1. Read the passage and answer the questions A and B.
British-Bangladeshis, also known as British-Bengalis, are an important part of the Bangladeshi diaspora or those of Bangladeshi origin who are living abroad. Almost half of all British-Bangladeshis live in London, especially in the East London boroughs, of which Tower Hamlets has the highest concentration.
Today a tourist who is new to London may well decide to make her way over to the East End of the city, to visit 'Banglatown'. After exiting the Tube Station there she might follow the signs that point to Brick Lane, a street that has gained certain notoriety from Monica Ali's best-selling novel of the same name, which was also made into a movie. She may decide to try out one of the many Bangladeshi restaurants she sees there for lunch. Sitting at one of the tables with a window onto the street, she might notice that the street signs are not just in English but also in Bengali. And the lamp-posts are in green and red- the colors of the Bangladeshi flag. In fact everywhere she looks she finds visual cues of the Bangladeshi, and even more specifically, the Sylheti presence in the area. Storefronts advertise flights from London to Sylhet, some on Bangladesh Biman (the national airline of Bangladesh) and others on Air Sylhet, a private airline company formed by British Bangladeshis. There is a sign for Sonali Bank- the major state-owned commercial bank of Bangladesh. There is a food store advertising frozen fish from Sylhet's Surma River. She watches two elderly men with long, grey beards enter the store; they are dressed in long white tunics, baggy pants and white head caps. She sees a group of teenage girls walking down the street in animated conversation. One is dressed in a black burkah and the others are in jeans and long shirts, along with bright sequined hijabs on their heads. Looking through her London guidebook, she reads about how this neighborhood is in 'Banglatown'.
In 2001 British Bangladeshi leaders, including many of the second-generation activists, led a successful bid via the Tower Hamlets council to gain the official designation of 'Banglatown' for Brick Lane and its surrounding neighbourhoods. With the help of street signs and an advertising campaign, the hope was to give the area a distinct cultural identity that would be attractive to tourists and thus beneficial for Bangladeshi businesses located there. In fact the area has a number of visible Bangladeshi landmarks, such as Altab Ali Park, the Kobi Nazrul Cultural Centre and the Shohid Minar Monument. Along with the official designation of Banglatown, these landmarks are matters of considerable pride for many British Bangladeshis, symbols of their hard-won presence and political voice in Britain.
A. Choose the correct answer from the alternatives. 1☓5 = 5
(a) What does the word 'abroad' refer to?
(i) home (ii) native land (iii) fame (iv) overseas
(b) 'Banglatown' is situated in —.
(i) Paris (ii) London (iii) Canada (iv) France
(c) What is the meaning of the word 'symbol'?
(i) mark (ii) forbid (iii) charitable (iv) home
(d) Sitting at one of the tables with a window on to the street, one might notice that the street signs are not just English but also in Bengali. What does it imply?
(i) importance of Bangla (ii) abuse of Bangla
(iii) role of Bangla (iv) degradation of Bangla
(e) The phrase 'in fact' refers to —.
(i) truly (ii) temporarily (iii) shortly (iv) wonderfully
❤ Extra Questions:
(f) The word 'especially' refers to —.
(i) conspicuously (ii) eminently (iii) very (iv) unique
(g) The closest meaning of 'concentration' is —
(i) distraction (ii) collection (iii) dilution (iv) focusing
(h) By British- Bangladeshi we mean —.
(i) a Bangladeshi but British by birth (ii) a British but Bangladeshi by birth
(iii) a British origin (iv) none of the above
(i) The word 'movie' means —.
(i) photograph (ii) picture (iii) film (iv) stage show
(j) — has got notoriety from Monica Ali's bestselling novel.
(i) Tube Station (ii) London borough (iii) Tower Hamlet (iv) Brick Lane
(k) The word 'lunch' means —.
(i) morning meal (ii) midday meal (iii) dinner (iv) supper
(l) Which of the following is true of Bangladeshi flag?
(i) green and red with stars (ii) green and white
(iii) red and white (iv) green and red
(m) — in Brick Lane are not just in English but also in Bengali.
(i) The restaurants (ii) The street lights (iii) The street signs (iv) The lamp posts
(n) The lamp posts are coloured in —.
(i) green and white (ii) complete green (iii) complete red (iv) green and red
(o) What is the official name of the national airline of Bangladesh?
