SECTION C - PROSE FICTION 3. Read the extract below carefully and answer ALL the questions that follow. Everyone knew Ma; she lived just down the road next to Mr Smith's corner rum shop. She was a small, short woman, but had a temperament some said was like a force of nature, unconquerable. Ma's house was like her in many ways. It wasn't an architectural wonder but it had character. 5 Joe "Fishcake" Brown (so called because of his insatiable craving for the tidbit) was propping up against the rum shop door, pelting back a beer, declaring loudly that there was nothing that anyone could dare him to do that he couldn't do. Mr Smith in a sly manner, belted out a challenge. Fishcake boldly accepted. The shop went dead silent. A week after the bet, I saw a head poke through Ma's unlocked back door. It was Fishcake, 10 dressed in all black (in broad daylight, mind you) and wearing dark sunglasses. From a large pocket in his pants Fishcake pulled out a folded knapsack and glanced around. He searched the drawers and closets, dropping everything of value into his knapsack. Instead of making his escape, Fishcake headed for the kitchen. Resting his heavy knap sack on the counter, he opened the fridge door and took out a bottle of water. He was about to 15 close the door when something else caught his eye - a cling wrap covered bowl, filled to the brim with fishcake batter. The kitchen was soon filled with the delicious aroma of fishcakes, and the little ball of batter danced merrily in the oil accompanied by the usual frying noises. Ma sniffed the air. A frown puckered her forehead and a puzzled look settled on her brown, aged features. Ma moved slowly and quietly towards the kitchen. Spying Fishcake, she moved 20 back a few steps into the hallway, and flattened herself to one side. When I saw her again she was holding a rolling pin. With a big smile on his face and humming a little tune, Fishcake engrossed himself in dabbing his golden brown fishcakes with a paper towel. Grabbing the one closest to hand, he was about to take the first bite when Ma snuck up behind him. Holding the rolling pin above her head, 25 Ma carried it up and brought it down. Ma ran outside and came back with a long piece of rope. Pushing Fishcake on his stomach, she tied his two hands together behind his back. Bending both feet at the knees so that they could reach his hands, she secured them too. Now satisfied that he could not escape, Ma left Fishcake trussed-up like a turkey and went to call the police. 30 As you can imagine, the boys from the shop were the first to gather at the scene. Adapted from Shirnelle Blackman, "Ma's House." In The Hole and Other Barbadian Poems and Short Stories: A Winning Words Anthology, National Cultural Foundation, 2004, pp. 119-123.(a) State THREE things we learn about Ma in paragraph 1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. (3 marks) (b) Comment on the effectiveness of "dressed in all black (in broad daylight, mind you) and wearing dark sunglasses" (line 10). . . ...* * . . . . .... (2 marks) (c) (i) Why did Fishcake remain in the house after he took the items? (1 mark) (ii) What does the reason identified in (b) (i) above suggest about Fishcake's character? . . . . (2 marks)(d) How does Ma's behaviour in lines 21-28 ("she was holding a rolling pin . . . call the police") make the extract humorous? (3 marks) (e) Identify the figurative device in "trussed-up like a turkey" (line 29) and comment on its effectiveness. (3 marks) (f) (i) Comment on the significance of the rum shop in the extract. . . . .. . (2 marks){ii} Suggest how the boys in the shop might respond to Fishcake's predicament. {2 marks) {g} Identify ONE theme in the extract. Support your answer with evidence from the extract. (2 marks) Total 20 marks