GRE Reading Comprehension

Home > GRE Test > GRE Reading Comprehension Questions

Next steps

Source: 90年

Scholars often fail to see that music played an important role in the preservation of African culture in the United States. They correctly note that slavery stripped some cultural elements from Black people-their political and economic systems-but they underestimate the significance of music in sustaining other African cultural values. African music, unlike the music of some other cultures, was based on a total vision of life in which music was not an isolated social domain. In African culture music was pervasive, serving not only religion, but all phases of life, including birth, death, work, and play. The methods that a community devises to perpetuate itself come into being to preserve aspects of the cultural legacy that that community perceives as essential. Music, like art in general, was so inextricably a part of African culture that it became a crucial means of preserving the culture during and after the dislocations of slavery.

Question List: 1 2 3 4

Which of the following statements concerning the function of African music can be inferred from the passage?

  • A It preserved cultural values because it was thoroughly integrated into the lives of the people.
  • B It was more important in the development of African religious life than in other areas of culture.
  • C It was developed in response to the loss of political and economic systems.
  • D Its pervasiveness in African culture hindered its effectiveness in minimizing the impact of slavery.
  • E Its isolation from the economic domains of life enabled it to survive the destructive impact of slavery.

Show Answer

Previous       Next