Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.
Customized for You
we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History
Track Your Progress
every week, we’ll send you an estimated GMAT score based on your performance
Practice Pays
we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
Thank you for using the timer!
We noticed you are actually not timing your practice. Click the START button first next time you use the timer.
There are many benefits to timing your practice, including:
Do RC/MSR passages scare you? e-GMAT is conducting a masterclass to help you learn – Learn effective reading strategies, Tackle difficult RC & MSR with confidence, and Excel in timed test environment
Join us in a comprehensive talk about the F1 Student Visa process with Travis Feuerbacher, former U.S. Visa Officer and licensed U.S. immigration attorney having expertise working for the U.S. Department of State
Ready to skyrocket your career with an MBA? Get ahead with our curated list of FREE courses and resources to kickstart your journey into business education!
Are you attending an MBA or Masters program outside in the US or Europe and wondering how to finance your studies? In this exclusive conversation, we discuss the collateral-free non-cosigner education loans...
Solve 30 high quality GMAT Focus practice questions in timed conditions. Take this GMAT practise test live with peers, analyze your GMAT study progress, and see where you stand in the GMAT student pool.
After just 3 months of studying with the TTP GMAT Focus course, Conner scored an incredible 755 (Q89/V90/DI83) on the GMAT Focus. In this live interview, he shares how he achieved his outstanding 755 (100%) GMAT Focus score on test day.
What do András from Hungary, Pablo from Mexico, Conner from the United States, Giorgio from Italy, Leo from Germany, and Rishab from India have in common? They all earned top scores on the GMAT Focus Edition using the Target Test Prep course!
Join us for an exclusive one-day event focused on mastering the GMAT and maximizing your preparation resources! Here's what you can expect: Don't miss out on this invaluable opportunity to supercharge your GMAT preparation journey.
Between the eighth and eleventh centuries Byzantine Empire
[#permalink]
24 Apr 2004, 04:54
Between the eighth and eleventh centuries A.D., the Byzantine Empire staged an almost unparalleled economic and cultural revival, a recovery that is all the more striking because it followed a long period of severe (5) internal decline. By the early eighth century, the empire had lost roughly two-thirds of the territory it had possessed in the year 600, and its remaining area was being raided by Arabs and Bulgarians, who at times threatened to take Constantinople and extinguish the (10) empire altogether. The wealth of the state and its subjects was greatly diminished, and artistic and literary production had virtually ceased. By the early eleventh century, however, the empire had regained almost half of its lost possessions, its new frontiers were secure, and its (15) influence extended far beyond its borders. The economy had recovered, the treasury was full, and art and scho- larship had advanced. To consider the Byzantine military, cultural, and economic advances as differentiated aspects of a single (20) phenomenon is reasonable. After all, these three forms of progress have gone together in a number of states and civilizations. Rome under Augustus and fifth-century Athens provide the most obvious examples in antiquity. Moreover, an examination of the apparent sequential (25) connections among military, economic, and cultural forms of progress might help explain the dynamics of historical change. The common explanation of these apparent conn- ections in the case of Byzantium would run like this: (30) when the empire had turned back enemy raids on its own territory and had begun to raid and conquer enemy territory, Byzantine resources naturally expanded and more money became available to patronize art and lit- erature. Therefore, Byzantine military achievements led to (35) economic advances, which in turn led to cultural revival. No doubt this hypothetical pattern did apply at times during the course of the recovery. Yet it is not clear that military advances invariably came first. economic advances second, and intellectual advances third. In the (40) 860's the Byzantine Empire began to recover from Arab incursions so that by 872 the military balance with the Abbasid Caliphate had been permanently altered in the empire's favor. The beginning of the empire's economic revival, however, can be placed between 810 and 830. (45) Finally, the Byzantine revival of learning appears to have begun even earlier. A number of notable scholars and writers appeared by 788 and, by the last decade of the eighth century, a cultural revival was in full bloom, a revival that lasted until the fall of Constantinople in (50) 1453.Thus the commonly expected order of military revival followed by economic and then by cultural recovery was reversed in Byzantium. In fact, the revival of Byzantine learning may itself have influenced the subsequent economic and military expansion.
