AP ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION Test Booklet

Week 4 MCQ

(1) While dogs are highly social and easily trained, with an innate desire to please, cats are . . . well, cats. (2) But both
have succeeded at the process of domestication from their wild ancestors: they are the two most popular pets in the United
States. (3) Though so different, both species domesticated themselves by joining humans for their own benefit and
providing benefits in return, thus ensuring their places beside humans.

(4) Dogs descended from wolves almost 41,000 years ago, when humans were hunter-gatherers. (5) Although some argue
that domestication took place when humans captured and raised wolf pups as pets, far more likely is that some wolves
began to follow human hunters. (6) Skilled at hunting in groups, they eventually assisted humans on the hunt, and, as their
territorial interests merged with those of humans, they provided them with protection and warning against intruders. (7)
This combination of usefulness, mutual interest, and similar social structure created a canine-human bond that has
endured for millennia.

(8) Cats, whose ancestors are the wildcat Felis silvestris lybica, were domesticated much later, although earlier than once
believed. (9) Archaeologists long assumed they were first domesticated about 4,000 years ago by the Egyptians, whose
paintings were the first to depict domestic cats. (10) First was the discovery, in 2004, of a wildcat buried near a human
skeleton in a 9,500-year-old grave in Cyprus. (11) Subsequently, genetic analysis confirmed the presence of Felis
silvestris lybica in Turkey dating back 9,000 years and in southeastern Europe dating back 6,500 years. (12) Moreover,
that these appearances coincided with the invention of agriculture was not accidental: as farmers began storing grain,
rodents appeared in large numbers, and cats soon followed this supply of prey. (13) As with dogs thousands of years
earlier, these cat ancestors both benefited from their contact with humans (in the form of a steady food supply) and
benefited humans (by ridding farmers of rodents). (14) The recent discovery at the site of a 5,500-year-old Chinese
farming village of cultivated millet isotopes in the bones of both rodents (who ate the millet) and cats (who ate the
rodents) proves that agriculture brought us more than just food.

1. Which of the following sentences, if placed before sentence 1, would best orient the audience and provide an
engaging introduction to the topic of the first paragraph?
(A) The process of domestication varies by species.
(B) As any pet owner knows, dogs and cats are very different.
(C) Domestication is the taming of an animal and then keeping it as a pet or as a farm animal.
(D) The personalities of cat owners and dog owners are as different as the personalities of the pets they prefer.

2. Which of the following versions of sentence 3 (reproduced below) best previews the line of reasoning in the
passage?

Though so different, both species domesticated themselves by joining humans for their own benefit and providing
benefits in return, thus ensuring their places beside humans.
(A) (As it is now)
However, because cats and dogs are so dissimilar in their behaviors, many people prefer one animal to the
(B)
other.
While dogs may be the oldest companion species of humans, this does not necessarily mean that cats are less
(C)
thoroughly domesticated than dogs are.
(D) Obtaining access to a steady supply of food is crucial to the story of domestication for both species.

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Week 4 MCQ

3. In sentence 14 (reproduced below), the writer wants to provide descriptive details that appeal to the audience’s
emotions and experiences.

The recent discovery at the site of a 5,500-year-old Chinese farming village of cultivated millet isotopes in the
bones of both rodents (who ate the millet) and cats (who ate the rodents) proves that agriculture brought us more
than just food.

Which of the following versions of the underlined text best achieves this purpose?
(A) (as it is now)
(B) food, the history of which is equally as fascinating as the history of the domestication of dogs and cats
food; farmers continue to struggle with the problems of pests to this day, but the technology at their disposal
(C)
is far greater than anything these early farmers could have imagined
food: it also brought us those graceful, warm, furry creatures who snooze contentedly in our homes and
(D)
delight us with their playful antics

(1) While dogs are highly social and easily trained, with an innate desire to please, cats are . . . well, cats. (2) But both
have succeeded at the process of domestication from their wild ancestors: they are the two most popular pets in the United
States. (3) Though so different, both species domesticated themselves by joining humans for their own benefit and
providing benefits in return, thus ensuring their places beside humans.

(4) Dogs descended from wolves almost 41,000 years ago, when humans were hunter-gatherers. (5) Although some argue
that domestication took place when humans captured and raised wolf pups as pets, far more likely is that some wolves
began to follow human hunters. (6) Skilled at hunting in groups, they eventually assisted humans on the hunt, and, as their
territorial interests merged with those of humans, they provided them with protection and warning against intruders. (7)
This combination of usefulness, mutual interest, and similar social structure created a canine-human bond that has
endured for millennia.

