English November 2011 Paper 2

ZIMBABWE SCHOOL EXAMINATIONS COUNCIL
O ‘ LEVEL
ENGLISH LANGUAGE
PAPER 2
NOVEMBER 2011
SECTION A
Read the following passage very carefully before you attempt any
questions.
THE RAILWAY MAN
The following passage is about a routine trip that turned into a train
driver‟s worst nightmare.
1. That night, the trio expected business as usual. There was no

section of the railway track the men did not know on the run
from Mac Tier, thirty kilometers south of Parry Sound, to
Cartier, Ontario 260 kilometres north. They would be hauling
forty- eight wagons behind four locomotives, each engine
topped up with more than 9 000 litres of diesel fuel for the
journeys. In addition to the tankers carrying sulphuric acid, a
tanker carrying 120 000 kilograms of gaseous fuel was hooked
up nineteen wagons behind.
2. The life of a railway worker is not for everyone, they are on call
twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. However, the pay
was good and the men had built their lives round the demands
of the job.
3. Reducing the speed from seventy one kilometers an hour to

sixty five, Osborne spotted the green warning flags, but they
were lying on each flat on each side of the rails. They must
have been knocked down by the wind, he thought, reaching for
the radio to alert rail traffic control in Calgary. He quickly
cleared the slow order section of the track, and then eased the
throttle open to pick up speed. As the train rounded a bend in
the track, a chill raced down Osborne‟s spine; a yawning black
hole, over a hundred metres across, loomed ahead. The two
silver rails were bowed and suspended above the chasm. It
looked as if they were racing towards a cliff. Swearing, Osborne
slammed the automatic brake valve, throwing the train into full
emergency stop, but he knew it was too late.
4. A washout – that moment when the earth simply disappears
from beneath the track bed and there is nothing left to support
ions of speeding metal – is a railway man‟s worst nightmare.
Rarely did anyone survive such a catastrophe. There was
nothing Osborne or the others could do to save the train. He
dropped back into his chair, “Goodbye, boys,” he said simply.
For Moloney, there was not even time to feel fear, only enough
to register the terror on the other‟s faces, the hissing of the air
brakes and the screaming of the engine as its wheels broke
free from the rails. Plunging into the void, the cab was pitched
into darkness and he was thrown against the ceiling. Moloney
braced himself for the crushing sensation he knew would follow
as 2 100 tons of metal, fueled by its own terrific momentum,
jack knifed and collapsed over them.
5. Colling‟s chest smashed into the steel panel of switches. Then,

he was thrown upwards and his head struck the sloped metal
ceiling. Osborne slammed into the windscreen, and then
bounced off the heated unit. He could hear metal scraping sand
and gravel as the locomotive slid on its side down a fifteen
metre embankment. Skidding fifty metres, the 200 ton engine
ploughed the ground, and Osborne soon felt his body rising
with the debris that flooded the cab.
6. Within minutes, the engine stopped dead and for few seconds
everything was silent. Then, the locomotive surged forward
again, pounded from behind by other units piling on top of one
another. The third locomotive jumped over the lead, shearing
off its engine and narrowly missing the crew in the cab. The air
shook with a violent „whimp‟ as diesel fuel ignited.
7. Osborne was shoved back into a corner, huddles into a ball and
was too afraid to move. Certain they had dropped into a
swamp, he waited for the water to pour in. something cold
dripped onto the back of his neck, but it was not water. It was
diesel fuel. Dazed, Moloney staggered to his feet. He gripped
his arms and legs, scarcely believing he was still alive. “Kerry!
Donniel!” he screamed, unable to see the others in the pitch
black cab.
8. “Joe, you OK?” Osborne yelled back. “We have got to get out of
here. We are on fire.” Moloney saw the eerie glow as the fire
steadily grew. Outside other units were exploding into flames,
casting a flickering light into the upper reaches of the cab. Now
they could see Collings crumpled up, his hand lying against the
ceiling of the cab. Blood trickled from his eyes, nose and
mouth. His neck was bent downwards and his chin was
embedded grotesquely into his chest. “He‟s dead!” Moloney
exclaimed. He lifted Colling‟s arm. The limb flopped back,
lifeless. Osborne checked his breathing, but only heard faint
gurgling of air in Collings‟ chest.
9. Outside, the flames now reached five metres into the air as fuel
was discharging from the ruptured diesel tanks. Osborne
realized that the fire would follow the leaking fuel to them.
Worse, he was terrified that the gaseous fuel tanker nearby
would rupture. The compressed gas, powerful as a bomb,
would blow them sky high. “We have got to move fast!” yelled
Osborne. Fighting panic, Moloney looked down to Collings and
said, „But we can‟t leave Donnie.” Disoriented in the dark,
Moloney clambered on top of the driver‟s panel and groped
around until he felt the brakeman‟s door handle high above
him. He dropped down and grabbed Colling‟s arm.
10. It was a miracle that anyone survived. “Let‟s see if we can lift
him,” he said. However, it was impossible. The strapped man
was too heavy for them to lift. Moloney strained to push the
heavy steel door skywards. Then, while Osborne held it open,
Moloney scrambled out. Before following him, Osborne found
some coats and a bag with portable radios and shoved them
out of the door to Moloney. Through swirling black smoke, they
scrambled past the nose of the cab, stunned to see fiery
devastation surrounding them. The air hissed with cracking and
popping noises.
11. Moloney was horrified at the thought of Colling‟s body being
devoured by the flames. There had to be a way to get him out.
He circled down near the bottom of the wrecked engine and
spotted a two metre wide chunk of frozen rubble jammed into
the driver‟s broken window.
12. “Kerry!” Moloey screamed. “I think we might be able to dig in

