PrepTest 147, Section 2, Question 18
It is generally accepted that woodland clearings were(434 more words not shown)
The author suggests that which(12 more words not shown)
- AThey were the(9 more words not shown)
- BThey were the(7 more words not shown)
- CThey worshipped(1 more words not shown)
- DThey possessed a(3 more words not shown)
- EThey had a(3 more words not shown)
Reading the passage
The author wants to treat wilderness as something that could influence Mesolithic people's decisions. If fear of wooded surroundings shaped where they traveled, then they could have recognized wilderness as a meaningful part of their world. The last paragraph expressly calls it a “motivating concept.”
What we’re looking for
The question asks what may have been true. We can accept that proposed concept without converting the whole explanation into a proven history.
Working the answers
- A
Nothing establishes that Mesolithic people were the first to enlarge grazing areas with fire. The cited example concerns some recent premodern populations, and it provides no historical ranking of who first used the practice.
- B
Recently recognizing the importance of their paths doesn't mean they were the first humans to travel along prescribed routes. A recent scholarly insight and the first occurrence of a practice are different things.
- C
Fear of wildlife, spirits, or getting lost does not establish worship of nature. Those are different attitudes.
- DCorrect
The author explicitly says the proposed account allows us to consider the possibility that an idea of wilderness influenced Mesolithic people (paragraph 5). That directly supports the possibility that they possessed such a concept.
- E
No level of economic complexity is established. The author disputes one explanation of the clearings; that doesn't tell us whether the society's overall economic system was complex or simple.
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