Until recently, few historians were interested in analyzingthe simila

Question

New Project RC Butler 2019  -  Practice 2 RC Passages Everyday   
Passage # 131, Date : 07-APR-2019
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Until recently, few historians were interested in
analyzingthe similarities and differences between 
serfdom in Russia and slavery in the United States. 
Even Alexis de Tocqueville, who recognized the 
 (5)  significant comparability of the two nations, never
compared their systems of servitude, despite his 
interest in United States slavery. Moreover, the
most simultaneous abolition of Russian serfdom 
and United States slavery in the 1860--- riveting 
 (10)  coincidence that should have drawn more modem
scholars. In a comparative study of the two systems
of servitude----has failed to arouse the interest of 
scholars. Though some historians may have been
put off by the forbidding political differences 
 (15)  between nineteenth-century Russia and the United
States-one an imperial monarchy, the other a 
federal democracy-a recent study by Peter 
Kolchin identifies differences that are illuminating
especially with regard to the different kinds of 
 (20)  rebellion exhibited by slaves and serfs.

Kolchin points out that nobles owning serfs in 
Russia constituted only a tiny proportion of the
population, while in the southern United States,
about a quarter of all White people were members 
 (25)  of slave-owning families. And although in the
southern United States only 2 percent of slaves 
worked on plantations where more than a hundred
slaves worked, in Russia almost 80 percent of the
serfs worked for nobles who owned more than a 
 (30)  hundred serfs. In Russia most serfs rarely saw their
owners, who tended In rely on intermediaries to 
manage their estates, while most southern planters
lived on their land and interacted with slaves on a
regular basis.

(35)  These differences in demographics partly explain
differences in the kinds of resistance that slaves and
serfs practiced in their respective countries. Both
serfs and slaves engaged in a wide variety of
rebellious activity, from silent sabotage, much of
 (40)  which has escaped the historical record, to
 organized armed rebellions, which were more 
common in Russia. The practice of absentee 
ownership, combined with the large numbers in
which serfs were owned, probably contributed 
 (45)  significantly to the four great rebellions that swept
across Russia at roughly fifty-year intervals in the
seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The last of
these, occurring between 1773 and 1774, enlisted
more than a million serfs in a futile attempt In 
 (50)  overthrow the Russian nobility. Russian serfs also
participated in smaller acts of collective defiance 
called the voinenie, which typically started with a
group of serfs who complained of grievances by
petition and went out on strike. Confrontations 
 (55)  between slaves and plantation authorities were also
common, but they tended to be much less collective
in nature than those that occurred in Russia
probably in part because the number of workers on
each estate was smaller in the United States than 
 (60)  was the case in Russia.   1 
 A 
 1. Which one of the following best states the main idea of the passage?

(A) Differences in the demographics of United States slavery and Russian serfdom can help explain the different kinds of resistance practiced by slaves and serfs in their respective countries.
(B) Historians have yet to undertake an adequate comparison and contrast of Russian serfdom and United States slavery.
(C) Revolts by Russian serfs were commonly characterized by collective action.
(D) A recent study has questioned the value of comparing United States slavery In Russian serfdom, especially in light of the significant demographic and cultural differences between the two countries.
(E) De Tocqueville failed In recognize the fundamental differences between Russian serfdom and United States slavery which more recent historians have identified.

2 
 B 
 2. According In the author, de Tocqueville was similar to many modem historians in his

(A) Interest in the demographic differences between Russia and the United States during the nineteenth century
(B) Failure to undertake a comparison of Russian serfdom and United States slavery
(C) Inability to explain why United States slavery and Russian serfdom were abolished during the same decade
(D) Overestimation of the significance of the political differences between Russia and the United States
(E) Recognition of the essential comparability of Russia and the United States

3 
 C 
 3. Which one of the following assertions, if true, would provide the most support for Kolchin's principal conclusion regarding the relationship of demographics to rebellion among Russian serfs and United States slaves?

(A) Collective defiance by serfs during the nineteenth century was confined almost exclusively to their participation in the volnenie.
(B) The rebellious activity of United States slaves was more likely to escape the historical record than was the rebellious activity of Russian serfs.
(C) Organized rebellions by slaves in the Western Hemisphere during the nineteenth century were most common in colonies with large estates that normally employed more than a hundred slaves.
(D) In the southern United States during the nineteenth century, those estates that were managed by intermediaries rather than by the owner generally relied upon the labor of at least a hundred slaves.
(E) The intermediaries who managed estates in Russia during the nineteenth century were in general much more competent as managers than the owners of the estates that they managed.

4 
 C 
 4. The fact that United States slavery and Russian serfdom were abolished during the same decade is cited by the author in the first paragraph primarily in order to

(A) Emphasize that rebellions in both countries eventually led to the demise of the two institutions
(B) Cite a coincidence that de Tocqueville should have been able to foresee
(C) Suggest one reason why more historians should have been drawn to a comparative study of the two institutions
(D) Cite a coincidence that Kolchin's study has failed to explain adequately
(E) Emphasize the underlying similarities between the two institutions

5 
 A 
 5. The author cites which one of the following as a factor that might have discouraged historians from undertaking a comparative study of Russian serfdom and United States slavery?

