11th Grade ELA – Pre-test Assessment 3

1. Question

Part A

What do the words absolute Despotism mean as they are used in paragraph 2?

A. Utter arrogance and wickedness
B. Total commitment and determination
C. Complete and cruel domination
D. Excessive hardship and suffering

2. Question

Part B

Which quotation from paragraph 2 directly opposes the idea of absolute Despotism?

A. “. . . Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed . . . .”
B. “. . . Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes . . . .”
C. “Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government.”
D. “The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States.”

3. Question

Part A

Which statement expresses a general principle that serves as a foundational basis for the argument Jefferson sets forth in the “Declaration of Independence”?

A. The king is guilty of crimes against the colonies.
B. The king’s government should be abolished.
C. Governments that abuse people’s rights should be transformed or removed.
D. Colonists have a right to exist free and independent of Great Britain.

4. Question

Part B

Which quotation from the “Declaration of Independence” best supports the answer to Part A?

A. “. . . a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.” (paragraph 1)
B. “. . . That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government . . .” (paragraph 2)
C. “We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here.” (paragraph 31)
D. “. . . that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved . . .” (paragraph 32)

5. Question

Part A

Jefferson begins the majority of the paragraphs in the “Declaration of Independence” with the words “He has.” Why is this structure effective in helping Jefferson make his argument?

A. It enables the reader to determine which of the king’s offenses are the most severe.
B. It emphasizes the king’s role in inflicting multiple forms of injustice.
C. It contrasts the king’s behavior with that of his deputies.
D. It proposes a clear series of actions to oppose the king’s mistreatment.

6. Question

Part B

Which aspect of the “Declaration of Independence” provides support for the answer to Part A?

A. The metaphor of “political bands” (paragraph 1)
B. The reference to “a long train of abuses and usurpations” (paragraph 2)
C. The reference to “native justice and magnanimity” (paragraph 31)
D. The appeal to “the protection of divine Providence” (paragraph 32)