GED Language Arts (RLA) : GED Language Arts (RLA)

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for GED Language Arts (RLA)

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Example Questions

Example Question #161 : Ged Language Arts (Rla)

Adapted from Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, III.ii.82-117 (1599)

 

[This is a speech by Mark Antony]

 

Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears!

I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.

The evil that men do lives after them,

The good is oft interred with their bones;

So let it be with Caesar. The noble Brutus

Hath told you Caesar was ambitious;

If it were so, it was a grievous fault,

And grievously hath Caesar answer'd it.

Here, under leave of Brutus and the rest-

For Brutus is an honorable man;

So are they all, all honorable men-

Come I to speak in Caesar's funeral.

He was my friend, faithful and just to me;

But Brutus says he was ambitious,

And Brutus is an honorable man.

He hath brought many captives home to Rome,

Whose ransoms did the general coffers fill.

Did this in Caesar seem ambitious?

When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept;

Ambition should be made of sterner stuff:

Yet Brutus says he was ambitious,

And Brutus is an honorable man.

You all did see that on the Lupercal [a public festival]

I thrice presented him a kingly crown,

Which he did thrice refuse. Was this ambition?

Yet Brutus says he was ambitious,

And sure he is an honorable man.

I speak not to disprove what Brutus spoke,

But here I am to speak what I do know.

You all did love him once, not without cause;

What cause withholds you then to mourn for him?

O judgment, thou art fled to brutish beasts,

And men have lost their reason. Bear with me;

My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar,

And I must pause till it come back to me.

What is the purpose of the underlined line, "When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept"?

Possible Answers:

To provide a human touch in the description of Caesar at his funeral.

To show that Caesar was not the tough figure that Brutus and others thought he was.

To make the point that even real men can cry.

To provide another example of how Caesar does not appear actually to have ambition.

To show how weak-willed Caesar actually was.

Correct answer:

To provide another example of how Caesar does not appear actually to have ambition.

Explanation:

The key to interpreting this line is found on the very next line: "Ambition should be made of sterner stuff." Mark Antony is implying that ambitious men are "stern" that is hard and unlikely to cry. However, Caesar did in fact weep with the poor. Therefore, he is using the example of crying to try to show that perhaps Brutus is not correct in making the claim that Caesar was ambitious.

Example Question #162 : Ged Language Arts (Rla)

Following the fall of the Soviet Union, the European education system underwent an overhaul which was, in part, solidified with the creation of the Bologna Process, an agreement among European countries to improve consistency and quality in higher education across the continent. The creation of the Bologna Process has not only improved the standard of education in EU nations, but set a very high bar for nations hoping to join the EU to hurdle. Belarus has already applied and been rejected due to concerns about its academic commitment. So we can see that quality education in Europe is not simply a lucky coincidence, or the natural result of a long history of scholars, but an intentional reform initiative upon which major political decisions, such as the inclusion of countries into the European Union, are made. Eastern European countries also had an especially difficult time transitioning to the new standards required of Bologna Process signatories since they were coming from the Soviet tradition of severely underfunded public schools and widespread bribery as a main criterion for university admission. The Soviet influence on the current state of tertiary education can clearly be seen by comparing eastern and western Germany. Before the implementation of the Bologna Process and formation of the European Higher Education Area, many European countries modeled their higher education system on Germany's, which separated students into academic or vocational training schools from the beginning of high school. This model fit with the Communist rationale of all jobs being of equal value, and the obligation of adolescents to train for the job for which they were best suited in society rather than allowing them to choose a major at the university level.

The example highlighted in the text supports which conclusion?

Possible Answers:

The EU's criteria for entry are arbitrary and unfair

Belarus did not want to join the EU because of undue influence the EU may impose on its educational system

Belarus was deemed to be not economically strong enough to join the EU

Belarus may have been approved to join the EU if it had shown more commitment to the quality of its education

None of these conclusions can be made based on available evidence

Correct answer:

Belarus may have been approved to join the EU if it had shown more commitment to the quality of its education

Explanation:

The example of Belarus was provided to support the previous sentence: "The creation of the Bologna Process has not only improved the standard of education in EU nations, but set a very high bar for nations hoping to join the EU to hurdle."  Therefore, since Belarus was denied because of a lack of commitment to education, it stands to reason that the country may have been accepted had this not been an issue.

