRY Answer any TWO of the following questions. QUESTION 1: ESSAY QUESTION Read the poem below and then answer the question that follows. THE ROAD NOT TAKEN – Robert Frost 1 Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, 2 And sorry I could not travel both 3 And be one traveler, long I stood 4 And looked down one as far as I could 5 To where it bent in the undergrowth; 6 Then took the other, as just as fair, 7 And having perhaps the better claim, 8 Because it was grassy and wanted wear; 9 Though as for that the passing there 10 Had worn them really about the same, 11 And both that morning equally lay 12 In leaves no step had trodden black. 13 Oh, I kept the first for another day! 14 Yet knowing how way leads on to way, 15 I doubted if I should ever come back. 16 I shall be telling this with a sigh 17 Somewhere ages and ages hence: 18 Two roads diverged in a wood, and I – 19 I took the one less traveled by, 20 And that has made all the difference. Glossary: diverged: separated, went in different directions; wanted wear: needed to be walked on; hence: from now In 'The Road Not Taken', the speaker shows that the choices we make, even small ones, shape our lives in ways that we cannot predict. With close reference to imagery, diction and tone, critically discuss the validity of the above statement. Your response should take the form of a well-constructed essay of 200–250 words (about ONE page). [10] Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 7 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 QUESTION 2: CONTEXTUAL QUESTION Read the poem below and then answer the questions that follow. SONNET 18 – William Shakespeare 1 Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? 2 Thou art more lovely and more temperate: 3 Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, 4 And summer's lease hath all too short a date: 5 Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines, 6 And often is his gold complexion dimm'd, 7 And every fair from fair sometime declines, 8 By chance, or nature's changing course untrimm'd: 9 But thy eternal summer shall not fade, 10 Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st, 11 Nor shall death brag thou wander'st in his shade, 12 When in eternal lines to time thou grow'st, 13 So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see, 14 So long lives this, and this gives life to thee. Glossary: temperate: mild, gentle, even-tempered; lease: a contract for a limited time; fair: beautiful thing; beauty; untrimm'd: stripped of its beauty; ow'st: own 2.1 Refer to lines 1–2: 'Shall I compare … more temperate'. What question does the speaker ask, and how does he answer it? (2) 2.2 Refer to lines 3–4: 'Rough winds do … short a date'. State TWO reasons that the speaker gives for why a summer's day is not perfect. (2) 2.3 Refer to lines 5–6: 'Sometime too hot … complexion dimm'd'. 2.3.1 Identify the figure of speech in 'the eye of heaven'. (1) 2.3.2 Explain why this figure of speech is effective. (2) 2.4 Refer to lines 13–14: 'So long as … life to thee.' Critically discuss how the final couplet conveys the speaker's belief that his poem will make the beloved's beauty last for ever. (3) [10] QUESTION 3: CONTEXTUAL QUESTION Read the poem below and then answer the questions that follow. Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 8 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 I WANDERED LONELY AS A CLOUD – William Wordsworth 1 I wandered lonely as a cloud 2 That floats on high o'er vales and hills, 3 When all at once I saw a crowd, 4 A host, of golden daffodils; 5 Beside the lake, beneath the trees, 6 Fluttering and dancing in the breeze. 7 Continuous as the stars that shine 8 And twinkle on the milky way, 9 They stretched in never-ending line 10 Along the margin of a bay: 11 Ten thousand saw I at a glance, 12 Tossing their heads in sprightly dance. 13 The waves beside them danced; but they 14 Out-did the sparkling waves in glee: 15 A poet could not but be gay, 16 In such a jocund company: 17 I gazed – and gazed – but little thought 18 What wealth the show to me had brought: 19 For oft, when on my couch I lie 20 In vacant or in pensive mood, 21 They flash upon that inward eye 22 Which is the bliss of solitude; 23 And then my heart with pleasure fills, 24 And dances with the daffodils. Glossary: vales: valleys; host: a large crowd; sprightly: lively; gay: (here) happy, cheerful; jocund: merry, joyful; pensive: thoughtful 3.1 Refer to line 1: 'I wandered lonely as a cloud'. What does this line suggest about the speaker's state of mind at the beginning of the poem? (2) 3.2 Refer to lines 3–4: 'When all at … of golden daffodils'. Explain why the speaker uses the words 'crowd' and 'host' to describe the daffodils. (2) 3.3 Refer to lines 7–9: 'Continuous as the … never-ending line'. 