8th ELA 1st 9 Weeks Exam Study Guide

1. PART A: Which of the following best identifies a central theme of this myth? (RL8.2) 

• Abuse of power

• The necessity of curiosity

• Violence and war

• Beauty and art

2 .PART B: Which TWO phrases from the text best support the answer to Part A? (RL8.1)

• "Prometheus did not care to live amid the clouds on the mountain top. He was too busy for that." (Paragraph 3)

• "It is best for them to be poor and ignorant, that so we Mighty Ones may thrive and be happy." (Paragraph 8)

• "Let them keep their fire. I will make them ten times more miserable than they were before they had it." (Paragraph 20)

• "Then they called her Pandora, which means the all-gifted, because she had received gifts from them all." (Paragraph 24)

3. Read the sentence from paragraph 5. What is the meaning of the word wretched as it is used in the context of the sentence? (RL 8.4)

• indifferent

• happy

• lonely

• miserable

4. Which option states a central idea of the text? (RL 8.2) 

• Persephone is the beautiful daughter of Demeter, the goddess of the Harvest.

• Fall and winter are cold and barren because Persephone returns to the Underworld.

• Zeus is the king of the Gods and his brother Hades is the king of the Underworld.

• Hades gives Persephone a pomegranate and Persephone feels sorry for Hades.

5. Read the details from the story. 

When Persephone was reunited with her mother there was much joy and celebration, but it was tinged with sadness at the news of the pomegranate seeds. Demeter went to plead with Zeus."Don't send my daughter away forever," she cried. 

How does this detail support a central idea of the text? (RL 8.1)

• It shows how Hades feels about Persephone.

• It explains Zeus' plan to help Demeter and Persephone.

• It describes the main lesson that Persephone learns.

• It highlights a dilemma that the characters face.

6. Read the phrase from paragraph 7. 

“Plants withered, crops failed and the Earth became barren.”

Which word could replace barren as it is used in the phrase? (RL 8.4)

• infertile

• grown

• thriving

• round

7. Which paragraph from the text does the picture help the reader better understand? (RL 8.7) 

• Paragraph 4

• Paragraph 5

• Paragraph 6

• Paragraph 7

8. How do both paragraph 8 of Prometheus and paragraph 7 of Persephone contribute to the understanding of the rise in conflict in the stories? (RL8.5)

• The paragraphs reveal that the antagonists of the story will fail in the end.

• The paragraphs suggest that the lessons learned in the stories will be unfair.

• The paragraphs emphasize the depth the antagonist will go to get what they want.

• The paragraphs highlight the relationship between the narrator and the characters.

9. In both Prometheus and Persephone the resolution does not favor either side. How does this structural choice contribute to an understanding of the characters? (RL 8.5)

• Persephone eats the fruit which requires her to share her time between Demeter and Hades. While in the story of Prometheus, Pandora does unleash evil into the world, she was able to stop Foreboding, which would have been far worse.

• Persephone is responsible for returning to Hades whenever he wants. Pandora was not able to stop all the evil creatures from coming out into the world, but she did stop Foreboding.

• Prometheus was given a beautiful wife, although she ultimately destroyed the world.Hades allowed his wife to leave him in the underworld, in order to make her happy again.

• Pandora was able to stop evil from taking over the world. Hades tricked Persephone into staying with him in order to save Demeter.

10. Read the second paragraph of the introduction [paragraphs 1-3]. What purpose does the paragraph serve in developing the article's main idea? (RI 8.5) 

• It introduces a story that is explained in detail later in the article.

•  It introduces a belief the ancient Greeks had about common weather 

  events.

• It introduces a god that plays a role in many myths discussed in the article.

• It introduces the idea that all of the myths included gods that were angry.