Example Question #163 : Ged Language Arts (Rla)

Adapted from Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, III.ii.82-117 (1599)

 

[This is a speech by Mark Antony]

 

Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears!

I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.

The evil that men do lives after them,

The good is oft interred with their bones;

So let it be with Caesar. The noble Brutus

Hath told you Caesar was ambitious;

If it were so, it was a grievous fault,

And grievously hath Caesar answer'd it.

Here, under leave of Brutus and the rest-

For Brutus is an honorable man;

So are they all, all honorable men-

Come I to speak in Caesar's funeral.

He was my friend, faithful and just to me;

But Brutus says he was ambitious,

And Brutus is an honorable man.

He hath brought many captives home to Rome,

Whose ransoms did the general coffers fill.

Did this in Caesar seem ambitious?

When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept;

Ambition should be made of sterner stuff:

Yet Brutus says he was ambitious,

And Brutus is an honorable man.

You all did see that on the Lupercal [a public festival]

I thrice presented him a kingly crown,

Which he did thrice refuse. Was this ambition?

Yet Brutus says he was ambitious,

And sure he is an honorable man.

I speak not to disprove what Brutus spoke,

But here I am to speak what I do know.

You all did love him once, not without cause;

What cause withholds you then to mourn for him?

O judgment, thou art fled to brutish beasts,

And men have lost their reason. Bear with me;

My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar,

And I must pause till it come back to me.

Why is the underlined selection not necessarily a good argument?

Possible Answers:

The Lupercal was a false feast, based upon myths and unhelpful for any political ruler.

Caesar was arrogant to accept the crown.

Caesar could have refused the crown merely to please the crowd.

Mark Antony had incited the crowd not to allow Caesar to accept the crown.

Caesar should not have accepted the crown, for it showed true ambition.

Correct answer:

Caesar could have refused the crown merely to please the crowd.

Explanation:

The first thing to do is to interpret what Mark Antony is stating here. He is saying that he presented Caesar with a crown three times at the Lupercal feast. Three times ("thrice") Caesar apparently refused to take it. Mark Antony is implying that this shows that he was not ambitious. However, it could well have been the case that he did not take the crown precisely because he wanted to seem unambitious so that he could appeal to the people. Mark Antony's argument here is charged with rhetoric, but that does not diminish its weakness. We must be aware of such uses of language so as not to be tricked. Matters just cannot be seen as being that simple.

Example Question #82 : Ap English Literature And Composition

Adapted from “Solitary Death, make me thine own” in Underneath the Bough: A Book of Verses by Michael Field (pseudonym of Katherine Bradley and Edith Cooper) (1893)

 

Solitary Death, make me thine own,

And let us wander the bare fields together;

          Yea, thou and I alone

Roving in unembittered unison forever.

 

I will not harry thy treasure-graves,

I do not ask thy still hands a lover;

            My heart within me craves

To travel till we twain Time’s wilderness discover.

 

To sojourn with thee my soul was bred,

And I, the courtly sights of life refusing,

            To the wide shadows fled,

And mused upon thee often as I fell a-musing.

 

Escaped from chaos, thy mother Night,

In her maiden breast a burthen that awed her,

           By cavern waters white

Drew thee her first-born, her unfathered off-spring toward her.

 

On dewey plats, near twilight dingle,

She oft, to still thee from men’s sobs and curses

           In thine ears a-tingle,

Pours her cool charms, her weird, reviving chaunt rehearses.

 

Though mortals menace thee or elude,

And from thy confines break in swift transgression.

            Thou for thyself art sued

Of me, I claim thy cloudy purlieus my possession.

