English FAL Grade 12 P2 NSC November Prediction 2026 QP

Prediction hlayiso mock exams Practice Series: Grade 12 NSC Preparation WWW.HLAYISO.COM NATIONAL SENIOR CERTIFICATE GRADE 12 ENGLISH FIRST ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE P2 PREDICTION EXAMINATION 2026 MARKS: 70 TIME: 2½ hours This question paper consists of 26 pages. Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 2 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction INSTRUCTIONS AND INFORMATION Read these instructions carefully before you begin to answer the questions. 1. Do NOT attempt to read the entire question paper. Consult the TABLE OF CONTENTS on the next page and mark the numbers of the questions set on the texts you have studied this year. Read these questions carefully and answer as per the instructions. 2. This question paper consists of FOUR sections: SECTION A: Novel (35) SECTION B: Drama (35) SECTION C: Short stories (35) SECTION D: Poetry (35) 3. Answer TWO QUESTIONS in all, ONE question each from ANY TWO sections. SECTION A: NOVEL Answer the question on the novel you have studied. SECTION B: DRAMA Answer the question on the drama you have studied. SECTION C: SHORT STORIES Answer the questions set on BOTH short stories. SECTION D: POETRY Answer the questions set on BOTH poems. 4. Use the checklist on page 4 to assist you. 5. Follow the instructions at the beginning of each section carefully. 6. Number the answers correctly according to the numbering system used in this question paper. 7. Start EACH section on a NEW page. 8. Suggested time management: Spend approximately 75 minutes on each section. 9. Write neatly and legibly. Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 3 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction TABLE OF CONTENTS SECTION A: NOVEL Answer ANY ONE question. QUESTION NO. MARKS PAGE NO. 1. Cry, the Beloved Country 35 5 2. Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde 35 8 SECTION B: DRAMA Answer ANY ONE question. 3. Macbeth 35 12 4. My Children! My Africa! 35 16 SECTION C: SHORT STORIES Answer the questions set on BOTH short stories. 5.1 ‘Class act’ 18 19 AND 5.2 ‘Eveline’ 17 21 SECTION D: POETRY Answer the questions set on BOTH poems. 6.1 ‘On the grasshopper and cricket’ 18 23 AND 6.2 ‘The slave dealer’ 17 25 Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 4 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction CHECKLIST NOTE: • Answer questions from ANY TWO sections. • Tick (✓) the sections you have answered. SECTIONS QUESTION NO. OF TICK (✓) NUMBERS QUESTIONS TO ANSWER A: Novel 1–2 1 B: Drama 3–4 1 C: Short stories 5 1 D: Poetry 6 1 NOTE: Ensure that you have answered questions on TWO sections only. ABOUT THIS PREDICTION PAPER The question types, the texts and the parts of the texts in this paper were chosen from an analysis of the DBE November papers 2018–2025, the May/June papers 2018–2026 and the 2026 preparatory papers. All the texts are on the prescribed list for English First Additional Language for the October/November 2026 NSC examination (DBE Circular E11 of 2024). Extracts are printed only from texts that are in the public domain (Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, Macbeth, ‘Eveline’, ‘On the grasshopper and cricket’ and ‘The slave dealer’). For Cry, the Beloved Country, My Children! My Africa! and ‘Class act’, which are still under copyright, the questions are based on the examiner’s own summaries of the context. Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 5 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction SECTION A: NOVEL In this section, questions are set on the following novels: • CRY, THE BELOVED COUNTRY by Alan Paton • STRANGE CASE OF DR JEKYLL AND MR HYDE by Robert Louis Stevenson Answer ALL the questions on the novel that you have studied. QUESTION 1: CRY, THE BELOVED COUNTRY The examiner’s summaries below describe two parts of the text. Read each summary and answer the questions set on it. The number of marks allocated to each question serves as a guide to the expected length of your answer. NOTE: Answer the questions set on BOTH summaries, i.e. QUESTION 1.1 AND QUESTION 1.2. NOTE TO CANDIDATES: Cry, the Beloved Country is still protected by copyright, so this prediction paper does not reproduce extracts from it. In the NSC examination you will be given printed extracts; here, the questions are based on the examiner’s own summaries of the context. 