ACT QuizBank
Questions 1-10 of 10 | 9:35
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PROSE FICTION: The following passage
was excerpted from a short story.
The door was not even latched shut, and it creaked
slowly open under the slightest touch from Carl's
5
hand. A thick cloud of dust spilled out of the
unfinished basement. He took a slow step into
the dark room.
How long had it been since he'd last been down
here? Certainly not since Gramps had passed away.
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As he fumbled blindly for the drawstring light,
he imagined his grandfather walking down the
cellar steps with some arcane relic in hand,
perhaps an old compass he had happened upon while
perusing the Wellesley dump. Gramps always had
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a unique gift for finding treasure amongst other's
trash, and would invariably stash the newest
bounty here in his favorite treasure trove.
Finally, after losing his footing twice amid
the piles of National Geographic magazines, Carl
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found the light. The old bulb flickered on, gently
illuminating the room. He surveyed the junk mounds
that seemed to cover every inch of the cold concrete
floor. A small path, at most two feet wide, marked
the way to the back of the basement. Passing
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through the caverns of his grandfather's accruements,
he marveled at the fact that so much stuff could
be crammed into so small a place. It was as if
Gramps had knowingly done his best to recreate
his own miniature model of the town junkyard
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down here. It simply defied all sense of logic.
At first, he had been embittered about the task
at hand. Putting the contents of his grandparents'
basement into storage was by far the most difficult
job assigned to any of the grandchildren. Yet
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a lifetime as the youngest of three brothers
had acclimated Carl to the short end of the stick.
Someone had to clean out the basement before
his grandmother moved into her new condo in the
retirement community, and as unpleasant as it
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was, fighting would do no good-it would have
to be him.
Now, though, with the sights and smells of musty
familiarity rising up all around, he found his
mind in a strange state of ease. No matter where
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he let his eyes rest, he saw an object that conjured
up some distant memory that, until this moment,
had been all but forgotten. Here, lay an old
fishing rod; over there, a pair of snowshoes;
and in the corner, partially obscured from view
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by a dilapidated bedroom dresser, sat a large,
antique telescope.
Like all of his most beloved possessions, Gramps
found the telescope at the dump. Its rusted exterior
and cracked lens probably caused its previous
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owner to think it worthless. When Gramps laid
his eyes on the old machine, however, it must
have been love at first sight. Since a young
age, Carl had always imagined his grandfather
patrolling the junkyard like a mad scientist.
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And whenever Gramps located such a magnificent
find as a telescope, his bellowing "Eureka!"
could be heard for miles.
Upon closer inspection, Carl became acutely aware
of the tender care Gramps had administered to
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the telescope. When he was younger, he had never
given the matter much thought-Carl always assumed
that his grandfather would fix up whatever he
found so as to achieve a minimal degree of functionality.
This was certainly not the case. Despite years
70
in the basement, the golden tint of the metal
casing still seemed to retain a degree of luminescence.
The lenses all functioned well, and Gramps had
even designed cardboard shells to protect them
from any damaging elements.
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Unlike any of the other objects in the room,
Carl could identify the exact day he had first
laid eyes on his grandfather's telescope. It
was 1986 and he was a junior in college. At his
grandfather's request, he had agreed to take
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the train over to their house for dinner. As
was usually the case, he was so engrossed in
his studies that a brief respite was certainly
in order. Though Carl was the first to arrive,
he was not the only guest to be invited that
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night.
His grandmother was busy working on her famous
beef stew. She kissed him hello, and directed
him out to the back porch. Then, like so many
times before, she whispered in her musical voice,
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"Gramps has something he wants to show you."
Out on the porch, underneath the blanket of a
perfectly clear night sky, Gramps stood polishing
the viewfinder of his gleaming telescope. He
stopped for a moment to hug his grandson, and
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then quickly returned to buffing.
"You know what tonight is, son?" Carl confessed
that he did not. "It's the passing of Haley's
Comet. It happens once every seventy-five years
and tonight's the night. Your parents and brothers
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should be here soon." Carl had been so busy
with his schoolwork that he had completely forgotten
about this momentous event. Yet here was Gramps,
with his brand new, old telescope ready, and
his family on the way.
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As he directed Carl to look up at a patch of
stars, he put his arm on his grandson's shoulders.
"I found this old thing at the dump last week.
Can you believe that anybody would throw it away?"