here!” He dropped to his knees, maneuvered himself into the
narrow space and, with bare hands, clawed at shards of broken
glass. He pitched aside chunks of frozen rubble and loose rock.
His hands ached as he stopped out enough to fit his shoulders
sideways through the shattered window. He dared not think
about the wreckage above him, there was nothing to stop the
engine from shifting and crushing him.
13. Osborne flashed a torch over Moloney‟s shoulder and he caught

Colling‟s torso in its beam. He could see his stomach mpve.
“Joe, he‟s still alive!” Five metres away, the flames now shot
even higher. Moloney dug like a maniac. Moloney was finally
able to worm his way through the broken window, up to his
waist. Carefully, he rolled Collings onto his back, cradting his
head and neck, fearful the latter might be broken. Then,
digging his elbows into the ground, he dragged Collings slowly
through the opening. Collings gasped for air as blood bubbled
out of his mouth. Collings groaned in agony, “ I got to do this.
Donnie, to get you out!” Moloney thought. He pulled Collings‟
head, shoulders and arms through the window, but then he
could not be budged. “He must be caught on something,”
Osborne said, “We will have to go back into the cab.” The air,
thick with suffocating smoke and chemical smells, poured their
faces.
14. Collings mumbled incoherently. “hang on tight, Donnie!”

Osborne reasoned. “We are going to get you free!” They
climbed back onto the wreck, and Osborne hoisted the door
open while Moloney lowered himself inside, and then quickly
freed Collings‟ leg, which had been trapped by a bracket.
Having jumped back down from the cab, the pair wrestled
Colling‟s body through the widest part of the window and with
a final yank they pulled him free.
15. Suddenly a huge grin spread across Moloney‟s face as he

turned to Osborne. “We‟re alive!” he shouted. They slapped
each other‟s palms in a high five, overjoyed.
Adapted from The Reader‟s Digest June 2000, „No time for fear‟ by
Lynne Shuyler)
From Paragraph 1
a)i. How many men were at work in the train to Cartier, Ontario? (1
ii). Apart from the tankers carrying sulphuric acid, what else did
another tanker carry? (1)
From Paragraph 2
b). In what way is „The life of a railway worker not for everyone?”
From Paragraph 3
c).i. Which one word tells us that Osborne wanted to inform rail
traffic control in Calgary about the green flags that had fallen?
(1)
ii). In your own words, explain the purpose of the green flags. (1)
iii). “A chill raced down Osborne‟s spine.” Why? (1)

From Paragraph 4
d)i. “Rarely did anyone survive such a catastrophe,” What is the

catastrophe referred to earlier in this paragraph? (1)
ii). Which word in this paragraph would mean the same as the
phrase „a yawning black hole‟ (1)
iii). “Moloney braced himself.” Explain, in your own words, what he

braced himself for? (2)
From Paragraph 6
2a). “… the engine stopped dead….” What does this tell you about
how the engine stopped? (1)
From Paragraph 8
b)i. Give two reasons why Moloney thought that collings was dead
prior to his lifting of Colling‟s arm.
Number your answers separately (i) and (ii). (2)
ii). State what Moloney discovered later in this paragraph, which

seems to confirm his thoughts about Collings‟ state. (1)
From Paragraph 9
c). Moloney „groped around…‟ Why did he have to „grope around‟

in an effort to get to Collings? (1)
From the whole passage
d). Choose five of the following words or phrases. For each one of
them, give one word or short phrase (of not more than seven words)
which has the same meaning that the word or phrase has in the
passage.
1 hauling
2 slammed
3 plunging
4 cerie
5 crumpled up
6 embedded
7 stunned
8 maniac
Part of the passage describes how Moloney and Osborne saved

