APPLY ALL THE ADVANCED SKILLS TO SINGLE- AND MULTIPLE-PARAGRAPH SELECTIONS ADDITIONAL PRACTICE

Passage 1

I am tired of fighting. Our chiefs are killed... The old men are all dead. He who led the young men is dead.... It is cold, and we have no blankets. The little children are freezing to death.... I want to have time to look for my children, and see how many of them I can find. Maybe I shall find them among the dead. Hear me, my chiefs! I am tired. My heart is sick and sad. From where the sun now stands I will fight no more forever.

Source: Chief Joseph, spoken at his surrende, October 5, 1877, near the Canadian border.

1	Does Chief Joseph's speech contain facts, opinions, or both?
	A)	facts
	B)	opinions
	C)	both
2	What inference can you make about Chief Joseph as a leader?
	A)	He was a tyrant who was interested only in his personal well-being.
	B)	He loved his people and grieved for what has happened to them.
	C)	He is concerned about the young men who were warriors, but not the rest of his people.
3	What is Chief Joseph's tone?
	A)	satisfied; content
	B)	angry; defiant
	C)	defeated; heartsick
4	What is Chief Joseph's point of view about fighting?
	A)	He was still ready and willing to fight because in his heart, he knew the Indians are right.
	B)	He would no longer fight the enemy because the losses to his people had been too great.
	C)	He was afraid to fight because he believed his people no longer had confidence in him as a leader.

Passage 2

My friends, I have been asked to show you my heart. I am glad to have a chance to do so. I want the white people to understand my people. Some of you think an Indian is like a wild animal. This is a great mistake. I will tell you about our people, and then you can judge whether the Indian is a man or not. I believe much trouble and blood would be saved if we opened our hearts more. I will tell you in my way how the Indian sees things. The white man has more words to tell you how they look to him, but it does not require many words to speak the truth. What I have to say will come from my heart, and I will speak with a straight tongue. Ah-cum-kin-ma-me-hut (the Great Spirit) is looking at me, and will hear me
Our fathers gave us many laws, which they learned from their fathers. These laws were good. They told us to treat all men as they treated us; that we should never be the first to break a bargain; that it was a disgrace to tell a lie; that we should speak only the truth; that it was a shame for one man to take from another his wife or his property without paying for it. We were taught to believe that the Great Spirit sees and hears everything, and that he never forgets; that hereafter he will give every man a spirit-home according to his deserts: if he had been a good man, he will have a good home; it he had been a bad man, he will have a bad home. This I believe and all my people believe the same.

Source: Chief Joseph, North American Review, published after his surrender in 1877.

5	Does the statement "These laws were good" represent a fact or an opinion?
	A)	fact
	B)	opinion
6	What is the author's purpose?
	A)	to inform the white man about the true nature of the Indian
	B)	to entertain readers with tales about the Great Spirit
	C)	to persuade the white man to leave the Indians’ land or else to pay the Indians for the land
7	What is the tone?
	A)	sarcastic; condescending
	B)	afraid; anxious
	C)	honest; open
8	What is the author's point of view about the way the Indian and the white man can come to understand each other?
	A)	They can come to understand each other only if one side or the other is willing give up its existing beliefs.
	B)	They can come to understand each other if they know more about each other and can see each other's perspective.
	C)	They can come to understand each other by setting up a council composed of representatives from each group.

Passage 3

I am tired of talk that comes to nothing. It makes my heart sick when I remember all the good words and all the broken promises. There has been too much talking by men who had no right to talk. Too many representations have been made; too many misunderstandings have come up between the white men and the Indians. If the white man wants to live in peace with the Indian he can live in peace. There need be no trouble. Treat all men alike. Give them all the same law. Give them all an even chance to live and grow. All men were made by the same Great Spirit Chief. They are all brothers. The earth is the mother of all people, and all people should have equal rights upon it. You might as well expect rivers to run backward as that any man who was born free should be contented when penned up and denied liberty to go where he pleases. If you tie a horse to a stake, do you expect he will grow fat? If you pen an Indian up on a small spot of earth, and compel him to stay there, he will not be contented, nor will he grow and prosper. I have asked some of the great white chiefs where they get their authority to say to the Indian that he shall stay in one place, while he sees white men going where they please. They cannot tell me.

Source: Chief Joseph, North American Review, published after his surrender in 1877.