 

To a long freshwater, where the sea

Stirs the silver flux of the reeds and willows,

            Come thou, and beckon me

To lie in the lull of the sand-sequestered billows:

 

Then take the life I have called my own

And to the liquid universe deliver;

            Loosening my spirit’s zone,

Wrap round me as thy limbs the wind, the light, the river.

The use of the underlined and bolded term “Solitary” at the opening of the poem serves which of the following purposes?

Possible Answers:

The use of “solitary” at the opening of the poem situates the narrator as a lonely person so in need of companionship that she is willing to court even death.

The use of “solitary” at the opening of the poem sets the tone for the rest of the poem, which is concerned with the grief and loneliness that often follows a death.

Figuring personified “Death” as solitary at the opening of the poem adds emotional resonance to the speaker's address to Death advocating for them to be companions.

Figuring personified “Death” as solitary at the opening of the poem situates death as a negative and limiting force.

Characterizing Death as “solitary” at the opening of the poem suggests the fundamental, unbridgeable gap between abstract concepts and mortal beings.

Correct answer:

Figuring personified “Death” as solitary at the opening of the poem adds emotional resonance to the speaker's address to Death advocating for them to be companions.

Explanation:

Opening the poem with personified “Death” as a solitary figure adds emotional resonance and purchase to the speaker’s subsequent plea to Death for them to be companions. This way, the closing image of Death embracing the speaker completes an emotional journey; Death started the poem alone and ends in an embrace. This change can be seem as mutually beneficial and supportive, rather than the speaker simply using Death or vice-versa. 

Example Question #1 : Language Usage And Grammar

From Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, III.ii.13-33 (1599)

[This is a speech by Brutus to a crowd at Caesar’s funeral.]  

 

Romans, countrymen, and lovers! Hear me for my

cause, and be silent, that you may hear. Believe me

for mine honor, and have respect to mine honor, that

you may believe. Censure me in your wisdom, and

awake your senses, that you may the better judge.

If there be any in this assembly, any dear friend of

Caesar's, to him I say that Brutus' love to Caesar

was no less than his. If then that friend demand

why Brutus rose against Caesar, this is my answer:

Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved

Rome more. Had you rather Caesar were living and

die all slaves, than that Caesar were dead to live

all free men? As Caesar loved me, I weep for him;

as he was fortunate, I rejoice at it; as he was

valiant, I honor him; but as he was ambitious, I

slew him. There is tears for his love, joy for his

fortune, honor for his valor, and death for his

ambition. Who is here so base that would be a

bondman? If any, speak, for him have I offended.

Who is here so rude that would not be a Roman? If

any, speak, for him have I offended. Who is here so

vile that will not love his country? If any, speak,

for him have I offended. I pause for a reply.

What would be a better way to write the underlined sentence, "There is tears for his love, joy for his fortune, honor for his valor, and death for his ambition"?

Possible Answers:

There shall be tears for his love, joy for his fortune, honor for his valor, and death for his ambition.

There will be tears for his love, joy for his fortune, honor for his valor, and death for his ambition.

There was tears for his love, joy for his fortune, honor for his valor, and death for his ambition.

There are tears for his love, joy for his fortune, honor for his valor, and death for his ambition.

There might be tears for his love, joy for his fortune, honor for his valor, and death for his ambition.

Correct answer:

There are tears for his love, joy for his fortune, honor for his valor, and death for his ambition.

Explanation:

Since we have a compound predicate, we really should use a plural verb for our main clause. However, it should stay in the present tense, given the rhetoric of the passage. For example, when we say, "There is a white car," we use "is" because "white car" is singular. However, when we say, "There are five cars," we use "are" because "five cars" is a plural expression. Therefore, use "are" in this sentence, though perhaps for theatrical reasons one might want to use "is." Nevertheless, this is a question of grammar right now!

