ENGLISH TEST

NAME:

DATE:

CLASS:

MARK:

/20

COMMENTS:

READING COMPREHENSION

Text 1

Pick out :
a- a region

the South

a state Tennessee

b- the names of 2 towns Greensboro / Nashville

d- 5 different places lunch counters / cafeterias /beaches/ libraries/ churches

Find a key date :

February 1st

Which event triggered off the movement of protest ? Four college students were denied
service at a Woolworth lunch counter in Greenboro

Pick out 3 numbers . Say what they refer to ?

a-

b-

50

c- 76

it refers to the nulber of college students

it refers to the number of Southern towns
the number of arrests

List 4 different forms of resistance .

wade ins/ read-ins/kneel-ins /sit-ins

Pick out one adjective characterizing them.

non-violent ( peaceful)

 Name one famous person and one organization involved in the fight for equality.

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

the NAACP (the National Association for the Advancement of
Coloured People) or the Southern Christian Leadership Conference or the Congress of racial Equality

RECAP !
Speak from your notes and include the following points :
-

Sum up what you have learnt about the organization of protest (places, cause, actions
taken, immediate consequences)
Is the article optimistic or pessimistic ? Why?

On February 1st, 1960, in Greensboro, after four college students were denied service
at a lunch counter because of their skin colour and refused to leave, non-violent
means of protest were organised to fight discrimination. Sit-ins at lunch counters
spread quickly to more than fifty towns. Black people decided to organize sit-ins at
cafeterias too, read-ins at libraries, kneel-ins at racially segregated churches, wade-ins
at all-white beaches to protest against segregation. Although these peaceful
movements of protest were immediately supported by famous organizations like the
NAACP or people like Martin Luther King Jr., many black students were arrested. And
yet at the end of the article the tone is quite optimistic, as the journalist says
politicians and businessmen have been forced to take the black community into
account and to deal with their demands. The journalist thinks a favourable decision is
about to be taken.
Text 2 :

LET ME HAVE THOSE SEATS !

 Introduce the document (Type of document / title / origin / author / date )

It is an extract (= an excerpt from an American novel ) from Rosa Parks s autobiography
entitled : My story written in 1992 / It dates back to 1992.
What type of narrative is this ? Justify. What can you conclude about my story?
It is a first-person narrative = a narrative in the first person. She writes about her personal
story. The pronoun I is used as well as My.
When and where did the scene take place? Give precise information about time (decade/ month/
time of day) and place (country / state / city / exact place)

The scene took place at a bus stop ( in Court Square) in Montgomery, Alabama, USA (in the
fifties ), more precisely on December 1st , 1955. Rosa parks was heading home from work (in
the evening)
Who are the 2 main characters ?
Rosa Parks is the main protagonist as well as the bus driver who didnt want the narrator to
remain seated.
Read again line 1 to line 15 : How many sections were there in the bus? Who was allowed to sit in
each section?

There were two main sections, a white section and a black section . The whites used to sit in
the front of buses whiles blacks were expected to sit in the back. However, there was a middle
section where blacks could sit as well.

 Read again line 9 to line 15

a- What did the driver do? Why? He asked black people to give up their seats in the black section

for white people to (be able to) sit.

b- What did the passengers do then ?

The passengers didnt move.

c- How did the driver react?

so he threatened them by saying: Yall better make it light on yourselves and let me have
those seats!
Explain in your own words what the driver meant when he said make it light on yourselves
(lines 14/15)
He wanted them to move. What he meant was that they should save themselves some
trouble to make things easier on themselves. Its a way to say that theyd better move off and
avoid trouble! Avoid trouble and make it easy for you = make it without problems happening
to you.

Read line 16 to line 30 :

a- What did the black passengers do then?
The 3 black passengers got up and left their seats. They obeyed and did what they were told
without causing any trouble.
b- What did Rosa decide to do ? Can you explain why?

She decided to remain seated. She didnt want to give up her seat since she was in her
right/in the black section.
c- Tick the 3 adjectives that best apply to Rosa Parks at this moment?
determined / daring / non-violent / brave /obstinate
d- What did the driver decide to do then ? Why ?

He decided to call the police because Rosa refused to comply / to abide by the rules.
He is racist / segregationist / rude to her /mean to her /aggressive/ threatening the tone was
threatening . / law-abiding
to abide by the law /rules = se soumettre
To abide ( V.Transitif = supporter = cant stand)
Comment on Rosa Parks answer to the driver (line 23 you may do so)
She doesnt mind/ the consequences (going to jail/ be arrested) / nonviolence/determination. She seems to be resigned.
Her answer : you may do that shes not rude /respectful/polite/she reacts non-violently.
Her answer was adventurous. These words are meaningful as they illustrate the fact that she
doesnt really care about what may/could happen to her. She made it clear to the driver. It
was daring.

 Read the last paragraph again .How did Rosa feel when waiting for the Police? Explain in your own
words.

She had mixed feelings .

She definitely felt scared = I tried not to think what might happen
concerned /worried about what might happen / nervous /anxious
she was proud/ brave /courageous / determined/resigned
She chose to fight for what she thought was fair. She was brave. She was well aware of the
consequences of her action . She had chosen to resist / stand up for her rights. She was ready
to face the consequences of her actions and was prepared to be brought to jail/ to be
punished!

Text 1 & 2 :

What is being denounced in both texts ?

What is being denounced is racial segregation and discrimination in public places.
Explain to what extent the narrators act of defiance in TEXT 2 influenced the negroes means of
protest in TEXT 1

Rosa Parkss act of passive resistance on Dec 1, 1955 which led to the bus boycott ,
triggered a movement of non-violent protest throughout the country. Not only did she launch
the career of non-violent leaders such as Martin Luther King, but also paved the way to the
civil rights fight . She may have inspired non-violent actions such as wade-ins, kneel-ins, sitins and read-ins to protest against segregation and racial discrimination.