(8) Cats, whose ancestors are the wildcat Felis silvestris lybica, were domesticated much later, although earlier than once
believed. (9) Archaeologists long assumed they were first domesticated about 4,000 years ago by the Egyptians, whose
paintings were the first to depict domestic cats. (10) First was the discovery, in 2004, of a wildcat buried near a human
skeleton in a 9,500-year-old grave in Cyprus. (11) Subsequently, genetic analysis confirmed the presence of Felis
silvestris lybica in Turkey dating back 9,000 years and in southeastern Europe dating back 6,500 years. (12) Moreover,
that these appearances coincided with the invention of agriculture was not accidental: as farmers began storing grain,
rodents appeared in large numbers, and cats soon followed this supply of prey. (13) As with dogs thousands of years
earlier, these cat ancestors both benefited from their contact with humans (in the form of a steady food supply) and
benefited humans (by ridding farmers of rodents). (14) The recent discovery at the site of a
5,500-year-old Chinese farming village of cultivated millet isotopes in the bones of both rodents (who ate the millet) and
cats (who ate the rodents) proves that agriculture brought us more than just food.

4. Which of the following sentences, if placed before sentence 1, would best orient the audience and provide an
engaging introduction to the topic of the first paragraph?
(A) The process of domestication varies by species.
(B) As any pet owner knows, dogs and cats are very different.
The natural instincts of dogs and cats toward one another are usually antagonistic, but pet owners can help
(C)
foster friendly relationships between their pets.
(D) The personalities of cat owners and dog owners are as different as the personalities of the pets they prefer.

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 Test Booklet

Week 4 MCQ

(1) While dogs are highly social and easily trained, with an innate desire to please, cats are . . . well, cats. (2) But both
have succeeded at the process of domestication from their wild ancestors: they are the two most popular pets in the United
States. (3) Though so different, both species domesticated themselves by joining humans for their own benefit and
providing benefits in return, thus ensuring their places beside humans.

(4) Dogs descended from wolves almost 41,000 years ago, when humans were hunter-gatherers. (5) Although some argue
that domestication took place when humans captured and raised wolf pups as pets, far more likely is that some wolves
began to follow human hunters. (6) Skilled at hunting in groups, they eventually assisted humans on the hunt, and, as their
territorial interests merged with those of humans, they provided them with protection and warning against intruders. (7)
This combination of usefulness, mutual interest, and similar social structure created a canine-human bond that has
endured for millennia.

(8) Cats, whose ancestors are the wildcat Felis silvestris lybica, were domesticated much later, although earlier than once
believed. (9) Archaeologists long assumed they were first domesticated about 4,000 years ago by the Egyptians, whose
paintings were the first to depict domestic cats. (10) First was the discovery, in 2004, of a wildcat buried near a human
skeleton in a 9,500-year-old grave in Cyprus. (11) Subsequently, genetic analysis confirmed the presence of Felis
silvestris lybica in Turkey dating back 9,000 years and in southeastern Europe dating back 6,500 years. (12) Moreover,
that these appearances coincided with the invention of agriculture was not accidental: as farmers began storing grain,
rodents appeared in large numbers, and cats soon followed this supply of prey. (13) As with dogs thousands of years
earlier, these cat ancestors both benefited from their contact with humans (in the form of a steady food supply) and
benefited humans (by ridding farmers of rodents). (14) The recent discovery at the site of a 5,500-year-old Chinese
farming village of cultivated millet isotopes in the bones of both rodents (who ate the millet) and cats (who ate the
rodents) proves that agriculture brought us more than just food.

5. In sentence 5 (reproduced below), the writer wants to provide further evidence to refute the claim that the
domestication of dogs occurred when humans captured and raised wolf pups as pets.

Although some argue that domestication took place when humans captured and raised wolf pups as pets, far more
likely is that some wolves began to follow human hunters.

Which of the following versions of the underlined text best accomplishes this goal?
(A) hunters, though always careful not to get too close to these hunters
(B) hunters, who led a nomadic lifestyle
(C) hunters, drawn by the smell of cooking meat and the chance to scavenge
(D) hunters, sometimes for extended periods

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Week 4 MCQ

(The following passage is an excerpt from a speech delivered by a leading women’s rights activist in 1913.)

