Name: ______________________________
Miss Shupik
Date: ____________________
Midterm Examination, EI
Directions: (2 points each) Read the following article. Then, read and respond to the questions that
follow.
So You Want to Be an Astronaut
Richard Knight
All but the most hardened skeptics now admit that, sooner or later, space tourism will become a
reality. But the question is: when exactly?
The answer is: probably not for quite a while yet.
MirCorp, the company which has leased the Mir space station, is offering one place on its
mission to the station in September—it announced the spare seat earlier this year. But the return fare
will cost up to £20 million—and costs are not the only problems facing future space cadets.
The Body
According to Royal Air Force space expert Derek Clark, our bodies are not built for spaceflight and any
would-be tourist will have to accept certain health risks and discomforts.
Just getting to space is a physically demanding experience. Passengers will be pinned to the
backs of their seats by a 3G force (increasing each tourist’s apparent weight threefold) for 4 minutes 40
seconds from launch to orbit while being buffeted as they crash through the atmosphere.
However, since extreme forces beyond 3G (which might be experienced in an emergency) can
either starve the brain of oxygen or cause it to hemorrhage, each tourist will probably have to be fitted
with a tailor-made G-suit.
In space, where there is almost no gravity, blood equalizes around the body, rather than being
pulled into our legs. The effect is to give the brain more blood than usual. Our bodies cope with this by
reducing blood mass through increased urination, reduced liquid intake, and nosebleeds. Passengers
will take a day to get over this unpleasant process. Back on Earth, they will find their reduced blood
mass is again drawn downwards, causing them to faint.
Before facing that challenge, however, 50 percent of space tourists will have spent most of their
free time feeling ill because of space sickness (an extreme form of travel sickness). This would
contribute to weigh loss. Each passenger will lose about 5 pounds on their first day in space and will
continue to lose weight daily.
This is also because, with no gravity to fight against, muscles will deteriorate fast, most
seriously around the heart. In fact, tourists who stay in space long enough will find their hearts have
become irreversibly weakened—which is the fate of some Mir astronauts. Each passenger would have
to exercise for 6 hours a day to halt muscle deterioration.
Painful kidney stones are more likely to develop in space, and there is a need to protect wouldbe astronauts against infection. So tourists will either be isolated for a month prior to flight or given
regular medicals during the lead-up. Having second thoughts, by any chance?
The Mind
Tourists will need to be quizzed by psychologists in order to check whether they have the right mental
stuff. This is because passengers may feel a profound sense of isolation as they look at Earth from
space. Gazing out, they will be able to use the tips of their thumbs to blot the Earth from view, making
everything they have ever known disappear.
As the sun rises and sets 16 times a day in space, sleep patterns will also be disrupted, possibly
unhinging passengers. Some will suffer claustrophobia from being confined to a narrow capsule in
which one cannot walk, open a window or—of course—get out!
Another problem is that former astronauts are statistically more likely to suffer serious
accidents when they return to Earth. This might be because, having flown to space and taken such a
huge risk, they feel invincible and take greater chances than normal. Still feel like going?
Midterm Examination, EI
1
Enough Demand?
Do sufficient numbers of people really want to travel to destination space? It is likely to be enormously
expensive: Will enough people be able to find the money? Once the market is proved, the money
required to fuel passenger space planes should be more forthcoming than it is at present. For now,
however, we can only guess when the first scheduled flight beyond the atmosphere will take off…phew!
1. Which of the following questions is answered in the article?
A. What causes heart damage during prolonged space travel?
B. Why might space travelers develop kidney stones?
C. What can space travelers do to avoid becoming depressed?
D. What will the interior of a passenger space plane look like?
2. Which of the following research questions about space tourism is the most narrow and focused?
A. What kinds of people want to be astronauts?
B. In the future, will space tourism become as routine as international airplane flights are now?
C. How does a G-suit prevent a person from being injured during liftoff?
D. How effective are the U.S. government’s current plans for the space program budget?
3. Assume your initial research question is How do people feel once they return to earth after
traveling in space? Which follow-up question will best help you narrow your research?