3.3.1 Identify the figure of speech in line 7. (1) 3.3.2 Discuss the effectiveness of comparing the daffodils to stars. (2) 3.4 Refer to stanza 4 (lines 19–24). Critically discuss how the final stanza shows the true 'wealth' (line 18) that the daffodils have brought the speaker. (3) [10] Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 9 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 QUESTION 4: CONTEXTUAL QUESTION Read the poem below and then answer the questions that follow. INVICTUS – William Ernest Henley 1 Out of the night that covers me, 2 Black as the Pit from pole to pole, 3 I thank whatever gods may be 4 For my unconquerable soul. 5 In the fell clutch of circumstance 6 I have not winced nor cried aloud. 7 Under the bludgeonings of chance 8 My head is bloody, but unbowed. 9 Beyond this place of wrath and tears 10 Looms but the Horror of the shade, 11 And yet the menace of the years 12 Finds, and shall find, me unafraid. 13 It matters not how strait the gate, 14 How charged with punishments the scroll, 15 I am the master of my fate: 16 I am the captain of my soul. Glossary: Invictus (Latin): unconquered; the Pit: hell; fell: fierce, cruel; bludgeonings: heavy blows; the shade: death; strait: narrow; scroll: a list (of sins or punishments) 4.1 Refer to lines 1–2: 'Out of the … pole to pole'. Explain what the 'night' represents in the speaker's life. (2) 4.2 Refer to lines 5–6: 'In the fell … cried aloud.' 4.2.1 Identify the figure of speech in 'the fell clutch of circumstance'. (1) 4.2.2 Discuss the effectiveness of this image. (2) 4.3 Refer to line 8: 'My head is bloody, but unbowed.' What does this line reveal about the speaker's character? (2) 4.4 Refer to lines 15–16: 'I am the … of my soul.' Critically discuss the effectiveness of these lines as the conclusion to the poem. (3) [10] Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 10 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 UNSEEN POETRY (COMPULSORY) QUESTION 5: CONTEXTUAL QUESTION Read the poem below and then answer the questions that follow. LEISURE – W.H. Davies 1 What is this life if, full of care, 2 We have no time to stand and stare. 3 No time to stand beneath the boughs 4 And stare as long as sheep or cows. 5 No time to see, when woods we pass, 6 Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass. 7 No time to see, in broad daylight, 8 Streams full of stars, like skies at night. 9 No time to turn at Beauty's glance, 10 And watch her feet, how they can dance. 11 No time to wait till her mouth can 12 Enrich that smile her eyes began. 13 A poor life this if, full of care, 14 We have no time to stand and stare. Glossary: leisure: free time for rest and enjoyment; care: worry, responsibility; boughs: branches of a tree 5.1 Refer to lines 1–2: 'What is this … and stare.' In your own words, explain the speaker's main concern in these lines. (2) 5.2 Refer to lines 3–4: 'No time to … sheep or cows.' Explain why the speaker compares people to 'sheep or cows'. (2) 5.3 Refer to lines 9–12: 'No time to … eyes began.' 5.3.1 Identify the figure of speech used to describe 'Beauty' in these lines. (1) 5.3.2 Discuss the effectiveness of this figure of speech. (2) 5.4 Critically discuss the effect of the repetition of 'No time' in the poem, and comment on whether the poem's message is relevant to people today. (3) [10] TOTAL SECTION A: 30 Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 11 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 SECTION B: NOVEL Answer ONLY on the novel you have studied. A CHRISTMAS CAROL – Charles Dickens Answer EITHER QUESTION 6 (essay question) OR QUESTION 7 (contextual question). QUESTION 6: A CHRISTMAS CAROL – ESSAY QUESTION Scrooge's transformation in A Christmas Carol shows that it is never too late for a person to change. With close reference to the novel, critically discuss the validity of the above statement. Your response should take the form of a well-constructed essay of 300–350 words (1½–2 pages). [25] QUESTION 7: A CHRISTMAS CAROL – CONTEXTUAL QUESTION Read the extracts below and then answer the questions that follow. EXTRACT A 'Mr Marley has been dead these seven years,' Scrooge replied. 