1.
The author develops the character of Carl's grandfather primarily through:
extensive descriptions of his relationship with his family.
exploring his hobby of finding and fixing up old objects.
his words and actions during the passing of Haley's Comet.
detailed accounts of his forays into the town dump.
Strategic Advice: When dealing with Writer's View questions, remember that the correct answer choice will most often reflect the passage as a whole and not just one or two lines.
Everything that is revealed about Carl's grandfather is done so in the context of his hobby of gathering and fixing old junk. A good prediction will reflect this, and match with B.
(A) Distortion; the author spends only a little time talking about the specifics of Gramps' relationship with his family.
(C) Misused Detail; this episode represents only a small section of the passage, and thus does not reflect the passage as a whole.
(D) Misused Detail; the author does mention Gramps' trips to the junkyard, but only briefly.
2.
As he is portrayed in the passage, which of the following descriptions best captures the character of Gramps?
An eccentric old man
A dedicated husband
A demanding patriarch
A satisfied family man
Strategic Advice: In answering questions about a character's portrayal, pay special attention to the author's language and tone-they will provide the keys to a strong prediction.
Throughout the passage, the author uses positive language to describe the grandfather, such as "unique gift for finding treasure amongst other's trash," "tender care," and "love at first sight." He is also portrayed as caring very much about his family, as shown by the gathering at the passage's end. A happy family man would be a fine prediction and matches nicely with D.
(A) Distortion; though the author indicates that Carl used to think of his grandfather as a "mad scientist," the general attitude towards him is much more positive.
(B) Out of Scope; though this may be the case, the author never addresses it in the passage.
(C) Distortion; there is nothing in the passage that suggests that the grandfather was "demanding."
3.
The first four paragraphs of the passage are critically important in identifying Carl's:
purpose in being down in his grandparent's cellar.
attitudes towards his grandfather and his hobbies.
feelings about all of the possessions his grandfather collected.
realization that his grandfather put lots of time into fixing what he found.
Strategic Advice: Taking good notes will be helpful on Test Day, especially on questions as broad as this one.
The author spends the first four paragraphs describing Carl's initial exploration of the basement, as well as identifying his reason for being down there: to put "the contents of his grandparents basement into storage," A.
(B) Misused Detail; these attitudes are not discussed until later in the passage.
(C) Misused Detail; these feelings are not discussed until later in the passage.
(D ) Misused Detail; this realization is not discussed until later in the passage.
4.
According to the passage, Carl's lack of awareness of Haley's Comet is indicative of his tendency to:
be surprised by his grandfather's junk collection.
become completely absorbed in one aspect of his life.
not care about his grandfather's events.
forego family gatherings for his studies.
Strategic Advice: On Detail questions, avoid incorrect choices that contain details from the passage that are irrelevant to the question being asked.
In paragraph 11, the author writes that Carl "had been so busy with his schoolwork that he had completely forgotten" about the comet. From a few paragraphs earlier, you know that being "engrossed in his studies" was fairly typical for Carl. A good prediction will reflect this sense of being completely engrossed, which matches nicely with B.
(A) Misused Detail; Carl's surprise at his grandfather's collection is not related to his lack of awareness of Haley's Comet. B
(C) Distortion; there is nothing in the passage to indicate this.
(D) Distortion; there is nothing in the passage to indicate this.
5.
The author implies that, in relation to the "other objects in the room" (paragraph 8), Carl views the telescope as being representative of:
his grandfather's endless desire to teach those he loved.
his grandfather's understanding of the importance of familial ties.
one of the happiest memories of his life.
a more vivid and personally significant memory.
Strategic Advice: Remember that even though the answers for Inference questions will not be directly stated in the passage, they will be strongly supported by information in the passage.
Carl is able to "identify the exact day he had first laid eyes on his grandfather's telescope," which is something he can't do for any other object in the room. He then goes on to describe the episode of seeing the telescope in rich detail. A good prediction would be that this represents an important and detailed memory for Carl, which matches nicely with D.
(A) Misused Detail; though this may be implied later in the passage, it should not be inferred from the comparison of the telescope to the other objects.
(B) Misused Detail; though this may be implied later in the passage, it should not be inferred from the comparison of the telescope to the other objects.
(C) Extreme; this may be a very happy memory for Carl, but there is not enough information in the text to warrant its description as one of his "happiest" recollections.
