AP English Literature : Interpreting Words

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for AP English Literature

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Example Questions

Example Question #7 :Relationship Between Words

Adapted fromA Tale of Two Citiesby Charles Dickens (1859)

这是最好的时代,这是最糟糕的时间s, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way—in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.

There were a king with a large jaw and a queen with a plain face, on the throne of England; there were a king with a large jaw and a queen with a fair face, on the throne of France. In both countries it was clearer than crystal to the lords of the State preserves of loaves and fishes, that things in general were settled for ever.

France, less favored on the whole as to matters spiritual than her sister of the shield and trident, rolled with exceeding smoothness down hill, making paper money and spending it. Under the guidance of her Christian pastors, she entertained herself, besides, with such humane achievements as sentencing a youth to have his hands cut off, his tongue torn out with pincers, and his body burned alive, because he had not kneeled down in the rain to do honor to a dirty procession of monks which passed within his view, at a distance of some fifty or sixty yards. It is likely enough that, rooted in the woods of France and Norway, there were growing trees, when that sufferer was put to death, already marked by the Woodman, Fate, to come down and be sawn into boards, to make a certain movable framework with a sack and a knife in it, terrible in history. It is likely enough that in the rough outhouses of some tillers of the heavy lands adjacent to Paris, there were sheltered from the weather that very day, rude carts, bespattered with rustic mire, snuffed about by pigs, and roosted in by poultry, which the Farmer, Death, had already set apart to be his tumbrils of the Revolution. But, that Woodman and that Farmer, though they work unceasingly, work silently, and no one heard them as they went about with muffled tread: the rather, forasmuch as to entertain any suspicion that they were awake, was to be atheistical and traitorous.

In England, there was scarcely an amount of order and protection to justify much national boasting. Daring burglaries by armed men, and highway robberies, took place in the capital itself every night; families were publicly cautioned not to go out of town without removing their furniture to upholsterers' warehouses for security; the highwayman in the dark was a City tradesman in the light, and, being recognized and challenged by his fellow-tradesman whom he stopped in his character of "the Captain," gallantly shot him through the head and rode away; the mail was waylaidby seven robbers, and the guard shot three dead, and then got shot dead himself by the other four, "in consequence of the failure of his ammunition": after which the mail was robbed in peace; that magnificent potentate, the Lord Mayor of London, was made to stand and deliver on Turnham Green, by one highwayman, who despoiled the illustrious creature in sight of all his retinue; prisoners in London gaols fought battles with their turnkeys, and the majesty of the law fired blunderbusses in among them, loaded with rounds of shot and ball; thieves snipped off diamond crosses from the necks of noble lords at Court drawing rooms; musketeers went into St Giles's, to search for contraband goods, and the mob fired on the musketeers, and the musketeers fired on the mob; and nobody thought any of these occurrences much out of the common way. In the midst of them, the hangman,ever busy and ever worse than useless, was in constant requisition; now, stringing up long rows of miscellaneous criminals; now, hanging a housebreaker on Saturday who had been taken on Tuesday; now, burning people in the hand at Newgate by the dozen, and now burning pamphlets at the door of Westminster Hall; to-day, taking the life of an atrocious murderer, and tomorrow of a wretched pilferer who had robbed a farmer's boy of sixpence.

The combination of the words "busy" and "useless" in the underlined phrase "ever busy and ever worse than useless" in the fourth paragraph creates a sense of__________surrounding the hangman's actions.

Possible Answers:

levity

justice

necessity

irony

gravity

Correct answer:

irony

Explanation:

The hangman is busy with his work, but it is ironic that this work actually serves no real purpose in stemming the rampant crimes in England.

