Incorrect.
You may have confused "we," which does refer to archaeologists, with "they." Reread the sentence (lines 41-45) substituting "archaeologists" for the pronoun. It doesn't make much sense to have archaeologists trading silk, amber, pottery and cowrie shells!

 

Incorrect.
Reread the sentence (lines 41-45), substituting "English" for the pronoun "they." It doesn't make much sense to have the English trading silk, amber, pottery, and cowrie shells!

 

Incorrect.
Reread the sentence (lines 41-45), substituting "tourists" for the pronoun "they." It doesn't make much sense for tourists to be trading silk, amber, pottery, and cowrie shells!

 

Correct.
The pronoun "they" takes the place of the noun "Vikings" introduced several paragraphs earlier (see line 23). Because of the distance separating the noun and pronoun, it is extremely important to use the gist of the passage to select your answer. You can't simply pick the nearest noun. The target sentence tells you "they" were traders, as does the preceding sentence. The entire passage deals with the sophistication and greatness of the Viking nation. Two types of clues are provided: meaning clues ("They were a great trading nation;" Vikings were sophisticated) and grammatical clues (repetition of "they" in the next sentence and replacement of "They were...trading nation" with "they traded.")

 

 

 

Incorrect.
Reread the question, noticing that you are directed to select the primary (that is, the major, most important) means that the author uses to support (develop, illustrate, prove) his view of the Vikings. You have to ask and answer the questions "Just what does the author think of the Vikings?" and "How does he support what he believes to be true?" He doesn't use analogy. In fact, this passage doesn't contain even one analogy, so let's look at what this word means. An analogy is a comparison of two things that are basically different but are similar in at least one way and can therefore be compared. An author may make an analogy of one thing he assumes his readers are familiar with to help them understand another thing he thinks they don't know. For example, an author once compared how the human body works (familiar to his readers) to how a municipal government works (unfamiliar to his readers). In this passage, however, the Vikings are not compared with something that might be more familiar.

 

Incorrect.
Reread the item stem, noticing that you are directed to select the primary (that is, the major, most important) means that the author uses to support (develop, illustrate, prove) his view of the Vikings. Did you ask and answer the questions "Just what does the author think of the Vikings?" and "How does he support what he believes to be true?" The passage contains very limited use of contrast. The author contrasts the old, Incorrect view of Vikings (blood-thirsty bands of pillagers) with the new view caused by the discovery of Jorvik (a sophisticated nation). This single use of contrast does not meet the test of "primary" support of the author's view. The author does not support his view by showing the similarities of Vikings to other sophisticated nations nor does he support his view by showing how the Vikings were different from other, unsophisticated nations.

 

Correct.
Before looking at the options you have to determine, generally, what the author's view of the Vikings is. He takes the position that, contrary to popular belief, the Vikings were a sophisticated nation. Now you are ready to ask yourself how he goes about supporting his view. Examples are "particular instances that support or fit a general case." The author provides numerous details (particular instances) of the general case "Vikings were a sophisticated nation." For example, he mentions their pottery, objects from their daily lives such as keys and toilet seats, and their monetary and trading system. Examples are therefore his primary method of support.

 

Incorrect.
Reread the item stem, noticing that you are directed to select the primary (that is, the major, most important) means that the author uses to support (develop, illustrate, prove) his view of the Vikings. You have to ask and answer the questions "Just what does the author think of the Vikings?" and "How does he support what he believes to be true?" You may have confused the author of the passage with the archaeologist, Richard Hall. The author did not participate in finding and rebuilding the Viking settlement. He simply reports these events. He did not have the personal experience; the archaeologist did. When ever you see this option ask yourself "Is the author writing about his/her own (personal) experience?"

 

Correct.
Several pieces of information in the passage reveal that the reviewer approves of "Collected Prose": "It is more than just a handsome companion volume" (lines 17-18), Bishop's style makes the volume "a delight to read" (line 21). In the second paragraph the reviewer mentions particular stories in a positive fashion: "the justly celebrated 'In the Village'" (line 27), and "Efforts of Affection" which "achieves the emotional resonance of a finely wrought short story" (lines 29-33). (Words that reveal the reviewer's favorable reaction are underlined here to be sure that you noticed them.)