1.1 CONTEXT A [The search for Absalom.] Examiner’s summary: Stephen Kumalo and Msimangu follow Absalom’s trail across Johannesburg. At the reformatory, a young white man who works there tells them that Absalom behaved well and was allowed to leave early. Absalom was given work, and he was to marry the girl who is expecting his child. The two priests find the girl, but she tells them that Absalom went away some days ago and has not come back. A little later, the news reaches the Mission House that Arthur Jarvis, a young engineer who worked for justice for black South Africans, has been shot dead in his house. The police are looking for the killers. Kumalo is filled with fear. 1.1.1 Choose a description from COLUMN B that matches the name in COLUMN A. Write only the letter (A–E) next to the question numbers (1.1.1(a) to 1.1.1(d)) in the ANSWER BOOK. COLUMN A COLUMN B (a) Mrs Lithebe A defends Absalom without payment (b) Father Vincent B a carpenter turned politician (c) Matthew C gives Kumalo a room in her house D is arrested with Absalom (d) Mr Carmichael E an English priest at the Mission (4 x 1) (4) 1.1.2 Describe the time and place in which this part of the novel is set. (2) 1.1.3 Why is Kumalo hopeful after his visit to the reformatory? State TWO points. (2) Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 6 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction 1.1.4 What does Msimangu’s behaviour during the search for Absalom reveal about his character? Substantiate your answer. (2) 1.1.5 Why is the young man at the reformatory later angry and disappointed with Absalom? (1) 1.1.6 Explain the irony of Arthur Jarvis’s death. (2) 1.1.7 Replace the underlined word with a single word to make the following statement TRUE: Arthur Jarvis is shot dead in his house in Sophiatown. (1) 1.1.8 Choose the correct answer to complete the following sentence. Write only the letter (A–D) next to the question number (1.1.8) in the ANSWER BOOK. The money that Kumalo uses for his journey to Johannesburg was saved to send … A Gertrude to hospital. B Absalom to St Chad’s. C his wife to visit her family. D Matthew to university. (1) 1.1.9 Refer to the novel as a whole. The sentence that the judge passes on Absalom is fair. Discuss your view. (3) AND 1.2 CONTEXT B [An unexpected meeting.] Examiner’s summary: A man from Ndotsheni has asked Kumalo to find his daughter, who once worked for a family in Springs. Kumalo goes to the house and knocks on the door. The man who opens the door is James Jarvis, the father of Arthur Jarvis, who is visiting the family. Kumalo recognises him at once. He trembles, takes off his hat and cannot speak. Jarvis is puzzled, but he speaks kindly to the old parson and asks him what is wrong. At last Kumalo tells him that it was his son who killed Arthur Jarvis. Jarvis is silent for a long time. Then he tells Kumalo that he has heard him and that there is no anger in him. 1.2.1 Name the farm on which James Jarvis lives. (1) 1.2.2 Explain the irony of the situation in which Kumalo meets James Jarvis. (2) 1.2.3 What does Kumalo’s reaction when he sees Jarvis tell us about his state of mind? Substantiate your answer. (2) Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 7 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction 1.2.4 What does Jarvis’s response to Kumalo reveal about his character? Substantiate your answer. (2) 1.2.5 Choose the correct answer to complete the following sentence. Write only the letter (A–D) next to the question number (1.2.5) in the ANSWER BOOK. Arthur Jarvis is shot dead during a robbery by … A Johannes Pafuri. B Matthew Kumalo. C Absalom Kumalo. D John Kumalo. (1) 1.2.6 Replace the underlined word with a single word to make the following statement TRUE: Absalom is hanged in Johannesburg. (1) 1.2.7 Before this meeting, Jarvis has read some of Arthur’s writings. How do these writings change the way Jarvis thinks about black South Africans? (2) 1.2.8 One of the themes in Cry, the Beloved Country is reconciliation. Discuss this theme. (3) 1.2.9 Refer to the novel as a whole. James Jarvis can be admired. Discuss your view. (3) [35] Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 8 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction QUESTION 2: STRANGE CASE OF DR JEKYLL AND MR HYDE Read the extracts below and answer the questions set on each. The number of marks allocated to each question serves as a guide to the expected length of your answer. NOTE: Answer the questions set on BOTH extracts, i.e. QUESTION 2.1 AND QUESTION 2.2. 2.1 EXTRACT C [Mr Utterson visits Dr Lanyon.] There at least he was not denied admittance; but when he came in, he was shocked at the change which had taken place in the doctor’s appearance. He had his death-warrant written legibly upon his face. The rosy man had grown pale; his flesh had fallen away; he was visibly balder and older; and yet it was not so much these tokens of a swift physical decay that arrested the lawyer’s 5 notice, as a look in the eye and quality of manner that seemed to testify to some deep-seated terror of the mind. It was unlikely that the doctor should fear death; and yet that was what Utterson was tempted to suspect. “Yes,” he thought; “he is a doctor, he must know his own state and that his days are counted; and the knowledge is more than he can bear.” And yet when Utterson remarked on his ill 