TOEFL Experts Reading Practice 22

 
Reading Section
 
 
This section measures your ability to understand academic passages in English. You can skip questions and go back to them later as long as there is time remaining.
 
 
 
 
Now begin the Reading section.
 
Reading Section
 
 
This section measures your ability to understand academic passages in English. You can skip questions and go back to them later as long as there is time remaining.
 
 
 
 
Now begin the Reading section.
Stream of Consciousness
 
Untitled-11

   At the dawn of the twentieth century, European painting, which was then a far more influential art form than it is now, underwent a vast aesthetic revolution, shattering conventions that predated the Renaissance. Cubism, an innovative movement that would influence artists throughout the century, rejected the previous norm of realistic portrayals in favor of an abstract approach combining multiple perspectives. This radical departure, commonly thought to have been led by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, captivated the art world. It also inspired writers and musicians to infuse the same abstract quality into their works.

  James Joyce and John Dos Passos were two renowned authors whose major works employed this nonlinear framework derived from Cubism, the writers applying words to paper in the same fractured manner that artists used when applying paint to canvas. Scholars have termed this literary style “stream-of-consciousness” writing. This technique constructs an inner monologue that creates a whole from dissociated parts and theoretically portrays the nonlinear patterns inherent in human thoughts.

  Like Picasso and Braque, Joyce and Dos Passos enjoyed great artistic success, and their stylistic explorations profoundly influenced the generations of writers that followed them. Both men were interested in smashing established boundaries in the service of accurately displaying the emotional truth of human thoughts and feelings. James Joyce (1882–1941) was reared in a downwardly mobile Irish middle-class family but received a relatively elite education because of his intellect and talents. He resided in Europe for almost all of his adult life and eked out a living through various short-lived ventures, his art, and the generosity of patrons. His literary work largely remained anchored to his native Dublin. John Dos Passos (1896–1970) was the illegitimate son of John Randolph Dos Passos, who refused to accept his son until he was nearly an adult. However, his father’s wealth allowed him to obtain a privileged education and undertake an educational tour of Europe.  He then volunteered with an ambulance corps during the First World War, an experience that profoundly impacted him, as it did many of his generation. During his literary prime, Dos Passos was also an outspoken political progressive, but in the final third of his life he embraced very conservative causes.

  Joyce’s most renowned work, Ulysses, was published in 1922; however, in the United States, it was banned under an obscenity statute for more than 10 years. In this seminal work, Joyce transplants the plot and characters of Homer’s Greek epic The Odyssey to early twentieth-century Dublin and condenses the timeline to a single day. In service of the stream-of-consciousness aesthetic, each chapter employs a different literary style, although all reject linear conventions, much as Cubist painting did. Furthermore, each chapter has a thematic association unrelated to the plot or source material. Because of its difficult vocabulary, its assumption that the reader is familiar with a vast array of historical and literary references, and its complex, metaphorical prose, Ulysses is not widely read. However, its fame and place in the literary canon far exceed its sales, as scholarly opinion considers it the fountainhead of literary modernism.

  By contrast, John Dos Passos’s work, also considered unique and innovative, proved far more accessible and popular, but it is now thought to be less important than Ulysses. His opus was a trilogy entitled U.S.A., completed in 1938. This work chronicles the evolution of the United States from an agrarian, isolationist nation as the twentieth century began to the urban world power it became within a few decades. Dos Passos sought to reflect the feelings and consciousness of those times by employing what critics have called a “collage technique”: newspaper clippings are inserted sporadically, and his disparate characters and plots intersect at seemingly random intervals.

  The literary influence of Joyce, Dos Passos, and their peers remains pervasive to this day. In that sense, it can be argued that the movement that they spearheaded in the literary world was more momentous in the long run than the parallel revolution in the artistic world. While Cubism predated the stream-of-consciousness movement, it is now seen as more of a period in art than a guiding light, whereas the stream-of-consciousness style remains current in literature.

