mckaywest11e

Quiz for Primary Source 17.2: Contrasting Views on the Effects of Rural Industry

Question

1. Which of these was implied in Defoe’s description of typical wages?

A landless laborer’s wages were not sufficient to support his family.

Most poor people believed they could earn more by begging than working.

Landless laborers had unreasonable expectations about their wages.

Rural poverty was on the increase, despite the growth of rural industry.

Correct. The answer is a. The security and stability Defoe ascribed to families in which the wife and children worked created an implied contrast with unhappy families in which only the husband worked.

Incorrect. The answer is a. The security and stability Defoe ascribed to families in which the wife and children worked created an implied contrast with unhappy families in which only the husband worked.

Question

2. Which of these social benefits did Defoe attribute to rural industry?

Reduced rate of illegitimate births

Reduced crime

Increased church attendance

Decreased alcohol consumption

Correct. The answer is b. As Defoe described the situation, rural industry allowed the poor to avoid the desperate situations that led many to take up a life of crime.

Incorrect. The answer is b. As Defoe described the situation, rural industry allowed the poor to avoid the desperate situations that led many to take up a life of crime.

Question

3. According to “The Clothier’s Delight,” what was the Clothier’s principle goal with respect to his workers?

To increase work and decrease pay

To substitute slaves for free workers

To build bonds of loyalty and obligation between himself and his workers

To exert social control over his workers at all times

Correct. The answer is a. As the song described the situation, at every opportunity Clothiers decreased wages, while demanding ever-increasing levels of production.

Incorrect. The answer is a. As the song described the situation, at every opportunity Clothiers decreased wages, while demanding ever-increasing levels of production.