FEZILE DABI EDUCATION DISTRICT

JUNE 2025 EXAMINATION

GRADE 12

ENGLISH FIRST ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE

PAPER 2

MARKS: 70 TIME: 2 ½ HOURS

Examiners: MS MNCEDANE L.E. NOTSI

MR MADISHA THUTO KE LESEDI
MRS HOKOMANE NKGOPOLENG
Moderators: MR MEVA SEDIBA THUTO
MS POROGO IKETSETSENG
MRS KRUGER PARYS HIGH
Technical advisor: MRS GREYLING SALOMON SENEKAL

This question paper consists of 16 pages.

Fezile Dabi District June 2025 Grade 12 PLC Paper

INSTRUCTIONS AND INFORMATION

Read this page 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 texts you have studied this year. Read these
questions carefully and
answer as per the instructions.

2. This question paper consists of THREE sections:

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 B: DRAMA
Answer the question on the drama you have studied.

SECTION C: SHORT STORIES

Answer the questions set on BOTH extracts.

SECTION D: POETRY
Answer the questions set on BOTH poems.

Use the checklist on page 4 to assist you.

4. Follow the instructions at the beginning of each section carefully.

5. Number the answers correctly according to the numbering system

used in this question paper.

6. Start EACH section on a NEW page.

7. Spend approximately 60 minutes on each section.

8. Write neatly and legibly.

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Fezile Dabi District June 2025 Grade 12 PLC Paper

TABLE OF CONTENTS
SECTION B DRAMA Marks Page

ANSWER ANY ONE QUESTION

4. My Children! My Africa! 35 4
SECTION C: SHORT STORIES

Answer the questions set on BOTH extracts.

5.1 ‘Rejection’ 18 8
AND
5.2 ‘Class Act’ 17 10
SECTION D: POETRY

Answer the questions set on BOTH poems

6.1 ‘Sonnet 73’ 17 12
AND
6.2 ‘What life is really like’ 18 14

NOTE: Numbering has not been changed to familiarize you with the year-end
papers. This is done deliberately for your convenience.
CHECKLIST
NOTE:

• Answer questions from ANY TWO sections.

• Tick () the sections you have answered.

SECTION QUESTION No. of TICK

NUMBERS questions to
answer ()
1
Drama 4
1
Short Stories 5
1
Poetry 6

NOTE: Ensure that you have answered questions on TWO sections only.

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Fezile Dabi District June 2025 Grade 12 PLC Paper

QUESTION 4: MY CHILDREN! MY AFRICA!

Read the extracts from the play 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 4.1 AND
QUESTION 4.2.

4.1 EXTRACT G

[Mr M has a conversation with Isabel]

ISABEL: You know what I mean by that remark, Mr Teacher! It’s called Freedom
of Speech.
MR M: I’ve given him plenty of Freedom, within reasonable limits, but he
never uses it.
ISABEL: Because you’re always the teacher and he’s always the pupil. Stop 5
teaching him all the time, Mr M. Try just talking to him for a
change…you know, like a friend. I bet you in some ways, I already
know more about Thami than you.
MR M: I dare say that is true. In which case tell me, is he happy?
ISABEL: What do you mean? Happy with what? Us? The competition? 10
MR M: Yes, and also his school work and … everything else.
ISABEL: Why don’t you ask him?
MR M: Because all I’ll get is another polite “Yes, Teacher”. I thought maybe he
had said something to you about the way he really felt.
ISABEL: [Shaking her head] The two of you! It’s crazy! But ja, he’s happy. 15
At least I think he is. He’s not a blabber-mouth like me, Mr M. He
doesn’t give much…even when we talk about ourselves, I don’t know
what it was like in your time, but being eighteen years old today is a
pretty complicated business as far as we’re concerned. If you asked
me if I was happy, I’d say yes, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t got any 20
problems. I’ve got plenty and I’m sure it’s the same with Thami.
MR M: Thami has told you he’s got problems?
ISABEL: Come on, Mr M! We’ve all got problems. I’ve got problems, you’ve got
problems, Thami’s got problems.
MR M: But did he say what they were? 25
Act 1, Scene 5

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Fezile Dabi District June 2025 Grade 12 PLC Paper

4.1.1 Choose a description from COLUMN B that matches the name in

COLUMN. 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 the Karoo Pharmacy

(b) Dawie B favourite sport is hockey

(c) Anele C favourite sport is soccer

(d) Thami D devoted to his learners

E motivates Standard Tens

yearly
4x1 (4)
4.1.2 What does Isabel mean by ‘you’re always the teacher and he’s always
the pupil’ (line 5)? (2)

4.1.3 Refer to line 9 (‘I dare say …is he happy’).

What does this line tell us about Mr M’s state of mind?