(i) Biman Bangladesh (ii) Bangladesh Airlines (iii) Bangladesh Biman (iv) Bangladesh Air Force
(p) Air Sylhet is a private airline company formed by —.
(i) Bangladeshis (ii) British Bangladeshis
(iii) Bangladeshi Indians (iv) British people
(q) A food store advertises for — from Sylhet's Surma River.
(i) frozen fish (ii) fresh fish (iii) frozen fish and vegetables (iv) frozen shrimp
(r) The word 'sign' means —.
(i) token (ii) evidence (iii) emblem (iv) badge
(s) What is Sonali Bank?
(i) A private commercial bank of Bangladesh
(ii) The major state-owned commercial bank of Bangladesh
(iii) The major state owned commercial bank of London
(iv) A private commercial bank of British Bengalis.
(t) The closest meaning of 'advertise' is —.
(i) push (ii) plug (iii) display (iv) publicise
(u) The word 'animated' refers to —.
(i) alive (ii) inert (iii) dull (iv) vital
(v) The synonym of 'conversation' is —.
(i) discourse (ii) gossip (iii) exchange (iv) conference
(w) When did Banglatown get official designation?
(i) 1998 (ii) 1999 (iii) 2000 (iv) 2001
(x) The word 'baggy' means —.
(i) loose (ii) tight (iii) firm (iv) oversize
(y) The word 'identity' refers to —.
(i) rapport (ii) empathy (iii) personality (iv) peculiarity
(z) The closest meaning of 'campaign' is —.
(i) drive (ii) push (iii) crusade (iv) attack
(aa) What does the word 'sequin' refer to?
(i) indifference (ii) callousness (iii) decoration (iv) reputation
(bb) The word 'notoriety' means —.
(i) bad name (ii) fame (iii) reputation (iv) attention
(cc) What does the word 'commercial' refer to?
(i) fame (ii) reputation (iii) charitable (iv) mercantile
(dd) The sign of a state owned commercial bank in Bangladesh situated in London is —.
(i) Bangladesh Bank (ii) Agrani Bank (iii) Sonali Bank (iv) Janata Bank
(ee) The phrase 'along with' refers to —
(i) besides (ii) to mark (iii) to obey (iv) to see
Answer (A):
(a) (iv) overseas (b) (ii) London (c) (i) mark (d) (i) importance of Bangla (e) (i) truly (f) (iii) very (g) (iv) focusing (h) (ii) a British but Bangladeshi by birth (i) (iii) film (j) (iv) Brick Lane (k) (ii) midday meal (l) (iv) green and red (m) (iii) The street signs (n) (iv) green and red (o) (iii) Bangladesh Biman (p) (ii) British Bangladeshis (q) (i) frozen fish (r) (iii) emblem (s) (ii) The major state-owned commercial bank of Bangladesh (t) (iv) publicise (u) (i) alive (v) (ii) gossip (w) (iv) 2001 (x) (i) loose (y) (iii) personality (z) (i) drive (aa) (iii) decoration (bb) (i) bad name (cc) (iv) mercantile (dd) (iii) Sonali Bank (ee) (i) besides
B. Answer the following questions. 2☓5 = 10
(a) Who are called British Bangladeshi?
(b) Who is Monica Ali? What did she depict in her novel?
(c) Give a short description of Banglatown.
(d) What did the British Bangladeshis try to gain in 2001?
(e) Which Bangladeshi landmarks are visible in Banglatown?
❤ Extra Questions:
(f) What might the narrator see sitting at one of the Bangladeshi restaurants?
(g) Who have formed Air Sylhet and why?
(h) What does the narrator watch?
(i) What does the narrator also see?
(j) How did the British Bangladeshi gain the official designation of Banglatown for Brick Lane?
(k) How are the teenage girls dressed?
(l) In which part in England most of the British Bangladeshis live?
(m) Where is Brick Lane? Why is it famous?
(n) In which language are the streets signed? What is the colour of the lamp posts?
(o) What Bangladeshi cues can a tourist see in Brick Lane?
(p) Which place does 'Banglatown' refer to? In which year the designation was achieved?
Answer (B):
(a) The people who are of Bangladeshi origin but now are living in London are called British Bangladeshi.
(b) Monica Ali is the writer of the famous novel 'Brick Lane'. She depicted the lifestyle of Bangladeshi diaspora in her book.