Stream of Consciousness
 
Untitled-11

   At the dawn of the twentieth century, European painting, which was then a far more influential art form than it is now, underwent a vast aesthetic revolution, shattering conventions that predated the Renaissance. Cubism, an innovative movement that would influence artists throughout the century, rejected the previous norm of realistic portrayals in favor of an abstract approach combining multiple perspectives. This radical departure, commonly thought to have been led by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, captivated the art world. It also inspired writers and musicians to infuse the same abstract quality into their works.

  James Joyce and John Dos Passos were two renowned authors whose major works employed this nonlinear framework derived from Cubism, the writers applying words to paper in the same fractured manner that artists used when applying paint to canvas. Scholars have termed this literary style “stream-of-consciousness” writing. This technique constructs an inner monologue that creates a whole from dissociated parts and theoretically portrays the nonlinear patterns inherent in human thoughts.

  Like Picasso and Braque, Joyce and Dos Passos enjoyed great artistic success, and their stylistic explorations profoundly influenced the generations of writers that followed them. Both men were interested in smashing established boundaries in the service of accurately displaying the emotional truth of human thoughts and feelings. James Joyce (1882–1941) was reared in a downwardly mobile Irish middle-class family but received a relatively elite education because of his intellect and talents. He resided in Europe for almost all of his adult life and eked out a living through various short-lived ventures, his art, and the generosity of patrons. His literary work largely remained anchored to his native Dublin. John Dos Passos (1896–1970) was the illegitimate son of John Randolph Dos Passos, who refused to accept his son until he was nearly an adult. However, his father’s wealth allowed him to obtain a privileged education and undertake an educational tour of Europe.  He then volunteered with an ambulance corps during the First World War, an experience that profoundly impacted him, as it did many of his generation. During his literary prime, Dos Passos was also an outspoken political progressive, but in the final third of his life he embraced very conservative causes.

  Joyce’s most renowned work, Ulysses, was published in 1922; however, in the United States, it was banned under an obscenity statute for more than 10 years. In this seminal work, Joyce transplants the plot and characters of Homer’s Greek epic The Odyssey to early twentieth-century Dublin and condenses the timeline to a single day. In service of the stream-of-consciousness aesthetic, each chapter employs a different literary style, although all reject linear conventions, much as Cubist painting did. Furthermore, each chapter has a thematic association unrelated to the plot or source material. Because of its difficult vocabulary, its assumption that the reader is familiar with a vast array of historical and literary references, and its complex, metaphorical prose, Ulysses is not widely read. However, its fame and place in the literary canon far exceed its sales, as scholarly opinion considers it the fountainhead of literary modernism.

  By contrast, John Dos Passos’s work, also considered unique and innovative, proved far more accessible and popular, but it is now thought to be less important than Ulysses. His opus was a trilogy entitled U.S.A., completed in 1938. This work chronicles the evolution of the United States from an agrarian, isolationist nation as the twentieth century began to the urban world power it became within a few decades. Dos Passos sought to reflect the feelings and consciousness of those times by employing what critics have called a “collage technique”: newspaper clippings are inserted sporadically, and his disparate characters and plots intersect at seemingly random intervals.

  The literary influence of Joyce, Dos Passos, and their peers remains pervasive to this day. In that sense, it can be argued that the movement that they spearheaded in the literary world was more momentous in the long run than the parallel revolution in the artistic world. While Cubism predated the stream-of-consciousness movement, it is now seen as more of a period in art than a guiding light, whereas the stream-of-consciousness style remains current in literature.

(P1)  At the dawn of the twentieth century, European painting, which was then a far more influential art form than it is now, underwent a vast aesthetic revolution, shattering conventions that predated the Renaissance. Cubism, an innovative movement that would influence artists throughout the century, rejected the previous norm of realistic portrayals in favor of an abstract approach combining multiple perspectives. This radical departure, commonly thought to have been led by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, captivated the art world. It also inspired writers and musicians to infuse the same abstract quality into their works.