Example Question #8 :Relationship Between Words

Adapted fromRichard IIIby William Shakespeare, I.i.1-42

没有w is the winter of our discontent
Made glorious summer by this sun of York;
And all the clouds that lour'd upon our house
In the deep bosom of the ocean buried.
没有w are our brows bound with victorious wreaths;
Our bruised arms hung up for monuments;
Our stern alarums changed to merry meetings,
Our dreadful marches to delightful measures.
Grim-visaged war hath smooth'd his wrinkled front;
And now, instead of mounting barded steeds
To fright the souls of fearful adversaries,
He capers nimbly in a lady's chamber
To the lascivious pleasing of a lute.
But I, that am not shaped for sportive tricks,
没有r made to court an amorous looking-glass;
I, that am rudely stamp'd, and want love's majesty
To strut before a wantonamblingnymph;
I, that am curtail'd of this fair proportion,
Cheated of feature by dissembling nature,
Deformed, unfinish'd, sent before my time
Into this breathing world, scarce half made up,
And that so lamely and unfashionable
That dogs bark at me as I halt by them;
Why, I, in this weak piping time of peace,
Have no delight to pass away the time,
Unless to spy my shadow in the sun
And descant on mine own deformity:
And therefore, since I cannot prove a lover,
To entertain these fair well-spoken days,
I am determined to prove a villain
And hate the idle pleasures of these days.
Plots have I laid, inductions dangerous,
By drunken prophecies, libels and dreams,
To set my brother Clarence and the king
In deadly hate the one against the other:
And if King Edward be as true and just
As I am subtle, false and treacherous,
This day should Clarence closely be mew'd up,
About a prophecy, which says that 'G'
Of Edward's heirs the murderer shall be.
Dive, thoughts, down to my soul: here
Clarence comes.

The underlined word "ambling" can be read as most directly contrasting with which of the following words or excerpts?

Possible Answers:

"halt" (line 23)

"strut" (line 17)

"capers" (line 12)

"Deformed" (line 20)

"descant" (line 27)

Correct answer:

"halt" (line 23)

Explanation:

The underlined "ambling" appears in line 17, as part of the phrase begun in the previous line, "I, that am rudely stamp'd, and want love's majesty / To strut before a wanton ambling nymph." What is the narrator saying here? He is describing himself as being "rudely stamped" and "wanting" (lacking) "love's majesty," which is required "to strut" in front of women—"a wanton ambling nymph." Here, "wanton" meanssexually indecentand "nymph" is being used to imply that the woman is beautiful by hearkening back to a spirit of nature present in classical mythology. What is "ambling" doing in this description? "Ambling" meansstrolling along casually. In looking for the word that most directly contrasts with "ambling," we need to keep this in mind.

Let's consider our answer choices. "Strut" may look like the most likely answer because it is closest to "ambling" in the passage, part of the same line. However, "strut" meanswalk in an affected, proud mannerand doesn't seem that much different from "ambling." Keep it in mind as potentially correct and consider the other answers. "Capers" hits a similar difficulty, meaningdanceorcavort; "descant" meanstalk about something for a long time—perhaps contrasting with "ambling" in the sense of movement being contrasted with speech? This is a relatively abstract and indirect comparison, though. "Deformed" is being used as an adjective, so it meansshaped in a way unlike the expected norm.

"Deformed" may look like the correct answer; as the nymph is "ambling," the speaker is "deformed," implying that he cannot amble. Another answer gets at this difference more directly by referring to the way in which the user moves: "halt." "Halt" in this case meanslimp. Aha—whereas the nymph is "ambling," the user "halts." This is the best answer choice.

Example Question #9 :Relationship Between Words

Adapted from "Sonnet 73" by William Shakespeare

That time of year thou mayst in me behold

When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang

Upon those boughs which shake against the cold,

裸露的唱诗班毁灭,后期的鸟类g.

In me thou seest the twilight of such day

As after sunset fadeth in the west,

Which by and by black night doth take away,

Death's second self, that seals up all in rest.

In me thou see'st the glowing of such fire

That on the ashes of his youth doth lie,

As the death-bed whereon it must expire

Consumed with that which it was nourish'd by.

This thou perceivest, which makes thy love more strong,

To love that well which thou must leave ere long.

Which of the following is being referred to by the bolded and underlined abstract phrase “Death’s second self”?

