Question

Comment on the dominant variety of prose (narrative, expository or descriptive) present in each of

the following passages. Write a brief critical appreciation of each passage in about 250 words each:

a) We set out for the gallows. The warders marched on either side of the prisoner, with their rifles

at the slope; two others marched close against him, gripping him by arm and shoulder, as though

at once pushing and supporting him. The rest of us, magistrates and the like, followed behind.

Suddenly, when we had gone ten yards, the procession stopped short without any order or

warning. A dreadful thing had happened – a dog, come goodness knows whence, had appeared

in the yard. It came bounding among us with a loud volley of barks, and leapt round us wagging

its whole body, wild with glee at finding so many human beings together. It was a large woolly

dog, half Airedale, half pariah. For a moment it pranced round us, and then, before anyone

could stop it, it had made a dash for the prisoner, and jumping up tried to lick his face. Everyone

stood aghast, too taken aback even to grab at the dog.


b) Symptoms of autism-related disorders are well-known: undeveloped social behavior and

difficulties with social adaptation (upto complete isolation from the society); delayed or in some

other way impaired cognition; severely limited interests − an autist shows interest only towards a

small part of the world around him or her, sometimes completely ignoring the rest of it;

repetitive or ritual behavior; language abnormalities. At the same time, many autistic persons

possess talents not commonly found in regular people: for example, they can be brilliant

mathematicians, or have photographic memory. According to the statistics, one of 68

children has autism related symptoms, so the amount of autistic people around us is

much higher than it could be possibly expected. However, even though some symptoms

such as language difficulties, or social dysadaptation can intervene in normal social

interactions, they do not necessarily prevent an autistic person from living a normal life,

especially with the help of other people.


c) Today, the most technologically advanced skyscraper is the famous Burj Khalifa in Dubai. It is

also the highest skyscraper in the world. Its exact height is 2,722 feet, or 829,8 meters, and it

obviously can be seen from any point in Dubai. Burj Khalifa looks like a stalagmite, which

usually has a shape of a cone. If you look at it from a distance, it will remind you of a gigantic

sharp cone make of glass and steel. The most impressive aspect about Burj Khalifa is that it had

been planned to be a “city within the city”; this means that inside the tower you can find parks,

alleys, districts, fountains, and so on. The glass of the tower’s surface always shines, because it

is washed every single day, and the concrete with which the tower is built, was invented

specifically for Burj Khalifa. There are three entrances to the tower. At the foot of the

skyscraper, there is a big artificial lake that measures up to 12 hectares. Inside, the building is as

magnificent as it is from the outside. The interiors were projected by famous designers. The air

inside Burj Khalifa is conditioned and flavored-it is said that the flavor was also designed

exclusively for the tower. 57 elevators work 24/7 to transport visitors between floors.

(

Answer 1

a) Narrative
b) Expository
c) Descriptive