EOC Practice: Excerpt from “The Castaway”

How do Sharat’s feelings about Nilkanta help develop the theme of the selection? 

• Sharat is pleased by Nilkanta’s presence because he will be a diversion for his mother. 
• Sharat is pleased that his family will be able to help Nilkanta. 
• Sharat becomes aggravated by Nilkanta’s daily activities and lifestyle. 
• Sharat becomes increasingly jealous of Nilkanta’s relationship with his wife. 

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How does the use of personification in the first paragraph help develop the setting? 

• It emphasizes the loudness of the storm. 
• It emphasizes the cause of the storm. 
• It emphasizes the damage of the storm. 
• It emphasizes the severity of the storm. 

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What is the meaning of the simile in the sentence below from paragraph 5? “Like a rudderless boat, the discussion kept turning round and round the same point; and at last it threatened to be overwhelmed in a flood of tears.” 

• It describes two people who are crying because they finally came to a solution. 
• It describes an endless argument between two people. 
• It depicts a husband and his wife engaged in a minor argument. 
• It describes an insolvable argument between a husband and his wife, threatening to deteriorate into tears.

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 What is implied in the sentence below from paragraph 10? “The village wiseacres thought it shameless for her husband to make so much fuss about a mere wife and even to suggest a change of air, and asked if Sharat supposed that no woman had ever been ill before, or whether he had found out that the folk of the place to which he meant to take her were immortal.” 

• Sharat is stubborn and refuses to listen to his wife’s pleas. 
• Sharat has a difficult time making decisions independently without his wife. 
• Sharat is unnecessarily overprotective of his wife. 
• Sharat should be more compassionate about his wife’s condition. 

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What is one possible reason why Kiran takes “a warm interest” in the Brahmin boy? 

• He is an actor and can entertain while he is there. 
• She uses the Brahmin boy to make Sharat jealous. 
• He is handsome and more patient with her than Sharat. 
• She has narrowly escaped death too and can relate to his experience. 

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What does Kiran’s reaction to the arrival of the young boy reveal about her character? 

• She is selfish and uncaring about the needs of others. 
• She needs to be social and active with others. 
• She misses being a mother and being needed. 
• She is excited by change and craves challenges. 

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In the sentence below from the last paragraph, how does the connotation of the words reflect Sharat’s attitude toward the boy? “Moreover, he had got hold of a mongrel village dog which he petted so recklessly that it came indoors with muddy paws, and left tokens of its visit on Sharat’s spotless bed.”

• He feels protective of the young boy. 
• He is annoyed by the boy’s disregard for cleanliness. 
• He is amused by the boy’s activities. 
• He feels the boy’s actions are unhealthy. 

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How does the author introduce additional depth to the conflict between the husband and wife? 

• by having Sharat and his mother desiring for the guest to leave 
• by explaining why the wife was very ill 
• by explaining why the wife was very ill 
• by describing a character who arrives by unusual circumstances

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How does the author’s use of third person point of view reinforce the reader’s understanding of Sharat’s internal conflict? 

• It describes the motives behind Sharat’s initial argument with his wife and why he accepts the boy into their home. 
• It explains why Sharat and his mother ignored the advice of the village wiseacres. 
• It explains what caused Sharat to change his mind about Nilkanta. 
• It describes why Sharat and his wife sometimes argue without a clear solution. 

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