10 looks, it was with an air of great firmness that Lanyon declared himself a doomed man. “I have had a shock,” he said, “and I shall never recover. It is a question of weeks. Well, life has been pleasant; I liked it; yes, sir, I used to like it. I sometimes think if we knew all, we should be more glad to get away.” 15 “Jekyll is ill, too,” observed Utterson. “Have you seen him?” But Lanyon’s face changed, and he held up a trembling hand. “I wish to see or hear no more of Dr. Jekyll,” he said in a loud, unsteady voice. “I am quite done with that person; and I beg that you will spare me any allusion to one whom I regard as dead.” 20 “Tut, tut!” said Mr. Utterson; and then after a considerable pause, “Can’t I do anything?” he inquired. “We are three very old friends, Lanyon; we shall not live to make others.” “Nothing can be done,” returned Lanyon; “ask himself.” “He will not see me,” said the lawyer. 25 “I am not surprised at that,” was the reply. “Some day, Utterson, after I am dead, you may perhaps come to learn the right and wrong of this. I cannot tell you. And in the meantime, if you can sit and talk with me of other things, for God’s sake, stay and do so; but if you cannot keep clear of this accursed topic, then in God’s name, go, for I cannot bear it.” 30 [Remarkable Incident of Dr Lanyon] Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 9 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction 2.1.1 Choose a description from COLUMN B that matches the name in COLUMN A. Write only the letter (A–E) next to the question numbers (2.1.1(a) to 2.1.1(d)) in the ANSWER BOOK. COLUMN A COLUMN B (a) Poole A a clerk who compares handwriting (b) Mr Guest B tells Utterson the story of the door C Dr Jekyll’s loyal butler (c) Carew D an MP who is beaten to death (d) Mr Enfield E argues with Jekyll about science (4 x 1) (4) 2.1.2 Describe the time and place where this extract is set. (2) 2.1.3 Refer to lines 2–3 (‘He had his … upon his face’). (a) Identify the figure of speech used in these lines. (1) (b) Explain why the figure of speech is relevant in this extract. (2) 2.1.4 Refer to lines 13–15 (‘I have had … to get away’). What do these lines tell us about Dr Lanyon’s state of mind? Substantiate your answer. (2) 2.1.5 Explain the irony in Dr Lanyon’s words, ‘one whom I regard as dead’ (lines 19–20). (2) 2.1.6 Refer to line 21 (‘Tut, tut!’). (a) What tone would Mr Utterson use in these words? (1) (b) Why would Mr Utterson use this tone? (1) 2.1.7 Refer to the novel as a whole. Dr Lanyon should have told Mr Utterson the truth about Dr Jekyll. Discuss your view. (3) AND Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 10 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction 2.2 EXTRACT D [Dr Jekyll describes his first transformation.] I hesitated long before I put this theory to the test of practice. I knew well that I risked death; for any drug that so potently controlled and shook the very fortress of identity, might, by the least scruple of an overdose or at the least inopportunity in the moment of exhibition, utterly blot out that immaterial tabernacle which I looked to it to change. But the temptation of a discovery so singular and 5 profound at last overcame the suggestions of alarm. I had long since prepared my tincture; I purchased at once, from a firm of wholesale chemists, a large quantity of a particular salt which I knew, from my experiments, to be the last ingredient required; and late one accursed night, I compounded the elements, watched them boil and smoke together in the glass, and when the ebullition had 10 subsided, with a strong glow of courage, drank off the potion. The most racking pangs succeeded: a grinding in the bones, deadly nausea, and a horror of the spirit that cannot be exceeded at the hour of birth or death. Then these agonies began swiftly to subside, and I came to myself as if out of a great sickness. There was something strange in my sensations, something 15 indescribably new and, from its very novelty, incredibly sweet. I felt younger, lighter, happier in body; within I was conscious of a heady recklessness, a current of disordered sensual images running like a millrace in my fancy, a solution of the bonds of obligation, an unknown but not an innocent freedom of the soul. I knew myself, at the first breath of this new life, to be more wicked, 20 tenfold more wicked, sold a slave to my original evil; and the thought, in that moment, braced and delighted me like wine. I stretched out my hands, exulting in the freshness of these sensations; and in the act, I was suddenly aware that I had lost in stature. [Henry Jekyll’s Full Statement of the Case] 2.2.1 Refer to line 1 (‘I hesitated long … test of practice’). Why does Dr Jekyll hesitate before he tests his theory? State TWO points. (2) 2.2.2 Refer to lines 2–3 (‘the very fortress of identity’). (a) Identify the figure of speech used in these