Q:  What can be inferred about European art from paragraph 1?
European painting was more influential in the early twentieth century than during the Renaissance.
Picasso was more captivating to the art world than Braque was.
Realistic portrayals were likely one of the conventions that predated the Renaissance.
The aesthetic revolution in European painting was probably inspired by writers using similar abstractions.
(P1)  At the dawn of the twentieth century, European painting, which was then a far more influential art form than it is now, underwent a vast aesthetic revolution, shattering conventions that predated the Renaissance. Cubism, an innovative movement that would influence artists throughout the century, rejected the previous norm of realistic portrayals in favor of an abstract approach combining multiple perspectives. This radical departure, commonly thought to have been led by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, captivated the art world. It also inspired writers and musicians to infuse the same abstract quality into their works.

Q:  According to paragraph 1, all of the following are true statements about Cubism EXCEPT:
It employed multiple perspectives.
It influenced writers and musicians.
Its influence lasted for many decades.
It had less appeal to the public outside the art world.
→(P2)   James Joyce and John Dos Passos were two renowned authors whose major works employed this nonlinear framework derived from Cubism, the writers applying words to paper in the same fractured manner that artists used when applying paint to canvas. Scholars have termed this literary style “stream-of-consciousness” writing. This technique constructs an inner monologue that creates a whole from dissociated parts and theoretically portrays the nonlinear patterns inherent in human thoughts.

Q:  The word “dissociated” in the passage is closest in meaning to
Fragmented
Reserved
Aligned
Unspoken
(P2)  James Joyce and John Dos Passos were two renowned authors whose major works employed this nonlinear framework derived from Cubism, the writers applying words to paper in the same fractured manner that artists used when applying paint to canvas. Scholars have termed this literary style “stream-of-consciousness” writing. This technique constructs an inner monologue that creates a whole from dissociated parts and theoretically portrays the nonlinear patterns inherent in human thoughts.

Q:  Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence in paragraph 2? Incorrect choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential information.
In their major works, James Joyce and John Dos Passos applied nonlinear writing techniques derived from Cubism.
Applying words to paper in the same fractured way, James Joyce and John Dos Passos derived the nonlinear framework of Cubism.
James Joyce and John Dos Passos became renowned authors by using a nonlinear style that they derived from Cubism.
Renowned authors James Joyce and John Dos Passos applied paint to canvas in a fractured, Cubist manner to write their major works.
→(P3)  Like Picasso and Braque, Joyce and Dos Passos enjoyed great artistic success, and their stylistic explorations profoundly influenced the generations of writers that followed them. Both men were interested in smashing established boundaries in the service of accurately displaying the emotional truth of human thoughts and feelings. James Joyce (1882–1941) was reared in a downwardly mobile Irish middle-class family but received a relatively elite education because of his intellect and talents. He resided in Europe for almost all of his adult life and eked out a living through various short-lived ventures, his art, and the generosity of patrons. His literary work largely remained anchored to his native Dublin. John Dos Passos (1896–1970) was the illegitimate son of John Randolph Dos Passos, who refused to accept his son until he was nearly an adult. However, his father’s wealth allowed him to obtain a privileged education and undertake an educational tour of Europe.  He then volunteered with an ambulance corps during the First World War, an experience that profoundly impacted him, as it did many of his generation. During his literary prime, Dos Passos was also an outspoken political progressive, but in the final third of his life he embraced very conservative causes.

Q:  The phrase “eked out” in the passage is closest in meaning to
Enjoyed
Scratched out
Gave up
Provided
→(P3)  Like Picasso and Braque, Joyce and Dos Passos enjoyed great artistic success, and their stylistic explorations profoundly influenced the generations of writers that followed them. Both men were interested in smashing established boundaries in the service of accurately displaying the emotional truth of human thoughts and feelings. James Joyce (1882–1941) was reared in a downwardly mobile Irish middle-class family but received a relatively elite education because of his intellect and talents. He resided in Europe for almost all of his adult life and eked out a living through various short-lived ventures, his art, and the generosity of patrons. His literary work largely remained anchored to his native Dublin. John Dos Passos (1896–1970) was the illegitimate son of John Randolph Dos Passos, who refused to accept his son until he was nearly an adult. However, his father’s wealth allowed him to obtain a privileged education and undertake an educational tour of Europe.  He then volunteered with an ambulance corps during the First World War, an experience that profoundly impacted him, as it did many of his generation. During his literary prime, Dos Passos was also an outspoken political progressive, but in the final third of his life he embraced very conservative causes.