Possible Answers:

“Bare ruin’d choirs (line 4)

“The glowing of such fire” (line 9)

“Black night” (line 7)

“Twilight” (line 5)

“Ashes of his youth” (line 10)

Correct answer:

“Black night” (line 7)

Explanation:

如果一天的不同时期诗(《暮光之城》,sunset, night) can be read as stages of life, night is logically parallel to death. “Death’s second self” refers to “Black night” (line 7). The two phrases are both grammatically and thematically joined. Night is likened to death; like death, it puts the world to sleep (“Seals up all in rest”). While “Twilight,” “Ashes of his youth,” and “Bare ruin’d choirs” also suggest aging and decline, they are presented more as intermediaries on the way to death than as representative of death itself.

Example Question #71 :Interpreting Words

Adapted from "The Mouse’s Petition" inPoemsby Anna Letitia Barbauld (1773)


Found in the trap where he had been confined all night by Dr. Priestley, for the sake of making experiments with different kinds of air

“To spare the humbled, and to tame in war the proud.”- Virgil

OH! hear a pensive captive's prayer,
For liberty that sighs;
And never let thine heart be shut
Against the prisoner's cries.

For here forlorn and sad I sit,

Within the wiry grate;
And tremble at th' approaching morn,

Which brings impending fate.

If e'er thy breast with freedom glow'd,
And spurn'd a tyrant's chain,
Let not thy strong oppressive force
A free-born mouse detain.

Oh! do not stain with guiltless blood
Thy hospitable hearth;
没有r triumph that thy wiles betray'd
A prize so little worth.

The scatter'd gleanings of a feast
My scanty meals supply;
But if thine unrelenting heart
That slender boon deny,

The cheerful light, the vital air,
Are blessings widely given;
Let nature's commoners enjoy
The common gifts of heaven.

The well-taught philosophic mind
To all compassion gives;
Casts round the world an equal eye,
And feels for all that lives.

If mind, as ancient sages taught,
A never dying flame,
Still shifts thro' matter's varying forms,
In every form the same,

Beware, lest in the worm you crush
A brother's soul you find;
And tremble lest thy luckless hand
Dislodge a kindred mind.

Or, if this transient gleam of day
Beallof life we share,
Let pity plead within thy breast,
That littleallto spare.

So may thy hospitable board
With health and peace be crown'd;
And every charm of heartfelt ease
在你的屋顶被发现。

So when unseen destruction lurks,
Which men like mice may share,
May some kind angel clear thy path,
And break the hidden snare.

In the underlined lines, "to all compassion gives" most closely means which of the following?

Possible Answers:

"The well-taught mind" is consumed by passion.

All philosophers are, by their very nature, compassionate.

The "well-taught philosophic mind" gives all of its consideration to compassion.

The "well-taught philosophic mind" gives in to every compassionate impulse.

The "well-taught philosophic mind" is compassionate towards everyone.

Correct answer:

The "well-taught philosophic mind" is compassionate towards everyone.

Explanation:

In this context, "The well-taught philosophic mind / to all compassion gives" most closely means that such a mind is compassionate towards everyone. "All" in this context refers to all sentient beings, not the compassion. While it stands to reason that the speaker would think that all good philosophers would be, by nature, compassionate, not all philosophers are held to be good, and not all "well-taught philosophic mind[s]" are philosophers by trade.

Example Question #11 :Relationship Between Words

Adapted from "The Mouse’s Petition" inPoemsby Anna Letitia Barbauld (1773)


Found in the trap where he had been confined all night by Dr. Priestley, for the sake of making experiments with different kinds of air

“To spare the humbled, and to tame in war the proud.”- Virgil

OH! hear a pensive captive's prayer,
For liberty that sighs;
And never let thine heart be shut
Against the prisoner's cries.

For here forlorn and sad I sit,

Within the wiry grate;
And tremble at th' approaching morn,

Which brings impending fate.

If e'er thy breast with freedom glow'd,
And spurn'd a tyrant's chain,
Let not thy strong oppressive force
A free-born mouse detain.

Oh! do not stain with guiltless blood
Thy hospitable hearth;
没有r triumph that thy wiles betray'd
A prize so little worth.

The scatter'd gleanings of a feast
My scanty meals supply;
But if thine unrelenting heart
That slender boon deny,

The cheerful light, the vital air,
Are blessings widely given;
Let nature's commoners enjoy
The common gifts of heaven.

