45 - ] Model SAT Tests - Test Forty Five

45- ] Model SAT Tests

Test Forty Five

Read the passage below , and then answer the questions that follow the passage . The correct response may be stated outright or merely suggested in the passage .

In this excerpt from his autobiographical Narrative of the Life of an American Slave , the abolitionist Frederick Douglas tells how he , as a young child , learned the value of learning to read and write .

            Mr. and Mrs. Auld were both at home , and met me at the door with their little son Thomas , to take care of whom I had been given . And here I saw what I had never seen before ; it was a white face beaming with the most kindly emotions ; it was the face of my new mistress , Sophia Auld . I wish I could describe the rapture that flashed through my soul as I beheld it . It was a new and strange sight to me , brightening up my pathway with happiness . Little Thomas was told , there was his Freddy , and I was told to take care of little Thomas ; and thus I entered upon the duties of my new home with the most cheering prospect ahead .

            My new mistress proved to be all she appeared when I first met her at the door - a woman of the kindest heart and feelings . She had never had a slave under her control previously to myself , and prior to her marriage she had been dependent upon her own industry for a living . She was by trade a weaver ; and by constant application to her business , she had been in a good degree preserved from the blighting and dehumanizing effects of slavery . I was utterly astonished at her goodness . My early instruction was all out of place . The crouching servility , usually so acceptable a quality in a slave , did not answer when manifested toward her . Her favor was not gained by it ; she seemed to be disturbed by it . She did not deem it important or unmannerly for a slave to look her in the face . The meanest slave was put fully at ease in her presence , and none left without feeling better for having seen her . But alas ! this kind heart had but a short time to remain such . The fatal poison of irresponsible power was already in her hands , and soon commenced its infernal work .

            Very soon after I went to live with Mr. and Mrs. Auld , she very kindly commenced to teach me the A, B , C . After  I had learned this , she assisted me in learning to spell words of three or four letters . Just at this point of my progress , Mr. Auld found out what was going on  , and at once forbade Mrs. Auld to instruct me further , telling her that it was unlawful , as well as unsafe , to teach a slave to read . Further , he said , “If you give a slave an inch , he will take an ell . A slave should know nothing but to obey his master - to do as he is told to do . Learning would spoil the best slave in the world . Now,: said he , “if you teach that boy ) speaking of myself ) how to read , there would be no keeping him . It would forever unfit him to be a slave . He would at once become unmanageable , and of no value to his master . A to him , it could do him no good , but a great deal of harm . It would make him discontented and unhappy .” These words sank deep into my heart , stirred up sentiments within that lay slumbering and called into existence an entirely new train of thought . I now understood what had been to me a most perplexing difficulty - to wit , the white man’ a power to enslave the black man . From that moment I understood the pathway from slavery to freedom . Though conscious of the difficulty of learning without a teacher , I set out with high hope , and a fixed purpose , at whatever cost of trouble , to learn how to read . The very decided manner with which my master spoke , and strove to impress his wife with the evil consequences of giving me instruction , served to convince me that he was deeply sensible of the truths he was uttering . It gave me the best assurance that I might rely with the utmost confidence on the results which , he said , would flow from teaching me to read . What he most dreaded , that I most desired . What he most loved , that I most hated . That which to him was a great evil, to be carefully shunned , was to me a great good , to be diligently sought ; and the argument which he so warmly urged , against  my learning to read , only served to inspire me with a desire and determination to learn . In learning to read , I owe almost as much to the bitter opposition of my master , as to the kindly aid of my mistress . I acknowledge the benefit of both .

1 . According to the opening paragraph , the author’s initial reaction toward joining the Aulds’ household was primarily one of      

(A) absolute astonishment

(B) marked pleasure

(C) carefree nonchalance

(D) quiet resignation

(E) subdued nostalgia

2 . To some degree , the author attributes Mrs. Auld’s freedom from the common attitudes of slave owners to her

(A) abolitionist upbringing

(B) personal wealth

(C) indifference to her husband

(D) experience as a mother

(E) concentration on her trade

3 . Which of the following best explains why the author felt his “early instruction was all out of place” in paragraph two ?

(A) It failed to include instruction in reading and writing

(B) It did not prepare him to take adequate care of the Aulds’ son Thomas .

(C) It did not train him to assist Mrs. Auld with her weaving .

(D) It had been displaced by the new instructions he received from the Aulds .

(E) It insisted on am obsequiousness that distressed his new mistress .

4 , The underlined word “answer” in paragraph two most nearly means

(A) acknowledge (B) retort (C) reply  (D) serve  (E) atone

5 . By “this kind heart had but a short time to remain such” at the end of paragraph two , the author primarily intends to convey that Mrs. Auld

(A) had only a brief time in which to do her work

(B) was fated to die in the near future

(C) was unable to keep her temper for extended periods of time

(D) had too much strength of will to give in to the softer emotions

(E) was destined to undergo a change of character shortly

6 . It can be inferred from the passage that all of the following were characteristic of Mrs. Auld at the time the author first met her EXCEPT

(A) diligence in labor

(B) dislike of fawning

(C) gentleness of spirit

(D) disdain for convention

(E) benevolent nature

7 . For which of the following reasons does Mr. Auld forbid his wife to educate her slave ?

I . Providing slaves with an education violates the law .

II . He believes slaves lack the capacity for education .

III . He fears education would leave the slave less submissive .

(A) I only (B) III only (C) I and II only (D) I and III only (E) I , II and III

8 . We can assume on the basis of Mr. Auld’s comment in paragraph three “Further …. an ell” that

(A) It failed to include inst ruction in reading and writing.

(B) It did not prepare him to take adequate care of the Aulds’ son Thomas .

(C) It did not train him to assist Mrs. Auld with her weaving .

(D) It had been displaced by the new instructions he received from the Aulds .

(E) It insisted on an obsequiousness that distressed his new mistress .

9 . The underlined word “sensible” in paragraph three means

(A) logical (B) prudent (C) intelligent (D) conscious (E) sensory

10 . The tone of the author in acknowledging his debt to his master at the end of paragraph three can best be described as

(A) sentimental and nostalgic

(B) cutting and ironic

(C) petulant and self-righteous

(D) resigned but wistful

(E) angry and impatient

11 . Which of the following definitions of “education” is closest to the author’s view of education as presented in the passage ?

(A) Education makes people easy to govern , but impossible to enslave .

(B) Education is the best provision for old age .

(C) Education has for its object the formation of character

(D) Education has produced a vast population able to read but unable to distinguish what is worth reading .

(E) Education begins and ends with the knowledge of human nature