A. Do people visit doctors frequently after space flights?
B. Are people satisfied with their lives once they are back on earth?
C. Do people ever regret traveling in space?
D. What specific physical effects do people experience after a space flight, and how long do the
effects last?
4. If you wanted to do further research on the effects of space travel on the mind, which question
would give you the most relevant information?
A. Will space tourists returning to earth be tested by psychologists?
B. Is there a cure for claustrophobia?
C. How do disrupted sleep patterns affect the human mind?
D. Which former astronauts have had serious accidents?
5. Which research question about the effects of space travel on the body follows most directly from the
information in the article?
A. When will doctors and nurses be trained to work in space?
B. Does gravity have harmful effects on our bodies when we are on earth?
C. What are the symptoms of space sickness, and how long does it last?
D. What kinds of circulation problems do people face on earth?
Midterm Examination, EI
2
Directions: (2 points each) The following paragraph is from a draft of a student’s autobiographical
narrative. Read the questions below it, and choose the best answer to each question.
(1) Of all the events of my childhood, the one I remember best is my first ride on the school bus.
(2) It took our bus forty-five minutes to get from my house to the school. (3) As I stepped up the gritty
black steps and looked for an empty seat, I saw countless strange faces glaring back at me. (4) I sat
near the back of the bust next to a shy-looking kid with glasses that sat crookedly on his nose. (5) As
the bus got rolling, I soon found myself in the midst of a raging paper war. (6) “When will this ever
stop?” I wondered to myself as a thick, wet paper wad struck the back of my neck. (7) “Get under here!”
the boy next to me shouted, signaling me to duck under the backpack he had put over his head for
protection. (8) As we crouched, we laughed together at the chaos around us. (9) When we arrived, I
promised to meet him after school so we could ride home together.
6. To improve the coherence of this paragraph, which sentence might the writer delete?
A. 2
B. 4
C. 7
D. 8
7. If the writer wanted to add sensory details to the paragraph, which of the following would be
appropriate?
A. The bus had room for sixty-four.
B. I hated waiting for the bus even more than I hated riding it.
C. I waded through crumpled litter and gray, chewed gum to get to my seat.
D. My friend’s mom worked at the school, so she didn’t ride the bus.
8. Imagine that you have been asked to present this experience as an oral narrative. Which of the
following gestures would be appropriate to make when saying, “Get under here!”?
A. clapping your hands
B. giving the thumbs-up sign
C. waving your hands toward you
D. pointing at the audience
Midterm Examination, EI
3
Directions: (2 points each) Use the context clues in the following passages to identify the meaning of
the underlined vocabulary words.
9. Recoiling at first upon seeing the trowel, Fortunato then follows Montresor into the catacombs.
A. staring
B. retreating
C. laughing
D. pausing
10. Montresor believes that Fortunato deserves retribution for insulting him.
A. imprisonment
B. payment
C. forgiveness
D. punishment
11. Struggling to break the chains, Fortunato endeavored to free himself.
A. failed
B. began
C. hoped
D. tried
12. In “The Golden Kite, the Silver Wind” the Mandarin’s plans to save his town are acclaimed at first.
When he orders the wall to be redesigned, the townspeople praise him for his efforts.
A. rejected
B. criticized
C. applauded
D. mocked
13. “Feeding Frenzy” describes the obstacles David Levitt faced when he decided to start a food-sharing
program. Undaunted, he did not give up and ultimately succeeded.
A. not discouraged
B. proud
C. judgmental
D. furious
14. “Community Service & You” explains that you can learn new skills from volunteering that will help
you in your future endeavors, such as finishing school or pursuing a career.
A. years
B. obstacles
C. undertakings
D. knowledge
Midterm Examination, EI
4
Directions: (2 points each) Read the following short story. Then, read and respond to the questions
that follow.