Q:  According to paragraph 3, which of the following is true about both Joyce and Dos Passos?
Both served in the ambulance corps in the First World War.
Both resided in Europe for the majority of their adulthoods.
Both were raised in middle-class families.
Both received educations reserved for just a few.
→(P3)  Like Picasso and Braque, Joyce and Dos Passos enjoyed great artistic success, and their stylistic explorations profoundly influenced the generations of writers that followed them. Both men were interested in smashing established boundaries in the service of accurately displaying the emotional truth of human thoughts and feelings. James Joyce (1882–1941) was reared in a downwardly mobile Irish middle-class family but received a relatively elite education because of his intellect and talents. He resided in Europe for almost all of his adult life and eked out a living through various short-lived ventures, his art, and the generosity of patrons. His literary work largely remained anchored to his native Dublin. John Dos Passos (1896–1970) was the illegitimate son of John Randolph Dos Passos, who refused to accept his son until he was nearly an adult. However, his father’s wealth allowed him to obtain a privileged education and undertake an educational tour of Europe.  He then volunteered with an ambulance corps during the First World War, an experience that profoundly impacted him, as it did many of his generation. During his literary prime, Dos Passos was also an outspoken political progressive, but in the final third of his life he embraced very conservative causes.

Q:  The phrase “an outspoken” in the passage is closest in meaning to
A disclosed
A fainthearted
A diplomatic
A forthright
→(P4)  Joyce’s most renowned work, Ulysses, was published in 1922; however, in the United States, it was banned under an obscenity statute for more than 10 years. In this seminal work, Joyce transplants the plot and characters of Homer’s Greek epic The Odyssey to early twentieth-century Dublin and condenses the timeline to a single day. In service of the stream-of-consciousness aesthetic, each chapter employs a different literary style, although all reject linear conventions, much as Cubist painting did. Furthermore, each chapter has a thematic association unrelated to the plot or source material. Because of its difficult vocabulary, its assumption that the reader is familiar with a vast array of historical and literary references, and its complex, metaphorical prose, Ulysses is not widely read. However, its fame and place in the literary canon far exceed its sales, as scholarly opinion considers it the fountainhead of literary modernism.

Q:  According to paragraph 4, Ulysses was not widely read in part because
It was banned for obscenity
It was inspired by Homer’s epic The Odyssey
Its vocabulary is obscure
It is the fountainhead of literary modernism
→(P4)  Joyce’s most renowned work, Ulysses, was published in 1922; however, in the United States, it was banned under an obscenity statute for more than 10 years. In this seminal work, Joyce transplants the plot and characters of Homer’s Greek epic The Odyssey to early twentieth-century Dublin and condenses the timeline to a single day. In service of the stream-of-consciousness aesthetic, each chapter employs a different literary style, although all reject linear conventions, much as Cubist painting did. Furthermore, each chapter has a thematic association unrelated to the plot or source material. Because of its difficult vocabulary, its assumption that the reader is familiar with a vast array of historical and literary references, and its complex, metaphorical prose, Ulysses is not widely read. However, its fame and place in the literary canon far exceed its sales, as scholarly opinion considers it the fountainhead of literary modernism.