'He died seven years ago, this very night.' … 'At this festive season of the year, Mr Scrooge,' said the gentleman, taking up a pen, 'it is more than usually desirable that we should make some slight provision 5 for the Poor and destitute, who suffer greatly at the present time. Many thousands are in want of common necessaries; hundreds of thousands are in want of common comforts, sir.' 'Are there no prisons?' asked Scrooge. 'Plenty of prisons,' said the gentleman, laying down the pen again. 10 'And the Union workhouses?' demanded Scrooge. 'Are they still in operation?' … 'I wish to be left alone,' said Scrooge. 'Since you ask me what I wish, gentlemen, that is my answer. I don't make merry myself at Christmas and I can't afford to make idle people merry. I help to support the establishments I have mentioned – 15 they cost enough; and those who are badly off must go there.' 'Many can't go there; and many would rather die.' Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 12 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 'If they would rather die,' said Scrooge, 'they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population. Besides – excuse me – I don't know that.' 'But you might know it,' observed the gentleman. 20 'It's not my business,' Scrooge returned. 'It's enough for a man to understand his own business, and not to interfere with other people's. Mine occupies me constantly. Good afternoon, gentlemen!' Seeing clearly that it would be useless to pursue their point, the gentlemen withdrew. Scrooge resumed his labours with an improved opinion of himself, and 25 in a more facetious temper than was usual with him. [Stave 1] Glossary: destitute: extremely poor; Union workhouses: institutions where the very poor were housed and made to work; facetious: inappropriately humorous 7.1 Place this extract in context. (2) 7.2 Refer to lines 1–2: 'Mr Marley has … this very night.' Explain the significance of 'this very night' for the events that follow. (2) 7.3 Refer to line 9: 'Are there no prisons?' What does this question reveal about Scrooge's attitude towards the poor? (2) 7.4 Refer to lines 18–19: 'If they would … the surplus population.' Discuss how these words return to haunt Scrooge later in the novel. (3) 7.5 Refer to lines 24–26: 'Seeing clearly that … usual with him.' Discuss what these lines reveal about Scrooge at this stage of the novel, and contrast this with the way he responds to one of these gentlemen at the end of the novel. (3) AND Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 13 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 EXTRACT B From the foldings of its robe, it brought two children; wretched, abject, frightful, hideous, miserable. They knelt down at its feet, and clung upon the outside of its garment. 'Oh, Man! look here. Look, look, down here!' exclaimed the Ghost. They were a boy and girl. Yellow, meagre, ragged, scowling, wolfish; but prostrate, 5 too, in their humility. Where graceful youth should have filled their features out, and touched them with its freshest tints, a stale and shrivelled hand, like that of age, had pinched, and twisted them, and pulled them into shreds. Where angels might have sat enthroned, devils lurked, and glared out menacing. … Scrooge started back, appalled. Having them shown to him in this way, he tried 10 to say they were fine children, but the words choked themselves, rather than be parties to a lie of such enormous magnitude. 'Spirit! are they yours?' Scrooge could say no more. 'They are Man's,' said the Spirit, looking down upon them. 'And they cling to me, appealing from their fathers. This boy is Ignorance. This girl is Want. Beware them 15 both, and all of their degree, but most of all beware this boy, for on his brow I see that written which is Doom, unless the writing be erased.' … 'Have they no refuge or resource?' cried Scrooge. 'Are there no prisons?' said the Spirit, turning on him for the last time with his own words. 'Are there no workhouses?' 