The well-taught philosophic mind
To all compassion gives;
Casts round the world an equal eye,
And feels for all that lives.

If mind, as ancient sages taught,
A never dying flame,
Still shifts thro' matter's varying forms,
In every form the same,

Beware, lest in the worm you crush
A brother's soul you find;
And tremble lest thy luckless hand
Dislodge a kindred mind.

Or, if this transient gleam of day
Beallof life we share,
Let pity plead within thy breast,
Thatallto spare.

So may thy hospitable board
With health and peace be crown'd;
And every charm of heartfelt ease
在你的屋顶被发现。

So when unseen destruction lurks,
Which men like mice may share,
May some kind angel clear thy path,
And break the hidden snare.

In the bolded and underlined excerpt, the pairing of "little" with "all" is used to do what? (Note that the italics are included in the original text.)

Possible Answers:

To create irony and to illustrate the foolishness of dismissing any aspect of mortal existence

To illustrate the relative unimportance of any individual perceiving consciousness in a complex, constantly varying universe

创建讽刺和说明的必要性releasing all animals from human captivity

To illustrate the relative unimportance of human comfort in the face of global environmental concerns

To create irony and to illustrate the foolishness of extending ethical consideration to non-human creatures

Correct answer:

To create irony and to illustrate the foolishness of dismissing any aspect of mortal existence

Explanation:

The pairing of "little" with "all" in this context is used to create irony, and to illustrate the foolishness of dismissing any aspect of mortal existence. The "little all" that is being referred to here is personal freedom, in addition to literal access to open space and sunlight, which is hardly a "little" thing. The pairing of "little" and "allL here ironizes and shows the failings of ethical systems which apply varying levels of ethical consideration to conscious beings for arbitrary reasons.

Global environmental concerns are not at issue in this poem. The poem is actually arguing for theimportanceof all individual perceiving consciousness in a complex, constantly varying universe. While it stands to reason that the speaker would advocate for the release of all animals from captivity, in this context that issue is not specifically at play, and the larger issue of ethical reasoning is more specifically being treated.

Example Question #12 :Relationship Between Words

The following is an excerpt fromA Portrait of the Artist as a Young Manby James Joyce (1916)

The swift December dusk had come tumbling clownishly after its dull day and, as he stared through the dull square of the window of the schoolroom, he felt his belly crave for its food. He hoped there would be stew for dinner, turnips and carrots and bruised potatoes and fat mutton pieces to be ladled out in thick peppered flour-fattened sauce. Stuff it into you, his belly counseled him.

这将是一个令人沮丧的秘密。后早期国家行业集团公司htfall the yellow lamps would light up, here and there, the squalid quarter of the brothels. He would follow a devious course up and down the streets, circling always nearer and nearer in a tremor of fear and joy, until his feet led him suddenly round a dark corner. The whores would be just coming out of their houses making ready for the night, yawning lazily after their sleep and settling the hairpins in their clusters of hair. He would pass by them calmly waiting for a sudden movement of his own will or a sudden call to his sin-loving soul from their soft perfumed flesh. Yet as he prowled in quest of that call, his senses,stultifiedonly by his desire, would note keenly all that wounded or shamed them; his eyes, a ring of porter froth on a clothless table or a photograph of two soldiers standing to attention or a gaudy playbill; his ears, the drawling jargon of greeting . . .

The underlined word "stultified" most nearly means which of the following?

Possible Answers:

Hampered

Fortified

Increased

Rivaled

Sustained

Correct answer:

Hampered

Explanation:

The correct answer is "hampered." To "stultify" meansto cause to lose fervor for a cause or goal. The author wishes to convey that the character's senses, which are otherwise keen, are affected by his lust.

