Cambridge IGCSE® (9–1) SET D

FIRST LANGUAGE ENGLISH 0990/01

Paper 1 Reading

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● This insert contains the reading texts.
● You may annotate this insert and use the blank spaces for planning. Do not write your answers on the
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Read Text A, and then answer Questions 1(a)–1(e) on the question paper.

Text A: Thousands of artefacts are discovered at a 12,500-year-old

Native American site in Connecticut

This text is an article about a newly-discovered Native American site.

An ancient settlement that dates back 12,500 years has been uncovered in
Connecticut that was once home to southern New England's earliest inhabitants.
Archaeologists found an open fire pit and a number of posts from temporary housing,
along with 15,000 artefacts that were mostly primeval tools.

An archaeologist explained: 'This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. This site has 5

the potential to make us understand the first peopling of Connecticut in a way we
haven't been able to.'

The features are remnants of what the team calls 'human activity'.

A Department of Transportation project required deep excavation for the

construction of a bridge, which is the only reason this ancient site was discovered. 10

The artefacts discovered in Connecticut coincide with a study from 2015 that
concluded the North American hunters used spear-throwers to hurl their weapons
over longer distances and bring down large prey.

Anthropologists have studied tiny fractures in the stone spear points used by the
hunters that began appearing in North America between 13,000 and 11,000 years 15
ago. They contained distinctive chips and fractures that match those created in stone
tools that have been thrown using a spear-thrower or atlatl. These are essentially
levers that are attached to the end of the spear or dart, allowing it to be thrown far
faster and further than if thrown by hand like a javelin.

The technology is widely thought to be a predecessor of the bow and arrow that later 20
became common among the Native cultures in North America.

The new study suggests that some of the earliest prehistoric humans to arrive in
North America, known as the Clovis people, brought this technology with them. It
also helps to support theories that these early hunters were able to kill large prey
like mammoths and other megafauna. 25

Archaeologists say it is unlikely a hand-thrown spear with a stone point alone would
be enough to bring down such large animals, but a spear-thrower could give hunters
the edge they needed. This would also have allowed these cultures to spread far
more efficiently around the continent and inhabit a wide range of landscapes.

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Read Text B, and then answer Question 1(f) on the question paper.

Text B: 'It's long overdue': the first exhibition for

Native American female artists

This text is a review of an art exhibition called ‘Hearts of Our People: Native Women Artists’

Walk into most museums and there might be something missing on the wall labels
beside Native American artworks – an Apache dress from the 19th century might
just read: “Title, year, materials.” What’s missing? The artist’s name. Though many
of the artists’ names were not recorded, and will forever be anonymous, many that
have been recorded are now being recognized as never before. 5

“This is the first, believe it or not, show devoted to Native women artists,” said Jill
Ahlberg Yohe, who co-curated the exhibit with Teri Greeves. “It’s the first to honour
Native women from ancient times to the contemporary moment.”

Then why did it take so long?

Most 19th-century art collectors were “men with a Victorian sensibility,” Yohe said. 10
For the most part, these men weren’t interested “in identifying women, or
individualizing Native people”.

She added: “90% of Native art is made by women. Native artists know this. It’s just
non-Native people who haven’t recognized that.”

The show is divided into three sections: legacy, relationships and power. 15

“The borders between the US and Canada weren’t created by indigenous people,
but by outside influences,” said Yohe. “All this work is connected to our history,
whether it was made in 1500 or 2019. It’s all a part of the American and Canadian
story.”

One of the most fun pieces in the exhibit is a pair of heels by the artist Jamie Okuma. 20
The artist has taken a pair of Christian Louboutin heels and covered them in what
Yohe calls “Native couture” – including the likes of glass beads, porcupine quills and
buckskin. The work counteracts the stereotype that Native art lives in the past and
lacks sophistication.