6.
In the fifth paragraph, Carl's observations about his own state of mind suggest that he is:
surprised at his newfound willingness to clean the basement.
unsettled by the flood of memories that the basement has triggered.
soothed by the sense of nostalgia in the basement.
impressed by the amount of junk his grandfather has fit in the basement.
Strategic Advice: Don't let Inference questions intimidate you-with the given reference lines, you'll be able to glean your answer directly from the text.
In line xx, the author writes that Carl finds himself "in a strange state of ease," which seems to be caused by the familiar sights he sees in the basement. In a state of ease brought on by familiarity serves as a strong prediction and matches nicely with C.
(A) Out of Scope; Carl may be in a more pleasant state of mind, but this is unrelated to his willingness to clean the basement.
(B) Opposite; according to the passage, this "flood of memories" has settled Carl's irritated mind.
(D) Misused Detail; the fact that Carl is impressed is addressed earlier in the passage.
7.
The author's mention of "caverns" (paragraph 3) serves to highlight which of the following about the basement?
Its sense of chaos
Its similarity to the Wellesley dump
The small width of the path
Its poor lighting
Strategic Advice: When considering an author's purpose in using certain language, go directly back to the referenced lines and make sure you understand the context before making a prediction.
The author uses "caverns" to describe the effect produced by the huge piles of his grandfather's junk. In the following sentence, he writes that this closely resembles the junkyard, which serves as a fine prediction and matches nicely with B.
(A) Out of Scope; the word "caverns" does nothing to develop a "sense of chaos."
(C) Out of Scope; the word "caverns" does nothing to develop a "sense of chaos."
(D) Misused Detail; though the author mentions the lighting briefly, it is unrelated to "caverns."
8.
When the author writes that Carl "became acutely aware of the tender care Gramps had administered" (paragraph 7), he most likely means that in the past Carl had:
underestimated his grandfather's dedication to fixing his new finds.
ignored the difficulty involved in repairing most objects.
found his grandfather's hobby to be pointless and unimportant.
not grasped just how important these objects were to Carl himself.
Strategic Advice: For Inference questions about a specific reference, you will usually be able to draw your prediction from one or two lines surrounding the mentioned text.
In the sentence following the referenced text, the author writes that Carl had "just always assumed" that his grandfather had put the minimal amount of effort into repair. The telescope makes him realize that this was a drastic underestimation, which matches nicely with A.
(B) Out of Scope; though repairs may have been difficult, there is nothing in the passage to suggest that Carl did not realize this.
(C) Out of Scope; there is nothing in the passage that indicates Carl found this to be the case.
(D) Misused Detail; the author addresses this, but not in relation to the referenced text.
9.
As it is used in paragraph 6, the phrase "love at first sight" most directly refers to:
Gramps' affection for trips to the junkyard.
the unknown monetary value of the telescope.
Gramps' disbelief that someone would throw away the telescope.
Gramps' fondness for discarded treasures.
Strategic Advice: To get more points on Test Day, predict answers; this will keep you from being tempted to pick incorrect choices that distort or misuse information from the passage.
"Love at first sight" refers to Gramps' first finding the telescope. From the rest of the passage, you know that he takes pleasure in finding such objects, which should be reflected in your prediction and matches nicely with D.
(A) Misused Detail; though he certainly enjoys searching through the junkyard, this is unrelated to the referenced text.
(B) Distortion; nothing in the passage indicates that Gramps collected things for their "monetary value."
(C) Misused Detail; the author mentions this "disbelief," but not until later in the passage.
10.
The author's statement that "fighting would do no good" (paragraph 4) implies that, within his family, Carl:
was often bullied by his older brothers.
was not given the degree of respect that he often wanted.
had resigned himself to taking on the most undesirable work.
felt helpless about being bossed around by the older members.
Strategic Advice: When a reference makes little sense on its own, be sure to return to the passage so you understand the full context.
The author writes that, being the youngest child, Carl had become used "to the short end of the stick" or having to perform the worst chores. A good prediction will reflect this sense of acquiescence to doing undesirable work, which matches nicely with C.
(A) Out of Scope; nothing in the passage suggests that Carl's brothers "bullied" him.
(B) Distortion; there is nothing here that indicates a lack of respect.
(D) Extreme; "helpless" seems to be a little too negative in this context, especially when the author describes Carl as being "acclimated."
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