Example Question #13 :Relationship Between Words

Adapted from "The Windhover" inPoemsby Gerard Manley Hopkins (1918)

I caught this morning morning’s minion, king-
dom of daylight’s dauphin, dapple-dawn-drawn Falcon, in his riding
Of the rolling level underneath him steady air, and striding
High there, how he rung upon the rein of a wimpling wing
In his ecstasy! then off, off forth on swing,
As a skate’s heel sweeps smooth on a bow-bend: the hurl and gliding
Rebuffed the big wind. My heart in hiding
Stirred for a bird,—the achieve of; the mastery of the thing!

Brute beauty and valor and act, oh, air, pride, plume, here
扣!然后大火破坏你,billion
Times told lovelier, more dangerous, O my chevalier!

没有wonder of it: shéer plód makes plough down sillion
Shine, and blue-bleak embers, ah my dear,
Fall, gall themselves, and gash gold-vermillion.

The "Dauphin" in line 2 represents which of the following in the rest of the poem?

Possible Answers:

"skate's heel"

"Brute Beauty"

"my chevalier"

"My heart"

"wimpling wing"

Correct answer:

"my chevalier"

Explanation:

The dauphin is the heir of the kingdom of daylight (i.e. the falcon). Just as the falcon is the heir of the morning, Hopkins sees the falcon representative of his Chevalier (a feudal lord)—in this case, a religious metaphor—who he sees as heir of the world.

Example Question #14 :Relationship Between Words

Adapted fromLorna Doone: A Romance of Exmoorby Richard Doddridge Blackmore (1869)

Hitherto none had worsted me, although in the three years of my schooling, I had fought more than threescore battles, and bedewed with blood every plant of grass towards the middle of the Ironing-box. And this success I owed at first to no skill of my own; until I came to know better; for up to twenty or thirty fights, I struck as nature guided me, no wiser than a father-long-legs in the heat of a lanthorn; but I had conquered, partly through my native strength, and the Exmoor toughness in me, and still more that I could not see when I had gotten my bellyful. But now I was like to have that and more; for my heart was down, to begin with; and then Robert Snell was a bigger boy than I had ever encountered, and as thick in the skull and hard in the brain as even I could claim to be.

. . .

I marvel how Robin Snell felt.很有可能他也没有多想什么,总是每天g been a boy of a hectoring and unruly sort. But I felt my heart go up and down as the boys came round to strip me; and greatly fearing to be beaten, I blew hot upon my knuckles. Then pulled I off my little cut jerkin, and laid it down on my head cap, and over that my waistcoat, and a boy was proud to take care of them. Thomas Hooper was his name, and I remember how he looked at me. My mother had made that little cut jerkin, in the quiet winter evenings. And taken pride to loop it up in a fashionable way, and I was loth to soil it with blood, and good filberds were in the pocket. Then up to me came Robin Snell (mayor of Exeter thrice since that), and he stood very square, and looking at me, and I lacked not long to look at him. Round his waist he had a kerchief busking up his small-clothes, and on his feet light pumpkin shoes, and all his upper raiment off. And he danced about in a way that made my head swim on my shoulders, and he stood some inches over me. But I, being muddled with much doubt about John Fry and his errand, was only stripped of my jerkin and waistcoat, and not comfortable to begin.

When the author writes “I marvel how Robin Snell felt,” he most nearly means__________.

Possible Answers:

he understands how Robin Snell felt

he is afraid of how Robin Snell felt

he is in awe of how Robin Snell felt

he is shocked by how Robin Snell felt

he is curious about how Robin Snell felt

Correct answer:

he is curious about how Robin Snell felt

Explanation:

The correct answer is “he is curious about how Robin Snell felt.” To "marvel" can mean to be in wonder or awe of something, or to be curious about something. In this context, the author wishes to convey that he is curious about how Robin Snell felt about the impending match, specifically whether he was also frightened to fight.

