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Passage 6 In the eighteenth century, Japan's feudal
[#permalink]
24 Apr 2004, 04:52
1
Kudos
Passage 6
In the eighteenth century, Japan's feudal
overlords, from the shogun to the humblest
samurai, found themselves under financial
stress. In part, this stress can be attributed to
(5) the overlords' failure to adjust to a rapidly ex-
panding economy, but the stress was also due to
factors beyond the overlords' control. Concen-
tration of the samurai in castle-towns had acted
as a stimulus to trade. Commercial efficiency, in
(10) turn, had put temptations in the way of buyers.
Since most samurai had been reduced to idleness
by years of peace, encouraged to engage in
scholarship and martial exercises or to perform
administrative tasks that took little time, it is
(15) not surprising that their tastes and habits grew
expensive. Overlords' income, despite the in-
crease in rice production among their tenant
farmers, failed to keep pace with their expenses.
Although shortfalls in overlords' income re-
(20) sulted almost as much from laxity among their
tax collectors (the nearly inevitable outcome of
hereditary officeholding) as from their higher
standards of living, a misfortune like a fire or
flood, bringing an increase in expenses or a drop
(25) in revenue, could put a domain in debt to the
city rice-brokers who handled its finances. Once
in debt, neither the individual samurai nor the
shogun himself found it easy to recover.
It was difficult for individual samurai over-
(30) lords to increase their income because the
amount of rice that farmers could be made to
pay in taxes was not unlimited, and since the in-
come of Japan's central government consisted in
part of taxes collected by the shogun from his
(35) huge domain, the government too was con-
strained. Therefore, the Tokugawa shoguns
began to look to other sources for revenue.
Cash profits from government-owned mines
were already on the decline because the most
(40) easily worked deposits of silver and gold had
been exhausted, although debasement of the
coinage had compensated for the loss. Opening
up new farmland was a possibility, but most of
what was suitable had already been exploited
(45) and further reclamation was technically unfeasi-
ble. Direct taxation of the samurai themselves
would be politically dangerous. This left the
shoguns only commerce as a potential source of
government income.
(50) Most of the country's wealth, or so it seemed,
was finding its way into the hands of city mer-
chants. It appeared reasonable that they should
contribute part of that revenue to ease the
shogun's burden of financing the state. A means
(55) of obtaining such revenue was soon found by
levying forced ioans, known as goyo-kin;
although these were not taxes in the strict sense,
since they were irregular in timing and arbitrary
in amount, they were high in yield. Unfortunately,
(60) they pushed up prices. Thus, regrettably, the
Tokugawa shoguns' search for solvency for the
government made it increasingly difficult for
individual Japanese who lived on fixed stipends
to make ends meet.
1. Which of the following best describes the attitude of
the author toward the samurai discussed in lines
11-16?
(A) Warmly approving
(B) Mildly sympathetic
(C) Bitterly disappointed
(D) Harshly disdainful
(E) Profoundly shocked
2. According to the passage, the major reason for the
financial problems experienced by Japan's feudal
overlords in the eighteenth century was that
(A) spending had outdistanced income
(B) trade had fallen off
(C) profits from mining had declined
(D) the coinage had been sharply debased
(E) the samurai had concentrated in castle-towns
3.The passage implies that individual samurai did not
find it easy to recover from debt for which of the
following reasons?
(A) Agricultural production had increased.
(B) Taxes were irregular in timing and arbitrary in
amount.
(C) The Japanese government had failed to adjust to
the needs of a changing economy.
(D) The domains of samurai overlords were
becoming smaller and poorer as government
revenues increased.
(E) There was a limit to the amount in taxes that
farmers could be made to pay.
4. Which of the following could best be substituted
for the word "This " in line 47 without changing the
meaning of the passage?
(A) The search of Japan's Tokugawa shoguns for
solvency
(B) The importance of commerce in feudal Japan
(C) The unfairness of the tax structure in eighteenth-
century Japan
(D) The difficulty of increasing government income by
other means
(E) The difficulty experienced by both individual
samurai and the shogun himself in extricating
themselves from debt
5. The passage implies that which of the following was
the primary reason why the Tokugawa shoguns
turned to city merchants for help in financing the
state?
(A) A series of costly wars had depleted the national
treasury.
(B) Most of the country's wealth appeared to be in
city merchants' hands.
(C) Japan had suffered a series of economic
reversals due to natural disasters such as
floods.
(D) The merchants were already heavily indebted to
the shoguns.
(E) Further reclamation of land would not have been
economically advantageous.
6. According to the passage, the actions of the Tokugawa
shoguns in their search for solvency for the government
were regrettable because those actions
(A) raised the cost of living by pushing up prices
(B) resulted in the exhaustion of the most easily
worked deposits of silver and gold
(C) were far lower in yield than had originally been
anticipated
(D) did not succeed in reducing government spending
(E) acted as a deterrent to trade
Archived Topic
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This topic has been closed and archived due to inactivity or violation of community quality standards. No more replies are possible here.
Still interested in this question? Check out the "Best Topics" block below for a better discussion on this exact question, as well as several more related questions.
Re: Passage 6 In the eighteenth century, Japan's feudal
[#permalink]
28 Apr 2004, 19:17
Debasement of currency was as prevalent in antiquity as it is now.
Interesting to learn that the governments all over the world and all along
procticed monetory debasement.
Anyone want to guess what would a dollar buy in another ten years?
