Examkin

Question

Difficulty: HardSpecific Detail Inferences

In the early twentieth century, the eminent archaeologist Arthur Evans excavated the complex at Knossos on Crete, uncovering a trove of clay tablets inscribed with an unknown script he dubbed Linear B. Guided by his conviction that the Minoan civilization was culturally distinct from the Mycenaean civilization of mainland Greece, Evans insisted that Linear B represented an indigenous, non-Greek language. He maintained that Minoan culture remained completely impervious to mainland influences until a late, catastrophic military conquest, after which the victorious Mycenaeans simply adopted the superior Minoan administrative systems without altering the local language.

Decades later, Michael Ventris successfully deciphered Linear B. Ventris initially shared Evans's assumption that the language was non-Greek, focusing his early efforts on exploring potential connections to Etruscan. However, through rigorous statistical analysis of sign frequencies and inflectional patterns, Ventris recognized that the script operated as a syllabary. When he tentatively applied Greek phonetic values to the symbols, the resulting translations yielded administrative records replete with recognizable Greek vocabulary.

This breakthrough proved that the Mycenaeans had not merely conquered Crete militarily but had instituted their own language within the island’s administrative apparatus. The presence of Greek terminology in the day-to-day bureaucratic records of Knossos indicated a level of integration that fundamentally challenged the prevailing historical models. Consequently, Evans's paradigm of Minoan linguistic isolation was dismantled, forcing historians to recognize a profound cultural synthesis between the mainland and Crete that Evans had categorically denied.

The passage most strongly supports which one of the following statements regarding the administrative records discovered at Knossos?

  1. A
    They were recorded in an indigenous, non-Greek language that the Mycenaeans consciously preserved in order to maintain bureaucratic continuity.
  2. B
    Their translation definitively proved that Minoan and Mycenaean societies were culturally identical in all respects prior to the Late Bronze Age.
  3. C
    Their decipherment relied on Ventris recognizing that their inflectional patterns were structurally identical to those of the Etruscan language.
  4. They contain linguistic evidence that contradicts the theory that the Mycenaeans adopted Minoan bureaucratic systems without altering the local language.Answer
  5. E
    They contain detailed accounts of the military logistics and strategic operations involved in the Mycenaean conquest of Crete.

Answer

The correct answer states that the records contain linguistic evidence contradicting the theory that the Mycenaeans adopted Minoan bureaucratic systems without altering the local language.
The correct answer synthesizes two specific details from the passage: Arthur Evans's theory that the Mycenaeans adopted Minoan administrative systems 'without altering the local language,' and Ventris's subsequent discovery that these same administrative records were replete with 'Greek vocabulary.' Therefore, the records themselves provide the concrete linguistic evidence that directly contradicts Evans's theory of an unaltered, indigenous language.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the question stem to determine the task.
The question asks for a supported inference specifically regarding the 'administrative records discovered at Knossos'.
Identifying the specific subject of the inquiry helps filter out irrelevant information from the passage.
2
Scan the passage for mentions of the administrative records and related bureaucratic systems.
The passage states Evans believed the Mycenaeans adopted 'Minoan administrative systems without altering the local language,' but Ventris's translation yielded 'administrative records replete with recognizable Greek vocabulary.'
Grounding the inference strictly in textual evidence is required to find the correct answer.
3
Synthesize the findings about the administrative records.
The presence of Greek vocabulary in the records proves that the Mycenaeans did, in fact, alter the local language within the administrative apparatus, directly refuting Evans's claim.
Specific detail inference questions often require connecting a premise from one part of the passage with a finding in another.
4
Evaluate the answer choices against this synthesized conclusion.
The option stating the records contain evidence contradicting the theory that Mycenaeans adopted the systems without altering the language perfectly matches the textual synthesis.
To confidently select the correct answer and eliminate distractors that misattribute viewpoints or overstate claims.

Key Concept

Specific Detail Inferences in Reading Comprehension
Rate this question

Topics

Specific Detail Inferences

More questions from this topic