Lesson one: determine central idea and draw conclusions

Theater was one of the most popular forms of art in ancient Greece, and one form of drama - tragedy - was central to Greek culture. Tragedies told familiar stories from Greek myths and epics, with actors portraying the main roles, and a chorus narrating the background of the story and commenting upon the action. These serious dramas centered on a main character who displayed exceptional attributes but also had a tragic flaw that caused his downfall. This flaw was often hubris, which is excessive pride or overconfidence.

Which of the following is the topic of the paragraph?

• A. The superiority of Greek theater

• B. The standard forms of Greek drama

• C. The characteristics of Greek tragedy

• D. The most popular Greek tragedies

Answer explanation

C. the characteristics of Greek tragedy.

The passage describes tragedy as "central to Greek culture" and supports this point with details about plots staging,characters, and themes of Greek tragedy.

Theater was one of the most popular forms of art in ancient Greece, and one form of drama - tragedy - was central to Greek culture. Tragedies told familiar stories from Greek myths and epics, with actors portraying the main roles, and a chorus narrating the background of the story and commenting upon the action. These serious dramas centered on a main character who displayed exceptional attributes but also had a tragic flaw that caused his downfall. This flaw was often hubris, which is defined as excessive pride or overconfidence.

Which of these details supports the central idea?

• A. Theater was one of the most popular Greek art forms.

• B. Tragedies were more important than comedies in ancient Greece.

• C. Greeks thought flaws other than hubris were not tragic.

• D. The main character in Greek drama has a tragic flaw that causes his downfall.

Answer explanation

D. The main character in Greek drama has a tragic flaw that causes his downfall. Choice (D) cites one of the details the author uses to try to establish the central role of tragedy in Greek culture. The other choices are all too broad choice (A)) misrepresent what the passage actually said (choices (B) and C)).

Theater was one of the most popular forms of art in ancient Greece, and one form of drama - tragedy - was central to Greek culture. Tragedies told familiar stories from Greek myths and epics, but actors portrayed the main roles, and a chorus narrated the background of the story and commented upon the action. These serious dramas centered on a main character who displayed exceptional attributes but also had a tragic flaw that caused his downfall. This flaw was often hubris, which is excessive pride or overconfidence.

Which of these conclusions is supported by the paragraph?

• A. Ancient Greeks did not expect to see an original story each time they attended the theater.

• B. Playwrights in ancient Greece also wrote myths and epics.

• C. Tragedies in ancient Greece were judged on the basis of how serious their stories were.

• D. Only highly educated people attended tragedies in ancient Greece.

Answer explanation

A. Ancient Greeks did not expect to see an original story each time they attended the theater. Choice (A) is the only answer choice supported by information in the passage. The writer tells you that tragedies "told familiar stories from Greeks myths and epics" so it must have been the case that theatergoers knew the general story and how it would be acted out.

Which of the following questions does the graph answer? (You may have to look closely to make out the words.)

• A. What is the dollar value of the income for senior citizens?

• B. How much do senior citizens have in savings accounts?

• C. How many senior citizens are dependent on veterans' benefits for their retirement income?

• D. Where do the incomes of senior citizens come from?

• E. Cannot make out the graph.

Answer explanation

D. Where do the incomes of senior citizens come from? Choice (d) is correct because the graph tells you the sources of income for american senior citizens. The graph does not give any actual dollar amounts, nor does it state how many senior citizens there are in the united states. you would need those numbers to answer the questions in (A),(B),or (C).

Which of the following conclusions can be drawn from this graph?

(You may need to look closely to make out the graph)

• A. More senior citizens need to continue to work to make ends meet now than in the past.

• B. Social security benefits are the most widespread means of support for most senior citizens.

• C. Senior citizens who receive income from veterans benefits also receive benefits from public assistance.

• D. Senior citizens who do not receive social security benefits get income from one or more other sources.

• Cannot make out the graph