Monday, August 5, 2013

SAMPLE ANSWERS FOR THE CURSE (CHARACTERS)






1.      Write on a character that show responsibility in her or his actions

Based on the Novel “The Curse” by Lee Sue Ann, the character that shows responsibility in her actions is Azreen Saleh. Azreen is not only a responsible sister and daughter but also a responsible student and friend .
Firstly, Azreen as a responsible sister comes back immediately when she hears of her sister’s death although at that time she is about to sit for an examination that is important for her. She postpones her examination in order of giving her sister her last respect.
Secondly, as a daughter she shows her responsibility firstly, when she spends the whole night repairing her mother’s favourite rattan basket that was broken by the heavy durians that she and Madhuri has brought in. Subsequently, with Madhuri’s help she makes a new rattan basket that looks like the one that she and Madhuri have broken. In addition to that, Azreen accepts the offer to further her studies in London for the sake of upbringing her family social status and thus could then save a lot of money to get a better treatment for her mother that is paralyzed by the bull escape incidents that she .
Thirdly, as a friend and a student, Azreen shows her responsibility when she accepts to join the school hockey team as a substitution to Hock Seng that is injured. She does that even though she knows that she will be the only girl in the team and this will tarnish her image as a girl. In fact she plays very well and almost scores a goal. In addition to that, Azreen shows that she is a responsible friend, when she brings a full basket of fresh vegetables and tomatoes to The Old Lady of the forest to replace the one that she tramples earlier when she comes to The Old Lady’s house for the first time.
In conclusion, throughout the story, Azreen shows that she is a very responsible towards her actions. In fact, I would like to have her as a friend as a friend as such is hard to come by.
The novel I have studied is ‘The Curse’ by Lee Su Ann.  The novel is about the main character, Azreen, who returns from England after she finds out about her sister’s death. Upon her return, she is surrounded by many secrets. She discovers the circumstances of Madhuri’s death later in the story.  At the end of the story she finds out the truth and leaves for London an orphan but more resilient and wise.
The character I like most is Azreen Salleh. She is a 20-year-old student who is studying in a university college in London on an exchange programme. She is short, bespectacled, rather bookish and outspoken.
I like Azreen because she is outspoken and she is not afraid to spoke her mind. She is  vocal and says her opinions although sometimes she says the wrong things at the wrong time. She also hates her father’s treatment of her foster parents and Madhuri’s burial ceremony  that is conducted without her presence.  In handling the village gossip, Pn Normala, Azreen tells her off that the rain has started even before the Old Lady comes into town.
The second quality she has is she is courageous.  As a child, she plays hockey and football with the boys. In the bull’s incident, she is brave enough to accept the blame for the bull’s escape instead of blaming someone else. Azreen also shows her courage by taking up the dare to knock on the Old Lady’s door when none wants to do it. In another instance, Azreen confronts her father about Madhuri’s murder despite her young age.
Azreen also has strength of character. When she returns to her village, she hears a lot of gossip surrounding her sister’s death such as as Madhuri having white blood and her death signals a curse to the villagers. Azreen feels upset but she never retaliates.  Sheshows patience and strengh because she knows that whatever she does, she cannot stop the villagers from gossiping about her family.  In another instance, Azreen is told that her sister is murdered.  She should have been very upset about this news but she takes it calmly and does not become hysterical. Later, when she finds out that her father is the culprit who kills Madhuri, she feels no anger but regrets that it has to happen. She understands her father’s anger and shame because Madhuri  has been having an illicit affair with Ashraf although she is already married to Hj Ghani.  Azreen also shows a lot of strength because after all that has happened to her family, she stays composed and strong and returns to England for her examinations.
In conclusion,  there are many qualities in Azreen that I admire and she is the character that I like most in the story.

a) In the Curse by Lee Sue Ann, the character whom I think is exemplary is The Old Lady of the forest. Throughout the novel, she shows strength of character and wisdom.
When she first moves to the village as a newlywed, she is popular among the villagers and she enjoys a blissful marital life with her husband. Everything changes as her husband who becomes an alcoholic starts to abuse her and finally she retaliates and kills him. From then on, the villagers treat her like an outcast. She is forced to move out of the village and makes an abandoned house her home. She lives alone for years until she befriends Azreen and becomes her mentor and will console her whenever she has a fight with her parents.
When Asraf approaches The Old Lady for help, she is hesitant about going back to the village. Yet she agrees and doing so, she puts her life at risk. When she is trapped in the burning house, she tells Azreen to save herself and she perishes in the fire. Even at death’s door, she reminds Azreen about the importance of forgiveness and tells her to heed all the advice she has given her.
The Old Lady is therefore an exemplary character as she is strong, wise and honourable.
 b)            Based on  the novel The Curse by Lee Sue Ann, the character that I consider  exemplary is Azreen because she is courageous and brave. She shows resilience and she always fight for what she believes in.
Firstly, Azreen who does not believe the villagers tales about The Old Lady is being brave by accepting her friend’s challenge to firstly knocking on the door of The Old lady and then meet her in person.  . Subsequently, she befriends The Old Lady and makes her, her precious confidante and counselor.
In addition, Azreen is courageous by confronting Puan Normala’s mob outside Mohd Asraf’s house when Nek once again has fallen ill and died in order to stop her from entering Nek’s house. Although she is outnumbered, she dares to face Puan Normala’s horde to protect Nek’s house from them.  Moreover, she confronts a group of men led by Asraf who goes to the Old lady’s house to seek revenge after Nek dies as they believe the Old lady has poisoned Nek.
It is a dog-eat-dog world out there and we must be brave and courageous to overcome our daily obstacles and stand for our own rights. We should not be intimidated by our fear and we must be like Azreen in order to survive the world.
The second exemplary qualities of Azreen is that she portrays resilience throughout the story and she constantly fights for what she believes in. This can be seen when Azreen does not give up and is determine and resilience to seek the truth of Madhuri’s death even though others do not want to tell her the truth. She asks Asraf and The Old Lady about Madhuri’s death and slowly gather evidences and finally she knows the truth about Madhuri’s killing.
In her village, a woman should be conservative and well mannered but Azreen is a contrast to that and thus she is hated but she ignores the villagers’ perception of her, as she believes that women have their own rights. This can be seen as she befriends Asraf and joins the boys’ hockey team and similarly makes The Old Lady her best friend.
In this cruel world, we must stand for our own right and fight for what we believe in. We must follow Azreen’s resilience to make this world a better place.
4.     Write on a character that I admire / like
The novel The Curse by Lee Su Ann is very interesting. The character I like the most is Azreen. Azreen is from Langkawi. She studies in London. Her father is Salleh Ghani. Her sister is Madhuri. Madhuri is not Azreen real sister. I like Azreen because she is responsible. She takes care of her sick mother. She bathes and feeds her mother. When Old Lady vegetable garden is trampled, she repairs it.
Azreen is determined. She always studies hard. She also wants to find Madhuri’s murderer. She does not give up. Finally, she finds out the truth. Azreen is also brave and courageous. She is Old Lady’s friend. She is not afraid of the stories. The villagers say she is a witch. Azreen does not care. It is not true. When Old Lady’s house is in fire, Azreen wants to rescue her. She is really brave.
I like Azreen because she is a loyal. She defends Mohamad Asraf. She says she opens the gate of the farm. Azreen is a strong girl. I wish I have a friend like her. When her mother’s basket is damaged, she takes the blame. Azreen wants to protect the people she loves.
Azreen is responsible, determined, brave and loyal. Those are the reasons why I like her. She is a good role model.

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