words. (1) (b) Explain why the figure of speech is relevant in this extract. (2) 2.2.3 Choose the correct answer to complete the following sentence. Write only the letter (A–D) next to the question number (2.2.3) in the ANSWER BOOK. The ‘last ingredient required’ (lines 8–9) for the potion is a … A tincture. B particular salt. C red liquid. D rare plant. (1) Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 11 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction 2.2.4 Explain the irony in Dr Jekyll’s words, ‘with a strong glow of courage, drank off the potion’ (line 11). (2) 2.2.5 Refer to lines 16–22 (‘I felt younger … me like wine’). What do these lines reveal about Dr Jekyll’s character? Substantiate your answer. (2) 2.2.6 Replace the underlined word with a single word to make the following statement TRUE: After the first transformation, Dr Jekyll notices that he has become taller. (1) 2.2.7 One of the themes in Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is temptation. Discuss this theme. (3) 2.2.8 Refer to the novel as a whole. Dr Jekyll is a victim rather than a villain. Discuss your view. (3) [35] TOTAL SECTION A: 35 Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 12 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction SECTION B: DRAMA In this section, questions are set on the following dramas: • MACBETH by William Shakespeare • MY CHILDREN! MY AFRICA! by Athol Fugard Answer ALL the questions on the drama that you have studied. QUESTION 3: MACBETH Read the extracts below and answer the questions set on each. The number of marks allocated to each question serves as a guide to the expected length of your answer. NOTE: Answer the questions set on BOTH extracts, i.e. QUESTION 3.1 AND QUESTION 3.2. 3.1 EXTRACT E [The murder of King Duncan is discovered.] LADY MACBETH: What’s the business, That such a hideous trumpet calls to parley The sleepers of the house? Speak, speak! MACDUFF: O gentle lady, ’Tis not for you to hear what I can speak: 5 The repetition, in a woman’s ear, Would murder as it fell. [Enter Banquo.] O Banquo, Banquo! Our royal master’s murder’d! 10 LADY MACBETH: Woe, alas! What, in our house? […] [Enter Macbeth and Lennox, with Ross.] MACBETH: Had I but died an hour before this chance, I had liv’d a blessed time; for, from this instant 15 There’s nothing serious in mortality. All is but toys: renown and grace is dead; The wine of life is drawn, and the mere lees Is left this vault to brag of. [Enter Malcolm and Donalbain.] 20 DONALBAIN: What is amiss? MACBETH: You are, and do not know’t: The spring, the head, the fountain of your blood Is stopp’d; the very source of it is stopp’d. MACDUFF: Your royal father’s murder’d. 25 MALCOLM: O, by whom? LENNOX: Those of his chamber, as it seem’d, had done’t: Their hands and faces were all badg’d with blood; So were their daggers, which, unwip’d, we found Upon their pillows. 30 […] MACBETH: O, yet I do repent me of my fury, That I did kill them. Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 13 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction [Act 2, Scene 3] 3.1.1 Choose a description from COLUMN B that matches the name in COLUMN A. Write only the letter (A–E) next to the question numbers (3.1.1(a) to 3.1.1(d)) in the ANSWER BOOK. COLUMN A COLUMN B (a) Donalbain A Thane of Fife; finds the king’s body (b) Lennox B the King of Norway C Duncan’s son who flees to Ireland (c) Macduff D talks to an old man about omens (d) Ross E says that the night was unruly (4 x 1) (4) 3.1.2 Describe the time and place where this extract is set. (2) 3.1.3 Refer to lines 4–7 (‘O gentle lady, … as it fell’). Explain the irony in these lines. (2) 3.1.4 Refer to lines 11–12 (‘Woe, alas! … in our house?’). If you were the director of this play, what would you tell Lady Macbeth to do when saying these lines? State TWO actions. (2) 3.1.5 Refer to lines 18–19 (‘The wine of … to brag of’). (a) Identify the figure of speech used in these lines. (1) (b) Explain why the figure of speech is relevant in this extract. (2) 3.1.6 Choose the correct answer to complete the following sentence. Write only the letter (A–D) next to the question number (3.1.6) in the ANSWER BOOK. Macbeth speaks the words in lines 14–19 (‘Had I but … to brag of’) in order to … A show his true love for Duncan. B hide his guilt and appear innocent. C accuse Macduff of the murder. D comfort Duncan’s sons. (1) 3.1.7 Replace the underlined word with a single word to make the following statement TRUE: After Duncan’s death, Macbeth is crowned king at Forres. (1) 3.1.8 Refer to the drama as a whole. Macbeth is a master of deception. Discuss your view. (3) AND Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 14 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction 3.2 EXTRACT F [Ross brings news to Macduff in England.] ROSS: Your castle is surpris’d; your wife and babes Savagely slaughter’d. To relate the manner Were, on the quarry of these murder’d deer, To add the death of you. MALCOLM: Merciful heaven! 