Comprehension Worksheet

Passage 1:
In the 1950s, reading was taught to young children primarily through the use of simple primers
depicting the middle-class non-adventures of “Dick and Jane.” Rudolph Fletch’s bestselling 1955
book Why Johnny Can’t Read attacked these primers, calling them “horrible, stupid, insipid, …
tasteless little readers” and asserting that such boring stories gave no incentive for children to
read on their own and learn to “sound out” each word phonetically. Fletch also bemoaned the
fact that there was not a single book in bookstores that first and second graders could read by
themselves. In response, a publisher commissioned Theodore Geisel, who wrote children’s books
under the pen name “Dr. Seuss,” to write a book that “a first grader can’t put down.” Geisel was
given a list of a few hundred words considered important and asked to make a book out of them.
Nine months later, Geisel, using only 220 different words, delivered The Cat in the Hat, a
whimsical story about two bored children left at home with their talking fish who are suddenly
visited by a havoc-creating six-foot-tall talking cat. In addition, Geisel wrote the entire book in a
rhyming verse, making it fun to read aloud. The Cat in the Hat was a tremendous success and
vaulted Geisel into instant celebrity. Another publisher bet Geisel that he could not write an
entire book using only 50 different words. Geisel won the bet by publishing the classic Green
Eggs and Ham. The Dr. Seuss books revolutionized the children’s book industry by proving that
it was possible to create engaging books with a limited vocabulary. Geisel has been credited with
killing off “Dick and Jane,” replacing them with clever rhymes, plot twists and rebellious heroes
who do the unexpected. Now one in four American children receives a Dr. Seuss title as his or
her first book.
1. The main function of the first paragraph is
a. To introduce Fletch’s approach to writing children’s books
b. To describe the “Dick and Jane” primers used in most school
c. To advocate the increase of children’s books in bookstores
d. To establish the premise that the status quo in the early 1950s was not satisfactory
for teaching children how to read

2. The author provides a brief synopsis of the plot of The Cat in the Hat primarily in order
to:
a. Introduce the reader to the various characters in the book
b. Contrast the story of The Cat in the Hat with those of the “boring” primers of the
era
c. Demonstrate how bizarre the plot of the book is
d. Assert that talking cats and fish exist

3. The primary purpose of this passage is to

 a. Describe how Geisel changed the children’s book industry
b. Support the conclusions of Fletch
c. Compare and contrast the philosophies of Fletch and Geisel
d. Demonstrate the popularity of Geisel’s books

4. What is the meaning of the word insipid, as used in the passage?

a. Sticky liquid
b. lacking vigour
c. Powerful
d. quirky

5. What is the tone of the passage?

a. Descriptive
b. Narrative
c. Expository
d. Critical

Passage 2:
Though he left us with numerous great works and, to be sure, is widely regarded as America‘s
first internationally renowned author, Washington Irving‘s sometimes enigmatic tendencies and
techniques have left literary critiques and academics to ponder his motives more than 140 years
after his death. One such trait that raises the proverbial eyebrow of the community of readers and
critiques is Irving‘s repeated, and varied, use of pseudonyms throughout his career. One of the
most well-known female writers to adopt a pen name was George Sand, born Aurore Dupin in
1804, who became one of the most prolific and admired French authors – female or male –
during the nineteenth century. The true identity of George Sand did not remain a secret for long,
for after 1830 the author used this name in her everydaylife, and close friends commonly referred
to her as ―George Most portraits of the author as an adult are entitled simply George Sand and
make no reference to her given name. Her son, too, adopted this new last name even though
association with his famous author mother did not bring him any obvious benefits, other than to
indicate that his relationship with his mother was closer than that of his sister. Given that the
name ―George Sand is radically different from Aurore Dupin‘s birth name, many readers have
wondered how the author formulated her masculine pen name. At least two possible answers
spring to mind. The first, as indicated in Curtis Cate‘s biography George Sand, is that the idea for
this pseudonym arose from a collaboration with her first lover, Jules Sandeau, with whom she
co-authored several articles as well as a full-length novel entitled Rose et Blanche. Since her own
literary output was a great success in the 1830s-1850s, she quickly became known by this name,
and began to use her pen-name on a daily basis. By continuing to use the name initially assigned
to collaborative writings with her lover, perhaps Aurore hoped to maintain her connection to
Sandeau. Perhaps she fondly remembered their time together and wished to have a permanent
reminder of their relationship. Or perhaps she simply realized that it would be much more
expedient to continue to write under a name which was already familiar to her audience thanks
to the joint works she and Sandeau had published. Given that George Sand began writing under
this masculine name at around the same time as she began to roam around Paris in pants and a
jacket – typically male clothing – it is not hard to understand why she chose a masculine
pseudonym, since, like her choice of clothes, this male identity gave her more freedom of
expression, both literally and figuratively. Writing under a false name allowed her to distance
parts of her character – her roles as wife, mother, and lover – from the creative and literary parts
that formed the basis for her role as an author. Using a male name set her apart and added to her
persona as an unusual and fascinating woman. And in the end, the reason why she chose this
particular pen-name is not nearly as important as the vast quantity of writing – articles, letters,
novels, plays – that forms her legacy to the field of French literature.

