Benjamin Franklin
The first paragraph characterizes people in the contemporary US primarily as
A) charitable yet exacting
B) zealous yet deceitful
C) self-effacing yet proud
D) genial yet self-interested
E) mean-spirited yet honest
D) genial yet self-interested
The writer wants to add a sentence before sentence 1 to introduce the main topic of the passage. Which of the
following choices best accomplishes this goal?
(A)
Bananas have come a long way from being a luxury food in the early twentieth century to being one of the
most widely available fruits today.
(B)
The popular Cavendish banana requires a great deal of fertilizer and water as well as pesticides, insecticides,
and fungicides to grow.
(C)
The Cavendish banana, the most widely available type of banana in the world, is prized by consumers and
producers in part because of its predictability.
(D)
The popularity of bananas today can be traced back to an advertising campaign in the 1960s that focused on
the uniform, blemish-free appearance of Chiquita-brand bananas.
(E)
Americans eat an average of 28.5 pounds of bananas per person every year, making bananas the most
popular fruit in the United States.
(C)
The Cavendish banana, the most widely available type of banana in the world, is prized by consumers and
producers in part because of its predictability.
14. In the context of Paragraph 2, "Self-consciousness" means
(A) awkwardness
(B) caution
(C) shame
(D) idealism
(E) introspection
(E) introspection
19. The author indicates that a writer's ability to work with metaphor and imagery is less important than
Test Booklet
Multiple Choice Thursday 2/22/24
AP English Language and Composition Page 7 of 13
(A) a high sense of morality
(B) intellectual brilliance
(C) awareness of the artist's role in society
(D) the power to empathize with others
(E) the imparting of pleasure to the reader
(D) the power to empathize with others
The author uses the word "obscure" in the first sentence of paragraph 3 to mean
(A) ambiguous
(B) incomprehensible
(C) not well known
(D) uncertain
(E) unusually small
(C) not well known
The rhetorical purpose of Paragraph 1 ("And we...values" is to
(A) assert that the contemporary view of Franklin distorts his accomplishments
(B) suggest that Franklin did not balance his pursuits particularly well
(C) encourage the reader to analyze present-day leaders in the light of Franklin
(D) make Franklin seem more morally upright than he may actually have been
(E) prompt the reader to feel kinship with Franklin on the basis of the challenges he faced
(E) prompt the reader to feel kinship with Franklin on the basis of the challenges he faced
The writer wants to add a transition to the beginning of sentence 2 (reproduced below), adjusting the capitalization
and punctuation as needed, to show the relationship between sentences 1 and 2.
The uniformity of the Cavendish banana makes it uniquely vulnerable to disease.
Which of the following choices best accomplishes this goal?
(A) Similarly
(B) However
(C) Therefore
(D) Particularly
(E) For example
(B) However
In the passage, the author's overall attitude toward Bentham can best be described as
(A) grudgingly appreciative
(B) cleverly nonjudgmental
(C) bitterly disillusioned
(D) viciously sarcastic
(E) essentially negative
(E) essentially negative
The references in Paragraph 1 ("It is ... history") serve to
(A) establish the author's credentials as a historian
(B) clarify the previous sentence
(C) provide illustrative examples
(D) suggest the longevity of poetry as an art
(E) differentiate historians from poets
(C) provide illustrative examples
The primary purpose of the first paragraph is to
(A) inspire students to enter scientific professions
(B) argue that certain animal groups are becoming extinct
(C) encourage people to follow the progress of current scientific research
(D) call attention to the decline of a significant field of study
(E) explain the relationship between different scientific disciplines
(D) call attention to the decline of a significant field of study
"They" in Paragraph 2 of the passage refers to people who
(A) disagree that Franklin's life exemplifies commercial values
(B) want to reevaluate the importance of Franklin's writings
(C) believe that Franklin's legacy is not appreciated sufficiently
(D) have reservations about Franklin's values
(E) want others to be as inspired by Franklin as they have been
(D) have reservations about Franklin's values
The writer wants to add a thesis statement after sentence 2 that accurately represents the main argument of the
passage. Which of the following choices best accomplishes this goal?
(A)
If they successfully branch out, growers may be able to come up with a variety of banana that is even more
appealing to consumers than the Cavendish banana.
(B)
To ensure that bananas survive for years to come, producers and consumers need to diversify the types of
bananas they grow and eat.
(C)
Banana growers will have to take advantage of the latest developments in genetic research if they are to deal
with the threats that face the Cavendish banana.
(D) Consumers who are used to eating bananas for breakfast may therefore need to find new fruits to eat.
(E)
Both buyers and sellers of bananas should take the vulnerability of bananas into consideration, because it
could lead to volatility in the market for this fruit.
(B)
To ensure that bananas survive for years to come, producers and consumers need to diversify the types of
bananas they grow and eat.
Which of the following best describes the function of the second sentence in the first paragraph?
(A) It qualifies and expands the opening sentence.
(B) It focuses on qualities Bentham's language lacks.
(C) It compares Bentham's skills to those of other writers.
(D) It provides an example of a brief digression.
(E) It signals a transition in thought from the opening sentence.