Substantiate your answer. (2)

4.1.4 If you were the director of this play, what would you tell Isabel to do
when saying, ‘What do you … with what? Us?’ (line 10)?

State TWO actions. (2)

4.1.5 Refer to line 16 (‘He’s not a… like me, Mr M’).

(a) Identify the figure of speech used in this line. (1)

(b) Explain why the figure of speech is relevant in this drama. (2)

4.1.6 What does this extract reveal about Isabel’s character?

Substantiate your answer. (2)

4.1.7 Mr M is an exemplary teacher.

Discuss your view. (3)

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AND

EXTRACT H

[Isabel and Thami are talking]

THAMI: So? He can watch me as much as he likes. I've got nothing to hide.
Even if I did he'd be the last person to find out. He sees nothing,
Isabel.
ISABEL: I think you are very wrong.
5
THAMI: No I'm not. That's his trouble. He's got eyes and ears but he sees and
hears nothing.
ISABEL: Go on. Please. [Pause] I mean it, Thami. I want to know what's going
on.
THAMI: He is out of touch with what is really happening to us blacks and the
way we feel about things. He thinks the world is still the way it was 10
when he was young. It's not! It's different now, but he's too blind to see
it. He doesn't open his eyes and ears and see what is happening
around him or listen to what the people are saying.
ISABEL: What are they saying?
THAMI: They've got no patience left, Isabel. They want change. They want it 15
now!
ISABEL: But he agrees with that. He never stops saying it himself.
THAMI: No. His ideas about change are the old-fashioned ones. And what
have they achieved? Nothing. We are worse off now than we ever
were. The people don't want to listen to his kind of talk any more. 20
ISABEL: I'm still lost, Thami. What sort of talk is that?
THAMI: You've just heard it, Isabel. It calls our struggle vandalism and lawless
behaviour.
[Act 1, Scene 5]

4.2.1 Describe the time and place where this extract is set. (2)

4.2.2 Explain the irony in Thami's words, 'He's got eyes … and hears nothing'
(lines 5–6). (2)

4.2.3 Refer to lines 9-10 (‘He is out… feel about things’). Choose the correct
answer to complete the following sentence. Write only question number
4.2.3(a) and the letter (A-D) of the correct answer.

Thami believes Mr M is out of touch with what’s really happening

because Thami wants to…

A fight.

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Fezile Dabi District June 2025 Grade 12 PLC Paper

B speak.
C negotiate.
D demonstrate. (1)

Refer to lines 15–16 (‘They've got no … want it now’).

(a) What tone would Thami use in these lines? (1)

(b) Why would she use this tone? (1)

4.2.4 Explain what Isabel means by, ‘I’m still lost, Thami’ (line 21). (2)

4.2.5 What does Isabel want to do when she completes school? (1)

4.2.6 Why is the following statement FALSE.

Mrs Makatini is the Dysons’ domestic worker. (1)

4.2.7 One of the themes in My Children! My Africa! is hope.

Discuss this theme. (3)

4.2.8 The pupils from Zolile High can be pitied.

Discuss your view. (3)

[35]

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Fezile Dabi District June 2025 Grade 12 PLC Paper

SECTION C: SHORT STORIES

In this section, questions are set on the following short stories:

• 'REJECTION' by Mariama Ba^

• 'CLASS ACT' by Namhla Tshisana

QUESTION 5

Read the following extracts from the TWO short stories and answer the
questions set on each.

NOTE: Answer the questions set on BOTH extracts, i.e. QUESTION 5.1 AND
QUESTION 5.2.

5.1 'REJECTION'

EXTRACT I

[The narrator is confused.]