20 [Stave 3] Glossary: abject: wretched, without pride or hope; meagre: thin; prostrate: lying face down; Want: extreme poverty, need 7.6 Identify the Spirit in this extract and name TWO scenes that it has shown Scrooge before this moment. (2) 7.7 Refer to lines 5–6: 'Yellow, meagre, ragged, scowling, wolfish'. Comment on the effect of the list of adjectives used to describe the children. (2) 7.8 Refer to lines 14–17: 'They are Man's … writing be erased.' Explain what the two children symbolise, and why the Spirit warns Scrooge to beware 'most of all' of the boy. (3) 7.9 Refer to lines 10–12 and lines 19–20. Discuss how Scrooge's reaction to the children and the Spirit's reply show that Scrooge has begun to change since EXTRACT A. (3) 7.10 Based on your knowledge of the novel as a whole, discuss whether Scrooge's change at the end of the novel is convincing. (3) [25] Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 14 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES – Arthur Conan Doyle Answer EITHER QUESTION 8 (essay question) OR QUESTION 9 (contextual question). QUESTION 8: THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES – ESSAY QUESTION In The Hound of the Baskervilles, the setting of the moor is as important as any character in creating suspense and fear. With close reference to the novel, critically discuss the validity of the above statement. Your response should take the form of a well-constructed essay of 300–350 words (1½–2 pages). [25] QUESTION 9: THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES – CONTEXTUAL QUESTION Read the extracts below and then answer the questions that follow. EXTRACT C 'It was at my advice that Sir Charles was about to go to London. His heart was, I knew, affected, and the constant anxiety in which he lived, however chimerical the cause of it might be, was evidently having a serious effect upon his health. I thought that a few months among the distractions of town would send him back a new man. Mr Stapleton, a mutual friend who was much concerned at his state of 5 health, was of the same opinion. At the last instant came this terrible catastrophe. 'On the night of Sir Charles's death Barrymore the butler, who made the discovery, sent Perkins the groom on horseback to me, and as I was sitting up late I was able to reach Baskerville Hall within an hour of the event. I checked and corroborated all the facts which were mentioned at the inquest. I followed the footsteps down 10 the yew alley, I saw the spot at the moor-gate where he seemed to have waited, I remarked the change in the shape of the prints after that point, I noted that there were no other footsteps save those of Barrymore on the soft gravel, and finally I carefully examined the body, which had not been touched until my arrival. Sir Charles lay on his face, his arms out, his fingers dug into the ground, and his 15 features convulsed with some strong emotion to such an extent that I could hardly have sworn to his identity. There was certainly no physical injury of any kind. But one false statement was made by Barrymore at the inquest. He said that there were no traces upon the ground round the body. He did not observe any. But I did – some little distance off, but fresh and clear.' 20 'Footprints?' 'Footprints.' 'A man's or a woman's?' Dr Mortimer looked strangely at us for an instant, and his voice sank almost to a whisper as he answered. 25 'Mr Holmes, they were the footprints of a gigantic hound!' [Chapter 2: The Curse of the Baskervilles] Glossary: chimerical: imaginary, unreal; corroborated: confirmed; inquest: an official investigation into the cause of a death; convulsed: violently twisted Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 15 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 9.1 Place this extract in context. (2) 9.2 Refer to lines 1–6: 'It was at … this terrible catastrophe.' Explain why Sir Charles lived in 'constant anxiety'. (2) 9.3 Refer to lines 14–17: 'Sir Charles lay … of any kind.' What does Dr Mortimer's description suggest about the cause of Sir Charles's death? (2) 9.4 Refer to line 26: 'Mr Holmes, they … a gigantic hound!' Comment on the effectiveness of this line as the ending of the chapter. (3) 9.5 Refer to lines 5–6: 'Mr Stapleton, a … the same opinion.' Discuss the dramatic irony of Dr Mortimer's description of Stapleton in the light of later events in the novel. (3) AND Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 16 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 EXTRACT D 'Hist!' cried Holmes, and I heard the sharp click of a cocking pistol. 