Events & Promotions
|
|
GMAT Club Daily Prep
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
Track
Your Progress
Practice
Pays
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
May 1212:00 PM EDT
-11:59 PM EDT
Make the most of your break with the most realistic GMAT™ prep. Take up to $700 off select products.
May 1308:30 AM PDT
-09:30 AM PDT
In Episode 4 of our GMAT Ninja CR series, we tackle the most intimidating CR question type: Boldface & "Legalese" questions. If you've ever stared at an answer choice that reads, "The first is a consideration introduced to counter a position that...- May 14
08:30 AM PDT
-09:30 AM PDT
Most GMAT test-takers are intimidated by the hardest GMAT Verbal questions. In this session, Target Test Prep GMAT instructor Erika Tyler-John, a 100th percentile GMAT scorer, will show you how top scorers break down challenging Verbal questions..
21 Sep 2024, 16:55
Kudos
Bookmarks
The Ming treasure voyages were maritime expeditions undertaken by Ming China's treasure fleet between 1405 and 1433. The grand project resulted in seven far-reaching ocean voyages to the coastal territories and islands of the South China Sea and Indian Ocean. Admiral Zheng He was commissioned to command the fleet for the expeditions. The first three voyages reached up to Calicut on India's Malabar Coast, while the fourth voyage went as far as Hormuz in the Persian Gulf. In the last three voyages, the fleet traveled up to the Arabian Peninsula and East Africa.
The Chinese expeditionary fleet was heavily militarized and carried great amounts of treasures, which served to project Chinese power and wealth to the known world. They brought back many foreign ambassadors whose kings and rulers were willing to declare themselves tributaries of China. Moreover, the Chinese restructured and established control over an expansive maritime network in which the region became interconnected on an economic and political level. The Chinese did not seek territory and were motivated primarily by political and economic control with domination over a vast network of ports and shipping lanes.
The trade still flourished long after the voyages had ceased. Chinese ships continued to control the Eastern Asian maritime trade. They also kept on trading with India and East Africa. However, the imperial tributary system over the foreign regions and state monopoly over the foreign trade gradually broke down as time progressed.
It is not exactly known why the Ming treasure voyages completely ended in 1433. Duyvendak suggests that the heavy costs partly contributed to the ending of the expeditions, but Ray, Finlay, and Dreyer note that the costs had not overburdened the Ming treasury. Ray adds that the voyages were a profitable enterprise and rejects the notion that the voyages were terminated because they were wasteful, costly, or uneconomic. Ray states that the cessation of the voyages happened as traders and bureaucrats, for reasons of economic self-interest and through their connections in Beijing, gradually collapsed the framework supporting both the state-controlled maritime enterprise and the strict regulation of private commerce with prohibitive policies.
Which of the following best describes the structure of the final paragraph of the passage?
A. The author presents two conflicting viewpoints, then provides evidence supporting one of the viewpoints.
B. The author introduces an explanation for the end of the Ming treasure voyages and then refutes it.
C. The author outlines multiple theories regarding why the voyages ended and evaluates each theory’s validity.
D. The author presents competing interpretations of a historical event without taking a position on which explanation is correct.
E. The author discusses the success of the voyages and then explores the reasons for their eventual cessation.
The Chinese expeditionary fleet was heavily militarized and carried great amounts of treasures, which served to project Chinese power and wealth to the known world. They brought back many foreign ambassadors whose kings and rulers were willing to declare themselves tributaries of China. Moreover, the Chinese restructured and established control over an expansive maritime network in which the region became interconnected on an economic and political level. The Chinese did not seek territory and were motivated primarily by political and economic control with domination over a vast network of ports and shipping lanes.
The trade still flourished long after the voyages had ceased. Chinese ships continued to control the Eastern Asian maritime trade. They also kept on trading with India and East Africa. However, the imperial tributary system over the foreign regions and state monopoly over the foreign trade gradually broke down as time progressed.