(c) The street signs of Banglatown are not written in English but in Bengali. The lamp posts are coloured with green and red: the colours of the Bangladeshi flag. In fact, one can find visual cues of the Bangladeshi, more specifically, the Sylheti presence in the area.
(d) In 2001 the British Bangladeshis tried to gain the official designation of 'Banglatown' for Brick Lane and its surrounding neighbourhoods.
(e) A number of Bangladeshi landmarks, such as Altab Ali Park, the Kobi Nazrul Cultural Centre and the Shahid Minar Monument are visible in Banglatown.
(f) Sitting at one of the Bangladeshi restaurants the narrator might see that the street signs are not just in English but also in Bengali. Again, she might notice that the lamp posts are in green and red like the colours of the Bangladeshi flag.
(g) The British Bangladeshis formed a private airline company named Air Sylhet to allow the Bangladeshis living in London fly between London and Sylhet.
(h) The narrator watches two elderly men with long, grey beards and dressed in long white tunics, baggy pants and white head caps.
(i) She also sees a group of teenage girls walking down the street in animated conversation.
(j) The British Bangladeshis gained the official designation of Banglatown for Brick Lane through a successful bid via the Tower Hamlets in 2001.
(k) One of the teenage girls is dressed in a black burkah and the others in jeans and long shirts along with bright sequined hijab on their heads.
(l) Most of the British Bangladeshis live in East London.
(m) Brick Lane is situated in East London. It is famous for the Bangladeshi diaspora.
(n) The streets are signed in Bengali. The lamp posts are coloured in green and red like the Bangladeshi flag.
(o) A tourist can see Bangladeshi restaurants in Brick Lane. The streets of Brick Lane are signed in Bengali. The lamp posts are coloured in green and red. The frozen fish from Sylhet's Surma River are available here. The major state-owned commercial bank of Bangladesh Sonali Bank is seen here.
(p) 'Banglatown' refers to Brick Lane. The designation was achieved in 2001.
Answer:
Bangla Translation
বাংলা অনুবাদঃ
ব্রিটিশ-বাংলাদেশি যারা ব্রিটিশ-বাঙালি নামেও পরিচিত তারা বাংলাদেশি অভিবাসীদের গুরুত্বপূর্ণ অংশ অথবা ঐ সকল বাংলাদেশি বংশোদ্ভূত যারা বিদেশে বসবাস করছে। প্রায় অর্ধেক ব্রিটিশ-বাংলাদেশি লন্ডনে বাস করে, বিশেষ করে পূর্ব লন্ডনের বিশাল এলাকায় যেখানে টাওয়ার হ্যামলেট সর্বাধিক নজরকাড়া।
আজ একজন পর্যটক যিনি লন্ডনে নতুন, ভালোভাবে বাংলা টাউন ভ্রমণের সিদ্ধান্ত নিতে পারেন যা শহরের শেষ পূর্ব প্রান্তে অবস্থিত। চমৎকার টিউব স্টেশনের পরে তাকে কিছু চিহ্ন অনুসরণ করতে হতে পারে যা মণিকা আলীর সবচেয়ে বেশি বিক্রিত উপন্যাস থেকে কুখ্যাতি অর্জনকারী একটি রাস্তা ব্রিক লেনকে নির্দেশ করে, যা দিয়ে চলচিত্রও তৈরি হয়েছিল। দুপুরের খাবারের জন্য সেখানে অবস্থিত বাংলাদেশি অনেক রেস্তোরাঁ থেকে তাকে একটি বেছে নিতে হতে পারে। রাস্তামুখী একটি টেবিলে বসে জানালা দিয়ে সে দেখতে পারে রাস্তার নামফলকগুলো শুধু ইংরেজিতে নয় বরং একই সাথে বাংলায়। রাস্তার ল্যাম্পপোস্টগুলো সবুজ লাল বাংলাদেশের পতাকার রং। বস্তুত সব জায়গায় সে দেখে বাংলাদেশি দৃশ্যমান নির্দেশিকা এবং বিশেষ করে এখানে সিলেটিদের উপস্থিতি। দোকানের সম্মুখভাগ বিজ্ঞাপন দেয় লন্ডন থেকে সিলেট যাত্রার বাংলাদেশ বিমানে (বাংলাদেশের জাতীয় এয়ার লাইন) এবং অন্যটি