SECTION II 27 Questions Directions: Each set of questions in this section is bas
ID: 345988 • Letter: S
Question
SECTION II 27 Questions Directions: Each set of questions in this section is based on a single passage or a pair of passages. The questions arc to be answered on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage or pair of passages. For some questions, more than one of the choices coald conceivably answer the question. However, you are to choose the best answer, that is, choose the response tha most accurately and completely answers the question and mark that response on your answer sheet dialect. Moreover, the dialects of Chinese can differ markedly in their systems of sounds and, to some extent, in grammar and vocabulary, and these differences persist among Chinese-American speakers of these various dialects. Hence, even a common The following passage is adapted from an article publirhed in 1981 (50) Chinese is a language of many distinet dialects tbat are often mutually unintelligible. Some linguists have argued that a new dialect of Chinese has evolved in the United States, which is commonly used in the (35) vocabulary for such things as names of U.S. cities, street names, and son-Chinese itens does not guarantee mutual intelligibility because these words constitute only a minute percentage of each dialect and are generally peripheral to the core vocabalary. (5) Chinatown section of San Francisco. The characterization of this "Chinatown Chinesc" as a distinct dialect is based primarily on two claims: first, that it is so different from any other dialect used in China that a person newly arrived from that country might have a (10) difficult time communicating with a Chinese American 1. Which one of the following most accurately expresses in San Franeisco who speaks nominally the same language as the newcomer, and, second, that no maner which of the traditional Chinese dialects one speaks, one can communicate effectively with other Chinese he main point of the passage? (A) Linguists who argue that Chinatown Chincse constitutes a distinct new dialect are mistaken because it is intelligible to speakers of the (15) Americans in San Francisco so long as one is proficient Cansonese dialect. in the uniquely Chinese-American terminologies (B) Because Chinatown Chinese is unfamiliar to Regarding the first elaim, much of the distinctive vocabulary of Chinatown Chinese consists of proper names of geographical places and terms for things many native Chinese people, linguists have concluded that it constitutes a distinct new dialect of Chinese. (20) that some people, especially those born and raised in (C) The primary claims supporting the view that villages, had never encountered in China Some are transliterated terms, such as dang-tang for "downtown Others are direct translations from American English, such as gong-gihn ngihlabor" plus "day") for Labor Day." However, the core of the language brought to the U.S. by Chinese people has remained intact. Thus, the new vocabulary has supplemented, but not supplanted, the traditional language in the traditional dialects. In fact, normal conversations can be conducted fairly readily between Chinese-speaking Chinese Americans and new arrivals from China, provided that they speak the same traditional Chinese dialect as cach other. Terms not familiar to the newcomer, most of which would name objects, places, and events that are part of the local experience, can easily be avoided or explained by the speaker, or their meaning can be inferred from the context. The supposed language barrier is, therefore, mostly imaginary Chinatown Chinese is a distinct new dialeet do not stand up to close examination. (D) Because visitoes from China can fairly easily verse with Chinese Americans living in San Francisco, the variety of language there cannot be designated a distinct new dialect. Although Chinese dialects are difficult to definc with certainty, linguists are now in agreement that Chinatown Chinese does not constitute a distinct new dialect (25) (E) (30) 2. The passage suggests that a visitor from China who speaks the same traditional dialect as a Chinese-American person in San Francisco would find it most difficult to converse with that person a (A) news from China (B) mutual relatives in San Francisco (C) the Chinese American's daily life in the U.S (D) the Chinese visitor's feelings about the U.S. Chinese cultural tradinos (35) The second claim- that the sharing of a uniquely Chisese-American vocabulary makes possible communication among Chinese Americans no matter what their basic dialect of Chinese may b- is a misleading oversimplification. While many Chinese-American speakers of other Chinese dialects have become familiar with Cantonese, now the most common dialect of Chinese spoken in the U.S., through watching Cantonese movies and by hearing that dialect in Hong Kong, Guandong, or the U.S. his is not the same thing as sharing a single unique (40) (45) GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE
Explanation / Answer
1. (B). Because Chinatown Chinese unfamiliar to many native Chinese people, linguists have concluded that it constitutes a distinct new dialect of Chinese
2. (B). Mutual Relatives in San Francisco
3. (E) exemplify the ways in which American English terms have become part of or have influenced Chinatown Chinese.
4. (D) are often abandoned by native speakers for the Cantonese dialect
5. (A) Whose sounds and meanings have been directly incorporated into another language.
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