Bac ES, S 2008 LV1 (intermediate)

Fiona Sweeney shoved a pair of rolled-up jeans into the corner of her purple duffel bag. Outside her bedroom window, a siren's wail sliced through the white noise of a wet snowfall. .Those eerie man-made moans were part of New York City's wallpaper, a signal of trouble commonplace enough to pass unnoticed. But Fi registered this one, maybe because she knew she wouldn't be hearing sirens for a while.

She turned her attention back to her bag, which still had space. What else should she take? Lifting a framed snapshot, she examined her mother as a young woman, wading into a stream, wearing rubber boots and carrying a fishing pole. Fi cherished the photograph; in real life, she'd never known her mother to be that carefree. The mother Fi had known wouldn't want to go to Africa. In fact, she wouldn't want Fi to go. Fi put the picture facedown and scanned the room, her attention drawn to a wom volume of Irish poetry by her bedside. She tucked it in.

"How about the netting1?" Chris called from the living room where he sat with Devi. "Already in," Fi answered.

"And repellent?" asked Devi.

"Yes, yes." Fi waved her hand as though shooing away a gnat-a gesture that Chris and Devi couldn't see from the other room. "Should have kept my mouth shut," she murmured.

Early on in her research about Kenya, she'd discovered that the country's annual death toll from malaria was in the tens of thousands. She had pills; she had repellents; logically, she knew she'd be fine. Still, a figure that high jolted her. She became slightly obsessed and-here's the rub-discussed it with Chris and Devi. Mbu--mosquito-had been the first Swahili word she'd learned. Sometimes the insects even dive-bombed into her nightmares. Eventually, mosquitoes became a metaphor for everything she feared about this trip: all the stories she'd read about a violent and chaotic continent, plus the jitters that come with the unknown.

And what wasn't unknown? All she knew for sure, in fact, was why she was going. Fi's mom had never been a big talker, but she'd been a hero, raising four kids alone. Now it was Fi's turn to do something worthwhile.

"Fi." Chris, at the door of the bedroom, waved in the air the paper on which he'd written a list of all the items he thought she should bring and might forget. Money belt. Hat. Granola bars. "Have you been using this?" he asked half-mockingly in the tone of a teacher.

"I hate lists," Fi said.

He studied her a second. "OK," he said. "Then, what do you say, take a break?" "Yeah, c'mon, Fi. We don't want to down all your wine by ourselves," Devi called from the living room, where an Enya CD played low.

Pulling back her dark, frizzy hair and securing it with a clip, Fi moved to the living room and plopped onto the floor across from Devi, who sprawled2 in a long skirt on the couch. Chris poured Fi a glass of cabernet and sat in the chair nearest her. If they reached out, the three of them could hold hands. Fi felt connected to them in many ways, but at the same time, she was already partly in another place and period. A soft light fell in from the window, dousing the room in a flattering glow and intensifying the sensation that everything around her was diaphanous, and that she herself was half here and half not.

"You know, there's lots of illiteracy in this country," Devi said after a moment.
"That's why I've been volunteering after work," Fi said. "But there, it's different.
They've never been exposed to libraries. Some have never held a book in their hands." "Not to mention that it's more dangerous, which somehow makes it appealing to Fi," Chris said to Devi, shaking his head. "Nai-robbery."

Though he spoke lightly, his words echoed those of Fi's brother and two sisters­especially her brother. She was ready with a retort. "l'll mainly be in Garissa, not Nairobi," she said. "It's no more dangerous there than New York City. Anyway, I want to take some risks-different risks. Break out of my rut. Do something meaningful." Then she made her tone playful. "The idealistic Irish. What can you do?"

"Sometimes idealism imposes," Chris said. "What if all they want is food and medicine?"

"You know what I think. Books are their future. A link to the modern world." Fi grinned. "Besides, we want Huckleberry Finn to arrive before Sex in the City reruns, don't we?" Devi reached out to squeeze Fi's shoulder. "Just be home by March."

The Camel Bookmobile, Masha,Hamilton, 2007

I. COMPRÉHENSION

NOTE IMPORTANTE AUX CANDIDATS:
Les candidats traiteront le sujet sur la copie qui leur sera fournie en respectant l'ordre des questions et en faisant apparaître la numérotation (numéro et lettre repère le cas échéant, ex: 15b - voir en particulier les questions 5, 6, 7, 8 et 9). Ils composeront des phrases complètes chaque fois qu'il leur est demandé de rédiger les réponses. Le nombre de mots indiqué constitue une exigence minimale. En l'absence d'indication, les candidats répondront brièvement à la question posée. Les citations seront limitées aux éléments pertinents et précédées de la mention de la ligne.

1. In what country does the scene take place? Justify your answer by quoting from the text.

2. How many characters are present in the scene? Name them and say which one is the main character.

3. Give additional information about the main character (surname, nickname, family composition).

4. Pick out two quotations to prove that the main character is about to leave.

5. The main character's destination is Kenya. Rewrite the following sentences using words from the text to complete them.
Kenya is a country in (a)..... where (b)... and English are the two official languages. Nairobi is the capital while (c)..... is a smaller city.

6. a) How does the main character feel in the passage from line 19 to line 26?
b) Give at least three reasons why the main character feels this way. (30 words)

7. a) Who was an inspiration for the main character to do something out of the ordinary?
Justify with a quotation.
b) In what way was this person an inspiration? (20 words)

8. Among the following sentences, choose the one which explains what the play on words "Nai-robbery" in line 49 means.
a) The crime rate in Nairobi is very high.
b) Women in Nairobi wear very fashionable dresses. _
c) Life in Nairobi is very expensive. d) You'll never be robbed in Nairobi. 9. a) Which people does the pronoun "them" refer to in the sentence "Fi felt connected to them in many ways" (1.41)?

9. Do these people approve of the main character's decision to go to Kenya? Sum up their arguments. (30 words)

10. What arguments does the main character give to refute theirs? (30 words)

11. Quote elements from the text to show that, despite their disagreement, the atmosphere is cosy and comfortable in the passage from line 35 to line 44.
Read the whole text again.

12. Explain why the people present in the scene have decided to meet at the main character's home. (30 words)

13. Analyze what personal benefits the main character hopes to derive from this Kenyan experience. (30 words)

II. EXPRESSION Choose subject 1(a+b) or subject 2.

Subject 1:
a) Write the letter the main character sends to a friend after living and working in Kenya for a few weeks. (150 words)
b) One of the characters suggests that all that people in developing countries want is "food and medicine" (1.55). To what extent do you agree? (150 words)

Subject 2:
Is it possible to combine idealism with a professional career? (300 words)