Question 1 of 12
In the Cho Oyu passage, the writer says a hurricane 'scourged the snow-covered mountainside'. What technique is being used?
A) Simile — comparing the wind to a whip using 'like' or 'as'
B) Alliteration — repeating the 's' sound at the start of words
C) Personification — the wind is given violent, human-like qualities
D) Onomatopoeia — the word 'scourged' sounds like the wind
Question 2 of 12
In the Cho Oyu passage, we are told 'The most horrible part of it was the cloudless blue sky'. Why is a blue sky described as horrible?
A) Because the sun was making the men too hot as well as cold
B) It creates irony — a beautiful blue sky during a deadly blizzard is unnatural and terrifying
C) Because blue is a cold colour and it reminded them of freezing
D) Because the men preferred cloudy skies for climbing
Question 3 of 12
The word 'vortex' comes from Latin meaning 'to turn or spin'. What does it describe in the passage?
A) The spinning, whirling centre of the blizzard
B) The mountain peak they were trying to reach
C) The entrance to their tent
D) A deep hole in the snow where they were sheltering
Question 4 of 12
Their eyes were described as 'gates to another world, at whose frontier we had now arrived'. What does 'frontier' mean here?
A) The border between Nepal and Tibet where they were climbing
B) The front of the tent that had been destroyed
C) The most difficult part of the mountain to climb
D) The boundary between life and death — they have reached the very edge of survival
Question 5 of 12
In the Hurricane poem, 'the wind was all speedy feet, all horns and breath'. What technique is this?
A) Personification — the wind is given animal or human body parts
B) Simile — the wind is compared to a running animal
C) Hyperbole — the poet is exaggerating how fast the wind blows
D) Repetition — the word 'all' is repeated for emphasis
Question 6 of 12
'Zinc sheets are kites' is an example of which technique?
A) Simile
B) Metaphor
C) Personification
D) Alliteration
Question 7 of 12
The word 'cowered' suggests the men were...
A) Bravely standing up to fight the storm
B) Hiding inside the tent where it was warm
C) Crouching together in fear, feeling completely helpless
D) Covering their faces with their hands
Question 8 of 12
In the poem, 'with no intervention of sun or man' means...
A) Nothing could stop the hurricane — neither sunshine breaking through nor people fighting back
B) The hurricane only struck at night when there was no sun
C) Nobody invented anything to protect against the storm
D) The sun and the people were working together with the hurricane
Question 9 of 12
Both texts use contrast as a technique. Which is the best example of contrast?
A) The hurricane poem lists many different animals
B) Both texts describe wind and snow
C) The poem uses short lines while the prose uses long sentences
D) In Cho Oyu, a beautiful cloudless blue sky exists alongside a deadly, life-threatening blizzard
Question 10 of 12
The word 'reproach' means blame or criticism. Why is it significant that the Sherpas showed 'no reproach'?
A) Because the Sherpas did not speak English and could not express blame
B) It makes the scene more moving — the Sherpas do not blame Tichy even though he led them into mortal danger
C) Because the Sherpas were already dead and could not show any emotion
D) Because the storm was Pasang's fault, not Tichy's
Question 11 of 12
Both writers use personification (giving human or animal qualities to non-human things). Which pair of quotes BOTH show personification?
A) 'thirty-five degrees below zero' and 'left fields battered up'
B) 'We could only speak in shouts' and 'Zinc sheets are kites'
C) 'scourged the mountainside' (wind attacks like a person) and 'growling it slunk away' (hurricane acts like an animal)
D) 'All die' and 'fish, all dead in the road'
Question 12 of 12
The Hurricane poem ends with 'cows, ratbats, trees, fish, all dead in the road'. What effect does this ending create?
A) It is humorous because the list of animals is so random and unexpected
B) It shows that animals are more affected by hurricanes than people
C) It suggests the hurricane will come back to cause more damage
D) It creates a devastating, sudden silence after all the noise — the short, blunt list emphasises total destruction