PSAT 8/9 Reading Practice Test 6

Questions 1-9 refer to the following information.

This passage is adapted from the speech "The Noble Mansion of Free India" from The Penguin Book of Twentieth-Century Speeches edited by Brian MacArthur, Copyright ©1992 by Brian MacArthur. Used by permission of Viking Books, an imprint of Penguin Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. All rights reserved. The speech was given by Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India, to the members of India's first Parliament on August 14, 1947, when India was about to become independent from the United Kingdom.

At the dawn of history India started on her
unending quest, and trackless centuries are filled
with her striving and the grandeur of her success
Line and her failures. Through good and ill fortune alike
05she has never lost sight of that quest or forgotten
the ideals which gave her strength. We end today a
period of ill fortune and India discovers herself again.
The achievement we celebrate today is but a step, an
opening of opportunity, to the greater triumphs and
10achievements that await us. Are we brave enough and
wise enough to grasp this opportunity and accept the
challenge of the future?
Freedom and power bring responsibility. The
responsibility rests upon this Assembly, a sovereign
15body representing the sovereign people of India.
Before the birth of freedom we have endured all the
pains of labour and our hearts are heavy with the
memory of this sorrow. Some of those pains continue
even now. Nevertheless, the past is over and it is the
20future that beckons to us now.
That future is not one of ease or resting but of
incessant striving so that we may fulfill the pledges we
have so often taken and the one we shall take today.
The service of India means the service of the millions
25who suffer. It means the ending of poverty and
ignorance and disease and inequality of opportunity.
The ambition of the greatest man of our generation has
been to wipe every tear from every eye. That may be
beyond us, but as long as there are tears and suffering,
30so long our work will not be over.
And so we have to labour and to work, and work
hard, to give reality to our dreams. Those dreams are
for India, but they are also for the world, for all the
nations and peoples are too closely knit together today
35for any one of them to imagine that it can live apart.
Peace has been said to be indivisible; so is freedom,
so is prosperity now, and so also is disaster in this
One World that can no longer be split into isolated
fragments.
40It is a fateful moment for us in India, for all Asia
and for the world. A new star rises, the star of freedom
in the East, a new hope comes into being, a vision long
cherished materializes. May the star never set and that
hope never be betrayed! We rejoice in that freedom,
45even though clouds surround us, and many of our
people are sorrow stricken and difficult problems
encompass us. But freedom brings responsibilities and
burdens and we have to face them in the spirit of a free
and disciplined people.
50The future beckons to us. Whither do we go and
what shall be our endeavour? To bring freedom and
opportunity to the common man, to the peasants
and workers of India; to fight and end poverty and
ignorance and disease; to build up a prosperous,
55democratic and progressive nation, and to create
social, economic and political institutions which will
ensure justice and fullness of life to every man
and woman.
We have hard work ahead. There is no resting for
60any one of us till we redeem our pledge in full, till we
make all the people of India what destiny intended
them to be. We are citizens of a great country on the
verge of bold advance, and we have to live up to that
high standard. All of us, to whatever religion we may
65belong, are equally the children of India with equal
rights, privileges and obligations. We cannot encourage
communalism or narrow-mindedness, for no nation
can be great whose people are narrow in thought or in
action.
70To the nations and peoples of the world we send
greetings and pledge ourselves to cooperate with them
in furthering peace, freedom and democracy. And to
India, our much-loved motherland, the ancient, the
eternal and the ever-new, we pay our reverent homage
75and we bind ourselves afresh to her service.

9 questions 12 minutesAll test questions

1. The main purpose of the passage is to

A. inspire the Assembly to work diligently to help India prosper.

B. persuade Indian citizens to take advantage of new opportunities.

C. comfort those who lost a great deal in the fight for independence.

D. seek advice from the Assembly about India's next steps.

2. Which choice best summarizes the passage?

A. The common people of India suffered many hardships to gain freedom, and they must organize to achieve true equality.

B. The nations of the world have prospered and failed together throughout history.

C. The citizens of India will be sorrowful and burdened until they realize their dreams.

D. Gaining independence is a great accomplishment, but India's leaders must dedicate themselves to help the country achieve its full potential.

3. Nehru includes the statement in lines 4–6 ("Through good…strength") most likely to convey the idea that

A. India's people have been true to their values even during times of hardship.

B. India's quest will succeed even though the past has been difficult.

C. India has been led by people with strong ideals throughout history.

D. the people of India must honor their nation's values no matter the circumstances.

4. Nehru's purpose for using the words "birth" and "pains" in lines 16–17 is most likely to

A. admit that sorrowful memories will continue even in happier times.

B. support the argument that the new era of freedom will be joyful.

C. compare the heavy labor of the past with the easy road ahead.

D. imply that something positive came from a difficult experience.

5. Nehru implies that for India to succeed, the members of Parliament must

A. accept what fate may have in store for the country.

B. celebrate both India's past and future steps toward success.

C. work continually to fulfill their obligations to India's people.

D. encourage the common people to keep their promises to each other.

6. Which choice provides the best evidence for the answer to the previous question?

A. Lines 8–10 ("The achievement…us")

B. Lines 21–23 ("That future…today")

C. Lines 40–41 ("It is…world")

D. Lines 70–72 ("To the…democracy")

7. Based on the passage, which choice most closely describes Nehru's perspective on opportunity?

A. Once freedom is achieved, there is no need to work for greater economic opportunity.

B. Opportunities for personal prosperity must be balanced with opportunities for national prosperity.

C. A responsible government works to bring about equal opportunity for all its people.

D. Equal economic opportunity is not as essential as religious equality.

8. As used in line 68, "narrow" most nearly means

A. thin.

B. fine.

C. limited.

D. tight.

9. Which of the following does Nehru suggest is most important to ensure that India reaches its potential?

A. Evaluating good and ill fortune

B. Honoring and serving India

C. Remembering forgotten ideals

D. Seeking advice from other nations

PSAT 8/9 Reading Practice Test 6

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