 

Incorrect.
Notice that the question directs you to identify what the reviewer (that is, the author of this passage) thinks of the book entitled, "The Collected Prose." You answer a question like this by asking yourself -- What does the reviewer say about the book? What information does he include? How does he say what he says -- with critical, negative words, with positive words or with a combination of both? A mixed review would contain information about both the book's strengths and weaknesses. The reviewer would describe what an author did well and how the author failed to meet the reviewer's expectations and standards. A mixed review contains both praise and criticism. This review does not describe the author's shortcomings. The only possibly negative point made concerns the division of the book into two parts. At worst, this point is a very minor criticism; at best, it could be seen as indirect praise indicating that the memories are as well-written and interesting as the stories. ("Fair enough...the distinctions...blur".)

 

Incorrect.
Notice that the question directs you to identify what the reviewer (that is, the author of this passage) thinks of the book entitled, "The Collected Prose." You answer a question like this by asking yourself -- What does the reviewer say about the book? What information does he include? How does he say what he says -- with critical, negative words, with positive words, or with a combination of both? A neutral review would merely describe the contents of a book. No suggestion would be made of the reviewer's opinion about the book's contents, the author's style, or why the people who read the review should or should not read the book. In this review the author does express such opinions. The very nature of a review almost always results in value judgments by the reviewer. Reviews are written for a purpose that does not lend itself to a neutral point of view. While it is possible, it is highly unlikely that a review would be neutral.

 

Incorrect.
Notice that the question directs you to identify what the reviewer (that is, the author of this passage) thinks of the book entitled, "The Collected Prose." You answer a question like this by asking yourself -- What does the author say about the book? What information does he include? How does he say what he says -- with critical, negative words, with positive words, or with a combination of both? This review is quite favorable. The only possibly negative point made concerns the division of the book into two parts. At worst, this point is a very minor criticism; at best, it could be seen as indirect praise indicating that the memories are as well-written and interesting as the stories. ("Fair enough...the distinctions...blur".)

 

Incorrect.
Perhaps your attention focused on the first few words of the passage, "the late Elizabeth Bishop." It is true that she is no longer writing. It does not necessarily follow that her reputation will decrease (or change in any way for that matter) just because she isn't alive to write. You overlooked the information in the rest of the review.

 

Incorrect.
Perhaps you placed too much emphasis on the information in the first sentence, that Bishop is a "writer's writer's writer." Read the next sentence, which tells you that Bishop is not just read by other writers, but is recognized by "the world at large." Another reason this choice is Incorrect is that it states that her reputation will decrease. This negative reaction is inconsistent with the reviewer's favorable opinion of Bishop's prose and poetry.

 

Correct.
The answer is implied both overall in the passage (the reviewer considers Bishop a good writer of poetry and prose) and particularly in the first paragraph. Reread lines 10-14, where the author notes that the world at large (in other words, people who are not professional writers) is beginning to be aware that Bishop was a better writer than the writers who received more attention and notice. In other words, more people are becoming aware of her talents; hence, her reputation will increase.

 

Incorrect.
You did recognize that Bishop's reputation will increase. The problem is that you selected the Incorrect reason. The passage does not deal directly or indirectly with what generally happens to the reputations of writers after they die. Further, the wording of this option contains a clue in the word "always." Answers that apply in all cases (signaled by such words as "always," "only," "never") should be carefully evaluated before you select them as correct responses.

 

Incorrect.
Reread the question, noting that you have to select the type of writing for which Bishop is mainly recognized. The reviewer mentions her memoirs, praises her prose style (lines 18-21) and describes the memoir about Marianne Moore. But note that only the style and content are described; the reviewer does not mention that the memoirs are the reason Bishop is known as a writer.

 

Correct.
The key word in the question is primarily, for Bishop published several different types of writing, and the reviewer mentions all of them. However, as indicated in the first paragraph, she is mainly recognized for her poetry: "first woman and first American to win the Neustadt International Prize...fellow poets...poetic achievement." The reviewer favorably describes her other writing but does not mention that she received any recognition for her prose.

 

Incorrect.
Reread the question, noting that you have to select the type of writing for which Bishop is mainly recognized. The passage does not contain any mention of diaries.

 

Incorrect.
Reread the question, noting that you have to select the type of writing for which Bishop is mainly recognized. The reviewer mentions her stories, praises her prose style (lines 18-21), and provides the names of at least two stories (lines 23-24). Note, however, that a connection between Bishop's reputation and her short stories is not made anywhere in the passage.

 

Incorrect.
Reread the sentence containing "limpid," lines 19-21, paying particular attention to how the reviewer feels about Bishop's prose. You will notice that he likes her writing. Substitute this option for the underlined word. "Boring" prose would not be a delight to read, so this option would not fit the tone or meaning of the sentence.

