托福阅读常考话题及练习题推荐四：苏美尔和埃及（2）

1托福常考话题：苏美尔和埃及话题练习题

►Paragraph 1: Trade was the mainstay of the urban economy in the Middle East, as caravans negotiated the surrounding desert, restricted only by access to water and by mountain ranges. This has been so since ancient times, partly due to the geology of the area, which is mostly limestone and sandstone, with few deposits of metallic ore and other useful materials Ancient demands for obsidian (a black volcanic rock useful for making mirrors and tools) led to trade with Armenia to the north, while jade for cutting tools was brought from Turkistan, and the precious stone lapis lazuli was imported from Afghanistan. One can trace such expeditions back to ancient Sumeria, the earliest known Middle Eastern civilization. Records show merchant caravans and trading posts set up by the Sumerians in the surrounding mountains and deserts of Persia and Arabia, where they traded grain for raw materials, such as timber and stones, as well as for metals and gems.

1. According to paragraph 1, why has trade been so important throughout the history of the Middle East?

A. The rare and valuable metals and stones found in Middle Eastern deserts have always been in high demand in surrounding areas.

B. Growing conditions throughout the Middle East are generally poor, forcing Middle Eastern people to depend on imported grain.

C. Many useful and decorative raw materials cannot be found naturally in the Middle East but are available from neighboring regions.

D. Frequent travel, due to limited water supplies in the Middle East, created many opportunities for trade with neighboring societies.

►Paragraph 2: Reliance on trade had several important consequences. Production was generally in the hands of skilled individual artisans doing piecework under the tutelage of a master who was also the shop owner. In these shops differences of rank were blurred as artisans and masters labored side by side in the same modest establishment, were usually members of the same guild and religious sect, lived in the same neighborhoods, and often had assumed (or real) kinship relationships. The worker was bound to the master by a mutual contract that either one could repudiate, and the relationship was conceptualized as one of partnership.

2. The word “repudiate” in the passage is closest in meaning to

A. respect

B. reject

C. review

D. revise

3. According to paragraph 2, how did Middle Eastern shop owners treat their workers?

A. Workers were ranked according to their skill level, with the most-experienced artisans becoming partial owners of the shop.

B. Shop owners treated different workers differently depending on how much the workers had in common with their masters.

C. Workers were bound to their masters by unbreakable contracts that strictly defined the terms of their partnership.

D. The shop owner worked alongside the workers and often considered them partner and members of the family.

►Paragraph 3: This mode of craft production favored the growth of self-governing and ideologically egalitarian craft guilds everywhere in the Middle Eastern city. These were essentially professional associations that provided for the mutual aid and protection of their members, and allowed for the maintenance of professional standards. The growth of independent guilds was furthered by the fact that surplus was not a result of domestic craft production but resulted primarily from international trading; the government left working people to govern themselves, much as shepherds of tribal confederacies were left alone by their leaders. In the multiplicity of small-scale local egalitarian or quasi-egalitarian organizations for fellowship, worship, and production that flourished in this laissez-faire environment, individuals could interact with one another within a community of harmony and ideological equality, following their own popularly elected leaders and governing themselves by shared consensus while minimizing distinctions of wealth and power.

4. The author includes the information that surplus was not a result of domestic craft production but resulted primarily from international trading in order to

A. support the claim that the mode of production made possible by the craft guilds w very good for trade

B. contrast the economic base of the city government with that of the tribal confederacies

C. provide a reason why the government allowed the guilds to be self-controlled

D. suggest that the government was missing out on a valuable opportunity to tax the guilds

5. According to paragraph 3, all of the following are true of the Middle Eastern craft guilds EXCEPT:

A. The guilds were created to support workers and to uphold principles of high-quality craft production.

B. Each guild was very large and included members from a broad geographic area.

C. The leaders of the guilds were chosen by popular vote.

D. All guild members were treated as equals.

6. The word “consensus” in the passage is closest in meaning to

A. authority

B. responsibility

C. custom

D. agreement