AP English Language and Composition Test Booklet
2021 Full Practice 2 Name
Read the following passage carefully before you choose your answers.
(This passage is excerpted from a recent work that examines Benjamin Franklin, an eighteenth-century thinker,
political leader, and scientist, from a contemporary perspective.)
Franklin has a particular resonance in twenty-first century America. A successful publisher and consummate
networker with an inventive curiosity, he would have felt right at home in the information revolution, and his
unabashed striving to be part of an upwardly mobile meritocracy made him, in social critic David Brooks's phrase,
"our founding Yuppie." We can easily imagine having a beer with him after work, showing him how to use the
latest digital device, sharing the business plan for a new venture, and discussing the most recent political scandals
or policy ideas. He would laugh at the latest joke … We would admire both his earnestness and his self-aware
irony. And we would relate to the way he tried to balance, sometimes uneasily, the pursuit of reputation, wealth,
1
earthly virtues, and spiritual values.
Some who see the reflection of Franklin in the world today fret about a shallowness of soul and a spiritual
complacency that seem to permeate a culture of materialism. They say that he teaches us how to live a practical and
pecuniary life, but not an exalted existence. Others see the same reflection and admire the basic middle-class values
and democratic sentiments that now seem under assault from elitists, radicals, reactionaries, and other bashers of
the bourgeoisie. They regard Franklin as an exemplar of the personal character and civic virtue that are too often
missing in modern America.
Much of the admiration is warranted, and so too are some of the qualms. But the lessons from Franklin's life are
more complex than those usually drawn by either his fans or his foes. Both sides too often confuse him with the
striving pilgrim he portrayed in his autobiography. They mistake his genial moral maxims for the fundamental
faiths that motivated his actions.
1
David Brooks, "Our Founding Yuppie," Weekly Standard, Oct. 23, 2000, 31. The word "meritocracy" is an
argument-starter, and I have employed it sparingly in this book. It is often used loosely to denote a vision of social
mobility based on merit and diligence, like Franklin's. The word was coined by British social thinker Michael
Young (later to become somewhat ironically, Lord Young of Darlington) in his 1958 book The Rise of Meritocracy
(New York: Viking Press) as a dismissive term to satirize a society that misguidedly created a new elite class based
on the "narrow band of values" of IQ and educational credentials. The Harvard philosopher John Rawls, in A
Theory of Justice (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1971), 106, used it more broadly to mean a "social order
[that] follows the principle of careers open to talents."
1. The first paragraph characterizes people in the contemporary United States primarily as
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, AP English Language and Test
2021 Full Practice
A charitable yet exacting
B zealous yet deceitful
C self-effacing yet proud
D genial yet self-interested
E mean-spirited yet honest
2. Which of the following sentences best represents the author's main point in the passage?
A "Franklin has a particular resonance in twenty-first century America." (Paragraph 1).
B "We would admire both his earnestness and his self-aware irony." (Paragraph 1)
C "Some who see the reflection of Franklin in the world today fret about a shallowness of soul and spiritual
complacency that seem to permeate a culture of materialism." (Paragraph 2)
D "They regard Franklin as an exemplar of the personal character and civic virtue that are too often missing in
modern America." (Paragraph 2)
E "Both sides too often confuse him with the striving pilgrim he portrayed in his autobiography." (Paragraph
3)
3. The final paragraph functions as
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, AP English Language and Test
2021 Full Practice
A a repetition of the views previously established
B a diatribe against those who devalue Franklin
C an authorial judgment about a preceding discussion
D a critique of Franklin's autobiography
E a controversial conclusion to a contentious debate
4. The misunderstanding discussed in Paragraph 3 is that many who study Franklin
A ascribe greater geniality to Franklin than his actions support
B confuse Franklin's public statements with his private beliefs
C believe that Franklin had a fundamental faith that in fact he lacked
D do not study the public Franklin enough to understand him thoroughly
E rely too much on government records in their analysis of Franklin
5. "They" in Paragraph 2 of the passage refers to people who
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your school’s participation in the program is prohibited. Page 3 of
, AP English Language and Test
2021 Full Practice
A disagree that Franklin's life exemplifies commercial values
B want to reevaluate the importance of Franklin's writings
C believe that Franklin's legacy is not appreciated sufficiently
D have reservations about Franklin's values
E want others to be as inspired by Franklin as they have been
6. The rhetorical purpose of Paragraph 1 ("And we ... values") is to
A assert that the contemporary view of Franklin distorts his accomplishments
B suggest that Franklin did not balance his pursuits particularly well
C encourage the reader to analyze present-day leaders in the light of Franklin
D make Franklin seem more morally upright than he may actually have been
E prompt the reader to feel kinship with Franklin on the basis of the challenges he faced
7. This passage is most probably excerpted from
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2021 Full Practice 2 Name
Read the following passage carefully before you choose your answers.
(This passage is excerpted from a recent work that examines Benjamin Franklin, an eighteenth-century thinker,
political leader, and scientist, from a contemporary perspective.)