It is not exactly known why the Ming treasure voyages completely ended in 1433. Duyvendak suggests that the heavy costs partly contributed to the ending of the expeditions, but Ray, Finlay, and Dreyer note that the costs had not overburdened the Ming treasury. Ray adds that the voyages were a profitable enterprise and rejects the notion that the voyages were terminated because they were wasteful, costly, or uneconomic. Ray states that the cessation of the voyages happened as traders and bureaucrats, for reasons of economic self-interest and through their connections in Beijing, gradually collapsed the framework supporting both the state-controlled maritime enterprise and the strict regulation of private commerce with prohibitive policies.
Which of the following best describes the structure of the final paragraph of the passage?
A. The author presents two conflicting viewpoints, then provides evidence supporting one of the viewpoints.
B. The author introduces an explanation for the end of the Ming treasure voyages and then refutes it.
C. The author outlines multiple theories regarding why the voyages ended and evaluates each theory’s validity.
D. The author presents competing interpretations of a historical event without taking a position on which explanation is correct.
E. The author discusses the success of the voyages and then explores the reasons for their eventual cessation.
21 Sep 2024, 16:55
Kudos
Bookmarks
Official Solution:
The Ming treasure voyages were maritime expeditions undertaken by Ming China's treasure fleet between 1405 and 1433. The grand project resulted in seven far-reaching ocean voyages to the coastal territories and islands of the South China Sea and Indian Ocean. Admiral Zheng He was commissioned to command the fleet for the expeditions. The first three voyages reached up to Calicut on India's Malabar Coast, while the fourth voyage went as far as Hormuz in the Persian Gulf. In the last three voyages, the fleet traveled up to the Arabian Peninsula and East Africa.
The Chinese expeditionary fleet was heavily militarized and carried great amounts of treasures, which served to project Chinese power and wealth to the known world. They brought back many foreign ambassadors whose kings and rulers were willing to declare themselves tributaries of China. Moreover, the Chinese restructured and established control over an expansive maritime network in which the region became interconnected on an economic and political level. The Chinese did not seek territory and were motivated primarily by political and economic control with domination over a vast network of ports and shipping lanes.
The trade still flourished long after the voyages had ceased. Chinese ships continued to control the Eastern Asian maritime trade. They also kept on trading with India and East Africa. However, the imperial tributary system over the foreign regions and state monopoly over the foreign trade gradually broke down as time progressed.
It is not exactly known why the Ming treasure voyages completely ended in 1433. Duyvendak suggests that the heavy costs partly contributed to the ending of the expeditions, but Ray, Finlay, and Dreyer note that the costs had not overburdened the Ming treasury. Ray adds that the voyages were a profitable enterprise and rejects the notion that the voyages were terminated because they were wasteful, costly, or uneconomic. Ray states that the cessation of the voyages happened as traders and bureaucrats, for reasons of economic self-interest and through their connections in Beijing, gradually collapsed the framework supporting both the state-controlled maritime enterprise and the strict regulation of private commerce with prohibitive policies.
Which of the following best describes the structure of the final paragraph of the passage?
A. The author presents two conflicting viewpoints, then provides evidence supporting one of the viewpoints.
B. The author introduces an explanation for the end of the Ming treasure voyages and then refutes it.
C. The author outlines multiple theories regarding why the voyages ended and evaluates each theory’s validity.
D. The author presents competing interpretations of a historical event without taking a position on which explanation is correct.
E. The author discusses the success of the voyages and then explores the reasons for their eventual cessation.
A. Incorrect. The final paragraph does present conflicting viewpoints, but the author does not provide evidence supporting one of the viewpoints over the others. The passage remains neutral in its presentation of multiple scholarly opinions, so this option misrepresents the author's stance.
B. Incorrect. The paragraph does not introduce a single explanation and then refutes it. Instead, it discusses several scholarly perspectives on why the voyages ended without prioritizing one over another or refuting one of them.
C. Incorrect. While multiple theories are presented, the paragraph does not evaluate the validity of each theory. The author presents the perspectives of different scholars without making judgments or analyzing the strength of each viewpoint, so this option misinterprets the structure.