If I were a man and I said to you, “I come from a country which professes to have representative institutions and yet
denies me, a taxpayer, an inhabitant of the country, representative rights,” you would at once understand that that human
being, being a man, was justified in the adoption of revolutionary methods to get representative institutions. But since I
am a woman it is necessary in the twentieth century to explain why women have adopted revolutionary methods in order
to win the rights of citizenship.

You see, in spite of a good deal that we hear about revolutionary methods not being necessary for American women,
because American women are so well off, most of the men of the United States quite calmly acquiesce in the fact that half
of the community are deprived absolutely of citizen rights, and we women, in trying to make our case clear, always have
to make as part of our argument, and urge upon men in our audience the fact—a very simple fact—that women are human
beings. It is quite evident you do not all realize we are human beings or it would not be necessary to argue with you that
women may, suffering from intolerable injustice, be driven to adopt revolutionary methods. We have, first of all to
convince you we are human beings, and I hope to be able to do that in the course of the evening before I sit down, but
before doing that, I want to put a few political arguments before you—not arguments for the suffrage,* because I said
when I opened, I didn’t mean to do that—but arguments for the adoption of militant methods in order to win political
rights.

A great many of you have been led to believe, from the somewhat meager accounts you get in the newspapers, that in
England there is a strange manifestation taking place, a new form of hysteria being swept across part of the feminist
population of those Isles, and this manifestation takes the shape of irresponsible breaking of windows, burning of letters,
general inconvenience to respectable, honest business people who want to attend to their business. It is very irrational you
say: even if these women had sufficient intelligence to understand what they were doing, and really did want the vote,
they have adopted very irrational means for getting the vote. “How are they going to persuade people that they ought to
have the vote by breaking their windows?” you say. Now, if you say that, it shows you do not understand the meaning of
our revolution at all, and I want to show you that when damage is done to property it is not done in order to convert
people to woman suffrage at all. It is a practical political means, the only means we consider open to voteless persons to
bring about a political situation, which can only be solved by giving women the vote.

Suppose the men of Hartford had a grievance, and they laid that grievance before their legislature, and the legislature
obstinately refused to listen to them, or to remove their grievance, what would be the proper and the constitutional and the
practical way of getting their grievance removed? Well, it is perfectly obvious at the next general election, when the
legislature is elected, the men of Hartford in sufficient numbers would turn out that legislature and elect a new one:
entirely change the personnel of an obstinate legislature which would not remove their grievance. It is perfectly simple
and perfectly easy for voting communities to get their grievances removed if they act in combination and make an
example of the legislature by changing the composition of the legislature and sending better people to take the place of
those who have failed to do justice.

But let the men of Hartford imagine that they were not in the position of being voters at all, that they were governed
without their consent being obtained, that the legislature turned an absolutely deaf ear to their demands, what would the
men of Hartford do then? They couldn’t vote the legislature out. They would have to choose; they would have to make a
choice of two evils: they would either have to submit indefinitely to an unjust state of affairs, or they would have to rise
up and adopt some of the antiquated means by which men in the past got their grievances remedied.

* the right of voting

6. Which of the following best describes the author’s exigence in the passage?

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Week 4 MCQ

(A) The lack of interest among eligible voters in the political process
(B) The limited resources available to women for changing existing power structures
(C) Widening disparities in the socioeconomic circumstances of American and British women
(D) Public resentment of the high tax rate imposed by the government

7. In the opening paragraph, the author contrasts a hypothetical rhetorical situation with her own primarily to
(A) illustrate the double standards for men and women in the political realm
(B) explain why women are more reluctant to adopt revolutionary methods than men
(C) emphasize the influence of women on democratic culture in the United States
(D) suggest that American women’s civil rights have been eroded in the twentieth century

8. In the second paragraph, which of the following best characterizes the author’s position on the relevance of her
topic for American women?
Because American women are “so well off” (paragraph 2, sentence 1), it is unnecessary for them to adopt the
(A)
methods described by the author.
Because American women are “so well off” (paragraph 2, sentence 1), they have access to methods other
(B)
than those described by the author.
Although the methods described by the author are best suited for American men, American women could
(C)
adapt such methods for use in the domestic sphere.
Although American women are perceived as “well off” (paragraph 2, sentence 1), they should nonetheless
(D)
consider adopting the methods described by the author.

9. In context, the first two sentences of the second paragraph (“You see . . . revolutionary methods”) could be used to
support which of the following claims about the author’s tone?
(A) Her tone when discussing American women is patronizing.
(B) Her tone when discussing American men is ingratiating.
(C) She adopts a bold, forthright tone in approaching her subject.
(D) She adopts a reverent, admiring tone in dealing with her subject.