(A) Major differences in the political systems of the two countries
(B) Major differences in the demographics of the two countries
(C) The failure of de Tocqueville to address the subject
(D) Differences in the size of the estates on which slaves and serfs labored
(E) The comprehensiveness ofKolchin's own work

6 
 D 
 6. According to the passage, Kolchin's study asserts that which one of the following was true of Russian nobles during the nineteenth century?

(A) They agreed to the abolition of serfdom in the 1860s largely as a result of their having been influenced by the abolition of slavery in the United States.
(B) They became more directly involved in the management of their estates as a result of the rebellions that occurred in the previous century.
(C) They commonly agreed to at least some of the demands that arose out of the volnenie.
(D) They had relatively little direct contact with the serfs who worked on their estates.
(E) They hastened the abolition of serfdom by failing to devise an effective response to the collective nature of the serfs' rebellious activity.

7 
 D 
 7. The passage suggests that which one of the following was true of southern planters in the United States?

(A) They were as prepared for collective protest as were their Russian counterparts.
(B) Few of them owned plantations on which fewer than a hundred slaves worked.
(C) They managed their estates more efficiently than did their Russian counterparts.
(D) Few of them relied on intermediaries to manage their estates.
(E) The size of their estates was larger on average than the size of Russian

Source:   LSAT Official PrepTest 14   ( February 1995 ) 
 Difficulty Level:   600

Soul777 · Answer

Experts, could you please explain why Q3 is C.

Chef · Answer

Also can someone please explain how the answer for Q7 is D?

Sent from my Redmi Note 3 using  GMAT Club Forum mobile app

Soul777 · Answer

The passage states: 
In Russia most serfs rarely saw their owners, who tended In rely on intermediaries to manage their estates, while most southern planters lived on their land and interacted with slaves on a regular basis.

jawele · Answer

Relevant text: Kolchin points out that nobles owning serfs in Russia constituted only a tiny proportion of the population, while in the southern United States, about a quarter of all White people were members (25) of slave-owning families. And although in the southern United States only 2 percent of slaves worked on plantations where more than a hundred slaves worked, in Russia almost 80 percent of the serfs worked for nobles who owned more than a (30) hundred serfs. <...> These differences in demographics partly explain differences in the kinds of resistance that slaves and serfs practiced in their respective countries.

So the author's conclusion relies on the fact that larger estates were more prone to rebellious activity than smaller ones.

(C) Organized  rebellions  by slaves in the Western Hemisphere during the nineteenth century  were most common in colonies with large estates  that normally employed more than a hundred slaves.

Hope this helps.

AdityaHongunti · Answer

GMATNinja   mikemcgarry  
could you please explain me the main point of the passage?
according to me ,D is point
1st para tells us that few scholars look into bla bla bla
why should the difference be considered
and a new study which tries to compare the two

2nd para furthers the comparison done by new study.

si isnt D more appropriate?

Skywalker18 · Answer

Interesting passage; All correct in 12 mins, including 5 mins 30 seconds to read

Para 1- Until recently, few historians were interested in analyzing the similarities and differences between serfdom in Russia and slavery in the US
Para 2- Peter Kolchin differences
Para 3- demographic differences partly explain differences in the kinds of resistance that slaves and serfs practiced in their respective countries

1. Which one of the following best states the main idea of the passage?
(A) Differences in the demographics of United States slavery and Russian serfdom can help explain the different kinds of resistance practiced by slaves and serfs in their respective countries.- Correct

2. According In the author, de Tocqueville was similar to many modem historians in his
(B) Failure to undertake a comparison of Russian serfdom and United States slavery - Correct
Even Alexis de Tocqueville, who recognized the significant comparability of the two nations, never compared their systems of servitude, despite his interest in United States slavery.

3. Which one of the following assertions, if true, would provide the most support for Kolchin's principal conclusion regarding the relationship of demographics to rebellion among Russian serfs and United States slaves?
(C) Organized rebellions by slaves in the Western Hemisphere during the nineteenth century were most common in colonies with large estates that normally employed more than a hundred slaves.- Correct

And although in the southern United States only 2 percent of slaves worked on plantations where more than a hundred slaves worked, in Russia almost 80 percent of the serfs worked for nobles who owned more than a hundred serfs
Both serfs and slaves engaged in a wide variety of rebellious activity, from silent sabotage, much of which has escaped the historical record, to organized armed rebellions, which were more common in Russia.