Example Question #1 : Language Usage And Grammar

Adapted from "Review of Wyandotté, or The Hutted Knoll" by Edgar Allan Poe (1843)

The most obvious and most unaccountable faults of The Hutted Knoll are those which appertain to the style—to the mere grammatical construction; for, in other and more important particulars of style, Mr. Cooper, of late days, has made a very manifest improvement. His sentences, however, are arranged with an awkwardness so remarkable as to be matter of absolute astonishment, when we consider the education of the author and his long and continual practice with the pen. In minute descriptions of localities, any verbal inaccuracy or confusion becomes a source of vexation and misunderstanding, detracting very much from the pleasure of perusal; and in these inaccuracies Wyandotté abounds. Although, for instance, we carefully read and reread that portion of the narrative that details the situation of the Knoll, and the construction of the buildings and walls about it, we were forced to proceed with the story without any exact or definite impressions upon the subject. Similar difficulties, from similar causes, occur passim throughout the book. For example, at page 41, vol. I:

“The man gazed at the house with a fierce intentness that sometimes glared, in a manner that had got to be, in its ordinary aspects, dull.”  This it is utterly impossible to comprehend. We presume, however, the intention is to say that although the man’s ordinary manner (of gazing) had “got to be” dull, he occasionally gazed with an intentness that glared, and that he did so in the instance in question. The “got to be” is atrocious, the whole sentence no less so.

Here, at page 9, vol. I, is something excessively vague: “Of the latter character is the face of most of that region that lies in the angle formed by the junction of the Mohawk with the Hudson,” etc. etc. The Mohawk, joining the Hudson, forms two angles, of course—an acute and an obtuse one; and, without farther explanation, it is difficult to say which is intended.

At page 55, vol. I., we read: “The captain, owing to his English education, had avoided straight lines, and formal paths, giving to the little spot the improvement on nature which is a consequence of embellishing her works without destroying them. On each side of this lawn was an orchard, thrifty and young, and that were already beginning to show signs of putting forth their blossoms.”  Here we are tautologically informed that improvement is a consequence of embellishment, and supererogatorily told that the rule holds good only where the embellishment is not accompanied by destruction. Upon the “each orchard were" it is needless to comment.

Poe uses the "Upon the 'each orchard were' it is needless to comment" quote because __________.

Possible Answers:

Poe cannot understand what Cooper means by the phrase

the word "were" agrees with "blossoms"

it's an obvious subject-verb agreement error since "were" can't agree with "orchard"

the ordering of the sentence is obviously inverted and poorly constructed

Correct answer:

it's an obvious subject-verb agreement error since "were" can't agree with "orchard"

Explanation:

The phrase contains an obvious subject-verb agreement error. Cooper apparently feels "were" must agree with "blossoms" and not "orchard."

Example Question #1 : Subject Verb Agreement

Passage adapted from The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (1890)

The passenger booked by this history, was on the coach-step, getting in; the two other passengers were close behind him, and about to follow. He remained on the step, half in the coach and half out of; they remained in the road below him. They all looked from the coachman to the guard, and from the guard to the coachman, and listened. The coachman looked back and the guard looked back, and even the emphatic leader pricked up his ears and looked back, without contradicting.

The stillness consequent on the cessation of the rumbling and labouring of the coach, added to the stillness of the night, made it very quiet indeed. The panting of the horses communicated a tremulous motion to the coach, as if it were in a state of agitation. The hearts of the passengers beat loud enough perhaps to be heard; but at any rate, the quiet pause was audibly expressive of people out of breath, and holding the breath, and having the pulses quickened by expectation.

The sound of a horse at a gallop came fast and furiously up the hill.

"So-ho!" the guard sang out, as loud as he could roar. "Yo there! Stand! I shall fire!"

The pace was suddenly checked, and, with much splashing and floundering, a man's voice called from the mist, "Is that the Dover mail?"

"Never you mind what it is!" the guard retorted. "What are you?"

"Is that the Dover mail?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"I wants a passenger, if it is."

"What passenger?"

"Mr. Jarvis Lorry."

Our booked passenger showed in a moment that it was his name. The guard, the coachman, and the two other passengers eyed him distrustfully.

"Keep where you are," the guard called to the voice in the mist, "because, if I should make a mistake, it could never be set right in your lifetime. Gentleman of the name of Lorry answer straight."

"What is the matter?" asked the passenger, then, with mildly quavering speech. "Who wants me? Is it Jerry?"