Example Question #15 :Relationship Between Words

Adapted fromThe Vicar of Wakefieldby Oliver Goldsmith (1766)

Thetemporal我们家的担忧主要致力于my wife's management; as to the spiritual, I took them entirely under my own direction. The profits of my living, which amounted to but thirty-five pounds a year, I made over to the orphans and widows of the clergy of our diocese; for having a sufficient fortune of my own, I was careless of temporalities, and felt a secret pleasure in doing my duty without reward. I also set a resolution of keeping no curate, and of being acquainted with every man in the parish, exhorting the married men to temperance and the bachelors to matrimony, so that in a few years it was a common saying, that there were three strange wants at Wakefield, a parson wanting pride, young men wanting wives, and ale-houses wanting customers. Matrimony was always one of my favorite topics, and I wrote several sermons to prove its happiness; but there was a peculiar tenet that I made a point of supporting; for I maintained with Whiston, that it was unlawful for a priest of the church of England, after the death of his first wife, to take a second, or to express it in one word, I valued myself upon being a strict monogamist. I was early initiated into this important dispute, on which so many laborious volumes have been written. I published some tracts upon the subject myself, which, as they never sold, I have the consolation of thinking are read only by the happy Few. Some of my friends called this my weak side; but alas! they had not like me made it the subject of long contemplation. The more I reflected upon it, the more important it appeared. I even went a step beyond Whiston in displaying my principles: as he had engraved upon his wife's tomb that she was the only wife of William Whiston; so I wrote a similar epitaph for my wife, though still living, in which I extolled her prudence, economy, and obedience till death; and having got it copied fair, with an elegant frame, it was placed over the chimney-piece, where it answered several very useful purposes. It admonished my wife of her duty to me, and my fidelity to her; it inspired her with a passion for fame, and constantly put her in mind of her end.

It was thus, perhaps, from hearing marriage so often recommended, that my eldest son, just upon leaving college, fixed his affections upon the daughter of a neighboring clergyman, who was a dignitary in the church, and in circumstances to give her a large fortune: but fortune was her smallest accomplishment. Miss Arabella Wilmot was allowed by all, except my two daughters, to be completely pretty. Her youth, health, and innocence, were still heightened by a complexion so transparent, and such an happy sensibility of look, as even age could not gaze on with indifference. As Mr Wilmot knew that I could make a very handsome settlement on my son, he was not averse to the match; so both families lived together in all that harmony which generally precedes an expected alliance. Being convinced by experience that the days of courtship are the most happy of our lives, I was willing enough to lengthen the period; and the various amusements that the young couple every day shared in each other's company, seemed to increase their passion. We were generally awaked in the morning by music, and on fine days rode a hunting. The hours between breakfast and dinner the ladies devoted to dress and study: they usually read a page, and then gazed at themselves in the glass, which even philosophers might own often presented the page of greatest beauty. At dinner my wife took the lead; for as she always insisted upon carving everything herself, it being her mother's way, she gave us upon these occasions the history of every dish. When we had dined, to prevent the ladies leaving us, I generally ordered the table to be removed; and sometimes, with the music master's assistance, the girls would give us a very agreeable concert. Walking out, drinking tea, country dances, and forfeits, shortened the rest of the day, without the assistance of cards, as I hated all manner of gaming, except backgammon, at which my old friend and I sometimes took a two-penny hit. Nor can I here pass over an ominous circumstance that happened the last time we played together: I only wanted to fling a quatre, and yet I threw deuce ace five times running. Some months were elapsed in this manner, till at last it was thought convenient to fix a day for the nuptials of the young couple, who seemed earnestly to desire it.

What is the meaning of the word “temporal” in the first line?

Possible Answers:

Filial

Familial

Timely

Homely

Worldly

Correct answer:

Worldly

Explanation:

While we might think of the world “temporal” as concerning things to do with “time,” it is not in this case synonymous with “timely.” Look at the context: “The temporal concerns of our family were chiefly committed to my wife's management, as to the spiritual I took them entirely under my own direction.” We can see that “temporal” is placed in contrast to “spiritual.” In this case, the “spiritual concerns” are issues of religion, whereas the “temporal concerns” are the “worldly” concerns of the family, such as money and housekeeping. Here it is important not to be fooled into choosing “homely” when thinking of the wife taking care of the management of the home. Likewise, “familial” can be chosen as an incorrect answer, as the “worldly” concerns would have incorporated “familial” concerns but are not governed by them. “Filial” is irrelevant as it meansrelating to or due from a son or a daughter.