9	Does the statement, "I have asked some of the great white chiefs where they get their authority to say to the Indian that he shall stay in one place, while he sees white men going where they please" represent a fact or an opinion?
	A)	fact
	B)	opinion
10	What is the author's tone?
	A)	hopeful; encouraged
	B)	disgusted; weary; discouraged
	C)	sorrowful; grieving; sad
11	What is the author's point of view about the relationship between the Indians and the white man?
	A)	The relationship will never get better.
	B)	The relationship will get worse.
	C)	The relationship is bad, but a good one is possible.
12	What is the author's point of view about Indians being forced to live on reservations?
	A)	The Indians will eventually adjust.
	B)	The Indians will not thrive and prosper, and the white man does not have the authority to deny them their liberty.
	C)	Ultimately, the Indians will rise up and there will be another great conflict.
13	What is the author's purpose?
	A)	to entertain; be humorous
	B)	to persuade; instruct
	C)	to praise; compliment

Passage 4

A certain man had several sons who were always quarreling with one another, and try as he might, he could not get them to live together in harmony. So he determined to convince them of their folly by the following means. Bidding them fetch a bundle of sticks, he invited each in turn to break it across his knee. All tried and all failed. Then he undid the bundle, and handed them the sticks one by one, which they had no difficulty at all in breaking. "My boys," he said, "united you will be more than a match for your enemies, but if you quarrel and separate, your weakness will put you at the mercy of those who attack you."

Source: an Aesop's fable, from William J. Bennett, The Book of Virtues, New York, Simon and Schuster, 1993, p. 388.

14	What is the author's purpose?
	A)	to instruct readers that there is strength in unity: people can accomplish together what one alone cannot
	B)	to persuade readers that each person should learn to be successful on his or her own without relying on others
	C)	to explain why doing things outside a group’s cooperative effort is a more efficient way to accomplish things
15	Who is the author's intended audience?
	A)	very young children
	B)	adults only
	C)	children and adults

Passage Five

We shall go on to the end, we shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight on the hills; we shall never surrender

Source: Winston Churchill, speech, from William J. Bennett, The Book of Virtues, New York, Simon and Schuster, 1993, p. 572.

16	Based on the excerpt from his World War II speech, which inference can you make about Churchill's character?
	A)	He was high-tempered and easily angered.
	B)	He was a man of courage and determination.
	C)	He was egotistical and craved public attention.
17	What is the author's purpose?
	A)	to persuade the British to give up since it was only a matter of time until they were defeated
	B)	to persuade the British that the country has the will to keep fighting
	C)	to inform the British of that the war was nearing an end
18	What is the author's tone?
	A)	hopeless; resigned; defeated
	B)	determined; courageous; inspirational
	C)	afraid; fearful; anxious

Passage Six

Grandmother's Table

Once there was a feeble old woman whose husband died and left her all alone, so she went to live with her son and his wife and their own little daughter. Every day the old woman's sight dimmed and her hearing grew worse, and sometimes at dinner her hands trembled so badly the peas rolled off her spoon or the soup ran from her cup. The son and his wife could not help but be annoyed at the way she spilled her meal all over the table, and one day, after she knocked over a glass of milk, they told each other enough was enough.

They set up a small table for her in the comer next to the broom closet and made the old woman eat her meals there. She sat all alone, looking with tear-filled eyes across the room at the others. Sometimes they spoke to her while they ate, but usually it was to scold her for dropping a bowl or fork.

One evening just before dinner, the little girl was busy playing on the floor with her building blocks, and her father asked her what she was making. "I'm building a little table for you and mother," she smiled, "so you can eat by yourselves in a corner someday when I get big."

Her parents sat staring at her for some time and then suddenly both began to cry. That night they led the old woman back to her place at the big table. From then on she ate with the rest of the family, and her son and his wife never seemed to mind a bit when she spilled something every now and then.

Source: The Brothers Grimm, from William J. Bennett, The Book of Virtues, New York, Simon and Schuster, 1993, pp. 143-44.

19	What conclusion do the authors want readers to draw?
	A)	Adults should treat their parents well since they are setting a model for how their children should one day treat them.
	B)	Adults should make it clear to their elderly parents that they are no longer in charge and should do what they are told to do.
	C)	Adults should show their children that when they are adults, they will no longer have to consider the wishes of their parents.
20	What is the author's purpose?
	A)	to instruct readers that their treatment of their own parents serves as an example to their children
	B)	to instruct readers that their treatment of their parents is not likely to have an effect on how their children treat them when they are old
	C)	to inform readers of what it is like to grow old