("I don't like Jerry's voice, if it is Jerry," growled the guard to himself. "He's hoarser than suits me, is Jerry.")

"Yes, Mr. Lorry."

"What is the matter?

Correct the bolded and underlined portion of the passage.

Possible Answers:

"I wants a passenger, if it is."

"I went a passenger, if it is."

"I wanting a passenger, if it is."

"I want a passenger, if it is."

"I is wanting a passenger, if it is."

Correct answer:

"I want a passenger, if it is."

Explanation:

It is essential that the subject and verb of a sentence agree. The forms of "want" that agree with "I" are "want," "wanted," and "am wanting." The only answer that matches is, "I want a passenger, if it is."

Example Question #1 : Language Usage And Grammar

Passage adapted from The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (1890)

The passenger booked by this history, was on the coach-step, getting in; the two other passengers were close behind him, and about to follow. He remained on the step, half in the coach and half out of; they remained in the road below him. They all looked from the coachman to the guard, and from the guard to the coachman, and listened. The coachman looked back and the guard looked back, and even the emphatic leader pricked up his ears and looked back, without contradicting.

The stillness consequent on the cessation of the rumbling and labouring of the coach, added to the stillness of the night, made it very quiet indeed. The panting of the horses communicated a tremulous motion to the coach, as if it were in a state of agitation. The hearts of the passengers beats loud enough perhaps to be heard; but at any rate, the quiet pause was audibly expressive of people out of breath, and holding the breath, and having the pulses quickened by expectation.

The sound of a horse at a gallop came fast and furiously up the hill.

"So-ho!" the guard sang out, as loud as he could roar. "Yo there! Stand! I shall fire!"

The pace was suddenly checked, and, with much splashing and floundering, a man's voice called from the mist, "Is that the Dover mail?"

"Never you mind what it is!" the guard retorted. "What are you?"

"Is that the Dover mail?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"I want a passenger, if it is."

"What passenger?"

"Mr. Jarvis Lorry."

Our booked passenger showed in a moment that it was his name. The guard, the coachman, and the two other passengers eyed him distrustfully.

"Keep where you are," the guard called to the voice in the mist, "because, if I should make a mistake, it could never be set right in your lifetime. Gentleman of the name of Lorry answer straight."

"What is the matter?" asked the passenger, then, with mildly quavering speech. "Who wants me? Is it Jerry?"

("I don't like Jerry's voice, if it is Jerry," growled the guard to himself. "He's hoarser than suits me, is Jerry.")

"Yes, Mr. Lorry."

"What is the matter?

Correct the bolded and underlined sentence.

Possible Answers:

The hearts of the passengers beat loud enough perhaps to be heard; but at any rate, the quiet pause was audibly expressive of people out of breath, and holding the breath, and having the pulses quickened by expectation.

The hearts of the passengers beated loud enough perhaps to be heard; but at any rate, the quiet pause was audibly expressive of people out of breath, and holding the breath, and having the pulses quickened by expectation.

The hearts of the passengers beat loud enough perhaps to be heard; but at any rate, the quiet pause was audibly expressive of people outed of breath, and holding the breath, and having the pulses quickened by expectation.

The hearts of the passengers beats loud enough perhaps to be heard; but at any rate, the quiet pause was audibly expressive of people out of breath, and holding the breath, and having the pulses quickened by expectation.

The hearts of the passengers beat loud enough perhaps to be heard; but at any rate, the quiet pause was audibly expressive of people outs of breath, and holding the breath, and having the pulses quickened by expectation.

Correct answer:

The hearts of the passengers beat loud enough perhaps to be heard; but at any rate, the quiet pause was audibly expressive of people out of breath, and holding the breath, and having the pulses quickened by expectation.

Explanation:

"The hearts of the passengers beat loud enough perhaps to be heard; but at any rate, the quiet pause was audibly expressive of people out of breath, and holding the breath, and having the pulses quickened by expectation."