Collings from being devoured by the flames.
Give an account of Moloney and Osborne‟s actions as they freed and

saved Collings. (Correctly identify the person carrying out the
actions)
Use only the material from paragraph 11 up to the end of the

passage.
Your summary, which must be in continuous writing(not note form),

must be longer than 160 words, including the 10 words given below.
Begin your summary as follows:
Horrified by the thought of Collings being devoured by fire…. (20)

Section B – 10 marks
Listed below are five situation. Read the descriptions of each

situation carefully and then briefly the questions that follow.
a). During an inter- house competition, a new student, Tavaka,

volunteers to run in the „decider‟ boys open 100 metre race.
After the race, the housemaster approaches Tavaka and says:
“Brilliant! I don‟t know what we should have been without you,

Tavaka.”
What would have been the housemaster‟s reason for saying

this if:
i). The house had lost.
ii). The house had won.
b). A kombi is traveling at about sixty kilometers an hour from

Bulawayo to Harare. Passengers are complaing about the slow
speed.
One man says: “Better late than never.”
Give two reasons why the man would say this.
c). A juvenile greets an old man saying: “Hallo old chap!”
The old man says: “Is this what you learn at school these
days?"
Give two different ways in which the juvenile would react to what the
old man said.
d). Two boys are with their mother outside a supermarket where
she is a carrier bag vendor. Their casualty dressed teacher
comes along.
i). The boys do not greet the teacher. Instead, they hide behind
their mother.
The mother says: “Why did you not greet your teacher?”
ii). The boys happily greet their teacher.
The mother says: “Do you think we are at school where you
have to show respect to these people?”
What is the mother‟s attitude towards teachers in each case?
e). Below is a list of eight words. Each of them commonly works

with another from the list. Both belong to the same area of
meaning.
Church
Institution
Marriage
Disease
Polytechnic
Epidemic
Monogamy
Chapel
Write down the four pairs of words that naturally go together. (2)

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ZIMBABWE SCHOOL EXAMINATIONS COUNCIL

THE RAILWAY MAN

1. That night, the trio expected business as usual. There was no

3. Reducing the speed from seventy one kilometers an hour to

5. Colling‟s chest smashed into the steel panel of switches. Then,

12. “Kerry!” Moloey screamed. “I think we might be able to dig in

13. Osborne flashed a torch over Moloney‟s shoulder and he caught

14. Collings mumbled incoherently. “hang on tight, Donnie!”

15. Suddenly a huge grin spread across Moloney‟s face as he

iii). “A chill raced down Osborne‟s spine.” Why? (1)

d)i. “Rarely did anyone survive such a catastrophe,” What is the

iii). “Moloney braced himself.” Explain, in your own words, what he

Number your answers separately (i) and (ii). (2)

ii). State what Moloney discovered later in this paragraph, which

c). Moloney „groped around…‟ Why did he have to „grope around‟

From the whole passage

Part of the passage describes how Moloney and Osborne saved

Give an account of Moloney and Osborne‟s actions as they freed and

Use only the material from paragraph 11 up to the end of the

Your summary, which must be in continuous writing(not note form),

Begin your summary as follows:

Horrified by the thought of Collings being devoured by fire…. (20)

Listed below are five situation. Read the descriptions of each

a). During an inter- house competition, a new student, Tavaka,

“Brilliant! I don‟t know what we should have been without you,

What would have been the housemaster‟s reason for saying

i). The house had lost.

ii). The house had won.

Number your answers separately (i) and (ii). (2)

b). A kombi is traveling at about sixty kilometers an hour from

One man says: “Better late than never.”

Give two reasons why the man would say this.

Number your answers separately (i) and (ii). (2)

c). A juvenile greets an old man saying: “Hallo old chap!”

Number your answers separately (i) and (ii). (2)

ii). The boys happily greet their teacher.

What is the mother‟s attitude towards teachers in each case?

Number your answers separately (i) and (ii). (2)

e). Below is a list of eight words. Each of them commonly works

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