5 What, man! ne’er pull your hat upon your brows. Give sorrow words. The grief that does not speak Whispers the o’er-fraught heart, and bids it break. MACDUFF: My children too? ROSS: Wife, children, servants, all 10 That could be found. MACDUFF: And I must be from thence! My wife kill’d too? ROSS: I have said. MALCOLM: Be comforted: 15 Let’s make us med’cines of our great revenge, To cure this deadly grief. MACDUFF: He has no children. All my pretty ones? Did you say all? O hell-kite! All? What, all my pretty chickens and their dam 20 At one fell swoop? MALCOLM: Dispute it like a man. MACDUFF: I shall do so; But I must also feel it as a man: I cannot but remember such things were, 25 That were most precious to me. Did heaven look on, And would not take their part? Sinful Macduff, They were all struck for thee! [Act 4, Scene 3] 3.2.1 Why has Macduff gone to England? State TWO points. (2) 3.2.2 Refer to lines 6–8 (‘What, man! ne’er … bids it break’). (a) What tone would Malcolm use in these lines? (1) (b) Why would Malcolm use this tone? (1) 3.2.3 What does Macduff mean when he says, ‘He has no children’ (line 18)? (2) 3.2.4 Refer to lines 19–21 (‘O hell-kite! … one fell swoop?’). (a) Identify the figure of speech used in these lines. (1) (b) Explain why the figure of speech is relevant in this extract. (2) Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 15 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction 3.2.5 Refer to lines 22–24 (‘Dispute it like … as a man’). What does Macduff’s reply reveal about his character? Substantiate your answer. (2) 3.2.6 One of the themes in Macbeth is ambition. Discuss this theme. (3) 3.2.7 Refer to the drama as a whole. Malcolm will be a better king than Macbeth. Discuss your view. (3) [35] Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 16 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction QUESTION 4: MY CHILDREN! MY AFRICA! The examiner’s summaries below describe two parts of the text. Read each summary and answer the questions set on it. The number of marks allocated to each question serves as a guide to the expected length of your answer. NOTE: Answer the questions set on BOTH summaries, i.e. QUESTION 4.1 AND QUESTION 4.2. NOTE TO CANDIDATES: My Children! My Africa! is still protected by copyright, so this prediction paper does not reproduce extracts from it. In the NSC examination you will be given printed extracts; here, the questions are based on the examiner’s own summaries of the context. 4.1 CONTEXT G [Mr M makes a plan.] Examiner’s summary: Isabel Dyson of Camdeboo Girls’ High has taken part in a debate at Zolile High School in Brakwater against Thami Mbikwana, Mr M’s best learner. Mr M is delighted by the debate. He tells Isabel about an English literature competition and asks her to form a team with Thami. Isabel accepts with great excitement. Later, while the three of them are preparing for the quiz, Isabel invites Mr M and Thami to tea with her parents. Mr M accepts for both of them before Thami can answer, and Isabel notices that Thami’s mood changes. 4.1.1 Choose a description from COLUMN B that matches the name in COLUMN A. Write only the letter (A–E) next to the question numbers (4.1.1(a) to 4.1.1(d)) in the ANSWER BOOK. COLUMN A COLUMN B (a) Isabel A owns a chemist in the town (b) Thami B dreams of becoming a writer (c) Mr M C a gifted learner from Brakwater D believes in the power of words (d) Mr Dyson E an inspector of Bantu schools (4 x 1) (4) 4.1.2 Describe the time and place in which the play is set. (2) 4.1.3 Why does Mr M want Isabel and Thami to work as a team? State TWO points. (2) 4.1.4 What does Mr M’s decision to accept the invitation on Thami’s behalf reveal about Mr M’s character? Substantiate your answer. (2) 4.1.5 If you were the director of this play, what would you tell Isabel to do to show her excitement when she accepts Mr M’s invitation? State TWO actions. (2) Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 17 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction 4.1.6 Choose the correct answer to complete the following sentence. Write only the letter (A–D) next to the question number (4.1.6) in the ANSWER BOOK. Isabel and Thami are entered for a literature quiz that is to be held in … A Cape Town. B Grahamstown. C Port Elizabeth. D Johannesburg. (1) 4.1.7 Replace the underlined word with a single word to make the following statement TRUE: In Brakwater, Thami lives with his parents. (1) 4.1.8 Refer to the drama as a whole. Mr M puts too much pressure on Thami. Discuss your view. (3) AND 4.2 CONTEXT H [After Mr M’s death.] Examiner’s summary: During the school boycott, Mr M is accused of being an informer because he has given the names of learners who organised the boycott to the authorities. Thami warns him to leave, but