They entered laughing, deliberately sniffing the fragrant odour of incense

that was floating on the air. I sat in front of them, laughing with them.
The Imam attacked:
'There is nothing one can do when Allah the almighty puts two people
side by side.' 5
'True, true,' said the other two in support.
A pause. He took a breath and continued: 'There is nothing new in this
world.'
'True, true,' Tamsir and Mawdo chimed in again.
'Some things we may find to be sad are much less so than others …' 10
I followed the movement of the haughty lips that let fall these axioms,
which can precede the announcement of either a happy event or an
unhappy one. What was he leading up to with these preliminaries that
rather announced a storm? So their visit was obviously planned.
Does one announce bad news dressed up like that in one's Sunday best? 15
Or did they want to inspire confidence with their impeccable dress?

I thought of the absent one. I asked with the cry of a hunted beast: Modou?
And the Imam, who had finally got hold of leading thread, held tightly onto it
He went on quickly, as if the words were glowing embers in his mouth:
’Yes, Modou Fall, but happily, he is alive for you, for all of us, thanks be to God. 20

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Fezile Dabi District June 2025 Grade 12 PLC Paper

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) Daba A marries his daughter's friend

(b) Binetou B the Islamic spiritual leader

(c) Modou C Binetou's friend and confidant

(d) Imam D brother-in-law of the narrator

E forced into a marriage

(4 x 1) (4)
5.1.2 Describe the time and place where this extract is set. (2)

5.1.3 Refer to lines 4–8 ('There is nothing … in this world').

What do these lines tell us about the Imam's state of mind?

Substantiate your answer. (2)

5.1.4 Refer to line 19 ('He went on … in his mouth'

(a) Identify the figure of speech used in these lines (1)

(b) Explain why the figure of speech is relevant in this extract. (2)

5.1.5 Why is the following statement FALSE?

Tamsir is an Islamic spiritual leader. (1)

5.1.6 One of the themes in 'Rejection' is disloyalty.

Discuss this theme. (3)

5.1.7 Refer to the short story as a whole.

The narrator can be pitied.

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 Fezile Dabi District June 2025 Grade 12 PLC Paper

Discuss your view. (3)

5.2 EXTRACT J

'CLASS ACT'

[The narrator’s first week at school.]

ʹThe white is going to stick out if I do it by hand.ʹ I could have asked my sister
Ayanda but she was in Alice for the weekend.
She had to submit her application at the university because she applied late.
And Mama had to work.
I've had a terrible time at school this week. My classmates are rude and make a lot of 5
noise. Dino brought a small battery-operated radio to school and played it in class.
Our English teacher, Mr Sauls, couldn't get the class to keep quiet during the last
period so he took his briefcase from the cupboard, put it on his desk and laid his head
on it.
There are at least ten repeaters in class. Some, like Renato, have failed Standard 6 10
three times. He made us – the freshers – stand in front of the blackboard while he
surveyed our uniforms. ʹThe tunic should be a respectable length. At least three
fingers above the knee, ʹ he said pacing up and down, all the while pinching his nose.
With a piece of chalk in his hand he turned and pointed at me. ʹTell me, tell us, Sister
Mary Clarence, what's your excuse? This is not a convent.ʹ 15
The class's laughter sounded like thunder in my ears and I could feel my head
spinning.

5.2.1 Describe the time and place where lines 1–4 ('The white is…had to work') are set. (2)

5.2.2 Refer to lines 6–9 ('Dino brought a … head on it').

What do these lines reveal about Mr Sauls's character?

Substantiate your answer. (2)

5.2.3 Choose the correct answer to complete the following sentence. Write only the
letter (A–D) next to the question number (5.2.3) in the ANSWER BOOK.

When the narrator says ' … while he surveyed our uniforms', she means Renato
...
A observed their uniform.
B examined their uniform.
C measured their uniform.
D shredded their uniform. (1)

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5.2.4 Why does Renato have 'a piece of chalk in his hand' (line 14)?

State TWO points. (2)

5.2.5 Refer to lines 14–15 ('Tell me, tell … not a convent').

(a) What tone would Renato use in these lines? (1)

(b) Why would Renato use this tone in these lines? (1)

5.2.6 Explain the irony in Mr Saul's reaction to chaos in class. (2)

5.2.7 Refer to lines 16–17 ('The class's laughter … my head spinning').

What do these lines tell us about the narrator's state of mind?

Substantiate your answer. (2)

5.2.8 What does the narrator’s mother do for a living? (1)

5.2.9 The title, 'Class Act', is suitable for this short story.

Discuss your view. (3)

[35]
SECTION C TOTAL :35

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Fezile Dabi District June 2025 Grade 12 PLC Paper

SECTION D: POETRY

In this section there are questions set on the following poems:

• 'Sonnet 73' by William Shakespeare

• 'Reciprocities' by Cathal Lagan

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.

