The Samaritan Excerpt 3 Questions and Answers
The Samaritan Excerpt 3 (Page 74 - Page 76)
Read the following extract from the play "The Samaritan" by John Lara and then answer the questions after: (25 marks)
Ramdaye: Aaa, aah, ah, aah that was serious mayhem! It never occurred to us that Mayor Mossi would violently disrupt our meeting. The message is now very clear: he will not allow any meeting to discuss his ouster.
Seymour: It certainly was. The hooligans were very brutal. (Demonstrating) But I drew my gun and refused to run away. I dared them to touch me!
Ted: One of them aimed a rock at my head. I never though anybody could handle such a
huge stone. It flew past my head lke a rocket-propelled grenade. It missed my head by the thickness of a pig's bristle!
Seymour: (Looking at Hon Ramdaye) I was shocked you could run as you did, at your age!
You whizzed past me like an express train! I never thought you would ever come to a stop!
Ted: I doubt they were just hooligans.
Seymour: Yes, their organisation and speed suggest there is more than meets the eye. It was like a military operation.
Ted: And there was smoke all over: burning tyres, papers, mattresses and sacks, combined with tear gas smoke. Sadly,we never anticipated this. I think the Mayor is a good organiser.
Ramdaye: He is called Mossi-oa-Tunya, the smoke that thunders! He is a master schemer and a go-getter!
Seymour: It is very clear that we at war. We need to carry on with our plan, to the last detail.
We will not be cowed! We must mobilize the entire Municipal Council to pass the
no confidence motion against him (Looking at Hon. Ted) And, to get down to business, you remember we tasked you to talk to Councillors and Aldermen and assess whether they will support the no confidence motion
Ted: Yes, you did, and as you know, our political landscape comprises Councillors and Aldermen of mixed ethnicity as well as those of the Afro and Indo descent.
Ramdaye: Oh, yes, it does. So?
Ted: I was on the phone almost all night and very little support was forthcoming I assumed wrongly that we could whip up racial and class prejudice to get many of them to support us. How mistaken I was! After talking to them, I realised that our chamber members are of different categories that we must keep in mind even as we seek to woo them to support our cause.
Questions and Answers on The Samaritan by John Lara Excerpt 3
(a) Briefly recount the events leading to this excerpt. (2 marks)
- Hon. Ramdaye, Hon. Seymour and Hon Ted are gathered in the Sky Room at the Madingo Golf Club in the late afternoon
- The trio is reviewing the events of the morning over bottles of hard drinks.
(b) Why does Hon. Ted doubt the brutal young man who disrupted their morning meeting to discuss the Mayor's ouster were just hooligans? (2 marks)
• Hon Ted doubts the brutal young men who scuttled their morning meeting were just hooligans because their organisation and speed had the precision of a military operation.
(c) Discuss two character traits of Hon. Seymour and one of Ted brought out in the excerpt. (6 marks)
Hon. Seymour is:
- Brutal/'savage/vicious: He returns the act of brutality from the hooligans who attack them to scuttle their planned meeting meant to discuss the Mayor's ouster with another piece of brutality when draws out his gun and dares them to touch him.
- Bold/daring/courageous: He refuses to run (away) when brutal hooligans charge at him, pulling out his gun and daring them to touch him
- Humourous/amusing/funny: He elicits humour when tells Hon Ramdaye that he was shocked he could run as he did, at his age. Adding that he whizzed past him like an express train, and that he never thought he could ever come to stop.
- Perceptive/observant/critical: He observes that the group of young men who thwarted their meeting at the Municipal Headquarters were not ordinary hooligans since their organisation and speed had a military operation precision.
- Determined/uncowed/unbowed: He tells his allies that they will not be cowed by the Mayor's intimidation and so, they need to carry on with their plan to the last detail.
Hon. Ted is:
- Humourous/funny/amusing: Making fun of the huge stone aimed at him by the hooligans, he says the stone flew past his head ike a rocket-propelled grenade, adding that it missed his head by the thickness of a pig's bristle.
- Doubtful'suspicious/questioning: He doubts if the young men who scuttle their planned
- meeting to discuss the Mayor's impeachment were just hooligans.
- Underestimating/trivializing: He admits he had assumed wrongly that he and his allies could whip up Councillors' and Aldermen's racial and class prejudice to get many of them to support the cause oust the Mayor.
(d) What two themes are evident in the excerpt? (4 marks)
- Violence/Brutality. Hon Ramdaye and his team's planned meeting to discuss the Mayor's ouster is violently disrupted by Mayor Mossi's sent brutal hooligans, with the Council leaders escaping injuries narrowly.
- Intimidation/blackmail. Mayor Mossi unleashes terror on Hon Ramdaye and his team by sending violent hooligans to thwart their effort in discussing his ouster.
- Ethnic and racial discrimination/Prejudice Hon. Ted observes that their political landscape comprises Councillors and Aldermen of mixed ethnicity as well as those of the Afro and Indo descent. He, again, says he had assumed wrongly that the Council leaders could whip up racial and class prejudice to get many of the councillors and Aldermen support their move to send the Mayor packing.
- Politics. Hon Seymour tells his allies that they must mobilise the entire Municipal Council to pass the no confidence motion against the Mayor.
- Conflict/Antagonism. There is conflict between the Mayor and Hon. Ramdaye's team while Ramdaye and his team are mobilising the entire Municipal Council to pass a no confidence motion against the Mayor, the mayor is doing everything to block their meeting to discuss his ouster.
(e) Single out and illustrate two features of style employed in the excerpt. (4marks)
• Use of similes e g. It flew past my head like a rocket-propelled grenade You whizzed past me like an express train/It was like a military operation.
• Hyperbole/exaggeration: Hon. Ted exaggerates the speed of the stone hurled towards him and his narrow escape when he says: It flew past my head like a rocket-propelled grenade. It missed my head by the thickness of a pig's bristle!
Use of humour: Seymour evokes humour when he tells Hon Ted that he was shocked he could run as he did at his age, adding that he whizzed past him like an express train, and that be never thought he would ever come to a stop.
(f) (i) I never thought you would ever come to a stop! (Rewrite beginning: How...)
• How I thought you would never ever come to a stop!
(ii) One of them aimed at a rock at my head. (Add a question tag)
•One of them aimed a rock at my head, didn't he?
(iii) Yes, their organization and speed suggest there is more than neets the eye. (Write replacing the underlined word with a phrasal verb. (1 mark)
• Yes, their organisation and speed put forward/point to/ hint at/set forth/smack of something more than meets the eye.
(iv) I dared them to touch me. (Report) (1mark)
• Seymour said he dared them to touch him
(g) Explain the meanings of the following words used in the excerpt. (3 marks)
•Ouster - removal/expulsion/relegation/impeachment
•Whizzed - fizzed/fizzled/flew hissed
• Go-getter-self-starter/docr/hustler
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