Mr M refuses. He rings the bell and goes out to face the angry crowd, who kill him. Some time later, Isabel and Thami meet for the last time. Isabel is grieving and angry. Thami tells her that he is leaving Brakwater to join the liberation struggle. After Thami leaves, Isabel speaks to the memory of Mr M. She is determined that his death will not be meaningless, and she looks to the future with hope. 4.2.1 Why does the crowd kill Mr M? State TWO points. (2) 4.2.2 Explain the irony of Mr M’s death. (2) 4.2.3 What is Isabel’s state of mind when she meets Thami for the last time? Substantiate your answer. (2) Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 18 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction 4.2.4 Choose the correct answer to complete the following sentence. Write only the letter (A–D) next to the question number (4.2.4) in the ANSWER BOOK. During the school boycott, the Comrades believe that learners must put … A sport before school. B liberation before education. C examinations before protest. D their teachers before their parents. (1) 4.2.5 What does Thami’s attempt to warn Mr M reveal about Thami’s character? Substantiate your answer. (2) 4.2.6 Replace the underlined word with a single word to make the following statement TRUE: Before he goes out to face the crowd, Mr M rings the church bell. (1) 4.2.7 At the end of the play, Isabel looks to the future with hope. What does this suggest about the way in which Isabel has changed? (2) 4.2.8 One of the themes in My Children! My Africa! is the power of words. Discuss this theme. (3) 4.2.9 Refer to the drama as a whole. Thami’s decision to leave Brakwater is the right one. Discuss your view. (3) [35] TOTAL SECTION B: 35 Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 19 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction SECTION C: SHORT STORIES In this section, questions are set on the following short stories: • ‘CLASS ACT’ by Namhla Tshisana • ‘EVELINE’ by James Joyce QUESTION 5 Read the examiner’s summary and the extract below and answer the questions set on each. The number of marks allocated to each question serves as a guide to the expected length of your answer. NOTE: Answer the questions set on BOTH short stories, i.e. QUESTION 5.1 AND QUESTION 5.2. 5.1 ‘CLASS ACT’ CONTEXT I NOTE TO CANDIDATES: Class act is still protected by copyright, so this prediction paper does not reproduce extracts from it. In the NSC examination you will be given printed extracts; here, the questions are based on the examiner’s own summaries of the context. [The narrator’s tunic.] Examiner’s summary: The narrator has just started Standard 6 at a new high school. Her mother has bought her a school tunic that is far too big for her, because it must last for years. In class, Renato, who has failed Standard 6 three times, makes the new learners stand in front of the class while he inspects their uniforms. He marks the narrator’s tunic with chalk to show how short it ‘should’ be and calls her ‘Sister Mary Clarence’. The whole class laughs. At home, Aunt Connie refuses to shorten the tunic with white cotton, so Ayanda, who is back from university in Alice, shortens it for her. 5.1.1 Choose a description from COLUMN B that matches the name in COLUMN A. Write only the letter (A–E) next to the question numbers (5.1.1(a) to 5.1.1(d)) in the ANSWER BOOK. COLUMN A COLUMN B (a) Renato A teaches the class geography (b) Mr Sauls B a repeater who teases the narrator (c) Ayanda C the narrator’s older sister D cannot control the noisy class (d) Mr Patel E refuses to use white cotton (4 x 1) (4) 5.1.2 Why does the narrator’s mother buy her a tunic that is too big? State TWO points. (2) 5.1.3 Explain the irony of Renato inspecting the uniforms of the new learners. (2) 5.1.4 What does the narrator’s reaction to the nickname ‘Sister Mary Clarence’ tell us about her state of mind? Substantiate your answer. (2) Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 20 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction 5.1.5 Choose the correct answer to complete the following sentence. Write only the letter (A–D) next to the question number (5.1.5) in the ANSWER BOOK. The nickname ‘Sister Mary Clarence’ refers to … A a famous singer. B a nun in a film. C the narrator’s aunt. D a teacher at the school. (1) 5.1.6 Replace the underlined word with a single word to make the following statement TRUE: The narrator’s mother works as a teacher. (1) 5.1.7 One of the themes in ‘Class act’ is peer pressure. Discuss this theme. (3) 5.1.8 Refer to the short story as a whole. The narrator handles the teasing at school well. Discuss your view. (3) AND Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 21 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction 5.2 ‘EVELINE’ EXTRACT J [Eveline thinks about Frank and her father.] She was about to explore another life with Frank. Frank was very