হলো এয়ার সিলেট- একটি ব্যক্তিমালিকানাধীন এয়ার লাইন কোম্পানী যা গঠিত হয়েছে ব্রিটিশ বাংলাদেশিদের দ্বারা। এখানে রয়েছে সোনালী ব্যাংকের নামফলক যা বাংলাদেশের রাষ্ট্রায়ত্ত বাণিজ্যিক ব্যাংক। এখানে রয়েছে হিমায়িত মাছের দোকান যা সিলেটের সুরমা নদী থেকে আনা। সে দেখেছে দুজন প্রবীণ ধূসর লম্বা দাড়িওয়ালা লোককে যারা দোকানে ঢুকছে; তারা চাদর ও পায়জামা এবং মাথায় সাদা টুপি পরিহিত। সে দেখতে পাচ্ছে একদল চটপটে ও বাকপটু কিশোরী রাস্তা দিয়ে হেঁটে যাচ্ছে। একজন কালো বোরখা পরিহিতা এবং অন্যরা জিনস এবং লম্বা শার্ট সহ উজ্জ্বল চিক্চিকেহিজাব তাদের মাথায়। লন্ডন গাইড বুকে চোখ বুলিয়ে সে বাংলা টাউনে প্রতিবেশীর সম্পর্কে দেখে নিল।
২০০১ সালে ব্রিটিশ বাংলাদেশি নেতারা ২য় প্রজন্মের কর্মীদের নিয়ে টাওয়ার হ্যামলেট কাউন্সিলের মাধ্যমে ব্রিকলেন ও তার পার্শ্ববর্তী এলাকার জন্য বাংলাটাউন এর সরকারি মর্যাদা অর্জনে একটি সফল প্রচেষ্টা পরিচালনা করেন। রাস্তার নামফলক ও বিজ্ঞাপন প্রদর্শনের মাধ্যমে আশা ছিল এ এলাকাটি একটি ব্যতিক্রমি সাংস্কৃতিক পরিচিতির অধিকারী হবে যা পর্যটকদের নিকট আকর্ষণীয় হবে এবং এখানে অবস্থিত বাংলাদেশি ব্যবসার জন্য সুবিধাজনক হবে। বস্তুতঃ এ এলাকায় বাংলাদেশি বিখ্যাত স্থাপনা রয়েছে যেমন আলতাব আলী পার্ক, কবি নজরুল কালচারাল সেন্টার এবং শহিদ মিনার। বাংলাটাউন দাপ্তরিক পদবি নিয়ে এ বিখ্যাত স্থাপনাটি যথার্থভাবেই ব্রিটিশ বাংলাদেশিদের গৌরব। এগুলো ব্রিটেনে তাদের কষ্টার্জিত উপস্থিতি আর রাজনৈতিক কণ্ঠস্বরকে প্রকাশ করে।
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Passage-2
1. Read the passage and answer the questions following it
Nelson Mandela guided South Africa from the shackles of apartheid to a multi-racial democracy, as an icon of peace and reconciliation who came to embody the struggle for justice around the world. Imprisoned for nearly three decades for his fight against white minority rule, Mandela never lost his resolve to fight for his people’s emancipation. He was determined to bring down apartheid while avoiding a civil war. His prestige and charisma helped him win the support of the world. ‘I hate race discrimination most intensely and in all its manifestation. I have fought it all during my life; I will fight it now, and will do so until the end of my days,’ Mandela said in his acceptance speech on becoming South Africa’s first black president in 1994,… ‘The time for the healing of the wounds has come. The moment to bridge the chasms that divide us has come.’ ‘We have, at last, achieved our political emancipation.’ In 1993, Mandela was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, an honor he shared with F.W, de Klerk, the white African leader who had freed him from prison three years earlier and negotiated the end of apartheid.
A. Choose the correct answer from the alternatives 5
a) What could be the closest meaning for ‘shackles of apartheid’ in the first paragraph?
i. Tentacles of domination ii. Bondages of slavery
iii. Manacles of racial discrimination iv. Chains of exploitation
b) The word ‘reconciliation’ in the first paragraph refers to
i. memorization ii. recall iii. reuniting iv. Change
c) ‘Resolve’ in the second paragraph could be replaced by
i. dissolve ii. determination iii. hesitation iv. Solution
d) Mandela spent around years behind the bars.
i. twenty ii. thirty iii. forty iv. Fifty
e) The best synonym of ‘chasm’ is
i. exposition ii. rift iii. harmony iv. union.