(A) It qualifies and expands the opening sentence.
One purpose of the first paragraph is to
(A) suggest that beauty is not an essential element of good art
(B) discount the importance of imaginative thinking
(C) distinguish between two types of imagination
(D) suggest that artistic creativity is compromised by social responsibility
(E) reinforce popular views of creative imagination
(C) distinguish between two types of imagination
The author mentions “glass-blowing and harpsichord manufacture” (third sentence) to suggest that taxonomy is
(A) a field characterized by antiquated practices
(B) an art that is extremely difficult to master
(C) a profession practiced by relatively few people
(D) an area of expertise with various practical applications
(E) a discipline that has limited usefulness
(C) a profession practiced by relatively few people
The misunderstanding discussed in Paragraph 3 is that many who study Franklin
(A) ascribe greater geniality to Franklin than his actions support
(B) confuse Franklin's public statements with his private beliefs
(C) believe that Franklin had a fundamental faith that in fact he lacked
(D) do not study the public Franklin enough to understand him thoroughly
(E) rely too much on government records in their analysis of Franklin
(B) confuse Franklin's public statements with his private beliefs
In the underlined portion of sentence 3 (reproduced below), the writer wants to use a neutral tone when describing
the growing practices used to cultivate Cavendish banana trees.
Growing only one breed of a crop is a common way for farmers to maximize output and other desirable qualities,
but the Cavendish banana is terribly lacking in diversity because its trees are grown not from seeds but from
cuttings of existing trees.
Which of the following choices best accomplishes this goal?
(A) (as it is now)
(B) hopelessly
(C) bizarrely
(D) weirdly
(E) unusually
(E) unusually
The author's discussion of Bentham's ability to use imagery (first paragraph) is best described as one of
(A) dispassionate advice
(B) contemptuous dismissal
(C) witty defense
(D) profuse commendation
(E) qualified appreciation
(E) qualified appreciation
Which of the following best describes the relationship between the first paragraph and the second paragraph?
(A) The second paragraph uses the claims made at the end of the first paragraph to examine an individual.
(B) The second paragraph continues to expand the definition of imagination begun in the first paragraph.
(C) The second paragraph supports the claim in the opening sentence of the first paragraph.
(D) The second paragraph presents a more balanced view of Bentham than does the first paragraph.
(E) The second paragraph supports the theme of the first paragraph by references to scholarly research.
(A) The second paragraph uses the claims made at the end of the first paragraph to examine an individual.
The series of phrases in the fifth sentence ("Marvelously varied . . . acre of land") primarily conveys the
(A) critical job that springtails and oribatid mites perform in the natural environment
(B) ferocity with which springtails and oribatid mites compete for survival
(C) array of tiny animals that coexist with springtails and oribatid mites in the soil
(D) characteristics of springtails and oribatid mites
(E) life span of springtails and oribatid mites living in the soil
(D) characteristics of springtails and oribatid mites
The final paragraph functions as
(A) a repetition of the views previously established
(B) a diatribe against those who devalue Franklin
(C) an authorial judgment about a preceding discussion
(D) a critique of Franklin's autobiography
(E) a controversial conclusion to a contentious debate
(C) an authorial judgment about a preceding discussion
The writer wants to add a sentence after sentence 4 that develops the narrative in the second paragraph in a way that
makes the audience feel the impact of the loss of the Gros Michel banana. Which of the following sentences best
accomplishes this goal?
(A)
This delicious and productive banana was also grown from cuttings until a fungus called fusarium wilt
devastated Gros Michel trees.
(B) A fungus called fusarium wilt began to kill Gros Michel trees, which were also grown from cuttings.
(C)
Fusarium wilt is a fungus that kills banana trees, and Gros Michel trees, which were also grown from
cuttings, began to be infected by the wilt.
(D)
Also grown from cuttings, Gros Michel bananas were never as popular as Cavendish bananas would become,
but they were the most common type of banana until they were killed by a fungus called fusarium wilt.
(E)
A devastating fungus called fusarium wilt began to kill Gros Michel banana trees, which, like Cavendish
banana trees, were grown from cuttings.
(A)
This delicious and productive banana was also grown from cuttings until a fungus called fusarium wilt
devastated Gros Michel trees.
"This power" (first paragraph) refers to
(A) "command of imagery"
(B) "poetical culture"
(C) "declamatory eloquence"
(D) "Imagination"
(E) "voluntary effort"
(D) "Imagination"
23. In Paragraph 2 ("He had neither ... in him"), the author suggests that Bentham
(A) writes without a clear purpose
(B) has a fear of human aberration
(C) cannot understand strong human feelings
(D) does not value information based on observation
(E) has little respect for others' opinions
(C) cannot understand strong human feelings
In the context of sentence 7, the words "one is retired" are best described as
(A) a detail that makes a critical situation even more precarious
(B) a fact that is puzzling to the author and other biologists
(C) a claim that is of equal concern to scientists and the general public
(D) an excuse for outdated designs for research projects
(E) an aside that undermines the point about taxonomy that is being made
(A) a detail that makes a critical situation even more precarious