kind, manly, open-hearted. She was to go away with him by the night-boat to be his wife and to live with him in Buenos Ayres where he had a home waiting for her. How well she remembered the first time she had seen him; he was lodging in a house on the main road where she used to visit. It seemed a few weeks ago. He was 5 standing at the gate, his peaked cap pushed back on his head and his hair tumbled forward over a face of bronze. Then they had come to know each other. He used to meet her outside the Stores every evening and see her home. He took her to see The Bohemian Girl and she felt elated as she sat in an unaccustomed part of the theatre with him. He was awfully fond of music and 10 sang a little. People knew that they were courting and, when he sang about the lass that loves a sailor, she always felt pleasantly confused. He used to call her Poppens out of fun. First of all it had been an excitement for her to have a fellow and then she had begun to like him. He had tales of distant countries. He had started as a deck boy at a pound a month on a ship of the Allan Line going out to 15 Canada. He told her the names of the ships he had been on and the names of the different services. He had sailed through the Straits of Magellan and he told her stories of the terrible Patagonians. He had fallen on his feet in Buenos Ayres, he said, and had come over to the old country just for a holiday. Of course, her father had found out the affair and had forbidden her to have anything to say to 20 him. – I know these sailor chaps, he said. One day he had quarrelled with Frank and after that she had to meet her lover secretly. The evening deepened in the avenue. The white of two letters in her lap grew 25 indistinct. One was to Harry; the other was to her father. Ernest had been her favourite but she liked Harry too. Her father was becoming old lately, she noticed; he would miss her. Sometimes he could be very nice. Not long before, when she had been laid up for a day, he had read her out a ghost story and made toast for her at the fire. Another day, when their mother was alive, they had 30 all gone for a picnic to the Hill of Howth. She remembered her father putting on her mother’s bonnet to make the children laugh. 5.2.1 Refer to lines 1–3 (‘She was about … waiting for her’). Why does Eveline plan to go to Buenos Ayres? State TWO points. (2) 5.2.2 Refer to lines 6–7 (‘his hair tumbled … face of bronze’). (a) Identify the figure of speech used in these lines. (1) (b) Explain why the figure of speech is relevant in this extract. (2) 5.2.3 Refer to lines 9–10 (‘she felt elated … theatre with him’). What do these lines suggest about Eveline’s usual life? (2) 5.2.4 To whom does ‘he’ (line 22) refer? (1) Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 22 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction 5.2.5 Refer to line 22 (‘I know these sailor chaps’). (a) What tone would the speaker use in this line? (1) (b) Why would the speaker use this tone? (1) 5.2.6 Refer to lines 27–32 (‘Her father was … children laugh’). Explain the irony in these lines. (2) 5.2.7 Choose the correct answer to complete the following sentence. Write only the letter (A–D) next to the question number (5.2.7) in the ANSWER BOOK. The Bohemian Girl (line 9) is … A a book that Eveline reads. B a show that they see at the theatre. C the name of Frank’s ship. D a song that Frank sings. (1) 5.2.8 Replace the underlined word with a single word to make the following statement TRUE: Eveline promised her father to keep the home together as long as she could. (1) 5.2.9 Refer to the short story as a whole. Eveline is a prisoner of her own fears. Discuss your view. (3) [35] TOTAL SECTION C: 35 Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 23 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction SECTION D: POETRY In this section, there are questions set on the following poems: • ‘On the grasshopper and cricket’ by John Keats • ‘The slave dealer’ by Thomas Pringle NOTE: Answer the questions set on BOTH poems, i.e. QUESTION 6.1 AND QUESTION 6.2. QUESTION 6 6.1 Read the poem carefully and then answer the questions which follow. The number of marks allocated to each question serves as a guide to the expected length of your answer. On the grasshopper and cricket – John Keats 1 The poetry of earth is never dead: 2 When all the birds are faint with the hot sun, 3 And hide in cooling trees, a voice will run 4 From hedge to hedge about the new-mown mead; 5 That is the Grasshopper’s – he takes the lead 6 In summer luxury, – he has never done 7 With his delights; for when tired out with fun 8 He rests at ease beneath some pleasant weed. 9 The poetry of earth is ceasing never: 10 On a lone winter evening, when the frost 11 Has wrought a silence, from the stove there shrills 12 The Cricket’s song, in warmth increasing ever, 13 And seems to one in drowsiness half lost, 14 The Grasshopper’s among some grassy hills. 