McCarthyism

PART A: Which statement best identifies the central idea of the text?

• The government was cautious about communist spies and relied solely on Senator Joseph McCarthy to contain communism in America.

• Following World War II, Americans became increasingly frightened by the prospect of nuclear war and began invading other countries to contain communism.

• Joseph McCarthy used fear to manipulate Americans and government officials into wrongfully accusing and convicting people of being secret communists.

• . McCarthyism created national panic in the 1950s by falsely reporting that communism was present in America, even though it had historically only been present overseas.

PART B: Which detail from the text best supports the answer to Part A?

• "McCarthy capitalized on national paranoia by proclaiming that Communist spies were omnipresent and that he was America's only salvation." (Paragraph 6)

• "Half of Europe was under Joseph Stalin's influence, and every time Americans read their newspapers there seemed to be a new atomic threat." (Paragraph 7)

• "The public rewarded the witch-hunters by sending red-baiters (communist accusers) before the Senate and the House in 1950." (Paragraph 11)

• "Above all, several messages became crystal clear to the average American: Don't criticize the United States. Don't be different. Just conform." (Paragraph 26)

PART A: What is the meaning of the word "unscrupulous" as used in paragraph 14?

• impolite

• corrupt

• aggressive

• shameless

PART B: Which quote from the text best supports the answer to Part A?

• "mean-spiritedness" (Paragraph 13)

• "no sense of decency" (Paragraph 13)

• "Fed up" (Paragraph 15)

• "censured him" (Paragraph 15)

In the context of the passage, how can fear be used to manipulate? Use evidence from the text to support your ideas.