10. In the third paragraph, the author criticizes the logic of those who dismiss the methods of British feminists as
“irrational” (paragraph 3, sentence 2) on the grounds that they have
(A) misconstrued the feminists’ reasons for employing the strategies they have chosen to employ
(B) overlooked accounts that present a less provocative view of feminist activism in Britain
(C) ignored a key distinction between American feminists and British feminists
(D) assumed that feminists do not understand the normal political process

11. In the fourth paragraph, the author introduces a hypothetical scenario primarily to
(A) question the motives of those who demand immediate changes to the status quo
(B) underscore the efficiency of voting as a means of addressing political discontents
(C) spotlight the special political privileges recently accorded to the men of Hartford
(D) encourage women’s rights activists to emulate the example of the men of Hartford

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Week 4 MCQ

12. In the context of the passage, all of the following phrases refer to the same idea EXCEPT
(A) “revolutionary methods” (paragraph 1, sentence 1)
(B) “the only means we consider open to voteless persons” (paragraph 3, sentence 5)
“the proper and the constitutional and the practical way of getting their grievance removed” (paragraph 4,
(C)
sentence 1)
“some of the antiquated means by which men in the past got their grievances remedied” (paragraph 5,
(D)
sentence 3)

13. In the last sentence of the passage (“They would have . . . grievances remedied”), the author uses the “either . . . or”
construction in order to
(A) provide two possible explanations for why American women have not yet won the right to vote
(B) offer two alternative methods of accomplishing the same goal
(C) assert that patience is critical to smooth political transitions
(D) imply that disruptive action may be the only way of resisting oppression in certain situations

(The passage below is a draft.)

(1) After an unsuccessful search, NASA determined that instead of following a trajectory that would allow the Orbiter to
enter orbit around Mars, it came too close to the planet, causing it to enter and disintegrate in Mars’s atmosphere. (2) The
culprit was a discrepancy in the software that controlled the spacecraft’s thrusters: one team of engineers had calculated
the force needed from the thrusters in pounds, an imperial unit, while another team calculated the force in newtons, a
metric unit.

(3) The Orbiter mission failure is just one reason, albeit an extremely expensive one, that the United States needs to
abandon future Mars survey missions. (4) Most of the world uses the metric system, a decimal measurement system that
allows for simple scaling and calculations by adding the relevant prefixes: one kilometer, for example, is 1,000 meters,
and one kilogram is 1,000 grams. (5) The imperial measurement system used in the United States assigns values
haphazardly: one mile is 5,280 feet long, while one pound is 16 ounces.

(6) The United States is one of only three countries—the others are Liberia and Myanmar—that have not fully adopted the
metric system. (7) Not only are conversion errors such as the Orbiter one costly, they can be deadly. (8) Wrong dosing of
medicine due to unit confusion (teaspoons versus milliliters) results in trips to the emergency room each year.
(9) Switching to the metric system would also benefit United States industries; the European Union, for example, has been
requiring its member states to standardize their metric systems since 1971.

(10) Converting to metric may seem difficult, but the United States already uses it more than you might think, from races
(that 5K you’re running) to soft drinks (that 2-liter bottle you bought) to high school science classes (those 250-milliliter
beakers you used in chemistry). (11) It’s time for the United States to make the leap to metric in everything else it
measures.

14. Which of the following sentences, if placed before sentence 1, would both capture the audience’s interest and
provide the most effective introduction to the topic of the paragraph?

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Week 4 MCQ

NASA’s Mars Climate Orbiter was launched on December 11, 1998, from the Cape Canaveral Air Force
(A)
Station in Florida.
On September 23, 1999, NASA officials were aghast when the $125 million Mars Climate Orbiter vanished
(B)
as it prepared to enter the red planet’s orbit.
As part of a new set of missions intended to survey the planet Mars, the Mars Climate Orbiter was launched
(C)
by NASA scientists to study Mars’s climate and weather.
When NASA officials lost contact with their Mars Climate Orbiter on September 23, 1999, they immediately
(D)
instigated a search for the spacecraft using NASA’s Deep Space Network of radio antennae.

15. In sentence 2 (reproduced below), the writer wants an effective transition from the introductory paragraph to the
main idea of the passage.

The culprit was a discrepancy in the software that controlled the spacecraft’s thrusters: one team of engineers had
calculated the force needed from the thrusters in pounds, an imperial unit, while another team calculated the force
in newtons, a metric unit.

