Passage -1

Archaeology as a profession faces two major problems. First, it is the poorest of the poor. Only
paltry sums are available for excavating and even less is available for publishing the results and
preserving the sites once excavated. Yet archaeologists deal with priceless objects every day.
Second, there is the problem of illegal excavation, resulting in museum-quality pieces being sold to
the highest bidder.

I would like to make an outrageous suggestion that would at one stroke provide funds for
archaeology and reduce the amount of illegal digging. I would propose that scientific archaeological
expeditions and governmental authorities sell excavated artifacts on the open market. Such sales
would provide substantial funds for the excavation and preservation of archaeological sites and the
publication of results. At the same time, they would break the illegal excavator’s grip on the
market, thereby decreasing the inducement to engage in illegal activities.

You might object that professionals excavate to acquire knowledge, not money. Moreover, ancient
artifacts are part of our global cultural heritage, which should be available for all to appreciate, not
sold to the highest bidder. I agree. Sell nothing that has unique artistic merit or scientific value. But
you might reply everything that comes out of the ground has scientific value. Here we part
company. Theoretically, you may be correct in claiming that every artifact has potential scientific
value. Practically, you are wrong.

I refer to the thousands of pottery vessels and ancient lamps that are essentially duplicates of one
another. In one small excavation in Cyprus, archaeologists recently uncovered 2,000 virtually
indistinguishable small jugs in a single courtyard, even precious royal seal impressions known as
l’melekh handles have been found in abundance—more than 4,000 examples so far.

The basements of museums are simply not large enough to store the artifacts that are likely to be
discovered in the future. There is not enough money even to catalogue the finds; as a result, they
cannot be found again and become as inaccessible as if they had never been discovered. Indeed,
with the help of a computer, sold artifacts could be more accessible than are the pieces stored in
bulging museum basements. Prior to sale, each could be photographed and the list of the
purchasers could be maintained on the computer. A purchaser could even be required to agree to
return the piece if it should become needed for scientific purposes.

It would be unrealistic to suggest that illegal digging would stop if artifacts were sold on the open
market. But the demand for the clandestine product would be substantially reduced. Who would
want an unmarked pot when another was available whose provenance was known, and that was
dated stratigraphically by the professional archaeologist who excavated it?
Question 1: The primary purpose of the passage is to propose
1. an alternative to museum display of artifacts
2. a way to curb illegal digging while benefiting the archaeological profession
3. a way to distinguish artifacts with scientific value from those that have no such value
4. the governmental regulation of archaeological sites
5. a new system for cataloguing duplicate artifacts

Question 2: The author implies that all of the following statements about duplicate artifacts are
true EXCEPT:
1. A market for such artifacts already exists.
2. Such artifacts seldom have scientific value.
3. There is likely to be a continuing supply of such artifacts.
4. Museums are well supplied with examples of such artifacts.
5. Such artifacts frequently exceed in quality those already catalogued in museum
collections.

Question 3: Which of the following is mentioned in the passage as a disadvantage of storing

artifacts in museum basements?
1. Museum officials rarely allow scholars access to such artifacts.
2. Space that could be better used for display is taken up for storage.
3. Artifacts discovered in one excavation often become separated from each other.
4. Such artifacts are often damaged by variations in temperature and humidity.
5. Such artifacts often remain uncatalogued and thus cannot be located once they are
put in storage.

Question 4: The author mentions the excavation in Cyprus to emphasize which of the following
points?
1. Ancient lamps and pottery vessels are less valuable, although rarer, than royal seal
impressions.
2. Artifacts that are very similar to each other present cataloguing difficulties to
archaeologists.
3. Artifacts that are not uniquely valuable, and therefore could be sold, are available in
large quantities.
4. Cyprus is the most important location for unearthing large quantities of saleable
artifacts.
5. Illegal sales of duplicate artifacts are wide-spread, particularly on the island of Cyprus.

Question 5: The author’s argument concerning the effect of the official sale of duplicate artifacts
on illegal excavation is based on which of the following assumptions?
1. Prospective purchasers would prefer to buy authenticated artifacts.
2. The price of illegally excavated artifacts would rise.
3. Computers could be used to trace sold artifacts.
4. Illegal excavators would be forced to sell only duplicate artifacts.
 5. Money gained from selling authenticated artifacts could be used to investigate and
prosecute illegal excavators.

Question 6: The author anticipates which of the following initial objections to the adoption of his
proposal?
1. Museum officials will become unwilling to store artifacts.
2. An oversupply of saleable artifacts will result and the demand for them will fall.
3. Artifacts that would have been displayed in public places will be sold to private
collectors.
4. Illegal excavators will have an even larger supply of artifacts for resale.
5. Counterfeiting of artifacts will become more commonplace.

Question 7: The author implies that which of the following would occur if duplicate artifacts were
sold on the open market?
1. I. Illegal excavation would eventually cease completely.
2. II. Cyprus would become the primary source of marketable duplicate artifacts.
3. III. Archaeologists would be able to publish the results of their excavations more
frequently than they currently do.
4. I only
5. III only
None of the Above

Passage-2

During the Victorian period, women writers were measured against a social rather than a literary
ideal. Hence, it was widely thought that novels by women should be modest, religious, sensitive,
guileless, and chaste, like their authors. Many Victorian women writers took exception to this
belief, however, resisting the imposition of non-literary restrictions on their work. Publishers soon
discovered that the gentlest and most ladylike female novelists were tough-minded and relentless
when their professional integrity was at stake. Keenly aware of their artistic responsibilities, these
women writers would not make concessions to secure commercial success.

