For years scholars have contrasted slavery in the United States and in

Question

For years scholars have contrasted slavery in the United States and in Brazil, stimulated by the fact that racial patterns assumed such different aspects in the two countries after emancipation. Brazil never developed a system of rigid segregation of the sort that replaced slavery in the United States, and its racial system was fluid because its definition of race was based as much on characteristics such as economic status as on skin color. Until recently, the most persuasive explanation for these differences was that Portuguese institutions especially the Roman Catholic church and Roman civil law, promoted recognition of the slave’s humanity. The English colonists, on the other hand, constructed their system of slavery out of whole cloth. There were simply no precedents in English common law, and separation of church and state barred Protestant clergy from the role that priests assumed in Brazil.

But the assumption that institutions alone could so powerfully affect the history of two raw and malleable frontier countries seems, on reexamination, untenable. Recent studies focus instead on a particular set of contrasting economic circumstances and demographic profiles at significant periods in the histories of the two countries. Persons of mixed race quickly appeared in both countries. In the United States they were considered to be Black, a social definition that was feasible because they were in the minority. In Brazil, it was not feasible. Though intermarriage was illegal in both countries, the laws were unenforceable in Brazil since Whites formed a small minority in an overwhelmingly Black population. Manumission for persons of mixed race was also easier in Brazil, particularly in the nineteenth century when in the United States it was hedged about with difficulties. Furthermore, a shortage of skilled workers in Brazil provided persons of mixed race with the opportunity to learn crafts and trades, even before general emancipation, whereas in the United States entry into these occupations was blocked by Whites sufficiently numerous to fill the posts. The consequence was the development in Brazil of a large class of persons of mixed race, proficient in skilled trades and crafts, who stood waiting as a community for freed slaves to join.

There should be no illusion that Brazilian society after emancipation was color-blind. Rather, the large population of persons of mixed race produced a racial system that included a third status, a bridge between the Black caste and the White, which could be traversed by means of economic or intellectual achievement, marriage, or racial heritage. The strict and sharp line between the races so characteristic of the United States in the years immediately after emancipation was simply absent. With the possible exception of New Orleans, no special “place” developed in the United States for persons of mixed race. Sad to say, every pressure of society worked to prevent their attaining anything approximating the economic and social position available to their counterparts in Brazil.   1 
 1. In the passage, the author is primarily concerned with

(A) contrasting the systems of slavery that were established in Brazil and in the United States
(B) criticizing the arguments of those scholars who considered religion and law to be the determinants of the systems of slavery in Brazil and in the United States
(C) describing the factors currently thought to be responsible for the differences in the racial patterns that evolved in Brazil and in the United States
(D) advocating further study of the differences between the racial systems that developed in Brazil and in the United States
(E) pointing out the factors that made the status of Blacks in the United States lower than that of Blacks in Brazil

2 
 2. According to the passage, early scholars explained the differences between the racial systems that developed in the United States and in Brazil as the result of which of the following factors?

(A) Institutional
(B) Demographic
(C) Economic
(D) Geographical
(E) Historical

3 
 3. In the context in which it is found, the phrase “constructed their system of slavery out of whole cloth” (lines 15-16) implies that the system of slavery established by the English settlers was

(A) based on fabrications and lies
(B) tailored to the settlers’ particular circumstances
(C) intended to serve the needs of a frontier economy
(D) developed without direct influence from the settlers’ religion or legal system
(E) evolved without giving recognition to the slave’s humanity

4 
 4. The author implies that the explanation proposed by early scholars for the differences between the systems of slavery in the United States and in Brazil is

(A) stimulating to historians and legal scholars
(B) more powerful than more recent explanations
(C) persuasive in spite of minor deficiencies
(D) excessively legalistic in its approach
(E) questionable in light of current scholarly work

5 
 5. The author mentions intermarriage, manumission, and the shortage of skilled workers in Brazil primarily in order to establish which of the following?

(A) The environment in which Brazil’s racial system developed
(B) The influence of different legal and economic conditions in Brazil and the United States on the life-style of persons of mixed race
(C) The origins of Brazil’s large class of free skilled persons of mixed race
(D) The differences between treatment of slaves in Brazil and in the United States
(E) The difficulties faced by persons of mixed race in the United States, as compared to those in Brazil

6 
 6. According to the passage, Brazilian laws prohibiting intermarriage were ineffective because Brazil had a

(A) Portuguese Catholic heritage
(B) Small minority of whites
(C) Liberal set of laws concerning manumission
(D) Large number of freed slaves
(E) Shortage of people in the skilled crafts and trades

7 
 7. The use of quotation marks around the word “place” (line 59) suggests that the author intended to convey which of the following?