The artworks here are more than just decorative or folk-art masterpieces. They offer 25
an overlooked, often silenced narrative. “Their work tells the story of Native people,
the idea of resilience, despite all measures of annihilation of federal policy, settlers
and acts of genocide,” said Yohe.

The Anishinaabe artist Rebecca Belmore shows Fringe, a sculpture from 2007,
which draws attention to the violence against First Nations women with a gaping 30
back scar the artist believes will never disappear. But this exhibition is, in part, about
healing.

For one, it aims to be a counter-narrative. They’re calling it “corrective art history”

to the dusty old textbooks that ignored them for decades.

“It’s long overdue,” said Yohe. “Native women’s art history is American history.”
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Read Text C, and then answer Questions 2(a)–(d) and Question 3 on the question paper.

Text C: Two Old Women

This text is taken from a short novel. At his point in the story, it is an unusually cold winter in
Alaska and a nomadic Native American tribe, facing starvation, is struggling to survive. The
temperatures are below freezing and many women and children are suffering malnutrition.

In this particular band were two old women cared for by The People for many years.
The older woman's name was Ch'idzigyaak, for she reminded her parents of a
chickadee bird when she was born. The other woman's name was Sa', meaning
1
''star," because at the time of her birth her mother had been looking at the fall night
sky, concentrating on the distant stars to take her mind away from the painful labour 5
contractions.

The chief would instruct the younger men to set up shelters for these two old women
each time the band arrived at a new campsite, and to provide them with wood and
water. The younger women pulled the two elder women's possessions from one
camp to the next and, in turn, the old women tanned 2 animal skins for those who 10
helped them. The arrangement worked well.

However, the two old women shared a character flaw unusual for people of those
times. Constantly they complained of aches and pains, and they carried walking
sticks to attest to their handicaps. Surprisingly, the others seemed not to mind,
despite having been taught from the days of their childhood that weakness was not 15
tolerated among the inhabitants of this harsh motherland. Yet, no one reprimanded
the two women, and they continued to travel with the stronger ones – until one fateful
day.

On that day, something more than the cold hung in the air as The People gathered
around their few flickering fires and listened to the chief. He was a man who stood 20
almost a head taller than the other men. From within the folds of his parka ruff he
spoke about the cold, hard days they were to expect and of what each would have
to contribute if they were to survive the winter.

Then, in a loud, clear voice he made a sudden announcement: ''The council and I
have arrived at a decision." The chief paused as if to find the strength to voice his 25
next words. ''We are going to have to leave the old ones behind." His eyes quickly
scanned the crowd for reactions.

But the hunger and cold had taken their toll, and The People did not seem to be
shocked. Many expected this to happen, and some thought it for the best. In those
days, leaving the old behind in times of starvation was not an unknown act, although 30
in this band it was happening for the first time.

The starkness of the primitive land seemed to demand it, as the people, to survive,
were forced to imitate some of the ways of the animals. Like the younger, more able
wolves who shun the old leader of the pack, these people would leave the old behind
so that they could move faster without the extra burden. 35

1
fall: Autumn
2
tanned: convert into leather
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The older woman, Ch'idzigyaak, had a daughter and a grandson among the group.
The chief looked into the crowd for them and saw that they, too, had shown no
reaction. Greatly relieved that the unpleasant announcement had been made
without incident, the chief instructed everyone to pack immediately. Meanwhile, this
brave man who was their leader could not bring himself to look at the two old women, 40
for he did not feel so strong now.

The chief understood why The People who cared for the old women did not raise
objections. In these hard times, many of the men became frustrated and were
angered easily, and one wrong thing said or done could cause an uproar and make
matters worse. So it was that the weak and beaten members of the tribe kept what 45
dismay they felt to themselves, for they knew that the cold could bring on a wave of
panic followed by cruelty and brutality among people fighting for survival.

In the many years the women had been with the band, the chief had come to feel
affection for them. Now, he wanted to be away as quickly as possible.

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