B. Answer the following questions 10
a) What, according to text, is apartheid?
b) Mention three great achievements in Mandela's life.
c) Why did Mandela want to break the manacles of apartheid?
d) What does the expression ‘I have fought it all during my life; I will fight it now, and I will do so until
the end of my days’ mean?
e) Do you find any similarity between Mandela and Sheikh Mujibur Rahman? If any, mention. Ans. to the Ques. No. Set-1
1A. Ans.:
a. iii. Manacles of racial discrimination, b. iii. reuniting, c. ii.determination, d. ii. thirty, e. ii. rift,
1B. Ans.:
a. According to text apartheid means the racial segregation prevailing in South Africa. It means the domination of the white over the black people of South Africa. Nelson Mandela is famous for breaking the manacles of apartheid from South Africa.
b. Though Mandela had to suffer a lot, his achievements were noteworthy. His frist achievement was to break the manacles of apartheid. His second achievement was to become the first black president of South Africa. His third achievement was to win the Nobel Prize.
c. Mandela wanted to break the manacles of apartheid because this very evil practice was responsible for the racial bigotry in South Africa. The manacles of apartheid confined the black people of South Africa inside the four walls of oppression.
d. This very statement is the expression of Mandela's firm resolution to fight against racial bigotry. Mandela had an absolute abhorrence towards race discrimination. He fought against it and was ready to fight against till his last breath.
e. I see some similarities between Nelson Mandela and Sheikh Mujibur Rahman fought respective countries. Finally, Mandela fought against the white rulers of his country. In the same way, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman fought against the Pakistani rulers. Then both of them were undisputable a presidents in their respective countries. Finally, both of them were would famous leaders.
Passage-3
3. Read the passage below and answer the questions following it.
Beauty is easy to appreciate but difficult to define. As we look around, we discover beauty in pleasurable objects and sights – in nature, in the laughter of children, in the kindness of strangers. But asked to define, we run into difficulties. Does beauty have an independent objective identity? Is it universal, or is it dependent on our sense perceptions? Does it lie in the eye of the beholder? -we ask ourselves. A further difficulty arises when beauty manifests itself not only by its presence, but by its absence as well, as when we are repulsed by ugliness and desire beauty. But then ugliness has as much a place in our lives as beauty, or may be more-as when there is widespread hunger and injustice in a society. Philosophers have told us that beauty is an important part of life, but isn’t ugliness a part of life too? And if art has beauty as an important ingredient, can it confine itself only to a projection of beauty? Can art ignore what is not beautiful?
Poets and artists have provided an answer by incorporating both into their work. In doing so, they have often tied beauty to truth and justice, so that what is not beautiful assumes a tolerable proportion as something that represents some truth about life. John Keats, the romantic poet, wrote in his celebrated ‘Ode on a Grecian Urn’ ‘Beauty is truth, truth beauty,’ by which he means that truth, even if it’s not pleasant, becomes beautiful at a higher level. Similarly, what is beautiful forever remains true. Another meaning, in the context of the Grecian Urn-an art object-is that truth is a condition of art.
Poetry in every language celebrates beauty and truth. So does art. Here are two poems from two different times that present some enduring ideas about beauty and truth. The poems are by Lord Byron (1788-1824), an English poet of the Romantic tradition, and Emily Dickinson (1830-1886), an American poet who wrote about the human scene, love and death.
A. Choose the correct answer from the alternatives. 1´5=5
(a) Which of the following has the closest meaning of the word “pleasurable”?
(i) dissatisfaction (ii) pain (iii) offend (iv) delightful
(b) What is the closest meaning of the word “incorporate”?
(i) embody (ii) corporation (iii) incorporeal (iv) intangible
(c) ‘Ode on a Grecian Urn’ is written by ——-.
(i) Lord Byron (ii) John Keats (iii) Wordsworth (iv) PB Shelly
(d) What does the word ‘tolerable’ mean?
(i) not so good (ii) bad (iii) moderately good (iv) tolerant
(e) Lord Byron is a ——– poet?
(i) Revolutionary (ii) Romantic (iii) Classical (iv) Modern
Answer the following questions. 2´5=10
(a) How can we discover beauty in our surroundings?
(b) How much place does ugliness have in our life?
(c) What is the name of the poet of “Ode and a Grecian Urn”?
(d) Do you get any definition of beauty from the poem ‘She Walks in Beauty’?
(e) What was Byron’s intention?
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