Old Man at the Bridge
Ernest Hemingway
An old man with steel rimmed spectacles and very dusty clothes sat by the side of the road. There was a
pontoon bridge across the river and carts, trucks, and men, women, and children were crossing it. The
mule-drawn carts staggered up the steep bank from the bridge with soldiers helping push against the
spokes of the wheels. The trucks ground up and away heading out of it all and the peasants plodded
along in the ankle deep dust. But the old man sat there without moving. He was too tired to go any
farther.
It was my business to cross the bridge, explore the bridgehead beyond and find out to what
point the enemy had advanced. I did this and returned over the bridge. There were not so many carts
now and very few people on foot, but the old man was still there.
“Where do you come from?” I asked him.
“From San Carlos,” he said, and smiled.
That was his native town and so it gave him pleasure to mention it and he smiled.
“I was taking care of animals,” he explained.
“Oh,” I said, not quite understanding.
“Yes,” he said, “I stayed, you see, taking care of animals. I was the last one to leave the town of
San Carlos.”
He did not look like a shepherd nor a herdsman and I looked at his black dusty clothes and his
gray dust face and his steel rimmed spectacles and said, “What animals were they?”
“Various animals,” he said, and shook his head. “I had to leave them.”
I was watching the bridge and the African looking country of the Ebro Delta and wondering
how long now it would be before we would see the enemy and listening all the while for the first noises
that would signal that ever mysterious event called contact, and the old man still sat there.
“What animals were they?” I asked.
“There were three animals altogether,” he explained. “There were two goats and a cat and then
there were four pairs of pigeons.”
“And you had to leave them?” I asked.
“Yes. Because of the artillery. The captain told me to go because of the artillery.”
“And you have no family?” I asked, watching the far end of the bridge where a few last carts
were hurrying down the slope of the bank.
“No,” he said, “only the animals I stated. The cat, of course, will be all right. A cat can look out
for itself, but I cannot think what will become of the others.”
“What politics have you?” I asked.
“I am without politics,” he said. “I am seventy-six years old. I have come twelve kilometers now
and I think now I can go no further.”
“This is not a good place to stop,” I said. “If you can make it, there are trucks up the road where
it forks for Tortosa.”
“I will wait a while,” he said, “and then I will go. Where do the trucks go?”
“Towards Barcelona,” I told him.
“I know no one in that direction,” he said, “but thank you very much. Thank you again very
much.”
He looked at me vey blankly and tiredly, then said, having to share his worry with some one,
“The cat will be all right, I am sure. There is no need to be unquiet about the cat. But the others. Now
what do you think about the others?”
“Why, they’ll probably come through it all right.”
“You think so?”
“Why not,” I said, watching the far bank where now there were no carts.
“But what will they do under the artillery when I was told to leave because of the artillery?”
Midterm Examination, EI
5
“Did you leave the dove cage unlocked?” I asked.
“Yes.”
“Then they’ll fly.”
“Yes, certainly they’ll fly. But the others. It’s better not to think about the others,” he said.
“If you are rested I would go,” I urged. “Get up and try to walk now.”
“Thank you,” he said and got to his feet, swayed from side to side and then sat down backwards
in the dust.
“I was taking care of animals,” he said dully, but no longer to me. “I was only taking care of
animals.”
There was nothing to do about him. It was Easter Sunday and the Fascists were advancing
toward Ebro. It was a gray overcast day with a low ceiling so their planes were not up. That and the fact
that cats know how to look after themselves was all the good luck that old man would ever have.