(A) An ambivalent attitude toward the city of New Orleans
(B) A negative attitude toward the role of race in determining status in the United States
(C) A critical comment about the maltreatment of persons of mixed race in the United States
(D) A double meaning, indicating both a social status and a physical location
(E) An ambiguity, referring to either the role persons of mixed race actually played, or the role they were assigned by the society

8 
 8. With which of the following statements regarding human behavior would the author of the passage be most likely to agree?

(A) Only a fool or a political candidate would sing very loudly the glories of the institutions of Western culture.
(B) Contact sports—displacements of our abiding impulses to kill—speak of essential human behavior more truthfully than all the theories of psychologists and historians.
(C) Family, church, political party: these are the strong foundations of history and human behavior.
(D) Money and its pursuit: an exploration of that theme will chart accurately the development of civilizations and the determinants of human behavior.
(E) The circumstances in which humans find themselves—more than treasured beliefs or legal prescriptions—mold human behavior.

GMATmronevsall · Accepted Answer

Let's take it from the top, shall we!!

1. In the passage, the author is primarily concerned with

(A) contrasting the systems of slavery that were established in Brazil and in the United States - The passage indicates going deeper into the issue by stating "For years scholars have contrasted slavery in the United States and in Brazil"
(B) criticizing the arguments of those scholars who considered religion and law to be the determinants of the systems of slavery in Brazil and in the United States. - It isn't a criticism per se author is trying to contrast yes
(C) describing the factors currently thought to be responsible for the differences in the racial patterns that evolved in Brazil and in the United States - BINGO the contrasting, yes that's what we want
(D) advocating further study of the differences between the racial systems that developed in Brazil and in the United States- This is more about taking action rather than study
(E) pointing out the factors that made the status of Blacks in the United States lower than that of Blacks in Brazil - passage also describes those too so not quite what we are looking for

2. According to the passage, early scholars explained the differences between the racial systems that developed in the United States and in Brazil as the result of which of the following factors?

(A) Institutional - This is it look at this line in 1st paragraph "...persuasive explanation for these differences was that Portuguese institutions especially the Roman Catholic church and Roman civil law, promoted recognition of the slave’s humanity"
(B) Demographic - no way
(C) Economic - it's a factor
(D) Geographical - no
(E) Historical - nope

3. In the context in which it is found, the phrase “constructed their system of slavery out of whole cloth” (lines 15-16) implies that the system of slavery established by the English settlers was

(A) based on fabrications and lies[quote="chechaxo"]Took 10 mins to crack the 8 questions.

Here is my take on Q3, hope it helps..

3. In the context in which it is found, the phrase “constructed their system of slavery out of whole cloth” (lines 15-16) implies that the system of slavery established by the English settlers was
(A) based on fabrications and lies - no piece of information over lies
(B) tailored to the settlers’ particular circumstances - Circumstances contributed to the state of settlers and this seems for realistic in light of the events that transpired
(C) intended to serve the needs of a frontier economy - no piece of information over lies
(D) developed without direct influence from the settlers’ religion or legal system - Institutional system was in the mix yes, but not alone there were other contributing factors too
(E) evolved without giving recognition to the slave’s humanity - not true

4. The author implies that the explanation proposed by early scholars for the differences between the systems of slavery in the United States and in Brazil is

(A) stimulating to historians and legal scholars - no
(B) more powerful than more recent explanations - no
(C) persuasive in spite of minor deficiencies - no
(D) excessively legalistic in its approach - no
(E) questionable in light of current scholarly work - Refer to starting of 2nd paragraph "But the assumption that institutions alone could so powerfully affect the history of two raw and malleable frontier countries seems, on reexamination, untenable. Recent...." This sets the tone of questioning that author has taken up backed by recent studies.

5. The author mentions intermarriage, manumission, and the shortage of skilled workers in Brazil primarily in order to establish which of the following?