1. Which of the following best states the central idea of the passage? (A) The Byzantine Empire was a unique case in which the usual order of military and economic revival preceding cultural revival was reversed. (B) The economic, cultural, and military revival in the Byzantine Empire between the eighth and eleventh centuries was similar in its order to the sequence of revivals in Augustan Rome and fifth- century Athens. (C) After 810 Byzantine economic recovery spurred a military and, later, cultural expansion that lasted until 1453. (D) The eighth-century revival of Byzantine learning is an inexplicable phenomenon, and its economic and military precursors have yet to be discovered. (E) The revival of the Byzantine Empire between the eighth and eleventh centuries shows cultural rebirth preceding economic and military revival, the reverse of the commonly accepted order of progress.
2. The primary purpose of the second paragraph is which of the following? (A) To establish the uniqueness of the Byzantine revival (B) To show that Augustan Rome and fifth-century Athens are examples of cultural, economic, and military expansion against which all subsequent cases must be measured (C) To suggest that cultural, economic. and military advances have tended to be closely interrelated in different societies. (D) To argue that, while the revivals of Augustan Rome and fifth-century Athens were similar, they are unrelated to other historical examples (E) To indicate that, wherever possible, historians should seek to make comparisons with the earliest chronological examples of revival
3. It can be inferred from the passage that by the eleventh century the Byzantine military forces (A) had reached their peak and begun to decline (B) had eliminated the Bulgarian army (C) were comparable in size to the army of Rome under Augustus (D) were strong enough to withstand the Abbasid Caliphate's military forces (E) had achieved control of Byzantine governmental structures
4. It can be inferred from the passage that the Byzantine Empire sustained significant territorial losses (A) in 600 (B) during the seventh century (C) a century after the cultural achievements of the Byzantine Empire had been lost (D) soon after the revival of Byzantine learning (E) in the century after 873
5. In the third paragraph, the author most probably provides an explanation of the apparent connections among economic, military, and cultural development in order to (A) suggest that the process of revival in Byzantium accords with this model (B) set up an order of events that is then shown to be not generally applicable to the case of Byzantium (C) cast aspersions on traditional historical scholarship about Byzantium (D) suggest that Byzantium represents a case for which no historical precedent exists (E) argue that military conquest is the paramount element in the growth of empires
6. According to the author, "The common explanation" (line 28) of connections between economic, military, and cultural development is (A) revolutionary and too new to have been applied to the history of the Byzantine Empire (B) reasonable, but an antiquated theory of the nature of progress (C) not applicable to the Byzantine revival as a whole, but does perhaps accurately describe limited periods during the revival (D) equally applicable to the Byzantine case as a whole and to the history of military, economic, and cultural advances in ancient Greece and Rome (E) essentially not helpful, because military, economic, and cultural advances are part of a single phenomenon
Archived Topic
Hi there,
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: Between the eighth and eleventh centuries Byzantine Empire
[#permalink]
28 Apr 2004, 19:28
Quote:
1. Time yourself 2. Solve as fast as you can 3. Please try to explain your answers and mention the time taken.
Between the eighth and eleventh centuries A.D., the Byzantine Empire staged an almost unparalleled economic and cultural revival, a recovery that is all the more striking because it followed a long period of severe (5) internal decline. By the early eighth century, the empire had lost roughly two-thirds of the territory it had possessed in the year 600, and its remaining area was being raided by Arabs and Bulgarians, who at times threatened to take Constantinople and extinguish the (10) empire altogether. The wealth of the state and its subjects was greatly diminished, and artistic and literary production had virtually ceased. By the early eleventh century, however, the empire had regained almost half of its lost possessions, its new frontiers were secure, and its (15) influence extended far beyond its borders. The economy had recovered, the treasury was full, and art and scho- larship had advanced. To consider the Byzantine military, cultural, and economic advances as differentiated aspects of a single (20) phenomenon is reasonable. After all, these three forms of progress have gone together in a number of states and civilizations. Rome under Augustus and fifth-century Athens provide the most obvious examples in antiquity. Moreover, an examination of the apparent sequential (25) connections among military, economic, and cultural forms of progress might help explain the dynamics of historical change. The common explanation of these apparent conn- ections in the case of Byzantium would run like this: (30) when the empire had turned back enemy raids on its own territory and had begun to raid and conquer enemy territory, Byzantine resources naturally expanded and more money became available to patronize art and lit- erature. Therefore, Byzantine military achievements led to (35) economic advances, which in turn led to cultural revival. No doubt this hypothetical pattern did apply at times during the course of the recovery. Yet it is not clear that military advances invariably came first. economic advances second, and intellectual advances third. In the (40) 860's the Byzantine Empire began to recover from Arab incursions so that by 872 the military balance with the Abbasid Caliphate had been permanently altered in the empire's favor. The beginning of the empire's economic revival, however, can be placed between 810 and 830. (45) Finally, the Byzantine revival of learning appears to have begun even earlier. A number of notable scholars and writers appeared by 788 and, by the last decade of the eighth century, a cultural revival was in full bloom, a revival that lasted until the fall of Constantinople in (50) 1453.Thus the commonly expected order of military revival followed by economic and then by cultural recovery was reversed in Byzantium. In fact, the revival of Byzantine learning may itself have influenced the subsequent economic and military expansion.
