GRE Practice Test - RC GRE Practice Test 3
Q.1
According to the passage, some twentieth-century scholars have written at length about
- A. Walter’s persecution of his wife in Chaucer’s the Clerk’s Tale
- B. the Duchess of Malfi’s love for her husband
- C. the tyrannical behaviour of the Duchess of Malfi’s brothers
- D. the actions taken by Shakespeare’s Desdemona
- E. the injustices suffered by Chaucer’s Griselda
- Answer: D
Q.2
The primary purpose of the passage is to
- A. describe the role of the tragic heroine in medieval and Elizabethan literature
- B. resolve a controversy over the meaning of “poetic justice” as it is discussed in certain medieval and Elizabethan literary treatises
- C. present evidence to support the view that characters in medieval and Elizabethan tragedies are to blame for their fates
- D. assert that it is impossible for twentieth-century readers to fully comprehend the characters and situations in medieval and Elizabethan literary works
- E. argue that some twentieth-century scholars have misapplied the concept of “poetic justice” in analyzing certain medieval and Elizabethan literary works.
- Answer: E
Q.3
It can be inferred from the passage that the author consider Chaucer’s Grisselda to be
- A. an innocent victim
- B. a sympathetic judge
- C. an imprudent person
- D. a strong individual
- E. a rebellious daughters
- Answer: A
Q.4
The author’s tone in her discussion of the conclusion’s reached by the “school of twentieth-century scholars” (line 4) is best described as
- A. plaintive
- B. philosophical
- C. disparaging
- D. apologetic
- E. enthusiastic
- Answer: C
Q.5
It can be inferred from the passage that the author believes that most people respond to intended instances of poetic justice in medieval and Elizabethan literature with
- A. annoyance
- B. disapproval
- C. indifference
- D. amusement
- E. gratification
- Answer: E
Q.6
As described in the passage, the process by which some twentieth-century scholars have reached their conclusions about the blameworthiness of victims in medieval and Elizabethan literary works is mot similar to which of the following?
- A. Derivation of logically sound conclusions from well-founded premises
- B. Accurate observation of data, inaccurate calculation of statistics, and drawing of incorrect conclusions form the faulty statistics
- C. Establishment of a theory, application of the theory to ill-fittings data, and drawing of unwarranted conclusions from the data
- D. Development of two schools of thought about a factual situation, debate between the two schools, and rendering of a balanced judgment by an objective observer
- E. Consideration of a factual situation by a group, discussion of various possible explanatory hypotheses and agreement by consensus on the most plausible explanation.
- Answer: C
Q.7
The author’s paraphrase of a statement by Samuel Johnson serves which of the following functions in the passage?
- A. it furnishes a specific example
- B. it articulates a general conclusion
- C. it introduces a new topic
- D. it provides a contrasting perspective
- E. it clarifies an ambiguous assertion
- Answer: B
Q.8
The author of the passage is primarily concerned with
- A. reconciling opposing viewpoints
- B. encouraging innovative approaches
- C. defending an accepted explanation
- D. advocating an alternative interpretation
- E. analyzing an unresolved question
- Answer: D
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Explanation
Q.9
The primary purpose of the passage is to
- A. criticize the inflexibility of American economic mythology
- B. contrast “Old World” and “New World” economic ideologies
- C. challenge the integrity of traditional political leaders
- D. champion those Americans whom the author deems to be neglected
- E. suggests a substitue for the traditional metaphor of a race
- Answer: A
-
Explanation
Q.10
According to the passge, “Old World” values were based on
- A. ability
- B. property
- C. family connections
- D. guild hierarchies
- E. education
- Answer: B
Q.11
In the context of the author’s discussion of regulat ing change, which of the following could be most probably regvarded as a “strong referee” (lin e 30) in the United States?
- A. A school principle
- B. A political theorist
- C. A federal court judge
- D. A social worker
- E. A government inspector
- Answer: C
Q.12
The author sets off the word “Reform” with quotation marks in order to
- A. emphasize its departure from the concept of settled possessiveness
- B. show his support for a systematic program of change
- C. underscore the flexibility and even amorphousness of United States society
- D. indicate that the term was one of Wilson’s favorites
- E. assert that reform in the United States has not been fundamental
- Answer: E
Q.13
It can be inferred from the passage that the author most probably thinks that giving the disenfranchised” ‘ a piece of action’” is
- A. a compassionate, if misdirected, legislative measure
- B. an example of American’s resistance to profound social change
- C. an innovative program for genuine social reform
- D. a monument to the efforts of industrial reformers
- E. a surprisingly “ Old World” remedy for social ills
- Answer: B
Q.14
Which of the following metaphors could the authors most appropriately use to summarize his own assessment of the American economic system ?
- A. A windmill
- B. A water fall
- C. A treadmill
- D. A gyroscope
- E. A bellows
- Answer: C
Q.15
It can be inferred from the passage that Woodrow Wilson’s idea’s about the economic market
- A. encouraged those who “make the system work”
- B. perpetuated traditional legends about America
- C. revealed the prejudices of a man born wealthy
- D. foreshadowed the stock market crash of 1929
- E. began a tradition of presidential proclamations on economics
- Answer: B