(A) The environment in which Brazil’s racial system developed - these were factors leading to some change
(B) The influence of different legal and economic conditions in Brazil and the United States on the life-style of persons of mixed race - NO
(C) The origins of Brazil’s large class of free skilled persons of mixed race - All the factors mentioned fuel this particular point, it's clearly mentioned in 2nd para.
(D) The differences between treatment of slaves in Brazil and in the United States - close but yet we are more focused on brazil here in this questions what changes did brazil see
(E) The difficulties faced by persons of mixed race in the United States, as compared to those in Brazil - close but not there yet

6. According to the passage, Brazilian laws prohibiting intermarriage were ineffective because Brazil had a

(A) Portuguese Catholic heritage -nope
(B) Small minority of whites - Refer to this "Though intermarriage was illegal in both countries, the laws were unenforceable in Brazil since Whites formed a small minority in an overwhelmingly Black population."
(C) Liberal set of laws concerning manumission -nope
(D) Large number of freed slaves -nothing to do with marrige
(E) Shortage of people in the skilled crafts and trades -nothing to do with marrige

7. The use of quotation marks around the word “place” (line 59) suggests that the author intended to convey which of the following?

(A) An ambivalent attitude toward the city of New Orleans - not about new orleans
(B) A negative attitude toward the role of race in determining status in the United States - nope author has been critical but not negetive
(C) A critical comment about the maltreatment of persons of mixed race in the United States - yes but also represents a place soo.. not quiet
(D) A double meaning, indicating both a social status and a physical location - presents a place and status of mixed-race people in the US
(E) An ambiguity, referring to either the role persons of mixed race actually played or the role they were assigned by the society - Close but neither tells anything about new orleans

8. With which of the following statements regarding human behavior would the author of the passage be most likely to agree?

(A) Only a fool or a political candidate would sing very loudly the glories of the institutions of Western culture. - Too harsh
(B) Contact sports—displacements of our abiding impulses to kill—speak of essential human behavior more truthfully than all the theories of psychologists and historians. -No way
(C) Family, church, political party: these are the strong foundations of history and human behavior. -No mention of these
(D) Money and its pursuit: an exploration of that theme will chart accurately the development of civilizations and the determinants of human behavior. - maybe but it was more about power and supression
(E) The circumstances in which humans find themselves—more than treasured beliefs or legal prescriptions—mold human behavior. - Clearly, it was circumstances that shaped how institutional segregation happened. how whites kept blacks out of factories and so on.

PHEW!!!
Finally done.

I personally was unable to answer questions 3 and 7 but on further examination of questions, this became clear. Key is to get involved in passage actively and keeping noting down your key-words.

I am no expert. I have recently started doing 5 RC passages a day. Though I'm not good but I enjoy them. Hope to improve soon!

Hope this helps. Some Kudos didn't hurt anyone

chechaxo · Answer

Took 10 mins to crack the 8 questions.

Here is my take on Q3, hope it helps..

3. In the context in which it is found, the phrase “constructed their system of slavery out of whole cloth” (lines 15-16) implies that the system of slavery established by the English settlers was
(A) based on fabrications and lies -  "Nothing in the passage suggests this piece of information. 
(B) tailored to the settlers’ particular circumstances
(C) intended to serve the needs of a frontier economy -  "Nothing in the passage suggests this piece of information. 
(D) developed without direct influence from the settlers’ religion or legal system - Refer to the lines - "But the assumption that institutions alone could so powerfully affect the history of two raw and malleable frontier countries seems, on reexamination, untenable."This seems to indicate that the assumptions around ONLY institutions having an impact is untenable. So there were some other reasons too in addition to inflences from the religious/legal systems. Now read the option.  
(E) evolved without giving recognition to the slave’s humanity  this seems a little far fledged inference

JOBS07 · Answer

Sajjad1994

Request your take on question 3. Both B & D seem valid.

Thanks

Sajjad1994 · Answer

This expression implies that the English colonists had to create their system of slavery from scratch, without relying on pre-existing legal or religious frameworks. The absence of precedents in English common law and the separation of church and state in Protestantism prevented them from drawing on established institutions. As a result, they had to fashion a system that suited their specific needs and circumstances in the colonies.

Option (D)  is incorrect because the phrase  "constructed their system of slavery out of whole cloth"  implies that the English settlers did not have direct influence from their religion or legal system when creating the system of slavery. In other words, the statement suggests that the English colonists had to invent or create their system without relying on established religious or legal foundations. This doesn't mean there was no influence at all, but rather that they had to fashion the system without direct guidance or precedent from their existing religious or legal institutions.

Option (B)  is more accurate interpretation of the phrase, as it captures the idea that the English settlers had to design a system of slavery that suited their specific needs and context in the colonies, considering the absence of established legal and religious frameworks.

VerbalBot · Answer

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For years scholars have contrasted slavery in the United States and in

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For years scholars have contrasted slavery in the United States and in

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