15. Why did the old man at the bridge leave his home in San Carlos?
A. He was taken prisoner by the enemy.
B. He was fleeing an artillery attack.
C. He needed medical attention.
D. He wanted to get help for his animals.
16. The story’s most serious external conflict is between—
A. the old man and the narrator
B. the two main characters and the war
C. the old man and the soldiers at the bridge
D. the narrator and the captain
17. The old man faces an internal conflict between—
A. rescuing the cat and saving the goats and pigeons
B. his loyalty to the government and his belief in the enemy’s cause
C. his desire to take care of his animals and the need to leave his home
D. crossing the bridge to seek shelter and fleeing to Barcelona
18. The old man can best be characterized as—
A. angry and determined
B. tired and worried
C. hopeful and encouraging
D. unconcerned and unfriendly
19. What is the narrator’s motivation for urging the old man to move on?
A. Concern for the old man’s safety
B. The need to carry out his orders
C. Anger at the old man
D. A desire to reunite the old man with his family in Barcelona
20. Several times the narrator says that he was “watching” the bridge or the far bank of the river. What
character trait does the narrator reveal through this description?
A. Curiosity
B. Bravery
C. Carelessness
D. Alertness
Midterm Examination, EI
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21. What does the old man reveal about himself when he says in his dialogue with the narrator, “I am
without politics”?
A. He does not care about his native town.
B. He has not taken sides during the war.
C. He is rebelling against the leaders of his country.
D. He is trying to hid his beliefs from the narrator.
22. Which of the following words best describes the behavior of the narrator toward the old man?
A. Protective
B. Hostile
C. Indifferent
D. Loving
23. From what the narrator says in the last paragraph about the old man’s luck, we can infer that the
narrator feels—
A. sympathetic and optimistic
B. relieved and carefree
C. powerless and pessimistic
D. superstitious and frightened
24. A the end of the story, we can infer that the narrator—
A. leaves the old man to his fate
B. stays to guard the old man
C. deserts the army
D. searches for someone to travel with the old man
Constructed Response #1—TAG (Turn prompt into topic sentence 10 points, Answer the prompt
10 points, Give examples 10 points; 30 points total)
At different points in the story, both the old man and the narrator “give up.” Identify details and words
from the story that show each character’s feeling of defeat. Give at least one example per character.
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Midterm Examination, EI
7
Directions: (2 points each) The following paragraph is from a draft of a student’s short story. Read
the questions below it, and choose the best answer to each question.
(1) After riding twenty-two hours on a train, Amanda was glad to hear the conductor’s booming
voice call out “Union Station, Chicago.” (2) “Spending a month in Canada was great, but I can’t wait to
see my family!” she thought. (3) She had just enough time on her phone card to call her dad at his
office to let him know she was in and needed a ride. (4) She dragged the suitcase to a pay phone and
made the call. (5) “Honey, I’m swamped with work, so take the commuter train and I’ll pick you up at
the depot,” Dad said.
25. What words did the writer use to establish the setting?
A. “Amanda was glad to hear…’Union Station, Chicago.’”
B. “had just enough time on her phone card”
C. “I can’t wait to see my family!”
D. “a month in Canada was great”
26. Which of the following sentences would add sensory details?
A. Amanda’s family lived about thirty miles outside of Chicago.
B. Amanda had brought a souvenir for her grandmother.
C. The steamy Chicago summer heat hit her like a slap in the face.
D. Her dad ran his own business.
27. Why did the writer put sentence 5 in quotation marks?
A. The sentence is dialogue.
B. It is the title of the story.
C. It is the conflict of the story.
D. The sentence creates suspense.
28. Which of the following sentences, if added, would tell the conflict of the story?
A. A child clutched his parent’s hand as he exited the train.
B. When Amanda hung up, she realized that she had only Canadian money.
C. Amanda thought about the photos she would show her family.
D. Inside the station, it was noisy, crowded, and hot.
29. Which of the following sentences could be added to effectively describe the appearance of the main
character?
A. The chubby conductor smiled broadly at the departing passengers.
B. Her dad was a small, wiry man who worked too hard.
C. Amanda said goodbye to the woman she had sat next to on the train.
D. The tall, brown-eyed girl getting off the train was tired and hungry.
Midterm Examination, EI
8
Directions: (2 points each) Read the following short story and poem. Then, read and respond to the
questions that follow.
