Comprehension Questions and Answers
1.Read the passages below and answer questions on them correctly.
For Africans living abroad, nothing is more irritating than the constant diet of negative news on Africa. The only silver lining is that Africa is way down the list of news importance for the Western media. Most of the time Africa is ignored but when it does make it into the newspapers, radio or TV, then it is always portrayed as sinking in corruption, wars, famine and disease. If you set out to find a positive story on Africa, you may have to wait until your grandchildren have grown old.
What is more unfortunate is that whereas the rest of the world is divided into nations, Africa is lumped into one big sorry mass. A civil war in a tiny country in Africa elicits screaming headlines such as “Africa returns to barbarity”. Civil wars in Europe are not European civil wars but civil ears in Bosnia, Serbia and so on. No one bothers to mention that out of Africa’s 54 countries, only two may be engaged in civil wars. That means 52 countries are peaceful. But the impression you get from the Western media is that all of Africa is at war with itself.
The same goes for diseases, especially aids. Hardly does a week go by without the ‘experts’ from the West predicting how Africa’s entire population will be wiped out in fifty years’ time. If all the predictions made about the impact of Aids had been correct, most African countries would have been entirely depopulated by now.
According to the Western media, Africa is corrupt. All of Africa, all the time. It is interesting to note that in America, for example, only the executives of a given company are said to be corrupt while all African leader are seen as being irredeemably corrupt.
The point being put across is that Africa is guilty unless proven innocent. Western journalists assigned to cover Africa are in most cases the most junior and the least experienced in the organization. They are given this version of a ‘Hopeless Continent’ for so long that when they land in any African country, they immediately set out to confirm their prejudices. And you can always find what you are looking for.
The situation is similar to the search for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. In Africa, Western journalists set out to find corruption, decay and mismanagement. And if they cannot find it, they will invent it on the basis that “ it must be there somewhere”
The causes of this generalized negative view of Africa are complex. When you confront Western journalists, they deny that their view of Africa is prejudiced. They are probably telling the truth because they report what they see- but they see what they want to see. And what they want to see, subconsciously is a version of backward, primitive and uncivilized Africa.
So, while we feel irritated and even angered by the Western media’s portrayal of Africa, we must remember that many journalists cannot help but see Africa the way they programmed to do. The only way this can change is if the programming is changed. But how do you go about doing so?
The first step is to create space for dialogue between the Western media and Africans. It is during such discussions that Africans will be able to tell their side of the story. If this happens, then the Western media will see Africa as we do –a glorious continent full of promise but going through a rough time at present.
(Adapted from African Business, May 2004)
Questions
- What is the likelihood of finding a positive story on Africa?(2 marks)
- Why are Bosnia and Serbia mentioned? (3 marks)
- Why is the word “experts” on the third paragraph put within quotation marks? (3 marks) Rewrite the following sentence to begin: Had….
- “If all the predictions made about the impact of Aids had been correct, most African countries would have been entirely depopulated by now.” (1 mark)
- According to the passage is Africa more corrupt that America? Explain your answer. (3 marks)
- Give two reasons why African stories are mainly assigned to the most junior and inexperienced journalists (4 marks)
- How can we tell that the author is an African? 2 marks)
- Explain the meaning of the following expressions as used in the passage: (3 marks) Silver lining Sorry Irredeemably
2. Read the passage below and then answer the questions that follow,
Moving to a new country can be an exciting, even exhilarating experience. In a new environment, you somehow feel more alive: seeing new sights, eating new food, hearing the foreign sounds of a new language, and feeling a different climate against your skin stimulate your senses as never before. Soon, however, this sensory bombardment becomes sensory overload. Suddenly, new experiences seem stressful rather than stimulating, and delight turns into discomfort. This is the phenomenon known as culture shock. Culture shock is more than jet lag or homesickness, and it affects nearly everyone who enters a new culture - tourists, business travellers, diplomats and students alike. Although not everyone experiences culture shock in exactly the same way, many experts agree that it has roughly five stages.
In the first stage, you are excited by your new environment. You experience some simple difficulties such as trying to use the telephone or public transportation, but you consider these small challenges that you can quickly overcome. Your feelings about the new culture are positive, so you are eager to make contact with people and to try new foods.
