PARCC Advanced Reading 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: When an author uses the phrase 'a Pyrrhic victory,' the reader should recognize this as an example of which device?
- Allusion (Correct answer)
- Onomatopoeia
- Hyperbole
- Personification
Correct answer: Allusion
A Pyrrhic victory references the costly win of King Pyrrhus, making it a historical allusion.
Question 2: A passage describes a character who 'spoke kindly but his eyes betrayed cold calculation.' This contrast most directly reveals the character's:
- Setting
- Dialect
- Hidden motive (Correct answer)
- Physical health
Correct answer: Hidden motive
The gap between kind words and cold eyes signals an underlying, concealed intent.
Question 3: Two articles present opposing views on renewable energy. To evaluate which is more credible, a reader should FIRST examine:
- The length of each article
- The evidence and sources cited (Correct answer)
- The font used
- The publication date only
Correct answer: The evidence and sources cited
Credibility rests primarily on the quality and sourcing of supporting evidence.
Question 4: An author structures an essay by stating a problem, then offering a series of escalating solutions. This organizational pattern is best described as:
- Chronological order
- Problem-and-solution (Correct answer)
- Spatial order
- Compare-and-contrast
Correct answer: Problem-and-solution
Presenting an issue followed by remedies is the problem-and-solution structure.
Question 5: The word 'ephemeral' most nearly means:
- Lasting forever
- Short-lived (Correct answer)
- Extremely loud
- Deeply hidden
Correct answer: Short-lived
Ephemeral describes something that lasts only a brief time.
Question 6: A narrator says, 'I was, of course, the only sensible person in the entire room.' The likely effect of this statement is to:
- Establish the narrator as unreliable (Correct answer)
- Confirm the narrator is correct
- Describe the room's size
- Introduce a new setting
Correct answer: Establish the narrator as unreliable
Self-flattering exaggeration signals the narrator may not be trustworthy.
Question 7: In an informational text, a graph showing rising temperatures alongside the prose primarily serves to:
- Decorate the page
- Reinforce the text's claim with data (Correct answer)
- Contradict the author
- Replace the conclusion
Correct answer: Reinforce the text's claim with data
Visuals like graphs supply data that supports and clarifies the written argument.
PARCC Advanced Reading 2
When an author uses the phrase 'a Pyrrhic victory,' the reader should recognize this as an example of which device?