Question

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.

“Vienna was still an old imperial city, whose geographical position between the two irreconcilable worlds left behind by the second World War had turned it into a paradise of black marketeering and international espionage. I could not have imagined a more suitable spot for my fugitive compatriot, who still ate in the students’ tavern on the corner only out of loyalty to her origins, since she had more than enough money to buy meals for all her table companions. She never told her real name.”

1. Who does ‘her’ refer to here?
2. How did the narrator know ‘her’ as?
3. What new status had Vienna acquired after Second World War?
4. Was ‘her’ a native of Vienna? Pick the word/phrase which shows that.
5. Why did ‘her’ still eat at students’ tavern?
6. Which word is a good synonym for ‘espionage’?
   1. spying
   2. esoteric
   3. eclectic
   4. espoused

Answer 1

1. Frau Frieda
2. The narrator knew her as Frau Frieda as a compatriot, which suggests they shared the same nationality or background.
3. After second world war, Vienna had become a hot bed of Black marketeering and espionage.
4. She wasn’t a native of Vienna. The word ‘fugitive’ shows that.
5. She still ate at students’ tavern owing to her allegiance to her roots.
6. spying