Papa Who Wakes Up Tired in the Dark
Sandra Cisneros
Your abuelito is dead, Papa says early one morning in my room Esta muerto, and then as if he just
heard the news himself, crumples like a coat and cries, my brave Papa cries. I have never seen my Papa
cry and don’t know what to do.
I know he will have to go away, that he will take a plane to Mexico, all the uncles and aunts will
be there, and they will have a black-and-white photo taken in front of the tomb with flowers shaped
like spears in a white vase because this is how they send the dead away in that country.
Because I am the oldest, my father has told me first, and now it is my turn to tell the others. I
will have to explain why we can’t play. I will have to explain why we can’t play. I will have to tell them
to be quiet today.
My Papa, his thick hands and thick shoes, who wakes up tired in the dark, who combs his hair
with water, drinks his coffee, and is gone before we wake, today is sitting on my bed.
And I think if my own Papa died what would I do. I hold my Papa in my arms. I hold and hold
and hold him.
Those Winter Sundays
Robert Hayden
Sundays too my father got up early
and put his clothes on in the blueblack cold,
then with cracked hands that ached
from labor in the weekday weather made
banked fires blaze. No one ever thanked him.
I’d wake and hear the cold splintering, breaking.
When the rooms were warm, he’d call,
and slowly I would rise and dress,
fearing the chronic angers of that house,
Speaking indifferently to him,
who had driven out the cold
and polished my good shoes as well.
What did I know, what did I know
of love’s austere and lonely offices?
30. In “Papa Who Wakes Up Tired in the Dark,” how does the narrator feel when she sees her father
cry?
A. Guilty
B. Confused
C. Angry
D. Suspicious
31. When he was young, the speaker in “Those Winter Sundays”
A. did not appreciate his father.
B. felt grateful to his father.
C. did not obey his father.
D. gave orders to his father.
Midterm Examination, EI
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32. Both works describe a father who wakes up early in the dark. What do these two fathers have in
common?
A. Both are ambitious.
B. Both are restless and aimless.
C. Neither father wants to spend time with his family.
D. Both work hard and love their families.
33. What feeling is expressed at the end of both selections?
A. Fear or nervousness
B. Pity
C. Embarrassment
D. Love or appreciation
34. Which of the following statements about the two selections is false?
A. Unlike the story’s narrator, the poem’s speaker is an adult looking back on the past.
B. Unlike the relationship described in the poem, the parent-child relationship in the story is
warm.
C. The tone of the poem, unlike the tone of the story, is regretful.
D. The poem’s speaker, unlike the story’s narrator, has seen his father cry.
35. Although these works are different genres (a story and a poem), they share each of the following
elements except
A. a first-person narrator or speaker.
B. a repeated phrase.
C. dialogue.
D. an image of the father’s hands.
36. If Robert Hayden wanted to turn “Those Winter Sundays” into a story, he might add all of the
following elements except
A. a scene showing a conflict between the father and son.
B. end rhyme.
C. a climax to the plot.
D. more characters.
Constructed Response #2—TAG (Turn prompt into topic sentence 10 points, Answer the prompt
10 points, Give examples 10 points; 30 points total)
In your opinion, what is the common theme of both selections? Provide two specific examples to
support your response.
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Midterm Examination, EI
10
Directions: (2 points each) Read the following selection. Then, read and respond to the questions
that follow.
Snow
Julia Alvarez
Our first year in New York we rented a small apartment with a Catholic school nearby, taught by the
Sisters of Charity, hefty women in long black gowns and bonnets that made them look peculiar, like
dolls in mourning. I liked them a lot, especially my grandmotherly fourth-grade teacher, Sister Zoe. I
had a lovely name, she said, and she had me teach the whole class how to pronounce it. Yo-lan-da. As
the only immigrant in my class, I was put in a special seat in the first row by the window, apart from
the other children, so that Sister Zoe could tutor me without disturbing them. Slowly, she enunciated
the new words I was to repeat: laundromat, cornflakes, subway, snow.
