English is the study of the English language. The goal is to improve communication skills by practicing listening, speaking, reading, writing, and understanding language rules like pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar.
There is one fascinating question that arises out of the contemplation of mud sculpture. Why should anybody use unbaked mud, the most perishable of materials? Is it because no other material is readily available? The question is not easy to answer definitely. Mud, is, of course, the cheapest and most readily available material. Yet there is ample proof that mud is not used merely because it is easy to get hold of and cheap. Many Igbo Mbari houses are the only buildings in the village that have an imported corrugated iron roof – which prove that the people who built them shun no cost to make them look important. In all the areas where I have seen mud sculpture, wood carving and brass casting are also known and practiced. In Yoruba country, stone is also used as a medium for sculpture.
One important thing to realize is that different materials are not necessarily used because they have lasting, durable qualities. In Yoruba country today, brass can only be used by Oshun or Ogboni worshippers. Ivory can only be used by Obatala worshippers, copper by Sonponna, iron by Ogun and so on.
Materials are used for their mystic properties of absorbing or repelling human radiation. The Obatala worshippers used Ivory as protection, in the sense that it is protecting him from the destructive psychic influences of a man whose mentality is basically different or opposed to his. Similarly Oshun worshippers uses brass figure in their shrines – not because brass last longer than wood, but because brass possesses certain magical qualities that are sacred to Oshun.
It is not difficult to understand why mud is considered the appropriate medium for Ala (the Igbo earth goddess). Olokun (the Bini god of the ocean), or Legba (originally an earthgod of the Fon). The fact that the material is perishable and sometimes does not even last five years does not enter into the consideration. One does not interfere with the natural life of a carving. When it perishes, a new one simply has to be made.
Different materials are chosen because Options:Choose the option that rhymes with the given word.
Sheer?
Options:Choose the option opposite in meaning to the underlined word(s).
Gregarious animals can be found in the zoo?
Options:The passage below has gaps numbered 11 to 20. Immediately following each gap, four options are provided. Choose the most appropriate option for each gap.
Capitalism is an economic system which is founded on the principle of free enterprise and the private ownership of the means of production and distribution. The - 11 – [A. protagonists B. antagonists C. determiners D. attorneys] of capitalism claim that its essential characteristic is economic - 12- [A. exploitation B. manipulation C. manoeuvring D. freedom]. The producer is free to produce whatever goods he – 13 - [A. sells B. buys C. fancies D. manufactures]. but the - 14 – [ A. customer B. consumer C. controller D. marketer]. is equally free to buy what he wants. There is a market mechanism under this system, which brings the producer and consumer together and tends to equate the supplies of the one to the demands of the other, and -15 – [A. neutralize B. harmonize C. settle D. decide] the whims and caprice of both. It is this same - 16 – [A. market B. controlling C. operational D. production] mechanism which determines what prices the consumers pay to the producers, as what share of the total - 17- [ A. dividends B. interest C. output D. profit], in cash or kind, goes to each of the four recognized -18 – [ A. managers B. agents C. methods D. factors] of production – land, labour capital and organization. It is further claimed for this system that every person is capable of watching his or her own interest, and that whatever injustice is done by the - 19 – [A. pricing B. operations C. managers D. buyers and sellers] of the market mechanism, this mechanism tends to bring about a state of - 20 – [ A. conflict B. equidistance C. equilibrium D. opprobrium] between the producers and the consumers.
Fill in the gap with the most appropriate option from the list provided?
Aggrieved persons are free to seek _____ in the court of law?
Options:I am always amazed when I hear people saying that sport creates goodwill among nations and that if only the common people of the world could meet one another at football or squash, they would have no inclination to meet on the battle field. Even if one didn’t know from concrete example (the 1936 Olympic games, for instance) that international sporting contests lead to orgies of hatred, one could deduce it from general principals.
Nearly all the sports practiced nowadays are competitive. You play to win, and the game has little meaning. Unless you do your utmost to win. On the village green, where you pick up sides and not feeling of local patriotism is involved, it is possible to play simple for fun of it and exercise, but as soon as the question of prestige arises, as soon as you feel that you and some larger unit will be disgraced if you lose, the most savage combative instincts are aroused. Anyone who has played even in a school football match knows this. At the international level, sport is frankly a mimic warfare. But the significant thing is not the behaviour of the players but the attitude of the spectators and behind the spectators are the nations who work themselves into furies over these absurd contests and seriously believe at any rate for short period that running, jumping and kicking a ball are tests of national virtue.
Even a leisurely game demanding grace rather than strength can cause much ill-will. Football, a game in which everyone gets hurt and every nation has its own style or play is far worse. Worst of all is boxing. One of the most horrible sights in the world is a fight between white and coloured boxers before a mixed audience
Boxing is regarded as the worst game in the passage because Options:In the question below choose the word(s) or phrase(s) which best fills(s) the gap(s):
When we got to the president's house, we were told that he _____ two days earlier
Options:In the question below, fill the gap with the most appropriate option:
Otokpa is not very bold. He's not _____ a rough life
Options:Choose the option that best completes the gap.
If you keep playing with this door handle, it will get __________.
Options:Choose the the appropriate stress pattern from the options. The syllables are written in capital letters.
The girl DANCED in the village square.
Options: