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Recognizing Purpose and Tone

Directions: Choose the most appropriate answer for the questions about purpose and
tone.

Passage 1
Every two years, the World Monuments Fund (WMF) assembles an international panel of
experts in archaeology, architecture, art history, and historic preservation. The panel’s job
is to compile a list of the world’s "100 Most Endangered Sites." Included on the list are
architectural and cultural sites endangered by a variety of man-made threats, such as
uncontrolled tourism, urban development, global warming, and war. The WMF’s 2008
list includes sites like Peru’s Machu Picchu, the 15th century Inca mountaintop retreat
currently jeopardized by thousands of visitors per day. Also included are historic areas
such as the skyline of 18th century Saint Petersburg, Russia; parts of Shanghai built in the
1920s and 1930s; and the city of Old Damascus in Syria. These sites are under threat of
demolition in order to make way for the construction of new and more modern buildings.
In addition, the Palestinian-Israeli conflict has threatened places like the Church of the
Nativity at Bethlehem, one of Christianity’s oldest churches. Other culturally significant
sites are being damaged by climate change. For example, the Antarctic hut from which
Captain Robert Scott led his unsuccessful attempt to reach the South Pole in 1911 has
suffered excessive weathering damage due to heavier-than-usual snowfalls. Historic
sections of New Orleans have also been placed on the WMF’s list because of damage and
destruction left in the wake of 2005’s monster storm, Hurricane Katrina. (Sources of
information: World Monuments Fund, http://wmf.org/; "Route 66, Iraqi Sites Among
Most At Risk: Heritage Group," Agence France Presse, 2007,
1. The purpose of this reading is to
a. tell readers about some of the endangered sites identified by the World
Monuments Fund.
b. persuade readers to support efforts to save endangered architectural and
cultural sites.
2. The tone of this reading is
a. alarmed.
b. humorous.
c. objective.
d. puzzled.
3. An important clue to the tone and purpose of the reading is
a. the use of highly connotative language designed to play on the reader’s
emotions.
b. the use of language that does not play on the reader’s emotions.
c. the author’s heavy use of figurative language.
d. the author’s tendency to address the audience directly.

Passage 2
In the United States, children are considered eligible for kindergarten when they have
turned five years old by a certain date, known as the "birthday cutoff." In those states

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where the cutoff date occurs anywhere from weeks to months after the school year begins,
four-year-olds may start school, sometimes long before they celebrate their fifth birthday.
However, it would be better if all states required children to be five years old before
starting school. Schools are now being held accountable for their performance, and school
funding is often tied to students’ standardized test scores. Thus kindergartens all over the
country have become more academically challenging; in fact, many kindergarten classes
now cover the same curriculum taught a generation ago to first graders. This means that
kindergarten students must quickly absorb reading and writing skills. Yet according to
research, the older children are the ones who are generally better able to handle this kind
of content. One study of 22,000 kindergartners conducted by the National Center for
Education Statistics found that five-year-olds are more likely to have the reading,
mathematical, motor, and social skills necessary for learning what is now typical
kindergarten material. Furthermore, when University of California researcher Kelly
Bedard studied the math and science test scores for almost 250,000 students in 19
countries, she found that the younger students perform 4 to 12 percentiles lower than their
slightly older peers in the third and fourth grades. This suggests that the age disadvantage
continues even after kindergarten ends. (Source of information: Elizabeth Weil, "When
Should a Kid Start Kindergarten?" New York Times, June 3, 2007,
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/0603/magazine/03kindergarten-t.html)
1. The purpose of this passage is to
a. convince readers that children should not begin kindergarten until they are
five years old.
b. describe the pros and cons of letting four-year-olds begin kindergarten.
2. The tone of this passage is
a. Objective
b. Heated
c. Puzzled
d. skeptical.
3. An important clue to the tone and purpose of the reading is
a. the colorful, emotionally charged language.
b. the emphasis on denotative language without any emotional impact.
c. the use of allusions that have negative associations.
d. the tendency to address the reader personally.

Passage 3
For over four decades, ecologists and environmentalists have revered Rachel Carson,
author of the 1962 book Silent Spring, for alerting the world about the dangers of
chemical pesticides. Arguing that pesticides such as DDT upset the balance of nature, kill
wildlife, and cause cancer in humans, Carson instigated a widespread "chemophobia" that
culminated in a ban on the use of DDT. Unfortunately, though, Carson’s impassioned plea
for protecting nature and human health has left generations of readers with a skewed view