Soon I picked up enough English to understand holocaust was in the air. Sister Zoe explained
to a wide-eyed classroom what was happening in Cuba. Russian missiles were being assembled,
trained supposedly on New York City. President Kennedy, looking worried too, was on the television at
home, explaining we might have to go to war agains the Communists. At school, we had air-raid drills:
An ominous bell would go off and we’d file into the hall, fall on the floor, cover our heads with our
coats, and imagine our hair falling out, the bones in our arms going soft. At home, Mami and my
sisters and I said a rosary for world peace. I heard new vocabulary: nuclear bomb, radioactive fallout,
bomb shelter. Sister Zoe explained how it would happen. She drew a picture of a mushroom on the
blackboard and dotted a flurry of chalk marks for the dusty fallout that would kill us all.
The months grew cold, November, December. It was dark when I got up in the morning, frosty
when I followed my breath to school. One morning, as I sat at my desk daydreaming out the window, I
saw dots in the air like the ones Sister Zoe had drawn—random at first, then lots and lots. I shrieked,
“Bomb! Bomb!” Sister Zoe jerked around, her full black skirt ballooning as she hurried to my side. A
few girls began to cry.
But then Sister Zoe’s shocked look faded. “Why, Yolanda dear, that’s snow!” She laughed.
“Snow.”
“Snow,” I repeated. I looked out the window warily. All my life I had heard about the white
crystals that fell out of American skies in the winter. From my desk I watched the fine powder dust the
sidewalk and parked cars below. Each flake was different, Sister Zoe had said, like a person,
irreplaceable and beautiful.
37. Why does Yolanda yell, “Bomb! Bomb!” when she sees snow?
A. The winter landscape is bare, as if a bomb had destroyed everything.
B. The snowflakes look like her teacher’s pictures of the fallout from a bomb.
C. New in school, she wants to gain her classmates’ attention.
D. She wants to show that she has understood her teacher’s lessons.
38. How does the use of a first-person narrator affect the telling of the story?
A. The reader sees events through the eyes of several characters.
B. The description of events is unbiased.
C. The reader is presented with Yolanda’s personal view of events.
D. Yolanda lies in the story.
39. Why is it important that the story is told from the point of view of a recent immigrant to the United
states?
A. Yolanda is unfamiliar with some aspects of life in the United States.
B. Living in the United States makes Yolanda frightened and insecure.
C. Yolanda’s classmates don’t explain things to her.
D. Yolanda’s teacher treats her unfairly.
Midterm Examination, EI
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40. What is the best description of the narrator’s voice in this passage: “I saw dots in the air like the
ones Sister Zoe had drawn—random at first, then lots and lots”?
A. Sophisticated
B. Childlike
C. Hopeful
D. Playful
41. What is the tone of the story?
A. Sarcastic and superior
B. Angry and suspicious
C. Homesick and sad
D. Innocent and sincere
42. What impression does the narrator create of Sister Zoe?
A. Sister Zoe has knowingly exaggerated the danger in order to scare the children.
B. Sister Zoe is a nervous, easily frightened person.
C. Sister Zoe mocks Yolanda and doesn’t think she’s intelligent.
D. A caring teacher, Sister Zoe helps her students learn.
Constructed Response #3—TAG (Turn prompt into topic sentence 10 points, Answer the prompt
10 points, Give examples 10 points; 30 points total)
Suppose that Sister Zoe were the narrator of the story instead of Yolanda. What would she be able to
tell you that Yolanda couldn’t? How would the story be different? Support your opinions with two
specific examples from the story.
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Midterm Examination, EI
12
Directions: (2 points each) Choose the answer in which the underlined word is used in the same way
it is used in the sentence from “The Sniper.”
43. “Dublin lay enveloped in darkness but for the dim light of the moon that shone through fleecy
clouds…”
A. Please light the candles on the birthday cake.
B. The biography presented the author in a favorable light.
C. She always dressed in light colors.
D. When we go camping we read by the light of the fire.
44. “The sniper could hear the dull panting of the motor.
