Chapter 9: Fact and Opinion
Lab Activity 45: Fact and Opinion tbskils_small.gif
 

tbskils.gifObjective
To identify facts and opinions in a textbook passage.


arrow.gifStep 2: Refer to the textbook passage in the Lab Manual as needed, and identify the following statements as fact, opinion, or a combination of both.


      3. The philosopher Thomas Hobbes (1588–1679) also presumed that all humans are fundamentally mean-spirited and brutish animals. 

 
 
 
      4. The fewer laws, the better. 

 
 
 
      5. In Western civilization, the foundation for the explanation of criminal behavior is rooted in the religious beliefs of the European Middle Ages and the Renaissance.

This statement is  

 
 
 
      6. The Catholic Church was the major source of criminal law during Europe's Middle Ages, and the Church was an active agent in determining the guilt and innocence of individuals accused of breaking the law.

This statement is  

 
 
 
      7. In the American colonies, the infamous Salem witch trials of 1692 are a testament to the extent to which people believed in evil spirits, supernatural explanations, and a cosmic battle of good against evil.

One biased word used in this sentence is  

 
 
 
 
      8. During this time, any unusual event in one of the colonies was attributed to mystical powers, including coincidences, unusual diseases, and misfortunes.

The biased word in this sentence that helps the reader identify it as an opinion is  

 
 
 
 
      9. Between 1672 and 1692, there were 40 cases filed involving the Devil in the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

This statement is  

 
 
 
      10. During the height of the witchcraft trials in 1692, over 150 people were arrested, 19 people were hung for practicing witchcraft, 1 was pressed to death, and 4 died while in prison awaiting trial.

This statement is  

 
 
 





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