Example Question #16 :Relationship Between Words

Adapted fromThe Vicar of Wakefieldby Oliver Goldsmith (1766)

The temporal concerns of our family were chiefly committed to my wife's management; as to the spiritual, I took them entirely under my own direction. The profits of my living, which amounted to but thirty-five pounds a year, I made over to the orphans and widows of the clergy of our diocese; for having a sufficient fortune of my own, I was careless of temporalities, and felt a secret pleasure in doing my duty without reward. I also set a resolution of keeping no curate, and of being acquainted with every man in the parish, exhorting the married men totemperanceand the bachelors to matrimony, so that in a few years it was a common saying, that there were three strange wants at Wakefield, a parson wanting pride, young men wanting wives, and ale-houses wanting customers. Matrimony was always one of my favorite topics, and I wrote several sermons to prove its happiness; but there was a peculiar tenet that I made a point of supporting; for I maintained with Whiston, that it was unlawful for a priest of the church of England, after the death of his first wife, to take a second, or to express it in one word, I valued myself upon being a strict monogamist. I was early initiated into this important dispute, on which so many laborious volumes have been written. I published some tracts upon the subject myself, which, as they never sold, I have the consolation of thinking are read only by the happy Few. Some of my friends called this my weak side; but alas! they had not like me made it the subject of long contemplation. The more I reflected upon it, the more important it appeared. I even went a step beyond Whiston in displaying my principles: as he had engraved upon his wife's tomb that she was the only wife of William Whiston; so I wrote a similar epitaph for my wife, though still living, in which I extolled her prudence, economy, and obedience till death; and having got it copied fair, with an elegant frame, it was placed over the chimney-piece, where it answered several very useful purposes. It admonished my wife of her duty to me, and my fidelity to her; it inspired her with a passion for fame, and constantly put her in mind of her end.

It was thus, perhaps, from hearing marriage so often recommended, that my eldest son, just upon leaving college, fixed his affections upon the daughter of a neighboring clergyman, who was a dignitary in the church, and in circumstances to give her a large fortune: but fortune was her smallest accomplishment. Miss Arabella Wilmot was allowed by all, except my two daughters, to be completely pretty. Her youth, health, and innocence, were still heightened by a complexion so transparent, and such an happy sensibility of look, as even age could not gaze on with indifference. As Mr Wilmot knew that I could make a very handsome settlement on my son, he was not averse to the match; so both families lived together in all that harmony which generally precedes an expected alliance. Being convinced by experience that the days of courtship are the most happy of our lives, I was willing enough to lengthen the period; and the various amusements that the young couple every day shared in each other's company, seemed to increase their passion. We were generally awaked in the morning by music, and on fine days rode a hunting. The hours between breakfast and dinner the ladies devoted to dress and study: they usually read a page, and then gazed at themselves in the glass, which even philosophers might own often presented the page of greatest beauty. At dinner my wife took the lead; for as she always insisted upon carving everything herself, it being her mother's way, she gave us upon these occasions the history of every dish. When we had dined, to prevent the ladies leaving us, I generally ordered the table to be removed; and sometimes, with the music master's assistance, the girls would give us a very agreeable concert. Walking out, drinking tea, country dances, and forfeits, shortened the rest of the day, without the assistance of cards, as I hated all manner of gaming, except backgammon, at which my old friend and I sometimes took a two-penny hit. Nor can I here pass over an ominous circumstance that happened the last time we played together: I only wanted to fling a quatre, and yet I threw deuce ace five times running. Some months were elapsed in this manner, till at last it was thought convenient to fix a day for the nuptials of the young couple, who seemed earnestly to desire it.

The opposite of the underlined word “temperance” as it is used in the first paragarph would be__________.

Possible Answers:

loyalty

immodesty

distrust

drunkenness

arid

Correct answer:

drunkenness

Explanation:

The speaker makes clear what type of "temperance," or abstinence, he intends for married men when he states: “ale-houses wanting customers.” We can see that he is urging the married men to abstain from drinking alcohol. So, the opposite of this type of temperance would be “drunkenness.” We must be careful in this case to avoid “arid,” as it is a near antonym of “temperate,” not “temperance.”

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