A. We left the party early because it was dull.
B. We heard the dull roar of crowds in the distance.
C. I couldn’t cut the fruit with the dull knife.
D. In shock after the accident, he felt dull to pain and grief.
45. “The sniper raised his rifle and fired.”
A. Each person fired two shots at the target.
B. The supervisor fired the employee last week.
C. Journalists fired questions at the mayor during the press conference.
D. The speaker fired up the crowd, inspiring the audience to take action.
46. “Quickly he drew his knife from his pocket…”
A. The engineer drew a diagram to show how the machine worked.
B. The students drew several conclusions from their survey.
C. The movie star always drew large crowds wherever he went.
D. I wailed in suspense as my mother slowly drew a surprise from the bag.
47. “There was a flash and a bullet whizzed over his head.
A. If I hurry, I can be there in a flash.
B. Usually serious, my friend suddenly displayed a flash of wit.
C. To enter the building, just flash your badge.
D. A flash of lightning lit up the sky.
48. “Here and there through the city, machine guns and rifles broke the silence of the night…”
A. Her company went bankrupt, and she is broke.
B. We broke away from the crowds and wandered off by ourselves.
C. Chris was so upset that he broke down in tears.
D. The sound of lighthearted laughter broke the tension in the room.
Midterm Examination, EI
13
Directions: (2 points each) The following paragraph is from a draft of a student’s comparisoncontrast essay. Read the questions below it, and choose the best answer to each question.
(1) Recently, an online article and a newspaper article discussed wildfires in the West. (2) If you have
access to the Web, you can read the online article. (3) The online article, “Western Wildfires Continue,”
presents a variety of information that provies an objective picture of the wildfire. (4) The newspaper
article, “Local Firefighters Battle Bravely,” presents a very personal look at the dangerous task of
fighting wildfires. (5) Stirring photos and emotional language in the article create a strong emotional
impact.
49. To present a clear, coherent thesis, which of these could the student add after sentence 1?
A. While both stories discuss wildfires in the West, the newspaper story has greater emotional
impact.
B. The Web site is viewed by people worldwide, but the newspaper is read mostly locally.
C. A firefighter from my hometown has volunteered to battle the wildfires.
D. I enjoyed reading the two articles and finding out their differences.
50. Which of the following sentences would add to the ideas in sentence 3?
A. Both writers gathered some of their material from the Associated Press.
B. Too many paid advertisements surround the online story and distract the reader.
C. The newspaper article has pictures of the local firefighters hugging their families goodbye.
D. It offers links to other reports, satellite photos, and interviews with sources.
51. Which of these transitional words or phrases should the writer add to the beginning of sentence 4?
A. Meanwhile,
B. In addition,
C. On the other hand,
D. For example,
52. Which sentence should be deleted to improve the passage’s organization?
A. 2
B. 3
C. 4
D. 5
53. To discuss similarities between the media, which of the following could the writer add?
A. an explanation that the newspaper article is distributed only locally
B. a statement that both articles discuss the need for more help
C. a description of the online story’s graphics
D. a defense of the credibility of each source quoted in the articles
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Directions: (2 points each) Read the following folk tale. Then, read and respond to the questions that
follow.
The Happy Man’s Shirt
retold by Italo Calvino, translated by George Martin
A king had an only son that he thought the world of. But this prince was always unhappy. He would
spend days on end at his window staring into space.
“What on earth do you lack?” asked the king. “What’s wrong with you?”
“I don’t even know myself, Father.”
“Are you in love? If there’s a particular girls you fancy, tell me, and I’ll arrange for you to marry
her, no matter whether she’s the daughter of the most powerful king on earth or the poorest peasant
girl alive!”
“No, Father, I’m not in love.”
The king tried in every way imaginable to cheery him up, but theaters, balls, concerts, and
singing were all useless, and day by day the rosy hue drained from the prince’s face.