The Brontes, George Eliot, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, and their lesser-known contemporaries
repudiated, in their professional lives, the courtesy that Victorian ladies might exact from Victorian
gentlemen. Desiring rigorous and impartial criticism, most women writers did not wish reviewers to
be kind to them if kindness meant overlooking their literary weaknesses or flattering them on their
accomplishments simply because of their sex. They had expected derisive reviews; instead, they
found themselves confronted with generous criticism, which they considered condescending.
Elizabeth Barrett Browning labelled it “the comparative respect which means... absolute scorn.”
For their part, Victorian critics were virtually obsessed with finding the place of the woman writer
so as to judge her appropriately. Many bluntly admitted that they thought Jane Eyre a masterpiece
if written by a man, shocking or disgusting if written by a woman. Moreover, reactionary reviewers
were quick to associate an independent heroine with carefully concealed revolutionary doctrine;
several considered Jane Eyre a radical feminist document, as indeed it was. To Charlotte Bronte,
who had demanded dignity and independence without any revolutionary intent and who
considered herself politically conservative, their criticism was an affront. Such criticism bunched all
women writers together rather than treating them as individual artists.

Charlotte Bronte’s experience served as a warning to other women writers about the prejudices
that immediately associated them with feminists and others thought to be political radicals.
Irritated, and anxious to detach themselves from a group stereotype, many expressed relatively
conservative views on the emancipation of women and stressed their own domestic
accomplishments. However, in identifying themselves with women who had chosen the traditional
career path of marriage and motherhood, these writers encountered still another threat to their
creativity. Victorian prudery rendered virtually all experience that was uniquely feminine
unprintable. No nineteenth-century woman dared to describe childbirth, much less her sexual
passion. Men could not write about their sexual experiences either, but they could write about
sport, business, crime, and war—all activities from which women were barred. Small wonder no
woman produced a novel like War and Peace. What is amazing is the sheer volume of first-rate
prose and poetry that Victorian women did write.

Question 1: The primary purpose of the passage is to

1. refute the contention that no Victorian woman writer produced a novel like War and
Peace
2. trace the historical relationship between radical feminist politics and the Victorian
novels written by women
3. show how three Victorian women writers responded to criticism of their novels
4. resolve the apparent contradiction between Victorian women writers’ literary
innovativeness and their rather conservative social views
5. describe the discrepancy between Victorian society’s expectations of women writers
and the expectations of the women writers themselves

Question 2: According to the passage, Victorian women writers “would not make concessions” to
publishers primarily because they felt that such concessions would
1. require them to limit descriptions of uniquely feminine experiences
2. compromise their artistic integrity
3. make them vulnerable to stereotyping by critics
4. provide no guarantee that their works would enjoy commercial success
5. go against the traditions of English letters
Question 3: The passage suggests that Victorian criticism of works by women writers was
1. indulgent
2. perfunctory
3. resourceful
4. timely
5. apolitical

Question 4: The author of the passage quotes Elizabeth Barrett Browning in order to demonstrate
that Victorian women writers
1. possessed both talent and literary creativity
2. felt that their works were misunderstood
3. refused to make artistic concessions
4. feared derisive criticism
5. resented condescending criticism

Question 5: It can be inferred from the passage that Charlotte Bronte considered the criticisms
levelled at Jane Eyre by reactionary reviewers “an affront” primarily because such criticism
1. exposed her carefully concealed revolutionary doctrine to public scrutiny
2. assessed the literary merit of the novel on the basis of its author’s sex
3. assumed that her portrayal of an independent woman represented revolutionary ideas
4. labelled the novel shocking and disgusting without just cause
5. denied that the novel was a literary masterpiece

Question 6: Which of the following statements best describes the “threat” mentioned in line 57 of
the passage?
1. Critics demanded to know the sex of the author before passing judgment on the
literary quality of a novel.
2. Women writers were prevented from describing in print experiences about which they
had special knowledge.
3. The reading public tended to prefer historical novels to novels describing
contemporary London society.
4. Publishers were urging Victorian women writers to publish under their own names
rather than under pseudonyms.
5. Women writers’ domestic responsibilities tended to take time away from their writing.

Question 7: The passage suggests that the attitude of Victorian women writers toward being
grouped together by critics was most probably one of
1. relief
2. indifference
3. amusement
4. annoyance
5. ambivalence
Question 8: It can be inferred from the passage that a Victorian woman writer who did not
consider herself a feminist would most probably have approved of women’s
1. entering the noncombat military
2. entering the publishing business
3. entering a university
4. joining the stock exchange
5. joining a tennis club

Question 9: The passage suggests that the literary creativity of Victorian women writers could have
been enhanced if
1. women had been allowed to write about a broader range of subjects
2. novels of the period had been characterized by greater stylistic and structural
ingenuity
3. a reserved and decorous style had been a more highly valued literary ideal
4. publishers had sponsored more new women novelists
5. critics had been kinder in reviewing the works of women novelists