This is the only version of the sentence that has the correct subject/verb agreement for both beat and out. Because "hearts" is plural, "beat" must be the correct conjugation. "People" is also plural which is why "out" is correct. 

Example Question #2 : Subject Verb Agreement

Passage adapted from Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (1868)

Gardening, walks, rows on the river, and flower hunts employed the fine days, and for rainy ones, they had house diversions, some old, some new, all more or less original. One of these was the `P.C', for as secret societies were the fashion, it was thought proper to have one, and as all of the girls admired Dickens, they called herselves the Pickwick Club. With a few interruptions, they had kept this up for a year, and met every Saturday evening in the big garret, on which occasions the ceremonies were as follows: Three chairs were arranged in a row before a table on which was a lamp, also four white badges, with a big `P.C.' in different colors on each, and the weekly newspaper called, The Pickwick Portfolio, to which all contributed something, while Jo, who reveled in pens and ink, was the editor. At seven o'clock, the four members ascended to the clubroom, tied their badges round their heads, and took their seats with great solemnity. Meg, as the eldest, was Samuel Pickwick, Jo, being of a literary turn, Augustus Snodgrass, Beth, because she were round and rosy, Tracy Tupman, and Amy, who was always trying to do what she couldn't, was Nathaniel Winkle. Pickwick, the president, read the paper, which was filled with original tales, poetry, local news, funny advertisements, and hints, in which they good-naturedly reminded each other of their faults and short comings. On one occasion, Mr. Pickwick put on a pair of spectacles without any glass, rapped upon the table, hemmed, and having stared hard at Mr. Snodgrass, who was tilting back in his chair, till he arranged himself properly, began to read:

Correct the bolded and underlined section of the passage.

Possible Answers:

was

go

(no change)

going

goes

Correct answer:

was

Explanation:

"Was" is correct because it needs to be past tense like the other verbs in the sentence. When conjugating the past tense of to go, I was, you were, he was, she was, you all were, we were, and they were. Since the noun here is she the correct verb is "was."

Example Question #2 : Language Usage And Grammar

Adapted from Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, III.ii.82-117 (1599)

 

[This is a speech by Mark Antony]

 

Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears!

I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.

The evil that men do lives after them,

The good is oft interred with their bones;

So let it be with Caesar. The noble Brutus

Hath told you Caesar was ambitious;

If it were so, it was a grievous fault,

And grievously hath Caesar answer'd it.

Here, under leave of Brutus and the rest-

For Brutus is an honorable man;

So are they all, all honorable men-

Come I to speak in Caesar's funeral.

He was my friend, faithful and just to me;

But Brutus says he was ambitious,

And Brutus is an honorable man.

He hath brought many captives home to Rome,

Whose ransoms did the general coffers fill.

Did this in Caesar seem ambitious?

When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept;

Ambition should be made of sterner stuff:

Yet Brutus says he was ambitious,

And Brutus is an honorable man.

You all did see that on the Lupercal [a public festival]

I thrice presented him a kingly crown,

Which he did thrice refuse. Was this ambition?

Yet Brutus says he was ambitious,

And sure he is an honorable man.

I speak not to disprove what Brutus spoke,

But here I am to speak what I do know.

You all did love him once, not without cause;

What cause withholds you then to mourn for him?

O judgment, thou art fled to brutish beasts,

And men have lost their reason. Bear with me;

My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar,

And I must pause till it come back to me.

To whom does the underlined "He" refer?

Possible Answers:

Caesar

Brutus

Mark Antony

The "man" with which the previous sentence ends.

One of the men in the crowd

Correct answer:

Caesar

Explanation:

The hint for this pronoun can be found two lines below when Mark Antony says, "Did this in Caesar seem ambitious?" He is asking this question in response to the two lines before. In those lines, he shows that Caesar brought captives to Rome, thus putting money in the coffers of the city when those people were ransomed. This does not seem to be ambitious but a help to Rome—so Antony implies against Brutus' claim that he ambitious. (As you read the whole passage, you will see that he is continually trying to show that Caesar was not, in fact, ambitious.) Therefore, the "He" in question is Caesar.

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