Which of the following versions of the underlined text best achieves this purpose?
(A) (as it is now)
thrusters; the data from the spacecraft and the data from NASA’s computers on the ground had not been
(B)
matching up for months since the launch of the Orbiter
thrusters—software that was used to calculate the trajectory the Orbiter needed to take in order to enter
(C)
Mars’s orbit successfully
thrusters: four thrusters were used for trajectory correction maneuvers as well as pitch and yaw control, while
(D)
another four were used for roll control

16. In sentence 3 (reproduced below), which of the following versions of the underlined text best establishes the
writer’s thesis in the passage?

The Orbiter mission failure is just one reason, albeit an extremely expensive one, that the United States needs to
abandon future Mars survey missions.
(A) (as it is now)
(B) should consider privatizing space exploration
(C) needs to adopt the metric system
(D) should partner with other countries on future missions to outer space

17. The writer wants to add a phrase at the beginning of sentence 5 (reproduced below), adjusting the capitalization as
needed, to set up a comparison with the idea discussed in sentence 4.

The imperial measurement system used in the United States assigns values haphazardly: one mile is 5,280 feet long,
while one pound is 16 ounces.

Which of the following choices best accomplishes this goal?

(A) Furthermore,
(B) For example,
(C) Similarly,
(D) By contrast,

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Week 4 MCQ

18. In sentence 9 (reproduced below), the writer wants to provide a convincing explanation for why switching to the
metric system would benefit United States industries.

Switching to the metric system would also benefit United States industries; the European Union, for example, has
been requiring its member states to standardize their metric systems since 1971.

Which version of the underlined text best accomplishes this goal?

(A) (as it is now)
industries: since most of the world already uses the metric system, it is likely to be the only measuring
(B)
system in the future
industries; in fact, the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988, passed by Congress and signed into
(C)
law by President Ronald Reagan, encouraged United States industries to adopt the metric system
industries: those with products in both domestic and international markets would no longer need to design in
(D) and produce to two different measurement systems, reducing both product overlap and manufacturing
inefficiencies

19. The writer wants to add the following sentence to the third paragraph (sentences 6-9) to provide additional
explanation.

This means that the United States must convert to metric units whenever it is dealing with the rest of the world.

Where would the sentence best be placed?

(A) After sentence 6
(B) After sentence 7
(C) After sentence 8
(D) After sentence 9

20. The writer wants to add more information to the third paragraph (sentences 6-9) to support the main argument of the
paragraph. All of the following pieces of evidence help achieve this purpose EXCEPT which one?
A mechanical failure on an amusement park ride that occurred because the imperial size of a particular part
(A)
was ordered instead of the metric size
A quote from Thomas Jefferson’s eighteenth-century proposal for a new decimal system to standardize
(B)
weights and measures
Data from a United States company demonstrating an increase in profits because of its conversion to the
(C)
metric system
A map showing the countries that use the metric system shaded in one color and those that use the imperial
(D)
system shaded in another color

21. In the fourth paragraph (sentences 10-11), the writer wants to expand on the concession that converting to the metric
system may seem difficult. Which of the following claims would best achieve this purpose?

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Week 4 MCQ

(A) Many attempts to make the United States adopt the metric system have already been made.
The units in the imperial system were first officially defined by the Office of the Exchequer in Great Britain
(B)
in 1824, but they have existed as the Winchester Standards since 1588.
Some people in Great Britain, which adopted the metric system decades ago, want to return to the imperial
(C)
system.
It would be extremely costly as well as confusing for the United States to manage the overwhelming task of
(D)
converting everything from road signs to measuring cups to the metric system.

22. In the fourth paragraph (sentences 10-11), the writer wants to provide further evidence to rebut the claim that
converting to the metric system might be difficult. Which of the following pieces of evidence would best achieve
this purpose?
A 2012 petition, signed by over 25,000 people, urging the White House to adopt the metric system in the
(A)
United States
(B) An interview from an opponent of adopting the metric system in the United States
A description of the successful adoption of the metric system by Great Britain, which had previously used the
(C)
imperial system
A United States government report estimating the cost of converting highway signs on state roads at $334
(D)
million dollars

(The passage below is a draft.)

(1) In the 1960s, the Chicano movement sought to create an uproar over the experiences of Mexican American people in
the United States. (2) The movement concentrated primarily on the rights of agricultural workers but also on larger
matters affecting the Mexican American community at the time. (3) Inspired by these efforts, a number of Mexican
American artists turned to printmaking as a form of artistic expression.