'Look out! It's coming!' There was a thin, crisp, continuous patter from somewhere in the heart of that crawling bank. The cloud was within fifty yards of where we lay, and we glared at it, all three, uncertain what horror was about to break from the heart of it. I was at 5 Holmes's elbow, and I glanced for an instant at his face. It was pale and exultant, his eyes shining brightly in the moonlight. But suddenly they started forward in a rigid, fixed stare, and his lips parted in amazement. At the same instant Lestrade gave a yell of terror and threw himself face downward upon the ground. I sprang to my feet, my inert hand grasping my pistol, my mind paralyzed by the dreadful 10 shape which had sprung out upon us from the shadows of the fog. A hound it was, an enormous coal-black hound, but not such a hound as mortal eyes have ever seen. Fire burst from its open mouth, its eyes glowed with a smouldering glare, its muzzle and hackles and dewlap were outlined in flickering flame. Never in the delirious dream of a disordered brain could anything more savage, more 15 appalling, more hellish be conceived than that dark form and savage face which broke upon us out of the wall of fog. With long bounds the huge black creature was leaping down the track, following hard upon the footsteps of our friend. So paralyzed were we by the apparition that we allowed him to pass before we had recovered our nerve. Then Holmes and I 20 both fired together, and the creature gave a hideous howl, which showed that one at least had hit him. He did not pause, however, but bounded onward. Far away on the path we saw Sir Henry looking back, his face white in the moonlight, his hands raised in horror, glaring helplessly at the frightful thing which was hunting him down. But that cry of pain from the hound had blown all our fears to the winds. 25 If he was vulnerable he was mortal, and if we could wound him we could kill him. [Chapter 14: The Hound of the Baskervilles] Glossary: exultant: triumphant, delighted; inert: not moving; hackles: hairs on the back of a dog's neck; dewlap: loose skin hanging from the throat; apparition: ghost, ghostly figure 9.6 Explain why Holmes, Watson and Lestrade are lying in wait on the moor at this point in the novel. (2) 9.7 Refer to lines 11–17: 'A hound it … wall of fog.' Discuss how the writer's choice of words creates a sense of horror in these lines. (3) 9.8 Refer to lines 22–25: 'Far away on … hunting him down.' What does Sir Henry's reaction reveal about his situation at this moment? (2) 9.9 Refer to lines 25–26: 'But that cry … could kill him.' Discuss the significance of this realisation in the light of the conflict between superstition and reason in the novel. (3) Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 17 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 9.10 Holmes deliberately allows Sir Henry to walk home alone across the moor so that the hound will be drawn out. Based on your knowledge of the novel as a whole, discuss whether Holmes is justified in using Sir Henry in this way. (3) [25] TOTAL SECTION B: 25 Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 18 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 SECTION C: DRAMA Answer ONLY on the drama you have studied. ROMEO AND JULIET – William Shakespeare Answer EITHER QUESTION 10 (essay question) OR QUESTION 11 (contextual question). QUESTION 10: ROMEO AND JULIET – ESSAY QUESTION The deaths of Romeo and Juliet are caused more by their own haste and impulsive behaviour than by fate. Critically discuss the validity of the above statement in relation to the play. Your response should take the form of a well-constructed essay of 300–350 words (1½–2 pages). [25] QUESTION 11: ROMEO AND JULIET – CONTEXTUAL QUESTION Read the extracts below and then answer the questions that follow. EXTRACT E JULIET O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name. Or if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love, And I'll no longer be a Capulet. ROMEO [Aside.] Shall I hear more, or shall I speak at this? 5 JULIET 'Tis but thy name that is my enemy; Thou art thyself, though not a Montague. What's Montague? It is nor hand nor foot, Nor arm, nor face, nor any other part Belonging to a man. O be some other name. 10 What's in a name? That which we call a rose By any other name would smell as sweet; So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call'd, Retain that dear perfection which he owes Without that title. Romeo, doff thy name, 15 And for thy name, which is no part of thee, Take all myself. ROMEO I take thee at thy word. Call me but love, and I'll be new baptis'd; Henceforth I never will be Romeo. 