Franklin has a particular resonance in twenty-first century America. A successful publisher and consummate
networker with an inventive curiosity, he would have felt right at home in the information revolution, and his
unabashed striving to be part of an upwardly mobile meritocracy made him, in social critic David Brooks's phrase,
"our founding Yuppie." We can easily imagine having a beer with him after work, showing him how to use the
latest digital device, sharing the business plan for a new venture, and discussing the most recent political scandals
or policy ideas. He would laugh at the latest joke … We would admire both his earnestness and his self-aware
irony. And we would relate to the way he tried to balance, sometimes uneasily, the pursuit of reputation, wealth,
1
earthly virtues, and spiritual values.
Some who see the reflection of Franklin in the world today fret about a shallowness of soul and a spiritual
complacency that seem to permeate a culture of materialism. They say that he teaches us how to live a practical and
pecuniary life, but not an exalted existence. Others see the same reflection and admire the basic middle-class values
and democratic sentiments that now seem under assault from elitists, radicals, reactionaries, and other bashers of
the bourgeoisie. They regard Franklin as an exemplar of the personal character and civic virtue that are too often
missing in modern America.
Much of the admiration is warranted, and so too are some of the qualms. But the lessons from Franklin's life are
more complex than those usually drawn by either his fans or his foes. Both sides too often confuse him with the
striving pilgrim he portrayed in his autobiography. They mistake his genial moral maxims for the fundamental
faiths that motivated his actions.
1
David Brooks, "Our Founding Yuppie," Weekly Standard, Oct. 23, 2000, 31. The word "meritocracy" is an
argument-starter, and I have employed it sparingly in this book. It is often used loosely to denote a vision of social
mobility based on merit and diligence, like Franklin's. The word was coined by British social thinker Michael
Young (later to become somewhat ironically, Lord Young of Darlington) in his 1958 book The Rise of Meritocracy
(New York: Viking Press) as a dismissive term to satirize a society that misguidedly created a new elite class based
on the "narrow band of values" of IQ and educational credentials. The Harvard philosopher John Rawls, in A
Theory of Justice (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1971), 106, used it more broadly to mean a "social order
[that] follows the principle of careers open to talents."
1. The first paragraph characterizes people in the contemporary United States primarily as
Copyright © 2021. The College Board. These materials are part of a College Board program. Use or distribution of these materials online or in print beyond
your school’s participation in the program is prohibited. Page 1 of
, AP English Language and Test
2021 Full Practice
A charitable yet exacting
B zealous yet deceitful
C self-effacing yet proud
D genial yet self-interested
E mean-spirited yet honest
2. Which of the following sentences best represents the author's main point in the passage?
A "Franklin has a particular resonance in twenty-first century America." (Paragraph 1).
B "We would admire both his earnestness and his self-aware irony." (Paragraph 1)
C "Some who see the reflection of Franklin in the world today fret about a shallowness of soul and spiritual
complacency that seem to permeate a culture of materialism." (Paragraph 2)
D "They regard Franklin as an exemplar of the personal character and civic virtue that are too often missing in
modern America." (Paragraph 2)
E "Both sides too often confuse him with the striving pilgrim he portrayed in his autobiography." (Paragraph
3)
3. The final paragraph functions as
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your school’s participation in the program is prohibited. Page 2 of
, AP English Language and Test
2021 Full Practice
A a repetition of the views previously established
B a diatribe against those who devalue Franklin
C an authorial judgment about a preceding discussion
D a critique of Franklin's autobiography
E a controversial conclusion to a contentious debate
4. The misunderstanding discussed in Paragraph 3 is that many who study Franklin
A ascribe greater geniality to Franklin than his actions support
B confuse Franklin's public statements with his private beliefs
C believe that Franklin had a fundamental faith that in fact he lacked
D do not study the public Franklin enough to understand him thoroughly
E rely too much on government records in their analysis of Franklin
5. "They" in Paragraph 2 of the passage refers to people who
Copyright © 2021. The College Board. These materials are part of a College Board program. Use or distribution of these materials online or in print beyond
your school’s participation in the program is prohibited. Page 3 of
, AP English Language and Test
2021 Full Practice
A disagree that Franklin's life exemplifies commercial values
B want to reevaluate the importance of Franklin's writings
C believe that Franklin's legacy is not appreciated sufficiently
D have reservations about Franklin's values
E want others to be as inspired by Franklin as they have been
6. The rhetorical purpose of Paragraph 1 ("And we ... values") is to
A assert that the contemporary view of Franklin distorts his accomplishments
B suggest that Franklin did not balance his pursuits particularly well
C encourage the reader to analyze present-day leaders in the light of Franklin
D make Franklin seem more morally upright than he may actually have been
E prompt the reader to feel kinship with Franklin on the basis of the challenges he faced
7. This passage is most probably excerpted from
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your school’s participation in the program is prohibited. Page 4 of