(4) Some printmakers looked to Mexico’s illustrious past, while others focused on the present as inspiration for their
pieces. (5) For instance, Xavier Viramontes’ print Boycott Grapes, Support the United Farm Workers Union was inspired
by an initiative to get consumers to stop buying grapes in support of farm laborers in California. (6) Viramontes’ poster
shows a determined-looking Aztec (a powerful civilization that flourished in Central Mexico in the fifteenth and sixteenth
centuries) deity squeezing a bunch of grapes. (7) Viramontes’ imagery highlights the strength of the boycott movement
while it simultaneously promotes the campaign’s message.

(8) Other works are less overtly activist in nature and instead incorporate cultural traditions and historical figures to
celebrate the artists’ heritage. (9) For instance, two prints created by Ester Hernandez in 1987 and 2001 show singer and
guitar player Lydia Mendoza, who is known as the mother of Tejano music. (10) Three other prints are made by the same
artist. (11) Frida Kahlo is a painter from Mexico, and she is depicted on those three prints. (12) Other notable prints
include numerous posters inspired by Día de los Muertos, an important Mexican holiday, and by prominent figures from
Mexican history such as military leaders Francisco “Pancho” Villa and Emiliano Zapata. (13) Taken together, such works
remind viewers of the rich legacy of the Mexican American community.

(14) Art critics long tended to give little attention to the prints inspired by the Chicano movement, but this trend is
changing. (15) In 2020, the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., presented a large exhibition of such prints,
showing that they are beginning to get the notoriety they deserve as an iconic part of the history of visual arts and
Mexican American culture in the US.

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Week 4 MCQ

23. The writer is considering adding the following sentence after sentence 5.

The boycott, which persuaded millions of families to temporarily give up grapes, was a success.

Should the writer add this sentence after sentence 5 ?

(A) Yes, because it sets up the description of Viramontes’ print that follows in the next sentence.
(B) Yes, because it explains why grapes are prominently featured in the print’s title.
(C) No, because it adds information that is not directly relevant to the discussion of Viramontes’ work.
No, because it introduces a counterargument about Viramontes’ poster that is not rebutted later in the
(D)
passage.

24. The writer wants to use a neutral tone to describe the goals of the Chicano movement in sentence 1 (reproduced
below).

In the 1960s, the Chicano movement sought to create an uproar over the experiences of Mexican American people
in the United States.

Which of the following versions of the underlined text best accomplishes this goal?
(A) (as it is now)
(B) bring attention to
(C) make a fuss over
(D) cause a ruckus about

25. In sentence 2 (reproduced below), the writer wants to develop the introduction to the passage’s topic by providing
relevant information about the focus and scope of the Chicano movement.

The movement concentrated primarily on the rights of agricultural workers but also on larger matters affecting the
Mexican American community at the time.

Which of the following versions of the underlined text best accomplishes this goal?
(A) (as it is now)
(B) and was led by labor organizers César Chávez and Dolores Huerta
(C) but took much of its inspiration from the African American Civil Rights movement
(D) and collaborated closely with a Filipino labor organization with the same goals

26. The writer wants to add information to the end of sentence 3 (reproduced below), adjusting the punctuation as
needed, to better express the main claim of the passage.

Inspired by these efforts, a number of Mexican American artists turned to printmaking as a form of artistic
expression.

Which of the following choices best accomplishes this goal?

(A) employing a multitude of techniques and drawing on a variety of aesthetic traditions
(B) to celebrate the accomplishments of other Mexican American people around the country
(C) to reflect the issues raised by the Chicano movement and as a means of cultural affirmation
(D) aiming to educate the public about Mexican traditions within and outside the United States

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Week 4 MCQ

27. In sentence 4 (reproduced below), the writer wants to set up the information that follows in the second paragraph.

Some printmakers looked to Mexico’s illustrious past, while others focused on the present as inspiration for their
pieces.

Which of the following versions of the underlined text most effectively accomplishes this goal?
(A) (as it is now)
(B) used their art to advertise festive events and celebrations in their local communities
(C) relied on irony and humor to comment on political or social issues that were important to them
(D) engaged directly with the work of the movement by making prints representing specific causes

28. The writer is considering changing sentence 15 (reproduced below) so that it conveys the information in the
sentence in the most precise way possible.