6.1.1 Complete the following sentences by using the words in the list below. Write only the word next to the question numbers (6.1.1(a) to 6.1.1(d)) in the ANSWER BOOK. sonnet; winter; stove; ballad; summer; frog; cricket; window This poem is a (a) … in which the speaker celebrates the sounds of nature. In the octave, the grasshopper sings in the heat of (b) …. In the sestet, the (c) … sings from beside the (d) … on a cold evening. (4) 6.1.2 Describe the time and place in which lines 1–4 are set. (2) 6.1.3 Refer to line 1 (‘The poetry of earth is never dead’). (a) Identify the figure of speech used in this line. (1) (b) Explain why the figure of speech is relevant in this poem. (2) 6.1.4 Explain why the speaker repeats the idea of line 1 in line 9 (‘The poetry of earth is ceasing never’). (2) 6.1.5 Refer to lines 5–8 (‘That is the … some pleasant weed’). (a) What tone would the speaker use in these lines? (1) (b) Why would the speaker use this tone? (1) Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 24 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction 6.1.6 Choose the correct answer to complete the following sentence. Write only the letter (A–D) next to the question number (6.1.6) in the ANSWER BOOK. The words ‘when the frost / Has wrought a silence’ (lines 10–11) suggest that in winter … A all of nature has died. B the cold has made everything quiet. C the birds are singing loudly. D the meadow has just been mown. (1) 6.1.7 Replace the underlined word with a single word to make the following statement TRUE: In line 14, the half-asleep listener thinks that the cricket’s song is the song of the birds. (1) 6.1.8 Refer to the poem as a whole. The speaker shows that winter is as beautiful as summer. Discuss your view. (3) AND Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 25 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction 6.2 Read the poem carefully and then answer the questions which follow. The number of marks allocated to each question serves as a guide to the expected length of your answer. The slave dealer – Thomas Pringle 1 From ocean’s wave a Wanderer came, 25 ‘With every stroke I left a gash, 2 With visage tanned and dun: 26 While Negro blood sprang high; 3 His Mother, when he told his name, 27 And now all ocean cannot wash 4 Scarce knew her long-lost son; 28 My soul from murder’s dye; 5 So altered was his face and frame 29 Nor e’en thy prayer, dear Mother, quash 6 By the ill course he had run. 30 That Woman’s wild death-cry! 7 There was hot fever in his blood, 31 ‘Her cry is ever in my ear, 8 And dark thoughts in his brain; 32 And it will not let me pray; 9 And oh! to turn his heart to good 33 Her look I see – her voice I hear – 10 That Mother strove in vain, 34 As when in death she lay, 11 For fierce and fearful was his mood, 35 And said, “With me thou must appear 12 Racked by remorse and pain. 36 On God’s great Judgment-day!” ’ 37 ‘Now, Christ from frenzy keep my son!’ 13 And if, at times, a gleam more mild 38 The woeful Widow cried; 14 Would o’er his features stray, 39 ‘Such murder foul thou ne’er hast done – 15 When knelt the Widow near her Child, 40 Some fiend thy soul belied!’ – 16 And he tried with her to pray, 41 ‘– Nay, Mother! the Avenging One 17 It lasted not – for visions wild 42 Was witness when she died! 18 Still scared good thoughts away. 43 ‘The writhing wretch with furious heel 19 ‘There’s blood upon my hands!’ he said, 44 I crushed – no mortal nigh; 20 ‘Which water cannot wash; 45 But that same hour her dread appeal 21 It was not shed where warriors bled – 46 Was registered on high; 22 It dropped from the gory lash, 47 And now with God I have to deal, 23 As I whirled it o’er and o’er my head, 48 And dare not meet His eye!’ 24 And with each stroke left a gash. 6.2.1 Refer to lines 3–6 (‘His Mother, when … had run’). Explain why the Wanderer’s mother hardly recognises him. (2) 6.2.2 Refer to lines 19–20 (‘There’s blood upon … cannot wash’). (a) Is the speaker speaking literally or figuratively in these lines? (1) (b) Explain your answer to QUESTION 6.2.2(a). (2) 6.2.3 Refer to lines 29–33 (‘Nor e’en thy … voice I hear’). What do these lines tell us about the Wanderer’s state of mind? Substantiate your answer. (2) 6.2.4 Refer to lines 37–40 (‘Now, Christ from … soul belied!’). (a) What tone would the mother use in these lines? (1) (b) Why would the mother use this tone? (1) 6.2.5 Refer to lines 41–44 (‘Nay, Mother! the … no mortal nigh’). Explain the irony in these lines. (2) Copyright reserved Please turn over

English First Additional Language/P2 26 Hlayiso/Prediction 2026 NSC Prediction 6.2.6 One of the themes in ‘The slave dealer’ is divine justice (punishment from God). Discuss this theme. (3) 6.2.7 Refer to the poem as a whole. The Wanderer deserves sympathy. Discuss your view. (3) [35] TOTAL SECTION D: 35 GRAND TOTAL: 70 Copyright reserved