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of pesticides in general and of DDT in particular. As Dr. I.L. Baldwin, a professor of
agricultural bacteriology, who originally reviewed Silent Spring in a 1962 issue of the
journal Science, pointed out, Carson greatly exaggerated the risks of pesticide use. Based
on questionable statistics and anecdotes, such as the doubtful tale of a woman who
immediately developed cancer after spraying her basement with DDT, Carson
pronounced DDT to be a dangerous human carcinogen. Carson was also irresponsible in
her refusal to acknowledge the pesticides’ benefits, which far outweighed their potential
for harm. As Dr. Baldwin pointed out at the time, pesticides have dramatically improved
human health and welfare by getting rid of insects and parasites that destroy crops and
transmit deadly diseases. Currently, for instance, mosquito-born malaria is a leading cause
of death and illness worldwide because Carson’s devotees won’t allow DDT to be
restored as a weapon in fighting the disease. Carson’s supporters simply refuse to
recognize that their hero could make a mistake. While she certainly had a point about the
overuse of pesticides, she went much too far in her condemnation of them and the planet
is now suffering the consequences. (Source of information: John Tierney, "Fateful Voice
of a Generation Still Drowns Out Real Science," New York Times, June 5, 2007,
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/05/science/earth/05tier.html)
1. The purpose of this passage is to
a. explain to readers why Rachel Carson believed that pesticides in general were
dangerous and why DDT, in particular, should be banned.
b. persuade readers that Rachel Carson was not a reliable source of information
about pesticides.
2. The tone of this passage is
a. amused.
b. objective.
c. puzzled.
d. critical
3. An important clue to the tone and purpose of the reading is
a. the author’s extensive use of figurative language.
b. the author’s use of the first person.
c. the author’s strong praise of an opposing point of view.
d. the use of language that is more denotative than connotative.

Passage 4
Hundreds of colleges now require their students to lease or buy a laptop computer. The
theory is that the computers will help students do research and increase their chances for
interactive learning. Yet in many classrooms, laptops have become more of an obstacle
than an enhancement to learning, and professors need to think seriously about prohibiting
their use during class time. Many students who bring their computers to class do not use
them to take lecture notes or refer to web sites for more information about the professor’s
lecture topic. Far from it. In the history classes I teach, many laptop users don’t even
pretend to pay attention to my lecture or to participate in the discussion. They are more
inclined to visit networking sites like MySpace; e-mail or instant message their friends,
and even shop online. No wonder, then, that so many of them have ended up with low

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grades or are flunking out altogether. Many of these same kids no longer know how to
produce an original thought on their own. Ask them a question and they search the
Internet rather than think. For me, this was the last straw. Laptops, like cell phones, have
no place in my classroom until someone can prove to me that they really are the great
boon to education I have been promised.
1. The purpose of this reading is to
a. describe how lap top computers are actually used in the classroom.
b. persuade readers that laptops are more a hindrance than a help in the
classroom.
2. The tone of this reading is
a. comical.
b. annoyed.
c. objective.
d. puzzled.
3. An important clue to the author’s tone and purpose in this reading is
a. the author’s use of figurative language to make a point.
b. the author’s use of allusions with negative associations.
c. the author’s emotionally charged language.
d. the author’s tendency to remain distant from the audience.

Passage 5
In 1997, Stephen Cowans was convicted of shooting and wounding a Boston police
officer. Cowans’ thumbprint had been found inside a home where the shooter had hidden
after committing the crime; therefore, argued the prosecutor, Cowans was guilty.
Convinced by the testimony of two fingerprint experts, who testified that the print
matched Cowans’, the jury came up with a guilty verdict. It turned out later, though, that
the print was made by someone who actually lived in the house. Unfortunately, that
discovery came a little too late for Cowans. By that time, he had been locked up in a
prison cell for six years. As he case of Stephen Cowans illustrates, fingerprint evidence is
not always completely reliable. Fingerprint examiners, for example, can and do make
errors. Their training varies widely from state to state, and some "experts" are not even
required to pass certification exams. Thus, in some cases, the so-called experts are
incompetent. Then, too, among those examiners who do take a certification exam
administered by the International Association of Identification, as many as half fail the

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test. Add to these concerns the fact that fingerprint analysts disagree among themselves
about the number of similarities two sets of prints must share to be considered a match,
and the pedestal upon which fingerprint evidence has sat for decades suddenly seems a
little wobbly. No wonder defense attorneys have begun to challenge fingerprint analysis
as adequate evidence for proof of guilt. (Source of information: Andy Newman,
"Fingerprinting’s Reliability Draws Growing Court Challenges," New York Times, April
7, 2001, www.truthinjustice.org/fingerprints.htm; Michael Specter, "Do Fingerprints
Lie?" The New Yorker, May 27, 2002,
www.michaelspecter.com/ny/2002/2002_05_27_fingerprint.html)
1. The purpose of this reading is to
a. describe the history of fingerprint evidence.
b. persuade readers that fingerprint evidence is sometimes unreliable.
2. The tone of this reading is
a. objective.
b. humorous.
c. outraged.
d. critical.
3. An important clue to the tone and purpose of the reading is
a. the use of emotionally charged language.
b. the use of language that suggests little or no emotion.
c. the author’s praise of an opposing point of view.
d. the author’s tendency to address the audience directly.

ANSWER

PASSAGE 1
1. A
2. C
3. B

PASSAGE 2
1. A
2. A
3. B

PASSAGE 3

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1. B
2. D
3. D

PASSAGE 4
1. B
2. B
3. B

PASSAGE 5
1. B
2. D
3. A

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