Julius Caesar Act I Test

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R EADING M INI -T EST

M ULTIPLE C HOICE

Literature and Beliefs:

THE USES OF SUPERSTITION Feature accompanying The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, Act I Directions: Read the passage.Then, read each of the following questions. Decide which is the best answer to each question. Mark the letter for that answer.

A Because an owl had flown into it

In the first paragraph, the word revelations means—

B So the building would be clean and free of germs

A debates

C To erase the influence of the last emperor

B visions

D To prepare for the coming of the gods

C elections D meetings 2

6

In the next-to-last paragraph, the word supernatural means— F

H A fortuneteller J

Which animals were most important to the commanders of Roman ships?

Which reason best explains why a Roman emperor would encourage his people’s belief in spirits? A Because such beliefs made the people easier to control

A Crows B Eagles

B Because the emperor wanted others to share his own superstitions

C Vultures D Chickens

C Because the people could not understand natural science

This passage is mainly about— F

A military commander

beneficial 7

4

An emperor

G A politician

H miraculous J

Which person would have had much more power in ancient Rome than in more modern times? F

lucky

G normal

3

According to this passage, why did the Romans scrub their Capitol with water and sulfur?

D Because the emperor wanted the people to be happy and secure

daily life in ancient Rome

G superstitions of the ancient Romans H the government of the ancient Romans J

the importance of animals to the ancient Romans

8

What was the author’s main purpose for writing this passage? F

To tell stories about life in ancient Rome

G To explain the beliefs of the early Romans H To describe the buildings of ancient Rome J

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Standardized Test Preparation, Texas Edition

To persuade readers to learn more about Roman history Elements of Literature

Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. All rights reserved.

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Pupil’s Edition page 791

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A NSWER K EY

R EADING M INI -T EST

THE USES OF SUPERSTITION 1. 2. 3. 4.

B [vocabulary development] H [affix] D [detail] G [main idea]

5. 6. 7. 8.

A H A G

[detail] [conclusion] [inference] [author’s purpose]

TAAS DOCTOR Item 2 asks students to apply the meanings of prefixes and suffixes to determine the meaning of a word. F Incorrect. Romans could have viewed an eclipse as something lucky, but the word lucky does not fit the overall context of the sentence. G Incorrect. Romans probably did not view eclipses as normal, for they occur so rarely. Moreover, the word normal does not fit the context of the sentence. H Best answer. Supernatural comes from the word parts super and natural. Super means “special” or “out of the ordinary,” and natural means “having to do with the ways of nature or the ways of the world.” Therefore, miraculous is the best choice because supernatural describes something that is beyond or outside the normal ways of nature, and that is how the Romans likely viewed an eclipse. J

Incorrect.The Romans could have viewed an eclipse as something beneficial, but the word does not fit the context of the sentence.

Item 6 asks students to draw a conclusion. F Incorrect. Modern emperors, like Japan’s Hirohito, have held great power.

Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. All rights reserved.

G Incorrect. Politicians today, as in ancient Greece, hold great power. H Best answer. Long ago many people believed and followed the advice of fortunetellers, while few people do so today. As a result, fortunetellers held much more power in ancient Rome than they do in modern times. J

Incorrect. In democratic countries, military commanders serve at the direction of popularly elected leaders. However, they still have significant power. In less democratic countries, military leaders generally hold even more power.

Item 8 asks students to recognize the author’s purpose. F Incorrect.The passage does relate a few incidents about life in ancient Rome. However, the author’s main purpose is not to tell stories, but to explain how important superstitions were to the ancient Romans. G Best answer. The entire passage deals with the superstitious beliefs of the ancient Romans. H Incorrect.The buildings of ancient Rome are mentioned briefly, but only as the author makes a larger point about the superstitious fear of owls. J

Incorrect. Although the passage may interest some readers in learning more about ancient Rome, that is not the author’s main purpose.

Elements of Literature

Standardized Test Preparation, Texas Edition

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