Quote:
1. Which of the following best states the central idea of the passage? (A) The Byzantine Empire was a unique case in which the usual order of military and economic revival preceding cultural revival was reversed. (B) The economic, cultural, and military revival in the Byzantine Empire between the eighth and eleventh centuries was similar in its order to the sequence of revivals in Augustan Rome and fifth- century Athens. (C) After 810 Byzantine economic recovery spurred a military and, later, cultural expansion that lasted until 1453. (D) The eighth-century revival of Byzantine learning is an inexplicable phenomenon, and its economic and military precursors have yet to be discovered. (E) The revival of the Byzantine Empire between the eighth and eleventh centuries shows cultural rebirth preceding economic and military revival, the reverse of the commonly accepted order of progress.
Answer: E
Quote:
2. The primary purpose of the second paragraph is which of the following? (A) To establish the uniqueness of the Byzantine revival (B) To show that Augustan Rome and fifth-century Athens are examples of cultural, economic, and military expansion against which all subsequent cases must be measured (C) To suggest that cultural, economic. and military advances have tended to be closely interrelated in different societies. (D) To argue that, while the revivals of Augustan Rome and fifth-century Athens were similar, they are unrelated to other historical examples (E) To indicate that, wherever possible, historians should seek to make comparisons with the earliest chronological examples of revival
Answer: C
Quote:
3. It can be inferred from the passage that by the eleventh century the Byzantine military forces (A) had reached their peak and begun to decline (B) had eliminated the Bulgarian army (C) were comparable in size to the army of Rome under Augustus (D) were strong enough to withstand the Abbasid Caliphate's military forces (E) had achieved control of Byzantine governmental structures
Answer: D
Quote:
4. It can be inferred from the passage that the Byzantine Empire sustained significant territorial losses (A) in 600 (B) during the seventh century (C) a century after the cultural achievements of the Byzantine Empire had been lost (D) soon after the revival of Byzantine learning (E) in the century after 873
Answer: B
Quote:
5. In the third paragraph, the author most probably provides an explanation of the apparent connections among economic, military, and cultural development in order to (A) suggest that the process of revival in Byzantium accords with this model (B) set up an order of events that is then shown to be not generally applicable to the case of Byzantium (C) cast aspersions on traditional historical scholarship about Byzantium (D) suggest that Byzantium represents a case for which no historical precedent exists (E) argue that military conquest is the paramount element in the growth of empires
Answer: B
Quote:
6. According to the author, "The common explanation" (line 28) of connections between economic, military, and cultural development is (A) revolutionary and too new to have been applied to the history of the Byzantine Empire (B) reasonable, but an antiquated theory of the nature of progress (C) not applicable to the Byzantine revival as a whole, but does perhaps accurately describe limited periods during the revival (D) equally applicable to the Byzantine case as a whole and to the history of military, economic, and cultural advances in ancient Greece and Rome (E) essentially not helpful, because military, economic, and cultural advances are part of a single phenomenon
Re: Between the eighth and eleventh centuries Byzantine Empire
[#permalink]
07 May 2004, 20:02
Just to confirm. For #4, answer A is incorrect because the answer implies that the empire lost its land in exactly the year 600? And answer B is correct because it gives a general time frame, but according to the passage, no exact time was provided...
Still interested in this question? Check out the "Best Topics" block above for a better discussion on this exact question, as well as several more related questions.
Thank you for understanding, and happy exploring!
gmatclubot
Re: Between the eighth and eleventh centuries Byzantine Empire [#permalink]