Re: Passage 6 In the eighteenth century, Japan's feudal
[#permalink]
28 Apr 2004, 19:19
Quote:
Passage 6 In the eighteenth century, Japan's feudal overlords, from the shogun to the humblest samurai, found themselves under financial stress. In part, this stress can be attributed to (5) the overlords' failure to adjust to a rapidly ex- panding economy, but the stress was also due to factors beyond the overlords' control. Concen- tration of the samurai in castle-towns had acted as a stimulus to trade. Commercial efficiency, in (10) turn, had put temptations in the way of buyers. Since most samurai had been reduced to idleness by years of peace, encouraged to engage in scholarship and martial exercises or to perform administrative tasks that took little time, it is (15) not surprising that their tastes and habits grew expensive. Overlords' income, despite the in- crease in rice production among their tenant farmers, failed to keep pace with their expenses. Although shortfalls in overlords' income re- (20) sulted almost as much from laxity among their tax collectors (the nearly inevitable outcome of hereditary officeholding) as from their higher standards of living, a misfortune like a fire or flood, bringing an increase in expenses or a drop (25) in revenue, could put a domain in debt to the city rice-brokers who handled its finances. Once in debt, neither the individual samurai nor the shogun himself found it easy to recover. It was difficult for individual samurai over- (30) lords to increase their income because the amount of rice that farmers could be made to pay in taxes was not unlimited, and since the in- come of Japan's central government consisted in part of taxes collected by the shogun from his (35) huge domain, the government too was con- strained. Therefore, the Tokugawa shoguns began to look to other sources for revenue. Cash profits from government-owned mines were already on the decline because the most (40) easily worked deposits of silver and gold had been exhausted, although debasement of the coinage had compensated for the loss. Opening up new farmland was a possibility, but most of what was suitable had already been exploited (45) and further reclamation was technically unfeasi- ble. Direct taxation of the samurai themselves would be politically dangerous. This left the shoguns only commerce as a potential source of government income. (50) Most of the country's wealth, or so it seemed, was finding its way into the hands of city mer- chants. It appeared reasonable that they should contribute part of that revenue to ease the shogun's burden of financing the state. A means (55) of obtaining such revenue was soon found by levying forced ioans, known as goyo-kin; although these were not taxes in the strict sense, since they were irregular in timing and arbitrary in amount, they were high in yield. Unfortunately, (60) they pushed up prices. Thus, regrettably, the Tokugawa shoguns' search for solvency for the government made it increasingly difficult for individual Japanese who lived on fixed stipends to make ends meet.
Quote:
1. Which of the following best describes the attitude of the author toward the samurai discussed in lines 11-16? (A) Warmly approving (B) Mildly sympathetic (C) Bitterly disappointed (D) Harshly disdainful (E) Profoundly shocked
Answer: B
Quote:
2. According to the passage, the major reason for the financial problems experienced by Japan's feudal overlords in the eighteenth century was that (A) spending had outdistanced income (B) trade had fallen off (C) profits from mining had declined (D) the coinage had been sharply debased (E) the samurai had concentrated in castle-towns
Answer: A
Quote:
3.The passage implies that individual samurai did not find it easy to recover from debt for which of the following reasons? (A) Agricultural production had increased. (B) Taxes were irregular in timing and arbitrary in amount. (C) The Japanese government had failed to adjust to the needs of a changing economy. (D) The domains of samurai overlords were becoming smaller and poorer as government revenues increased. (E) There was a limit to the amount in taxes that farmers could be made to pay.
Answer: E
Quote:
4. Which of the following could best be substituted for the word "This " in line 47 without changing the meaning of the passage? (A) The search of Japan's Tokugawa shoguns for solvency (B) The importance of commerce in feudal Japan (C) The unfairness of the tax structure in eighteenth- century Japan (D) The difficulty of increasing government income by other means (E) The difficulty experienced by both individual samurai and the shogun himself in extricating themselves from debt
Answer: D
Quote:
5. The passage implies that which of the following was the primary reason why the Tokugawa shoguns turned to city merchants for help in financing the state? (A) A series of costly wars had depleted the national treasury. (B) Most of the country's wealth appeared to be in city merchants' hands. (C) Japan had suffered a series of economic reversals due to natural disasters such as floods. (D) The merchants were already heavily indebted to the shoguns. (E) Further reclamation of land would not have been economically advantageous.
Answer: B
Quote:
6. According to the passage, the actions of the Tokugawa shoguns in their search for solvency for the government were regrettable because those actions (A) raised the cost of living by pushing up prices (B) resulted in the exhaustion of the most easily worked deposits of silver and gold (C) were far lower in yield than had originally been anticipated (D) did not succeed in reducing government spending (E) acted as a deterrent to trade
Re: Passage 6 In the eighteenth century, Japan's feudal
[#permalink]
30 Apr 2004, 03:08
Skeletor wrote:
Why is the first answer not A?
Skeletor, Please read following sentences from the stem - para:
Since most samurai had been reduced to idleness
by years of peace, encouraged to engage in
scholarship and martial exercises or to perform
administrative tasks that took little time, it is
(15) not surprising that their tastes and habits grew
expensive.
It can not be "approving" because, SAMURAI has main task to fight and due to idleness they encouraged to engage in some another activity, which do not fit to the role samurai ideally has.
So it can be sympathy rather than approval
Any other views,
Dharmin
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Re: Passage 6 In the eighteenth century, Japan's feudal
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23 May 2023, 01:36
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Re: Passage 6 In the eighteenth century, Japan's feudal [#permalink]