Sonnet 73 – by William Shakespeare

1 That time of year thou mayst in me behold

2 When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang
3 Upon those boughs which shake against the cold,
4 Bare ruined choirs where late the sweet birds sang.
5 In me thou seest the twilight of such day
6 As after sunset fadeth in the west,
7 Which by and by black night doth take away,
8 Death's second self, that seals up all in rest.
9 In me thou seest the glowing of such fire
10 That on the ashes of his youth doth lie,
11 As the deathbed whereon it must expire,
12 Consumed with that which it was nourished by.
13 This thou perceiv'st, which makes thy love more strong,
14 To love that well which thou must leave ere long.

6.1.1 Complete the following sentence 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.

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quatrains; couplet; Petrarchan; sestet; abab cdcd efef gg;

Elizabethan; octaves; abba cddc effe gg

This is a typical (a) … sonnet, consisting of three (b) ... and a rhyming (c) …
with a rhyme scheme of (d) … (4)

6.1.2 Refer to the first quatrain.

Mention the time of the year the speaker is referring to. (1)

6.1.3 Refer to lines 5–6 ('In me thou … in the west').

(a) What tone would the speaker use in these lines? (1)

(b) Why would the speaker use this tone in these lines? (1)

6.1.4 Refer to line 7, (‘Which by and…doth take away’).

Explain why the word ‘seals’ is so effective in describing both night and death. (2)

6.1.5 Refer to line 8 ('Death's second self … all in rest').

(a) Identify the figure of speech used in this line. (1)

(b) Explain why the figure of speech is relevant in this line. (2)

6.1.6 One of the themes in 'Sonnet 73' is love.

Discuss this theme. (3)

6.1.7 Refer to the poem as a whole.

The speaker can be pitied.

Discuss your view. (3)

AND

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6.2 What life is really like by Beverly Rycroft

Read the poem carefully and then answer the questions which follow.

What life is really like – Beverly Rycroft

1 You need to toughen up

2 my father would complain
3 when I was small
4 I ought to take you to see
5 chickens having their heads
6 chopped off.
7 That'd teach you
8 what life is really like.
9 He'd seek me out
10 when one of his pigeons
11 – crazed for home or
12 mad with terror from a
13 roaming hawk –
14 would tumble into
15 the loft
16 mutilated by
17 wire or beak.
18 I was the one made to
19 clench my palms round
20 its pumping chest,
21 to keep it still while
22 my father's hairy fingers stitched
23 its garotted throat
24 angrily to rights again
25 You see life is a fight for survival
26 he'd shout, forgetting
27 he was not lecturing his students

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28 or giving his inaugural address

29 You gotta roll with the punches.
30 i waited and waited for that bitter
31 roughness to spy me and circle
32 in to land
33 years and years
34 of flinching anticipation until
35 the day i came home from hospital
36 and my father dressed my wound.
37 Easing with practiced hands
38 the drip from my bulldozed chest
39 he renewed the plaster in breathing silence
40 never speaking never
41 once saying
42 Life's a bastard
43 Toughen Up.

6.2.1 Describe the time and place in stanza 2. (2)

6.2.2 Why is the following statement FALSE.

The speaker was diagnosed with tuberculosis. (1)

6.2.3 What do lines 1–8 ('You need to … is really like') reveal about the
character of the speaker's father?

Substantiate your answer. (2)

6.2.4 Refer to lines 18–24 ('I was the … to rights again').

What do these lines reveal about the speaker’s state of mind?

Support your answer. (2)

6.2.5 Choose the correct answer to complete the following sentence. Write only the
letter (A–D) next to the question number (6.2.6) in the ANSWER BOOK.

'that bitter roughness to spy me' (lines 30–31) is an example of ...

A assonance.
B metonymy.
C personification.
D onomatopoeia. (1)
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6.2.6 Refer to line 38 ('my bulldozed chest').

(a) Identify the figure of speech used in this line. (1)

(b) Explain why the figure of speech is relevant in this line. (2)

6.2.8 One of the themes in the poem, ‘What life is really like’, is tough love.

Discuss your view. (3)

6.2.9 The speaker's father is justified in showing that 'life is a fight for survival'.

Discuss your view. (3)

[35]

TOTAL SECTION D: [35]

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