Sooner or later, differences in behaviour and customs become more noticeable to you. This is the second stage of culture shock. Because you do not know the social customs of the new culture, you may find it difficult to make friends. For instance, you do not understand how to make "small talk," so it is hard to carry on a casual, get-acquainted conversation. One day in the school cafeteria, you overhear a conversation. You understand all the words, but you do not understand the meaning. Why is everyone laughing? Are they laughing at you or at some joke that you did not understand? Also, you aren't always sure how to act while shopping. Is this store self-service or should you wait for a clerk to assist you? If you buy a sweater in the wrong size, can you exchange it? These are not minor challenges; they are major frustrations.
In the third stage, you no longer have positive feelings about the new culture. You feel that you have made a mistake in coming here. Making friends hasn't been easy, so you begin to feel lonely and isolated. Now you want to be with familiar people and eat familiar food. You begin to spend most of your free time with students from your home country, and you eat in restaurants that serve your native food. In fact, food becomes an obsession, and you spend a lot of time planning, shopping for, and cooking food from home.
You know that you are in the fourth stage of culture shock when you have negative feelings about almost everything. In this stage, you actively reject the new culture. You become critical, suspicious, and irritable. You believe that people are unfriendly, that your landlord is trying to cheat you, that your teachers do not like you, and that the food is making you sick. In fact, you may actually develop stomach-aches, headaches, sleeplessness, lethargy, or other physical symptoms.
Finally, you reach the fifth stage. As your language skills improve, you begin to have some success in meeting people and in negotiating situations. You are able to exchange the sweater that was too small, and you can successfully chat about the weather with a stranger on the bus. Your self-confidence grows. After realizing that you cannot change your surroundings, you begin to accept the differences and tolerate them.
For instance, the food will never be as tasty as the food in your home country, but you are now able to eat and sometimes even enjoy many dishes. You may not like the way some people in your host country dress or behave in public, but you do not regard their clothes and behaviour as wrong -just different.
In conclusion, nearly everyone moving to a new country feels some degree of culture shock. Symptoms may vary, and not all people experience all five stages. Newcomers with a strong support group may feel at home immediately in the new culture, while others may take months to feel comfortable. Staying in touch with friends and family, keeping a positive attitude, and, above all, learning the language as soon as possible are ways to overcome the difficulties and frustrations of adapting to life in a new land.
From: Writing Academic English, Alice Oshima and Ann Hogue, Pearson Education, Longman (2006)
Questions
- According to the passage, what is the meaning of culture shock? (2 marks)
- Identify any three factors that can cause culture shock. (3 marks)
- What evidence does the author give to show "you understand all the words, but you do not understand the meaning"? (2 marks)
- Give any three features that characterize a person in the worst state of culture shock. (3 marks)
- In note form, give the difficulties experienced in the second stage of culture shock. (4 marks)
- Why is making friends helpful in overcoming culture shock? (2 marks)
- Explain the meaning of the following words as used in the passage: (3 marks) alive obsession negotiating
- Staying in touch with friends and family, keeping a positive attitude, and, above all, learning the language as soon as possible are ways to overcome the difficulties and frustrations of adapting to life in a new land.
- (Rewrite the sentence above without changing the meaning. Begin: You ....) (1 mark)
Answers to passages provided above. 2008
- Little/ very little/ hardly/ since by the time one’s grandchildren are old, one is likely to be dead/ have died ( 2 mark)
- Bosnia and Serbia are mentioned to show that civil wars in Europe are treated as isolated cases while in Africa they are treated as a continental war ( 2 marks
- The word is put within quotation marks to indicate that the writer does not really believe that the people are experts/ if they were, their predictions would already have come true ( 2marks)
- Had all the predictions made about the impact of Aids been correct most African countries would have been entirely depopulated by now (1 mark)
- No/ African is not more corrupt. It is just that the Western media generalizes the few cases of corruption while in America, blame is apportioned appropriately. ( 3 marks)
- This is because African stories are considered to be of little importance also such journalists are impressionable and so readily buy the stereotyped image of Africa/ they/ such journalists are already prejudiced ( 4 marks)
- The author says, “while we feel irritated” ( this suggests that he is an African. More important) he says, will see Africa as we ……… ( 2 marks)
- Silver lining- a blessing/ a lucky turn of events/ only good/ positive thing Story - miserable, pitiable, without hope/ pathetic Irredeemably- completely, incorrigibly, absolute/ hopelessly ( 3 marks)
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