1. The primary purpose of the passage is to:
A. show how Braudel's work changed the conception of Mediterranean life held by previous historians.
B. evaluate Braudel's criticisms of traditional and Marxist historiography
C. contrast the perspective of the longue duree with the actions of major historical figures
D. illustrate the relevance of Braudel's concepts to other social sciences
E. outline some of Braudel's influential conceptions and distinguish them from conventional approaches
The main motive behind the passage was to outline Braudel's work while distinguishing it with the work of traditional historians. (A) is out because his work pertaining to the Mediterranean life is discussed only in passage 3 and 4 and do not encompass the extent of the whole passage. (B) is out because the author does not evaluate anything. (C) is out because again its scope is limited to one paragraph and also because it is inconsistent with the passage. (D) is out because the author does not comment on the relevance of Braudel's concepts to other social sciences.
2. The author refers to the work of Febvre and Bloch in order to:
A. illustrate the limitations of the Annales tradition of historical investigation
B. suggest the relevance of economics to historical investigation
C. debate the need for combining various sociological approaches
D. show that previous Annales historians anticipated Braudel's focus on economics
E. demonstrate that historical studies provide broad structures necessary for economic analysis
The author references the founders of Annales to show that upcoming Annales historians would also have a similar inclination towards including social sciences, especially economics, to better understand human actions.3. According to the passage, all of the following are aspects of Braudel's approach to history EXCEPT that he:
A. attempted to unify various social sciences
B. studied social and economic activities that occurred across national boundaries
C. pointed out the link between increased economic activity and the rise of nationalism
D. examined seemingly unexciting aspects of everyday life
E. visualized history as involving several different time frames
All the other options are mentioned somewhere in the passage, however, no reference to the connection between economic activity and rise of nationalism is made. Thus, the correct choice is option (C)
4. The passage suggests that, compared to traditional historians, Annales historians are:
A. more interested in other social sciences than in history
B. more critical of the achievements of famous historical figures
C. more skeptical of the validity of most economic research
D. more interested in the underlying context of human behavior provided by social structure
E. more inclined to be dogmatic in their approach to history
This is stated in the first paragraph of the passage: " but must be understood in the context of forces that underlie human behavior..". Option (D) is merely a rewording of this sentence.5. The author is critical of Braudel's perspective for which of the following reasons?
A. It seeks structures that underlie all forms of social activity.
B. It assumes a greater similarity among the social sciences than actually exists.
C. It fails to consider the relationship between short-term events and long-term social activity.
D. It clearly defines boundaries for social analysis.
E. It attributes too much significance to conscious human actions.
As stated in the last paragraph: "Further, Braudel and other Annales historians minimize the differences among the social sciences..". Thus, this means that Braudel assumes a greater similarity among the social sciences. This is vividly stated in Option (B).
6. The passage implies that Braudel would consider which of the following as exemplifying the longue durée?
I. The prominence of certain crops in the diet of a region
II. The annexation of a province by the victor in a war
III. A reduction in the population of an area following a disease epidemic
A. I onlyB. III only
C. I and II only
D. II and III only
E. I, II, and III
Braudel, in this study of longue durée, focused on those aspects of everyday life that might remain relatively unchanged for centuries. Thus, only option (A) fits the bill as what people eat in a region is something that stays constant for a long time. Both (B) and (C) is not a long term phenomena but might just encompass maybe a few years.
7. Which of the following statements is most in keeping with the principles of Braudel’s work as described in the passage?
A. All written history is the history of social elites.
B. The most important task of historians is to define the limits of potential social change.
C. Those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it.
D. People’s historical actions are influenced by many factors that they may be unaware of.
E. History is too important to be left to historians.
Braudel thought of history as the dynamic interaction of three temporalities. Thus, for him, that was the most important task of a historian. Thus, option (B) is the correct choice. (A),, (C), and (E) are not mentioned anywhere in the passage. While (D) may seem familiar, it states that people who do those actions maybe be unaware of them - this is not stated. It is merely stated that the historians studying those actions should consider the underlying forces behind those actions. _________________
“If you are not moving forward, you are moving backward.”
07 Apr 2020, 10:17
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