Globalization and the Information Age: Postmodernism into the Twenty-First Century — Test
Question 14 • TPS EdX English Language Arts 11
Read the excerpt from Rudolfo Anaya’s essay “Take the Tortillas Out of Your Poetry.” Tortillas and poetry. They go hand in hand. Books nourish the spirit, bread nourishes our bodies. Our distinct cultures nourish each one of us, and as we know more and more about the art and literature of the different cultures, we become freer and freer. . . . I don’t know anyone who doesn’t like to sample different ethnic foods, the breads of many many groups; just as many of us enjoy sampling books from different areas of the world. I travel to foreign countries, and I know more about myself as I learn more about my fellow human beings. Censorship imposes itself in my path of knowledge, and that activity can be justified by no one. Which phrase from the excerpt best helps the reader identify the author’s purpose?
Answer
A
“I know more about myself as I learn more about my fellow human beings”
B
“I don’t know anyone who doesn’t like to sample different ethnic foods”
C
“many of us enjoy sampling books from different areas of the world”
D
“we know more and more about the art and literature of the different cultures”
Explanation
The author argues that learning about different cultures through their art and literature helps people become freer, and he objects to censorship that blocks this learning. The phrase “we know more and more about the art and literature of the different cultures” most directly expresses that purpose. Choice A is related, but it focuses on personal self-understanding rather than the broader value of access to diverse literature.
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