D. Correct Answer. The author presents competing interpretations from different scholars (e.g., Duyvendak, Ray, Finlay, and Dreyer) regarding the reasons for the cessation of the Ming treasure voyages. However, the author does not take a position or endorse any particular explanation, which makes this option the best fit for describing the structure of the final paragraph.
E. Incorrect. The final paragraph does not discuss the success of the voyages; it focuses solely on the reasons for their cessation. This option adds an element ("discusses the success of the voyages") that is not present in the paragraph, making it an inaccurate description of the structure.
Answer: D
The Ming treasure voyages were maritime expeditions undertaken by Ming China's treasure fleet between 1405 and 1433. The grand project resulted in seven far-reaching ocean voyages to the coastal territories and islands of the South China Sea and Indian Ocean. Admiral Zheng He was commissioned to command the fleet for the expeditions. The first three voyages reached up to Calicut on India's Malabar Coast, while the fourth voyage went as far as Hormuz in the Persian Gulf. In the last three voyages, the fleet traveled up to the Arabian Peninsula and East Africa.
The Chinese expeditionary fleet was heavily militarized and carried great amounts of treasures, which served to project Chinese power and wealth to the known world. They brought back many foreign ambassadors whose kings and rulers were willing to declare themselves tributaries of China. Moreover, the Chinese restructured and established control over an expansive maritime network in which the region became interconnected on an economic and political level. The Chinese did not seek territory and were motivated primarily by political and economic control with domination over a vast network of ports and shipping lanes.
The trade still flourished long after the voyages had ceased. Chinese ships continued to control the Eastern Asian maritime trade. They also kept on trading with India and East Africa. However, the imperial tributary system over the foreign regions and state monopoly over the foreign trade gradually broke down as time progressed.
It is not exactly known why the Ming treasure voyages completely ended in 1433. Duyvendak suggests that the heavy costs partly contributed to the ending of the expeditions, but Ray, Finlay, and Dreyer note that the costs had not overburdened the Ming treasury. Ray adds that the voyages were a profitable enterprise and rejects the notion that the voyages were terminated because they were wasteful, costly, or uneconomic. Ray states that the cessation of the voyages happened as traders and bureaucrats, for reasons of economic self-interest and through their connections in Beijing, gradually collapsed the framework supporting both the state-controlled maritime enterprise and the strict regulation of private commerce with prohibitive policies.
Which of the following best describes the structure of the final paragraph of the passage?
A. The author presents two conflicting viewpoints, then provides evidence supporting one of the viewpoints.
B. The author introduces an explanation for the end of the Ming treasure voyages and then refutes it.
C. The author outlines multiple theories regarding why the voyages ended and evaluates each theory’s validity.
D. The author presents competing interpretations of a historical event without taking a position on which explanation is correct.
E. The author discusses the success of the voyages and then explores the reasons for their eventual cessation.
A. Incorrect. The final paragraph does present conflicting viewpoints, but the author does not provide evidence supporting one of the viewpoints over the others. The passage remains neutral in its presentation of multiple scholarly opinions, so this option misrepresents the author's stance.
B. Incorrect. The paragraph does not introduce a single explanation and then refutes it. Instead, it discusses several scholarly perspectives on why the voyages ended without prioritizing one over another or refuting one of them.
C. Incorrect. While multiple theories are presented, the paragraph does not evaluate the validity of each theory. The author presents the perspectives of different scholars without making judgments or analyzing the strength of each viewpoint, so this option misinterprets the structure.
D. Correct Answer. The author presents competing interpretations from different scholars (e.g., Duyvendak, Ray, Finlay, and Dreyer) regarding the reasons for the cessation of the Ming treasure voyages. However, the author does not take a position or endorse any particular explanation, which makes this option the best fit for describing the structure of the final paragraph.
E. Incorrect. The final paragraph does not discuss the success of the voyages; it focuses solely on the reasons for their cessation. This option adds an element ("discusses the success of the voyages") that is not present in the paragraph, making it an inaccurate description of the structure.
Answer: D
