PASSAGE FOUR (Question 4) Modernism in Art
1 A proliferation of varying styles characterized the world of American art and architecture in the period between 1880 and the outbreak of World War 11 in 1939. In spite of the fact that these various styles often had little in common with each other, they are traditionally clustered under the label of modernism. It is thus rather difficult to give a precise definition of modernism, one that encompasses all the characteristics of the artists and architects who are commonly grouped under this label. What modernists do have in common is that their work contains at least one of two characteristics of modernism.
2 One fundamental characteristic of modernism is a demonstration of progressive innovation. In general, a modernist is someone who tries to develop an individual style by adding to or improving upon the style of immediate predecessors. The modernist belief was in starting with the ideas of the mainstream movement and then innovating from the mainstream to improve upon the ideas of predecessors rather than in breaking away from the mainstream to create something entirely new. However, because there were varying ideas on what constituted the mainstream and because the potential innovations emanating from the mainstream were infinite, modernism under this definition could take a myriad of directions.
3 A second fundamental characteristic of modernism was the belief that art could and should reflect the reality of modern life and would not, for example, focus on the lives of society's most privileged members or on otherworld entities such as angels and sprites. Though there was agreement among modernists as to the need for art to reflect modern life, there was far less agreement on what actually constituted modern life. Thus, modern artists and architects reflect very different aspects of modern life in their works.
| Though modernism in art shares certain characteristics, these characteristics can be difficult to define precisely. |
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Answer Choices (choose 4 to complete the chart):
(1) A reflection of the reality of modern life is one aspect of modernism.
(2) There is no universal agreement as to exactly what makes up modem life.
(3) Modernism is a highly individualistic style of art.
(4) Modernism in art must improve upon the style of the mainstream.
(5) There were many different styles of American art in the early twentieth century.
(6) It can be difficult to define what the mainstream is.
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READING SKILL 10: COMPLETE SCHEMATIC TABLES
| QUESTIONS ABOUT SCHEMATIC TABLES | |
| HOW TO IDENTIFY THE QUESTION | A schematic table is given |
| WHERE TO FIND THE ANSWER | Because the answer demonstrates an understanding of the major points and critical supporting information, the information needed to answer the question is found throughout the passage |
| HOW TO ANSWER THE QUESTION | · Look at the information that is provided in the schematic table · Read the passage, focusing on the main ideas as they relate to the topic stated in the schematic table · Read each answer choice, evaluating whether it is true information according to the passage, false information according to the passage, or not discussed in the passage · Eliminate any answers that are false or not discussed · Match the true answer choice to the correct category in the schematic table · Partial credit is possible, and your answers may be in any order |
READING EXERCISE 10: Study each passage, and complete the summary table that follows by matching the answer choice to its appropriate position in the table. Some answer choices do not belong in the table because they express ideas that are not presented in the passage or are minor ideas in the passage.
PASSAGE ONE (Question 1) Sand Dunes
1 Sandy deserts contain enormous volumes of sand eroded from mountains and carried to the deserts by wind or water. The huge quantities of sand that make up sandy deserts are blown about into dunes of various shapes.
2 Ridge dunes form where there are large amounts of sand, generally in the interiors of deserts, and winds blow in one direction. Under these conditions, parallel ridges of sand, known as transverse dunes, form at right angles to the wind.
3 When the direction of the wind changes so that it comes from different directions, star-shaped dunes form from the massive amounts of sand in desert interiors. Star-shaped dunes are relatively stable dunes that reach incredible heights, up to 80 meters high in some deserts, and are quite common in massive deserts such as the Sahara.
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4 Crescent dunes form on the edges of deserts where there is less sand and where the winds blow mainly in one direction. These dunes, which are also known as barchan dunes are less stable than star-shaped dunes and can shift as much as 20 meters per year as winds blow over the outer curves of the crescent in the direction of the pointed ends.
| Directions: Select the appropriate sentences from the answer choices, and match them to the critical information about the sand dunes to which they relate. THREE of the answer choices will not be used. This question is worth 3 points. | |
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| Direction of winds | * |
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Answer Choices (choose 4 to complete the chart):
(1) Ridge and crescent dunes form where the winds blow from one direction.
(2) Crescent dunes are also known as barchan dunes.
(3) Star-shaped dunes form where the winds blow from different directions.
(4) Transverse dunes are created parallel to the wind.
(5) Ridge and star dunes form where there is a lot of sand.
(6) Star-shaped dunes are more stable than crescent dunes.
(7) Crescent dunes form where there is less sand.
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