20 Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 19 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 … JULIET How cam'st thou hither, tell me, and wherefore? The orchard walls are high and hard to climb, And the place death, considering who thou art, If any of my kinsmen find thee here. ROMEO With love's light wings did I o'erperch these walls, 25 For stony limits cannot hold love out, And what love can do, that dares love attempt: Therefore thy kinsmen are no stop to me. JULIET If they do see thee, they will murder thee. ROMEO Alack, there lies more peril in thine eye 30 Than twenty of their swords. Look thou but sweet, And I am proof against their enmity. [Act 2, Scene 2] Glossary: wherefore: why; owes: owns, possesses; doff: take off, get rid of; o'erperch: fly over; proof: protected; enmity: hatred 11.1 Place this extract in context. (2) 11.2 Refer to lines 1–4: 'O Romeo, Romeo … be a Capulet.' Explain what Juliet means when she asks, 'wherefore art thou Romeo?' (2) 11.3 Refer to lines 11–15: 'What's in a … Without that title.' Discuss the point that Juliet makes about names by referring to a rose. (3) 11.4 Refer to lines 25–28: 'With love's light … stop to me.' What do these lines reveal about Romeo's attitude towards danger? (2) 11.5 Refer to lines 30–32: 'Alack, there lies … against their enmity.' If you were the director of a production of Romeo and Juliet, how would you instruct the actor playing Romeo to deliver these lines? Pay specific attention to tone and body language. Motivate your instructions. (3) AND Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 20 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 EXTRACT F MERCUTIO I am hurt. A plague o' both your houses. I am sped. Is he gone, and hath nothing? BENVOLIO What, art thou hurt? MERCUTIO Ay, ay, a scratch, a scratch. Marry, 'tis enough. 5 Where is my page? Go villain, fetch a surgeon. Exit Page. ROMEO Courage, man; the hurt cannot be much. MERCUTIO No, 'tis not so deep as a well, nor so wide as a church door, but 'tis enough, 'twill serve. Ask for me tomorrow, and you shall find me a grave man. I am peppered, I warrant, for this world. A plague o' both your houses. Zounds, a dog, a rat, a 10 mouse, a cat, to scratch a man to death. A braggart, a rogue, a villain, that fights by the book of arithmetic! – Why the devil came you between us? I was hurt under your arm. ROMEO I thought all for the best. … BENVOLIO O Romeo, Romeo, brave Mercutio's dead, 15 That gallant spirit hath aspir'd the clouds, Which too untimely here did scorn the earth. ROMEO This day's black fate on mo days doth depend; This but begins the woe others must end. Re-enter Tybalt. BENVOLIO Here comes the furious Tybalt back again. 20 ROMEO Again in triumph, and Mercutio slain? Away to heaven respective lenity, And fire-ey'd fury be my conduct now! Now, Tybalt, take the 'villain' back again That late thou gav'st me, for Mercutio's soul 25 Is but a little way above our heads, Staying for thine to keep him company. Either thou or I, or both, must go with him. [Act 3, Scene 1] Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 21 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 Glossary: sped: finished, done for; peppered: finished off; aspir'd: risen up to; mo: more; respective lenity: careful mildness, gentleness; conduct: guide 11.6 Explain why Mercutio fights Tybalt in this scene. (2) 11.7 Refer to line 2: 'A plague o' both your houses.' Discuss the significance of Mercutio's curse for the rest of the play. (3) 11.8 Refer to lines 8–10: 'No, 'tis not … for this world.' What does Mercutio's use of wordplay, even as he is dying, reveal about his character? (2) 11.9 Refer to lines 21–28: 'Again in triumph … go with him.' Discuss how Romeo's character changes in these lines. (3) 11.10 Refer to lines 18–19: 'This day's black … others must end.' Based on your knowledge of the play as a whole, discuss the significance of these lines. (3) [25] Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 22 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 JULIUS CAESAR – William Shakespeare Answer EITHER QUESTION 12 (essay question) OR QUESTION 13 (contextual question). QUESTION 12: JULIUS CAESAR – ESSAY QUESTION Brutus is a noble man whose idealism leads to his downfall. Critically discuss the validity of the above statement in relation to the play. Your response should take the form of a well-constructed essay of 300–350 words (1½–2 pages). [25] QUESTION 13: JULIUS CAESAR – CONTEXTUAL QUESTION Read the extracts below and then answer the questions that follow. EXTRACT G Shout. Flourish. BRUTUS Another general shout? I do believe that these applauses are For some new honours that are heap'd on Caesar. CASSIUS Why, man, he doth bestride the narrow world Like a Colossus, and we petty men 5 Walk under his huge legs, and peep about To find ourselves dishonourable graves. Men at some time are masters of their fates: The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, But in ourselves, that we are underlings. 