Research Workshop: Writing and Presenting the Argumentative Essay, Part 1 — Cumulative exam
Question 37 • AZ-English Language Arts 11 B-CR
Read the excerpt from Pericles’s funeral oration by Thucydides.The Spartans, from their earliest boyhood, are submitted to the most laborious training in courage; we pass our lives without all these restrictions, and yet are just as ready to face the same dangers as they are. Here is a proof of this: When the Spartans invade our land, they do not come by themselves, but bring all their allies with them; whereas we, when we launch an attack abroad, do the job by ourselves, and, though fighting on foreign soil, do not often fail to defeat opponents who are fighting for their own hearths and homes.
Answer
A
The training that the Spartans undergo does more harm than good.
B
The Spartans will only fight alongside their allies.
C
Freedom helps his people to be better soldiers than the Spartans are.
D
His people have a larger army than the Spartans.
Explanation
Pericles contrasts the Spartans’ strict military training with the Athenians’ freedom, then argues that Athenians are just as ready to face danger. He supports this by noting that the Athenians can attack abroad without bringing allies and often defeat people defending their homes. This supports the idea that freedom helps his people be better soldiers than the Spartans, not that they have a larger army.
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