6. The author‘s attitude towards the use of male pseudonyms by female authors as noted in
the passage can best be described as:
a. skeptical of the usefulness of pseudonyms.
b. critical of the women‘s adoption of a male name.
c. appreciative of female authors‘ efforts to be published at any cost.
d. intrigued by the creation of a pseudonym.

7. According to the passage, the following were all possible reasons for George Sand to
create a pseudonym EXCEPT:
a. she began publishing collaborative works with Jules Sandeau.
b. her new name reflected important parts of her life.
c. she was not able to publish any works under her own given name.
d. the works published under her pen name sold well.

8. 18. What is the main purpose of the passage?

a. to criticise females writers who use male names
b. to discuss why some female writers use male names
c. to applaud female writers for using male names
d. to encourage female writers to use their own names

9. What is the meaning of the word prolific, as used in the passage?

a. famous
b. plentiful
c. narcissistic
d. sharp-witted
 10. With which of the following statements would the author most likely agree?
a. Aurore Dupin should have written works under her own name once the secret of
her pseudonym was revealed.
b. By writing under a pseudonym, George Sand created for herself a new identity
which allowed her to transcend the limitations of society.
c. George Sand owed her early success to her partner, Jules Sandeau.
d. The choice of a masculine pseudonym was restrictive for George Sand and forced
her to live as a man throughout her life.

Passage 3:
While there is no blueprint for transforming a largely government-controlled economy into a free
one, the experience of the United Kingdom since 1979 clearly shows one approach that works:
privatization, in which state-owned industries are sold to private companies. By 1979, the total
borrowings and losses of state-owned industries were running at about £3 billion a year. By
selling many of these industries, the government has decreased these borrowings and losses,
gained over £34 billion from the sales, and now receives tax revenues from the newly privatized
companies. Along with a dramatically improved overall economy, the government has been able
to repay 12.5 percent of the net national debt over a two-year period. In fact, privatization has not
only rescued individual industries and a whole economy headed for disaster, but has also raised
the level of performance in every area. At British Airways and British Gas, for example,
productivity per employee has risen by 20 percent. At Associated British Ports, labor disruptions
common in the 1970s and early 1980s have now virtually disappeared. At British Telecom, there
is no longer a waiting list—as there always was before privatization—to have a telephone
installed. Part of this improved productivity has come about because the employees of privatized
industries were given the opportunity to buy shares in their own companies. They responded
enthusiastically to the offer of shares: at British Aerospace, 89 percent of the eligible work force
bought shares; at Associated British Ports, 90 percent; and at British Telecom, 92 percent. When
peple have a personal stake in something, they think about it, they care about it, work to make it
prosper. At the National Freight Consortium, the new employee-owners grew so concerned about
their company’s profits that during wage negotiations they actually pressed their union to lower
its wage demands. Some economists have suggested that giving away free shares would provide
a needed acceleration of the privatization process. Yet they miss Thomas Paine’s point that “what
we obtain too cheap we esteem too lightly.”In order for the far-ranging benefits of individual
ownership to be achieved by owners, companies, and countries, employees and other individuals
must make their own decisions to buy, and they must commit some of their own resources to the
choice.
11. According to the passage, all of the following were benefits of privatizing state-owned
industries in the United Kingdom EXCEPT:
a. Privatized industries paid taxes to the government.
b. The government gained revenue from selling state-owned industries.
 c. The government repaid some of its national debt.
d. Profits from industries that were still state owned increased.

12. According to the passage, which of the following resulted in increased productivity in
companies that have been privatized?
a. A large number of employees chose to purchase shares in their companies.
b. Free shares were widely distributed to individual shareholders.
c. The government ceased to regulate major industries.
d. Unions conducted wage negotiations for employees.

13. Which of the following can be inferred from the passage about the privatization process
in the United Kingdom?
a. (a) It depends to a potentially dangerous degree on individual ownership of
shares.
b. (b) It conforms in its most general outlines to Thomas Paine’s prescription for
business ownership.
c. (c) It was originally conceived to include some giving away of free shares.
d. (d) It is taking place more slowly than some economists suggest is necessary.

14. The quotation in lines 39 [“what we obtain too cheap we esteem too lightly”] is most
probably used to
a. counter a position that the author of the passage believes is incorrect
b. state a solution to a problem described in the previous sentence
c. show how opponents of the viewpoint of the author of the passage have supported
their arguments
d. point out a paradox contained in a controversial viewpoint

15. The passage supports which of the following statements about employees buying shares
in their own companies?
a. At three different companies, approximately nine out of ten of the workers were
eligible to buy shares in their companies.
b. Approximately 90 percent of the eligible workers at three different companies
chose to buy shares in their companies.
c. The opportunity to buy shares was discouraged by at least some labor unions.
d. Companies that demonstrated the highest productivity were the first to allow their
employees the opportunity to buy shares.
Answers:
1. D 2. B 3. A 4. B 5. C 6. D 7. C 8. B 9. B 10. B 11. D 12. A 13. D 14. A 15. B