Q:  In paragraph 4, why does the author mention that each chapter has a unique literary style?
To demonstrate that Ulysses is the primary example of nonlinear writing in the twentieth century
To reject the effectiveness of linear conventions as typically used in literature
To show how the book tries to reflect stream-of-consciousness principles
To document why Ulysses was banned in the United States for obscenity
→(P5)  By contrast, John Dos Passos’s work, also considered unique and innovative, proved far more accessible and popular, but it is now thought to be less important than Ulysses. His opus was a trilogy entitled U.S.A., completed in 1938. This work chronicles the evolution of the United States from an agrarian, isolationist nation as the twentieth century began to the urban world power it became within a few decades. Dos Passos sought to reflect the feelings and consciousness of those times by employing what critics have called a “collage technique”: newspaper clippings are inserted sporadically, and his disparate characters and plots intersect at seemingly random intervals.

Q:  The word “sporadically” in the passage is closest in meaning to
Prevalently
Irregularly
Steadily
Habitually
→(P5)  By contrast, John Dos Passos’s work, also considered unique and innovative, proved far more accessible and popular, but it is now thought to be less important than Ulysses. His opus was a trilogy entitled U.S.A., completed in 1938. This work chronicles the evolution of the United States from an agrarian, isolationist nation as the twentieth century began to the urban world power it became within a few decades. Dos Passos sought to reflect the feelings and consciousness of those times by employing what critics have called a “collage technique”: newspaper clippings are inserted sporadically, and his disparate characters and plots intersect at seemingly random intervals.

Q:  Paragraph 5 mentions which of the following as an aspect of a collage technique?
The intersection of apparently unrelated people and circumstances
An accessible and popular style
An agrarian, isolationist perspective
The sporadic insertion of clippings from private governmental reports
→(P6)  The literary influence of Joyce, Dos Passos, and their peers remains pervasive to this day. In that sense, it can be argued that the movement that they spearheaded in the literary world was more momentous in the long run than the parallel revolution in the artistic world. While Cubism predated the stream-of-consciousness movement, it is now seen as more of a period in art than a guiding light, whereas the stream-of-consciousness style remains current in literature.

Q:  According to paragraph 6, which of the following is true about Cubism?
It is currently as influential in art as the stream-of-consciousness style is in literature.
It had more impact on art made early in the twentieth century than it does on art made today.
It was predated by the stream-of-consciousness movement.
It is considered as much a guiding light for current artists as an epoch in the history of art.
In paragraphs 5&6 of the passage, there is a missing sentence. The paragraph is repeated below and shows four letters [A], [B], [C], and [D] that indicate where the following sentence could be added.
 
Where do these revolutions in literature and in art stand today, in the twenty-first century?
 
Where would the sentence best fit?

→(P5)   Dos Passos sought to reflect the feelings and consciousness of those times by employing what critics have called a “collage technique”: newspaper clippings are inserted sporadically, and his disparate characters and plots intersect at seemingly random intervals.

→(P6)   [A] The literary influence of Joyce, Dos Passos, and their peers remains pervasive to this day.[B] In that sense, it can be argued that the movement that they spearheaded in the literary world was more momentous in the long run than the parallel revolution in the artistic world.[C] While Cubism predated the stream-of-consciousness movement, it is now seen as more of a period in art than a guiding light, whereas the stream-of-consciousness style remains current in literature.[D]

Directions: An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is provided below. Complete the summary by selecting the THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in the passage. Some sentences do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not presented in the passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This question is worth 2 points

 
  • Cubism, an early twentieth-century revolution in art, also influenced the course of literature by inspiring prominent authors to infuse its principles into their works.
Stream-of-consciousness writing was not popular with the public because of its difficult vocabulary.
Dos Passos was more progressive politically than Joyce because of his experience in the First World War.
The influence of stream-of-consciousness writing proved more lasting in the literary world than that of Cubism did in the art world.
In the early twentieth century, an artistic upheaval in European painting upended conventions and infused an abstract perspective into various art forms.
The fragmented, nonlinear techniques employed by Joyce and Dos Passos aimed to portray human thoughts authentically.
In their elite educations and European travels, Joyce and Dos Passos were representative of great writers of the period.
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