In 2020, the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., presented a large exhibition of such prints, showing that
they are beginning to get the notoriety they deserve as an iconic part of the history of visual arts and Mexican
American culture in the US.

Which of the following versions of the underlined text best accomplishes this goal?
(A) (as it is now)
(B) perception
(C) detection
(D) recognition

29. In sentence 8 (reproduced below), the writer wants to include an effective transition from the second paragraph to
the discussion that follows in the third paragraph.

Other works are less overtly activist in nature and instead incorporate cultural traditions and historical figures to
celebrate the artists’ heritage.

Which of the following versions of the underlined text best accomplishes this goal?
(A) (as it is now)
(B) even more controversial because they
(C) equally preoccupied with mythological creatures but also
(D) interested in critiquing the past even as they

30. The writer wants to combine sentences 9, 10, and 11 (reproduced below) into a single sentence to better express the
relationship between the ideas in these sentences.

For instance, two prints created by Ester Hernandez in 1987 and 2001 show singer and guitar player Lydia
Mendoza, who is known as the mother of Tejano music. Three other prints are made by the same artist. Frida Kahlo
is a painter from Mexico, and she is depicted on those three prints.

Which of the following revisions to the underlined portion of sentences 9, 10, and 11 most effectively accomplishes
this goal?

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(A) music; however, Mexican painter Frida Kahlo is depicted on three other prints by the same artist
(B) music, and as a Mexican painter, Frida Kahlo is depicted by the same artist on three other prints
(C) music; the same artist made three other prints, in fact, depicting Mexican painter Frida Kahlo
(D) music, while three other prints by the same artist depict Mexican painter Frida Kahlo

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Week 4 MCQ

Read the following passage carefully before you choose your answers.

(The passage below is excerpted from an essay published in the early twentieth century.)

Every child has to learn the language he is born to.

It is certain that he will make mistakes in the process,

especially as he is not taught it by any wise system,

but blunders into what usage he can grasp from day

5 to day.

Now, if an adult foreigner were learning our

language, and we greeted his efforts with yells of

laughter, we should think ourselves grossly rude.

And what should we think of ourselves if we further

10 misled him by setting absurd words and phrases

before him, encouraging him to further blunders, that

we might laugh the more; and then, if we had visitors

, inciting him to make these blunders over again to

entertain the company? Yet this is common household

15 sport, so long as there is a little child to act as zany*

for the amusement of his elders. The errors of a child

are not legitimate grounds of humour, even to those

coarse enough to laugh at them, any more than a

toddling baby’s falls have the same elements of the

20 incongruous as the overthrow of a stout old gentleman

who sits down astonished in the snow.

A baby has to fall. It is natural, and not funny. So

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does the young child have to make mistakes as he

learns any or all of the crowding tasks before him; but

25 these are not fair grounds for ridicule.

I was walking in a friend’s garden, and met for the

first time the daughter of the house, a tall, beautiful girl

of nineteen or twenty. Her aunt, who was with me, cried

out to her in an affected tone, “Come and

30 meet the lady, Janey!”

The young girl, who was evidently unpleasantly

impressed, looked annoyed, and turned aside in some

confusion, speaking softly to her teacher who was

with her. Then the aunt, who was a very muscular

35 woman, seized the young lady by her shoulders,

lifted her off the ground, and thrust her blushing, struggling,

and protesting into my arms—by way of introduction!

Naturally enough, the girl was overcome with

mortification, and conceived a violent dislike for me.

40 (This story is exactly true, except that the daughter of

the house was aged two and a half.)

Now why,—in the name of reason, courtesy,

education, justice, any lofty and noble consideration,

—why should Two-and-a-half be thus insulted? What

45 is the point of view of the insulter? How does she

justify her brutal behaviour? Is it on the obvious

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Week 4 MCQ

ground of physical superiority in age and strength? It

cannot be that, for we do not gratuitously outrage the

feelings of all persons younger and smaller than

50 ourselves. A stalwart six-foot septuagenarian does not

thus comport himself toward a small gentleman of

thirty or forty. It cannot be relationship; for such

conduct does not obtain among adults, be they never

so closely allied. It has no basis except that the victim

55 is a child, and the child has no personal rights which

we feel bound to respect.

A baby, when “good,” is considered as a first-rate

plaything,—a toy to play with or to play on or to set

going like a machine-top, that we may laugh at it.

60 There is a legitimate frolicking with small children, as

the cat plays with her kittens; but that is not in the

least inconsistent with respect. Grown people can play

together and laugh together without jeering at each

other. So we might laugh with our children, even

65 more than we do, and yet never laugh at them.