4. The fact that United States slavery and Russian serfdom were abolished during the same decade is cited by the author in the first paragraph primarily in order to
(C) Suggest one reason why more historians should have been drawn to a comparative study of the two institutions- Correct
Moreover, the most simultaneous abolition of Russian serfdom and United States slavery in the 1860--- riveting coincidence that should have drawn more modern scholars

5. The author cites which one of the following as a factor that might have discouraged historians from undertaking a comparative study of Russian serfdom and United States slavery?
(A) Major differences in the political systems of the two countries- Correct
Though some historians may have been put off by the forbidding political differences between nineteenth-century Russia and the United States-one an imperial monarchy, the other a federal democracy

6. According to the passage, Kolchin's study asserts that which one of the following was true of Russian nobles during the nineteenth century?
(D) They had relatively little direct contact with the serfs who worked on their estates.- Correct
In Russia most serfs rarely saw their owners, who tended In rely on intermediaries to manage their estates

7. The passage suggests that which one of the following was true of southern planters in the United States?
(D) Few of them relied on intermediaries to manage their estates.- Correct
In Russia most serfs rarely saw their owners, who tended In rely on intermediaries to manage their estates, while most southern planters lived on their land and interacted with slaves on a regular basis.

Chidinho · Answer

Isnt the question 7 askin about souther planters and the answer d talks about russian serfs

AmarRajput · Answer

CAN you plz check ques 7

The passage suggests that which one of the following was  true of southern planters  in the United States?
In  Russia most serfs rarely saw their
owners, who tended In rely on intermediaries to 
manage their estates , while most southern planters
lived on their land and interacted with slaves on a
regular basis.

this is talking about russia serfs , not southern planters

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Hello

Chidinho 
 AmarRajput

Try this one and let me know if it helps

Explanation

7. The passage suggests that which one of the following was true of southern planters in the United States?

Difficulty Level:   700

Explanation

(A)  The passage never says that any estate owner—Russian or US—was  “prepared for collective protest.”

(B)  Au contraire. Most southern planters—98% of them, implies  Para 2 —owned fewer than 100 slaves.

(C)  Tempting, since most Russian estates were managed by intermediaries, but not clearly implied.  (D) is far better.

(D)  is pretty directly stated in the last sentence of  Para 2 , the same material that provided the answer to question 6.

(E)  Au contraire, according to  Para 2 .

Answer: D

Hoozan · Answer

Please could you help me understand (B) I couldn't understand why (B) is incorrect even after reading the official explanation.

Please help me comprehend  "And although in the
southern United States only 2 percent of slaves
worked on plantations where more than a hundred
slaves worked"

Sajjad1994 · Answer

The lines:

"And although in the southern United States only 2 percent of slaves worked on plantations where more than a hundred slaves worked"

These lines means that "Only two percent of slaves are more than 100 in numbers" who worked on plantations.

Option B states

(B) Few of them owned plantations on which   fewer than a hundred   slaves worked.

Fewer than 100 makes answer  option B  wrong.

pratiksha1998 · Answer

For Q1, can someone explain why D is wrong? I boiled the options down to A and D and then picked D since it mentioned about the recent study.

Sajjad1994 · Answer

(A)  captures the gist of the key final sentence of  Paragraph 1 , and it echoes the thrust of  Paragraph 3 . Plus it echoes the content of  Paragraph 2 , which supplies the demographic facts that explain the differences in forms of slave and serf resistance.

(D)  distorts the passage, which never suggests that Kolchin is skeptical of comparative studies. On the contrary—he’s written one!

Answer: A

rohitrajishu · Answer

"And although in the southern United States only 2 percent of slaves worked on plantations where more than a hundred slaves worked"

Isn't this line suggesting option (B) that some slaves must also be working on plantations which employed less than 100 slaves? If yes, then it means few of them owned plantations where less than 100 slaves worked.
 Sajjad1994  Any thoughts?

Most importantly, From this line " while most southern planters lived on their land and interacted with slaves on a regular basis " 
- how can we suggest that "(D) Few of them relied on intermediaries to manage their estates"
I want to ask why (B) is wrong and (D) is correct, although how you have deducted option (D) from the yellow quoted lines is similar to how I have deducted option (B) from green quoted lines.

thelastskybender · Answer

Few means not many/almost none. A few means some/ a small number of people or things.

7. The passage suggests that which one of the following was true of southern planters in the United States?

(A) They were as prepared for collective protest as were their Russian counterparts.
(B) Few of them owned plantations on which fewer than a hundred slaves worked.    This is wrong because most of the owners in US owned plantations with fewer than a 100 slaves ] 
(C) They managed their estates more efficiently than did their Russian counterparts.
(D) Few of them relied on intermediaries to manage their estates.   In Russia, most of the owners were relied on intermediaries, and here we are contrasting the information of Planters in South and Russia, so we can infer that in South this number was very less i.e. only few of them relied on intermediaries to manage their estates ] 
(E) The size of their estates was larger on average than the size of Russian

Sajjad1994  Is my reasoning correct?

Sajjad1994 · Answer

You are 100% spot on.

Good luck!

Until recently, few historians were interested in analyzingthe simila

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Until recently, few historians were interested in analyzingthe simila

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