The king issued a decree and from every corner of the earth cam the most learned philosophers,
doctors, and professors. The king showed them the prince and asked for their advice. The wise men
withdrew to think, then returned to the king. “Majesty, we have given the matter close thought and we
have studied the stars. Here’s what you must do. Look for a happy man, a man who’s happy through
and through, and exchange your son’s shirt for his.”
That same day the king sent ambassadors to all parts of the world in search of the happy man.
A priest was taken to the king. “Are you happy?” asked the king?
“Yes, indeed, Majesty.”
“Fine. How would you like to be my bishop?”
“Oh, Majesty, if only it were so!”
“Away with you! Get out of my sight! I’m seeking a man who’s happy just as he is, not one who’s
trying to better his lot.”
Thus the search resumed and before long the king was told about a neighboring king, who
everybody said was a truly happy man. He had a wife as good as she was beautiful and a whole slew of
children. He had conquered all his enemies, and his country was a peace. Again hopeful, the king
immediately sent ambassadors to him to ask for his shirt.
The neighboring king received the ambassadors and said “Yes, indeed. I have everything
anybody could possibly want. But at the same time I worry because I’ll have to die one day and leave it
all. I can’t sleep at night for worrying about that!” The ambassadors thought it wiser to go home
without this man’s shirt.
At his wit’s end, the king went hunting. He fired at a hare but only wounded it, and the hare
scampered away on three legs. The king pursued it, leaving the hunting party far behind him. Out in
the open field he heard a man singing a refrain. The king stopped in his tracks. “Whoever sings like
that is bound to be happy!” The song led him into a vineyard where he found a young man singing and
pruning the vines.
“Good day, Majesty,” said the youth. “So early and already out in the country?”
“Bless you! Would you like me to take you to the capital? You will be my friend.”
“Much obliged, Majesty, but I wouldn’t even consider it. I wouldn’t even change places with the
Pope.”
“Why not? Such a fine young man like you…”
“No, no. I tell you. I’m content with just what I have and want nothing more.”
“A happy man at last!” thought the king. “Listen, young man. Do me a favor.”
“With all my heart, Majesty, if I can.”
“Wait just a minute,” said the king, who, unable to contain his joy any longer, ran to get his
retinue. “Come with me! My son is saved! My son is saved!” And he took them to the young man. “My
dear lad,” he began, “I’ll give you whatever you want! But give me… give me…”
“What, Majesty?”
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“My son is dying! Only you can save him. Come here!”
The king grabbed him and started unbuttoning the youth’s jacked. All of a sudden he stopped,
and his arms fell to his sides.
The happy man wore no shirt.
54. The wise men tell the king that his son should wear a happy man’s shirt. What does wearing
someone else’s shirt symbolize?
A. Looking like someone else
B. Being like someone else
C. Complimenting someone
D. Feeling superior to someone
55. What might the character of the priest symbolize?
A. Flattery
B. Modesty
C. Ambition
D. Hopefulness
56. What is similar about these two characters: the prince and the neighboring king?
A. Both seem to have everything they could want, but neither is content.
B. Both are in love, but they are still not happy.
C. Both worry about dying, which makes them unhappy.
D. Both are sad, and neither knows why.
57. What does the happy man’s lack of a shirt symbolize?
A. External things cannot create happiness.
B. True happiness does not exist in the real world
C. The man will soon experience unhappiness.
D. The man does not understand what happiness is.
58. Which statement best expresses the theme, or moral, of the folk tale?
A. People should not rely on others to help them solve their problems.
B. It is difficult to know what other people are truly feeling.
C. True happiness must come from within you.
D. Although you may fail to attain your goals at first, you should not give up.
59. The symbols in this folk tale might appeal to us in part because they
A. make the setting of the story vivid
B. give the narrator a distinct personality
C. contribute to the meaning and emotional impact of the story
D. provide information about the author’s life
60. Which word best describes the tone of the folk tale?
A. optimistic
B. pessimistic
C. sympathetic
D. ironic
Total points: ________/210
Midterm Examination, EI
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