Passage Seven

The Wisdom of Solomon

Two women came before King Solomon with two little babies, one dead and the other living. Each of the two women claimed the living child as her own, and said that the dead child belonged to the other woman. One of the women said, "0 my lord, we two women were sleeping with our children in one bed. And this woman in her sleep lay upon her child, and it died. Then she placed her dead child beside me while I was asleep, and took my child. In the morning I saw that it was not my child, but she says it is mine, and the living child is hers. Now, 0 King, command this woman to give me my own child."
Then the other woman said, "That is not true. The dead baby is her own, and the living one is mine, which she is trying to take from me."
The young king listened to both women. Then he said, "Bring me a sword."
They brought a sword, and then Solomon said, "Take this sword and cut the living child in half, and give half of it to each woman."
Then one of the women cried out, and said, "0 my lord, do not kill my child! Let the other woman have it, but let the child live!"
But the other woman said, "No, cut the child in two and divide it between us!"
Then Solomon said, "Give the living child to the woman who would not have it slain, for she is its mother."
And all the people wondered at the wisdom of one so young, and they saw that God had given him understanding.

Source: Bible, Book of Kings, William J. Bennett, The Book of Virtues, New York, Simon and Schuster, 1993, pp. 147-48.

21	What can you infer was King Solomon's reason for telling the two mothers that he was going to cut the baby in half?
	A)	He wanted to scare them both into giving up the baby so that he could find a good home for it.
	B)	He wanted to punish them for their selfishness by killing the baby.
	C)	He wanted to see their reactions in order to help him decide who the actual mother was.
22	What inference did King Solomon make about the two women that enabled him to decide who the true mother was?
	A)	One of the women was very determined to keep the baby.
	B)	Neither woman was really sincere about wanting the baby.
	C)	The real mother would give up her baby rather than see it harmed.
23	What is the author's purpose in telling us this story about King Solomon?
	A)	to inform us of how wise King Solomon was by giving an example of his decision-making
	B)	to entertain us with a suspenseful story of how a baby’s fate was determined
	C)	to instruct us how to make a wise choice when faced with a difficult decision

Passage Eight

Long ago the people of Greece were not united, as they are today. Instead there were several cities and states, each with its own leader. King Philip of Macedon, a land in the northern part of Greece, wanted to bring all of Greece together under his rule. So he raised a great army and made war upon all of the other states, until nearly all were forced to call him their king. Sparta, however, resisted.
The Spartans lived in the southern part of Greece, an area called Laconia, and so they were sometimes called Lacons. They were noted for their simple habits and their bravery. They were also known as a people who used few words and chose them carefully; even today a short answer is often described as "laconic."
Philip knew he must subdue the Spartans if all of Greece was to be his. So he brought his great army to the borders of Laconia, and sent a message to the Spartans.
"If you do not submit at once," he threatened them, "I will invade your country. And if I invade, I will pillage and burn everything you hold dear. If I march into Laconia, I will level your great city to the ground."
In a few days, Philip received an answer. When he opened the letter, he found only one word written there.
That word was "If."

Source: William J. Bennett, The Book of Virtues, New York, Simon and Schuster, 1993, pp. 475-76.

24	Based on the Spartans' reply to King Philip, what inference can you make about the Spartans?
	A)	The Spartans were courageous, but were smart enough to know when to give in.
	B)	The Spartans were a courageous people who had no intention of giving in to King Philip's demand.
	C)	The Spartans were a gentle people who tried to compromise with their enemies and work things out peacefully.
25	What can you infer about the origin of the word "laconic"?
	A)	There is not enough information in the passage to make an inference about the origin of "laconic."
	B)	"Laconic" is associated with the untalkative, ancient Greek Lacons, and it has come to mean "using few words."
	C)	"Laconic" now means "talkative."
26	What is the author's purpose in telling readers this story?
	A)	to inform readers about the courage and determination of the Spartans
	B)	to illustrate how few words the Spartans spoke
	C)	to prove that the people of ancient Greece were not united
27	What was the tone of King Philip's message to the Spartans?
	A)	friendly; kind
	B)	harsh; threatening
	C)	playful; inviting

Passage Nine

Results and Roses

The man who wants a garden fair,
Or small or very big,
With flowers growing here and there,
Must bend his back and dig.

The things are mighty few on earth
That wishes can attain.
Whatever we want of any worth
We've got to work to gain.

It matters not what goal you seek.
Its secret here reposes:
You've got to dig from week to week
To get Results or Roses.

Source: Edgar Guest, "Results and Roses," in William J. Bennett, The Book of Virtues,
New York, Simon and Schuster, 1993, p. 389.

28	What is the author's purpose?
	A)	to convince readers that things happen because of fate
	B)	to instruct readers about how to have a successful garden
	C)	to persuade readers that consistent effort is the key to achieving goals
29	What is the author's tone?
	A)	motivating; sensible
	B)	discouraging; hopeless
	C)	silly; humorous
30	Who is the intended audience?
	A)	general public
	B)	gardeners
	C)	college students