The first recorded example of what we would recognize as organized rel

Question

The first recorded example of what we would recognize as organized religion was that of the Mesopotamians, a civilization located in what would become modern-day Iraq. The two rivers that defined the region, the Tigris and Euphrates, flooded violently and unpredictably. As a result, the Mesopotamians viewed their pantheon of gods as capricious and vengeful, and the citizens were thus burdened with carrying out what they believed to be the will of the gods and providing lavish offerings in order to keep the gods appeased and prevent disaster. Different circumstances existed in Egypt: The Egyptians lived along the Nile, a river that, prior to the completion of the Aswan High Dam in 1970, would flood gently every four months, depositing silt that provided nutrients vital to agriculture in the region. The Egyptian people thus saw themselves as beloved by their gods and considered themselves the favored civilization, a bastion of order in an otherwise chaotic world.   1 
 1. The author is primarily concerned with

A describing the origins of organized religion in two ancient civilizations 
B arguing that living along the Nile was far less stressful than living between the Tigris and the Euphrates 
C distinguishing between two civilizations by noting the ways in which individual gods in their pantheons represented different natural phenomena 
D persuading readers that modern religions reflect the geopolitical characteristics of their places of origin 
E contrasting the environmental features of two regions as an explanation of differences between their endemic religions

2 
 2. Based on the information in the passage, which of the following cultures could be reasonably expected to have religious beliefs similar to those of the Mesopotamians?

A. A coastal civilization that is hit by a typhoon during the first week of summer each year 
B. A plains culture that endures tornadoes that can level structures without warning throughout the spring 
C. A society that lives along a fault line and experiences random mild tremors

3 
  Different circumstances existed in Egypt: The Egyptians lived along the Nile, a river that, prior to the completion of the Aswan High Dam in 1970, would flood gently every four months, depositing silt that provided nutrients vital to agriculture in the region.  
 
 3. Select the sentence that best describes a reason for a civilization to view itself as favored by its gods.

Sajjad1994 · Answer

OE

1. The author is primarily concerned with

This Global question asks for a summary of the author’s purpose. The passage focuses on the ways in which the geography of the Mesopotamian and Egyptian civilizations influenced their religious beliefs. The author’s tone is one of explanation rather than argument, so  (B) “arguing that . . .”  and  (D) “persuading readers . . .”  can be immediately eliminated.

Looking at the remaining choices,  (E)  is a match.  (A)  is too broad; the author is interested in more than just a general explanation of the origin of the two religions, so this choice misses the major role of geography in the author’s explanation.

(C)  distorts the point of the passage, as the author does not drill all the way down to what  “individual gods”  in each pantheon represent, nor does the author use  “different natural phenomena,”  as both of the examined religions were influenced by the same phenomenon, flooding rivers. 
 
  Answer: E

Sajjad1994 · Answer

OE

2. Based on the information in the passage, which of the following cultures could be reasonably expected to have religious beliefs similar to those of the Mesopotamians?

The author claims that the cause for the specific features of the Mesopotamian religious beliefs is the  “violent and unpredictable”  nature of the region’s natural disasters. While the typhoons described in  (A)  are certainly violent, they are predictable, occurring once during a specific week of the year. This means that  (A)  can be eliminated.

(B)  describes a phenomenon that has both of these qualities: the tornadoes are highly destructive and occur  “without warning,”  so  (B)  is a correct answer.

Finally,  (C)  misses the mark because while the tremors are unpredictable, they are described as “mild.” Eliminate (C).

Answer: B

Sajjad1994 · Answer

OE

3. Select the sentence that best describes a reason for a civilization to view itself as favored by its gods.

The question stem references a civilization that sees itself as favored by the gods, so the correct answer should be a sentence that can be associated with the Egyptians. Specifically, the question is asking for a cause for this view. Since the author’s position in the passage is that geography influenced the religious beliefs of the Mesopotamian and Egyptian cultures, look for the sentence that describes the environmental feature that led to this belief for the Egyptians. The second-to-last sentence is the one that describes the flooding of the Nile as gentle, predictable, and beneficial for the Egyptians, and the final sentence says that this results in the attitude described in the question stem. The second-to-last sentence,  “Different circumstances existed in Egypt . . . ,”  is the correct answer.

The first recorded example of what we would recognize as organized rel

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