Passage A

Practice Tests
Diagnostic Pre-Test for Effective Reader
Passage A

Read the passage below and answer the questions that follow.

1. The central point of this passage is

A. Marie Antoinette was put to death largely because the citizens of France disliked her extravagance and blamed both her and her husband for the country's problems.

B. Marie Antoinette was bored with living in France and made no secret of her feelings which were known to all, including royalty and citizenry of France.

C. Marie Antoinette had no sense of loyalty to the French people, and, as a result, committed treason.

D. Marie Antoinette lived her life extravagantly and had a reputation for extreme wastefulness and foolish living.

2. The authors' primary purpose is to

A. describe the lifestyle of Marie Antoinette.

B. convince the reader that Marie Antoinette was innocent of the charges she was accused of by the citizenry of France.

C. explain the real story about the circumstances revolving around Marie Antoinette that eventually culminated in her execution.

D. discuss the historical events that led to the revolt of the French people and the execution of the royal family.

3. The overall pattern of organization of this passage is

A. cause and effect

B. comparison and contrast

C. listing

D. time order

4. Identify the pattern of organization of the second paragraph.

A. time order

B. definition and example

C. cause and effect

D. listing

5. Identify the relationship between these sentences from paragraph four.

"In actuality, Marie Antoinette understood the plight of her starving subjects, as her correspondence indicates. The truth, however, did not matter." (lines 19–20)

A. addition

B. comparison

C. contrast

D. time order

6. According to the context, the word diversion in line 2 most nearly means

A. amount of wealth

B. education

C. variety of activity

D. friendship

7. According to the context, the word nadir in line 14 most nearly means

A. belief

B. lowest point

C. knees

D. smallest portion

8. The topic sentence of paragraph four is

A. Of course, Marie Antoinette never said "Let them eat cake," but everyone thought she did.

B. This was the kind of callousness that people expected from the monarchy in 1789.

C. In actuality, Marie Antoinette understood the plight of her starving subjects, as her correspondence indicates.

D. Marie Antoinette and her husband were being indicted by the public for all the political, social, and fiscal crises that plagued France.

9. The overall tone of this passage is

A. objective

B. subjective

C. emotional

D. sarcastic

10. What is the underlying irony in the last paragraph?

A. Marie Antoinette was put on trial.

B. Marie Antoinette was found guilty of treason.

C. Marie Antoinette was dressed as a poor working woman.

D. Marie Antoinette died by guillotine.