The pathetic side of it is that children are even more

sensitive to ridicule than grown people. They have no

philosophy to fall back upon; and,—here is the

hideously unjust side,—if they lose their tempers,

70 being yet unlearned in self-restraint,—if they try to

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turn the tables on their tormentors, then the wise

“grown-up” promptly punishes them for “disrespect.”

They must respect their elders even in this pitiful

attitude; but who is to demand the respect due to

75 youth?

*a clown or acrobat

31. The primary purpose of the passage is to

(A) detail a solution to a problem
(B) critique a common practice
(C) point out a discrepancy in a theory
(D) describe the origin of a movement

32. One contrast presented in the first paragraph (lines 1-5) is between
(A) graceful and clumsy movement
(B) formal and informal learning
(C) substantive and superficial mistakes
(D) mandatory and optional instruction

33. In the course of the second paragraph (lines 6-21), the focus of the argument shifts from
(A) foreigners’ language acquisition to foreigners’ adoption of local customs
(B) adults’ view of children to children’s view of themselves
(C) older children’s learning to infants’ learning
(D) adults’ language acquisition to children’s learning in general

34. The author’s word choice in lines 14-16 (“Yet this . . . elders”) serves which of the following functions?
(A) It helps establish a characterization of children as playthings.
(B) It emphasizes the pleasures of the domestic family unit.
(C) It reveals the author’s bias towards older generations in families.
(D) It questions the authority of parents and other relatives.

35. Which of the following best describes the rhetorical function of the third paragraph (lines 22-25)?

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(A) It makes an urgent appeal to the authority of experts.

(B) It makes a concession to an opposing point of view.
(C) It restates the author’s argument at a transitional place in the passage.
(D) It introduces a claim that is undermined in the following paragraph.

36. The primary function of the anecdote recounted in the fourth and fifth paragraphs (lines 26-41) is to
(A) emphasize a point by presenting an absurd example
(B) reinforce readers’ preconceived ideas in order to underscore a truism
(C) present a hypothetical case that challenges the author’s argument
(D) offer a model of etiquette for readers to emulate

37. In the sixth paragraph (lines 42-56), the author advances her argument by
(A) offering and then eliminating potential explanations
(B) acknowledging and then accepting common assumptions
(C) recognizing and then conceding to several challenges to her reasoning
(D) introducing and then elaborating on examples from her own personal experiences

38. The author’s tone in lines 42-45 (“Now why . . . the insulter”) can best be described as
(A) defensive
(B) witty
(C) exasperated
(D) ingratiating

39. According to the author, “the obvious ground” (lines 46-47) can be ruled out because it
(A) relies on a distinction that is actually rather subtle
(B) cannot be generalized to other similar situations
(C) is too simple an explanation for such a complex issue
(D) does not account for the widespread occurrence of a behavior

40. The analogies presented in line 59 (“like a machine-top”) and in lines 60-61 (“as the cat plays with her kittens”)
serve to
(A) make a distinction between the kinds of games that children play and those that adults play
exemplify a difference between how people typically treat children and how they should strive to treat
(B)
children
(C) set up a paradox to cause readers to question what they know about interacting with children
(D) illustrate the unintended consequences of a particular approach to child rearing

41. The three sentences in lines 60-65 (“There is . . . at them”) serve primarily to

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(A) recount a humorous story to lighten the discussion of a controversial issue

(B) provide a distinction to emphasize the passage’s main point
(C) offer an example to illustrate an unusual phenomenon discussed earlier
(D) introduce an analogy to justify a misunderstood practice

42. The quotation marks around the word “disrespect” in line 72 highlight the irony of the word because the behavior it
describes represents
(A) supposed adults’ deferential treatment of children
(B) parents’ lighthearted attempts to play with their offspring
(C) children’s eager mockery of adults’ behavior
(D) children’s inevitable reaction to being treated rudely by adults

43. The author uses the pronoun “we” throughout the passage to
(A) include adults and children in the same group
(B) highlight norms of adult behavior
(C) acknowledge readers’ solidarity with her ideals
(D) identify herself with other writers

44. In the passage as a whole, the author contrasts which of the following?
(A) The treatment of children and the treatment of adults
(B) The teaching of language to children and the teaching of language to foreigners
(C) The behavior of children and the behavior of foreigners
(D) The philosophy held by children and the philosophy held by adults

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