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AP-Style Multiple-Choice Quiz (Stephen Jay Gould, “Women’s Brains”)

AP-Style Multiple Choice Quiz

Stephen Jay Gould, “Women’s Brains”

After reading the selection from “Women’s Brains,” choose the best answer to each question. Click the submit button when finished. The following questions refer to paragraphs 1–5.

Question 8.10 It can reasonably be inferred that the primary purpose of this selection is to

1. It can reasonably be inferred that the primary purpose of this selection is to

question the accuracy of Broca’s data.

show that women have inferior intelligence to men.

trace the history of brain science, especially its use to demonstrate the inferiority of women’s brains.

criticize scientific work that interpreted data to support common social prejudices.

show the relationship between literature and brain science.

Question 8.11 Which of the following does Gould NOT assume about his readers?

2. Which of the following does Gould NOT assume about his readers?

They are at least passingly familiar with George Eliot.

They are primarily women.

They may not be familiar with anthropometry.

They value accurate data.

They are not misogynists.

Question 8.12 What is the rhetorical purpose of the parenthetical passages in this excerpt?

3. What is the rhetorical purpose of the parenthetical passages in this excerpt?

to insert tangential comments that are not central to Gould’s thesis

to poke fun at his own assumptions about the superiority of men over women

to emphasize key points about scientific reasoning

to define key terms in the history of brain science for the reader

None of the above.

Question 8.13 What is the likely reason Gould chose to use such terms as “apostle” (para. 3) and “disciple(s)” (paras. 2 and 5) in the passage?

4. What is the likely reason Gould chose to use such terms as “apostle” (para. 3) and “disciple(s)” (paras. 2 and 5) in the passage?

The terms have connotations regarding religious faith.

The terms create irony.

The terms emphasize the power of ideology over scientific progress.

The terms reflect the zeal of Broca and his contemporaries.

All of the above.

Question 8.14 Which of the following excerpts from the passage best expresses its purpose?

5. Which of the following excerpts from the passage best expresses its purpose?

“Broca’s work seemed particularly invulnerable to refutation” (para. 3).

“But science is an inferential exercise, not a catalog of facts. Numbers, by themselves, specify nothing. All depends upon what you do with them” (para. 3).

“Women, like it or not, had smaller brains than men and, therefore, could not equal them in intelligence” (para. 3).

“‘Women displayed their talents and their diplomas. They also invoked philosophical authorities. But they were opposed by numbers unknown to Condorcet or to John Stuart Mill’” (para. 3).

“Topinard, Broca’s chief disciple, explained the increasing discrepancy through time as a result of differing evolutionary pressures upon dominant men and passive women” (para. 5).

Question 8.15 Gould’s use of the quote from Broca stating that “‘there is no faith, however respectable, no interest, however legitimate, which must not accommodate itself to the progress of human knowledge and bend before the truth’” (para. 3) is primarily an example of

6. Gould’s use of the quote from Broca stating that “‘there is no faith, however respectable, no interest, however legitimate, which must not accommodate itself to the progress of human knowledge and bend before the truth’” (para. 3) is primarily an example of

irony.

allusion.

anaphora.

appeal to logos.

formal diction.

Question 8.16 Why does Gould go out of his way to defend the accuracy of Broca’s data?

7. Why does Gould go out of his way to defend the accuracy of Broca’s data?

to emphasize Broca’s own scientific integrity

to create pathos surrounding Broca and his contemporaries for the purpose of defending their limited philosophical and historical perspective

to honor the legacy of a well-respected scientist

to emphasize to the reader that “science is an inferential exercise” (para. 3)

to underscore the great strides science has made since Broca’s time

Question 8.17 In the excerpt from Topinard’s work (para. 5), which of the following is NOT an assumption Topinard makes?

8. In the excerpt from Topinard’s work (para. 5), which of the following is NOT an assumption Topinard makes?

Raising children is a sedentary activity.

Loving is not an interior occupation.

Raising children is not a direct part of fighting for existence.

Loving is a carefree activity that does not involve the “cares of tomorrow.”

Hunting requires large brains, because man must outsmart its prey to survive.