 

Correct.
The context clues for determining the meaning of this word are contained in the sentence itself, lines 19-21. The first clue is the tone of the sentence: the reviewer describes the prose as "clean" and a "delight to read." The meaning of "limpid" must be positive in order to be consistent with the other favorable descriptors. The only positive choice is "clear." This choice fits the logic of the sentence also, for it would be a pleasure to read clear, understandable prose.

 

Incorrect.
Reread the sentence containing "limpid," lines 19-21, paying particular attention to how the reviewer feels about Bishop's prose. You will notice that he likes her writing. Substitute this option for the underlined word. "Depressing" prose would not be a delight to read, so this option would not fit the tone or meaning of the sentence.

 

Incorrect.
Reread the sentence containing "limpid," lines 19-21, paying particular attention to how the reviewer feels about Bishop's prose. You will notice that he likes her writing. Substitute this option for the underlined word. "Weak" prose would not be a delight to read, so this option would not fit the tone or meaning of the sentence.

 

Incorrect.
You answered based on what was written, not why it was written. You probably interpreted the content of the stories and memoirs, selecting this answer because Bishop knew interesting people and her first job sounds intriguing. You didn't answer the question, however, about why the examples are included. Reread the question.

 

Incorrect.
Note that the question directs you to select the purpose of information in the second paragraph, not the first paragraph. This option resembles a point made in the first paragraph, that Bishop's prose is "more than just a handsome companion volume" (lines 17-18) to her poetry. While the wording is similar between the passage and this option, the meaning is quite different because of the words "more than." But even if the option contained the same words as the passage, it would not be a correct answer. The examples in the second paragraph do not show how Bishop's two types of writing "go together" or how the prose adds meaning and understanding to the poetry. Very often the information in two paragraphs is closely related, and examples in a second paragraph develop a point made in a first paragraph. This is not true for this passage. The second paragraph moves to a new topic, stated in the first two sentences of the paragraph.

 

Incorrect.
This option is based on the information about only one of the four examples mentioned in the second paragraph and does not apply at all to the other three examples. It cannot, therefore, be the reviewer's purpose for mentioning all (in this case, four) of the examples contained in the paragraph.

 

Correct.
To answer this question you first have to determine the purpose of the second paragraph itself, that is, the point the reviewer is trying to make in this paragraph. After you have determined the purpose you can then ask how the specific examples relate to the purpose of the paragraph. This question requires you to determine the relationship among ideas; you ask yourself why the reviewer mentions particular stories and memoirs. Notice what he says about them: he names two stories that are autobiographical statements (in other words, memoirs) in lines 26-29, and then names and describes memoirs that are like short stories ("achieves the emotional resonance of a ... short story. So does ..." in lines 32-33). These specific examples are illustrations of the general point the reviewer makes at the beginning of the second paragraph: that distinctions between the editor's two categories blur and become indistinguishable (lines 24-26). The memoirs are like short stories and the stories are like memoirs.

 

Correct.
An opinion is a statement that cannot be proven to be true or false. This statement could be proven by finding out what other writers have said or written about Bishop or even by asking them what they think of her. The point is, information could be gathered that would show that other writers do or do not admire Bishop. In this particular case the passage itself contains the information (lines 5-14) to show that other writers do indeed admire Bishop. Note that the question asks which could be a fact; even without the passage infor mation we can determine the nature of this statement. You recognized that a factual statement can contain a judgmental word - "admired." This statement doesn't, however, pass judgment on Bishop, in which case it would be an opinion. It simply reports what other writers think.

 

Incorrect.
This statement is an opinion, that is, it reveals how the reviewer feels about Bishop's writing. An opinion is a subjective statement, a judgment. No matter how many people agree with the statement (even if you agree also!) it is not a fact, for it expresses approval or disapproval, not accuracy or inaccuracy.

 

Incorrect.
This statement is an opinion, that is, it reveals how the reviewer feels about Bishop's writing. An opinion is a subjective statement, a judgment. No matter how many people agree with the statement (even if you agree also!) it is not a fact, for it expresses approval or disapproval, not accuracy or inaccuracy. By comparing a single memoir to a well-written ("finely wrought") short story, the reviewer is showing his approval of Bishop's writings.

 

Incorrect.
This statement is an opinion, that is, it reveals how the reviewer feels about Bishop's writing. An opinion is a subjective statement, a judgment. No matter how many people agree with the statement (even if you agree also!) it is not a fact, for it expresses approval or disapproval, not accuracy or inaccuracy. By stating that Bishop's stories are justly celebrated, the reviewer is expressing his approval both of Bishop's stories and of the actions of the people who show their appreciation of her talents.

 