Feelings of hopelessness among medieval workers trapped in the poverty

Question

Feelings of hopelessness among medieval workers trapped in the poverty cycle gradually lessened as it became possible for women’s labor to supplement a family’s money income by more than pennies. By 1300, women spinners could be found working on their own for wealthy sponsors, even after the introduction in Italy and France of prohibition against advancing money for supplies to women spinners. Historians have usually interpreted this prohibition simply as evidence of women’s economic subjection, since it obliged them to turn to usurers; however, it was also almost certainly a response to a trend toward differential reward for women’s higher skill. Yarn can be spun irregularly and lumpily, but perfectly smooth yarn is worth more. Working for merchant entrepreneurs on time rates, women had been paid hardly more than children; working as entrepreneurs themselves and producing good work by the piece, they could break into the rational system of differential rewards.    1 
 1. The primary purpose of the passage is to

(A) propose and defend a theory about the consequences of a certain historical event
(B) present historical facts and offer a broader interpretation of those facts than has been offered in the past
(C) describe the socioeconomic effects of a widely held attitude during a particular historical period
(D) demonstrate the superiority of using an economic approach to historical analysis
(E) call attention to the influence of the textile industry on society during a particular historical period

2 
 2. It can be inferred from the passage that the author views the system of paying all workers equally on time rates as

(A) unfair and not rational
(B) undesirable but unavoidable
(C) efficient and profitable
(D) advantageous to most women workers
(E) evidence of a trend toward a more modern wage system

3 
 3. The passage implies which of the following about women spinners in medieval Europe?

(A) Most of them worked independently for wealthy sponsors.
(B) They were not typical of medieval women entrepreneurs.
(C) Some of them were paid for their work after it was done, according to its value.
(D) They would have been able to contribute substantial amounts to their families incomes were it not for the prohibition against advancing money to them.
(E) They were inevitably disadvantaged in the marketplace because they were obliged to obtain money for their supplies from usurers.

4 
 4. The passage implies that feelings of hopelessness among medieval workers

(A) resulted primarily from the lack of a rational system of differential rewards
(B) disappeared completely once medieval textile workers were able to break the cycle of poverty
(C) were more prevalent among female workers than among male workers
(D) came into being in part because of women’s limited earning capacity
(E) were particularly common among textile workers in Italy and France

5 
 5. The author suggests that historians have done which of the following?

(A) Failed to give adequate consideration to the economic contribution of women during the medieval period.
(B) Overestimated the degree of hopelessness experienced by medieval workers trapped in the poverty cycle.
(C) Ignored the fact that by 1300 many women spinners were working independently rather than for merchant entrepreneurs.
(D) Regard the economic status of women in Italy and France as representative of women’s status throughout medieval Europe.
(E) Overlooked part of the significance of a prohibition governing one aspect of yarn production in medieval Europe.

LipiSinha · Accepted Answer

Q1.
A. No. The author nowhere proposes a theory in the passage.

B. Yes. The author presents a historical fact when he talks about the new policy introduced in Italy and France. He then provides a broader interpretation of this fact than the one that was presented by historians in the past. 
"Historians have usually interpreted this prohibition simply as evidence of women’s economic subjection, since it obliged them to turn to usurers; however, it was also almost certainly a response to a trend toward differential reward for women’s higher skill."
 
C. No. The passage does not discusses about any widely held attitude.

D. This is irrelevant.

E. Irrelevant.

Q2.
 A. Yes. The author mentions towards the end, "Yarn can be spun irregularly and lumpily, but perfectly smooth yarn is worth more. Working for merchant entrepreneurs on time rates, women had been paid hardly more than children."
 
B, C, D and E cannot be inferred from the passage.

Q3.
I solved this using the negation technique.
A. Although this is explicitly mentioned in the beginning of the passage, this is not what the passage implies about the women spinners in medieval Europe.  Negate.

B. This has not been implied either. The author instead argues that the new policy introduced in Italy and France encouraged women spinners to work as entrepreneurs.  Negate.

C. The author mentions in the last line, "Working for merchant entrepreneurs on time rates, women had been paid hardly more than children". This implies that some women were not working on time rates, so we can infer that they must have been paid according to the value of their work. Keep.

D. This cannot be inferred from the passage.  Negate.

E. This is the historians' interpretation of the policy that was introduced in Italy and France. However, the passage does not imply this about the women spinners.  Negate.

Q4.
A. No. Not supported by the passage.

B. No. No evidence about this has been presented in the passage.

C. No. No evidence about this has been presented in the passage.

D. Yes. The author writes in the 1st line itself, "Feelings of hopelessness among medieval workers trapped in the poverty cycle gradually lessened as it became possible for women’s labor to supplement a family’s money income by more than pennies".

E. No. Out of scope.

Q5.
A. No. This is irrelevant.

B. No. Not supported by the passage.

C. No. Not supported by the passage.

D. No. Not supported by the passage.

E. Yes. The author mentions, "Historians have usually interpreted this prohibition simply as evidence of women’s economic subjection, since it obliged them to turn to usurers; however, it was also almost certainly a response to a trend toward differential reward for women’s higher skill. "

Anshuman0902 · Answer

sajjad1994 OE fro q 2 and 5 
thanx !

Sajjad1994 · Answer

For question #2
 Read the lines:

"Working for merchant entrepreneurs on time rates,  women had been paid hardly more than children ; working as entrepreneurs themselves and producing good work by the piece, they could break into the rational system of differential rewards."

The lines clearly supports answer  option A.

To answer question number 5 we have to read and completely understand the following lines in the passage:

"By 1300, women spinners could be found working on their own for wealthy sponsors, even after the introduction in Italy and France of prohibition against advancing money for supplies to women spinners. Historians have usually interpreted this prohibition simply as evidence of women’s economic subjection, since it obliged them to turn to usurers;  however , it was also almost certainly a response to a trend toward differential reward for women’s higher skill.  Yarn can be spun irregularly and lumpily, but perfectly smooth yarn is worth more."

These lines supports the answer  option E.

Thank you

heyitsmepearl · Answer

Question 3-

What we know of women spinners in medieval Europe-
1. They were able to contribute towards a fraction of their family's income- we are not given if most women were able to or only some women. We also don't know how significant was their contribution. All we know is that it was enough to lessen the feeling of hopelessness.
2. Some of the women were working on their own for wealthy sponsors (rather than merchant entrepreneurs) despite their being a prohibition.
3. They were being paid as much as children for their work under merchant entrepreneurs.
4. Working independently, they were paid according to the quality of the goods produced.

(A) Most of them worked independently for wealthy sponsors.- we do not know this
(B) They were not typical of medieval women entrepreneurs.- we also do not know this
(C) Some of them were paid for their work after it was done, according to its value.- maybe since they were paid according to the quality of the product produced, they would be paid after the work is done.
(D) They would have been able to contribute substantial amounts to their families incomes were it not for the prohibition against advancing money to them.- we don't know this, maybe it was already substantial.
(E) They were inevitably disadvantaged in the marketplace because they were obliged to obtain money for their supplies from usurers.- this was an assumption made by the historians that the author counters by a different explanation.

Feelings of hopelessness among medieval workers trapped in the poverty

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Feelings of hopelessness among medieval workers trapped in the poverty

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