10 'Brutus' and 'Caesar': what should be in that 'Caesar'? Why should that name be sounded more than yours? Write them together, yours is as fair a name; Sound them, it doth become the mouth as well; Weigh them, it is as heavy; conjure with 'em, 15 'Brutus' will start a spirit as soon as 'Caesar.' Now in the names of all the gods at once, Upon what meat doth this our Caesar feed, That he is grown so great? Age, thou art sham'd! Rome, thou hast lost the breed of noble bloods! 20 … O, you and I have heard our fathers say, There was a Brutus once that would have brook'd Th' eternal devil to keep his state in Rome, As easily as a king! 25 [Act 1, Scene 2] Glossary: bestride: stand with legs on either side of; Colossus: a huge statue of the god Helios that was said to stand astride the harbour of Rhodes; underlings: inferior people, servants; conjure: call up spirits; brook'd: tolerated Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 23 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 13.1 Place this extract in context. (2) 13.2 Refer to lines 4–7: 'Why, man, he … ourselves dishonourable graves.' Discuss how the image of the Colossus conveys Cassius's feelings about Caesar and about himself and Brutus. (3) 13.3 Refer to lines 9–10: 'The fault, dear … we are underlings.' Explain what Cassius means in these lines. (2) 13.4 Refer to lines 11–16: ''Brutus' and 'Caesar' … as 'Caesar.'' Discuss how Cassius tries to manipulate Brutus in these lines. (3) 13.5 Refer to lines 22–25: 'O, you and … as a king!' Explain why Cassius reminds Brutus of his ancestor. (2) AND Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 24 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 EXTRACT H ANTONY Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears; I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him. The evil that men do lives after them, The good is oft interred with their bones; So let it be with Caesar. The noble Brutus 5 Hath told you Caesar was ambitious. If it were so, it was a grievous fault, And grievously hath Caesar answer'd it. Here, under leave of Brutus and the rest, For Brutus is an honourable man, 10 So are they all, all honourable men, Come I to speak in Caesar's funeral. He was my friend, faithful and just to me; But Brutus says he was ambitious, And Brutus is an honourable man. 15 He hath brought many captives home to Rome, Whose ransoms did the general coffers fill: Did this in Caesar seem ambitious? When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept; Ambition should be made of sterner stuff: 20 Yet Brutus says he was ambitious; And Brutus is an honourable man. You all did see that on the Lupercal I thrice presented him a kingly crown, Which he did thrice refuse. Was this ambition? 25 Yet Brutus says he was ambitious; And sure he is an honourable man. I speak not to disprove what Brutus spoke, But here I am to speak what I do know. You all did love him once, not without cause; 30 What cause withholds you then to mourn for him? O judgement, thou art fled to brutish beasts, And men have lost their reason. Bear with me. My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar, And I must pause till it come back to me. 35 FIRST CITIZEN Methinks there is much reason in his sayings. SECOND CITIZEN If thou consider rightly of the matter, Caesar has had great wrong. [Act 3, Scene 2] Glossary: interred: buried; grievous: serious; general coffers: public treasury; Lupercal: a Roman festival; withholds: holds back, prevents Copyright reserved Please turn over

English Home Language/P2 25 NSC Mock Hlayiso/Mock 2026 13.6 Explain why Antony is allowed to speak at Caesar's funeral and state ONE condition that Brutus places on his speech. (2) 13.7 Refer to line 2: 'I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.' Explain the irony in this line. (2) 13.8 Refer to line 10: 'For Brutus is an honourable man'. Discuss the effect of Antony's repeated use of the word 'honourable' throughout this speech. (3) 13.9 Refer to lines 16–25: 'He hath brought … Was this ambition?' Discuss how Antony uses evidence to disprove Brutus's claim that Caesar was ambitious. (3) 13.10 Refer to lines 33–35: 'Bear with me … back to me.' If you were the director of a production of Julius Caesar, how would you instruct the actor playing Antony to deliver these lines? Pay specific attention to tone and body language. Motivate your instructions. (3) [25] TOTAL SECTION C: 25 GRAND TOTAL: 80 Copyright reserved