ACT
Practice Test 30

Previous Next

SOCIAL SCIENCE:

The Gunpowder Plot Remember,

remember the 5th of November, The gunpowder treason and plot. I know of no reason why gunpowder treason Should ever be forgot.

Line 5 This famous children’s poem speaks directly to the Gunpowder Plot of 1605 in which a group of Roman Catholic coconspirators attempted to blow up Westminster Palace during the formal opening of Parliament. King James I of England (James VI

10 of Scotland) was in attendance to address the joint assembly of the House of Lords and the House of Commons. The failed bomb plot certainly could have killed the King and potentially the rest of the English Legislature; it would have been a near-complete

15 removal of the aristocracy. Guy Fawkes was instrumental in the final stages of the plot, but was apprehended just prior to completing his work. Shortly thereafter, Fawkes and his coconspirators were put to death for treason and attempted murder. It has been said by

20 many—quite tongue-in-cheek—that Guy Fawkes was the only man ever to enter Parliament with honest intentions. The plot, masterminded by Robert Catesby, had surprising origins. He and Guy Fawkes, along with

25 several other Roman Catholics, were thought to be denouncers of the king’s own Church of England. Consequently, they risked civil and criminal penalties. In realizing that Spain, at the time a great Catholic world power, was involved in too many wars to help 30 the cause of English Catholics, Catesby decided that unless something was done from within, nothing would likely change. Luck smiled upon the plotters when they stumbled upon a cellar for rent beneath the House of Lords; the

35 original plan, to dig a mineshaft beneath Westminster, proved remarkably difficult, the rock and debris requiring removal in secret. Being able to rent a cellar under Parliament expedited their efforts immensely, allowing them to fill the cellar with 1,800 pounds of

40 gunpowder. The one crucial flaw in the plot, though, was that several conspirators had scruples over the potential for harm to other Catholics likely to be in attendance during the opening address. One of the men wrote

45 a letter of warning to Lord Monteagle, a fellow Catholic, who received it on October 26. Learning about the letter the following day, several conspirators wished to abort the plan, yet the decision was made to continue when Guy Fawkes confirmed that

50 nothing within the cellar had been discovered. Despite Fawkes’ confidence, Lord Monteagle took the letter seriously, and tasked the secretary of state with completing a search of all spaces beneath Westminster. Early in the morning on November 5, Fawkes was

55 apprehended in the cellar. Over the next few days, he was tortured until he confessed the identities of the other individuals who contributed to the plot. On January 31, 1606, each man convicted of treason was taken to Old Palace Yard to be hanged, drawn,

60 and quartered—this most exotic form of execution was intended as a lesson to the public: treason would not be tolerated under any circumstances. Currently, on November 5 of each year, British children burn effigies of Fawkes and recite the

65 renowned poem as a way of remembering this influential figure of the past. Guy Fawkes Day serves as a chilling reminder to everyone, not just the British, that if pressed hard enough, an individual will press back. No brutal threat can stop the most committed believer

70 from rising in defense of his beliefs.

One of the points the author seeks to make in the passage is that some English Roman Catholics in 1605:

  • Solution

    The best answer is B. The passage states that Robert Catesby, Guy Fawkes, and several other Roman Catholics “were thought to be denouncers of the king’s own Church of England,” and they “decided that unless something was done from within, nothing would likely change.” These statements suggest that some English Roman Catholics did not agree with the king and rebelled against him, seeking their own religious freedom. The other answer choices are not supported by the passage.

The author asserts that the Gunpowder Plot coconspirators were generally:

  • Solution

    The best answer is H. The passage asserts that the plan was carefully conceived and well executed, except just before the planned detonation, when a conflicted conscience led one conspirator to reveal the plan to a government official, which best supports answer choice H.

The author uses the description of the modern Guy Fawkes Day to point out that some acts are:

  • Solution

    The best answer is A. The last paragraph states that “Guy Fawkes Day serves as a chilling reminder” for British people. Answer choice D seems plausible, but the passage does not indicate that modern British citizens find fault with (i.e., consider depraved) Fawkes’ reaction to the king’s policy governing religion.

When the author asserts that Guy Fawkes had honest intentions (lines 21–22), he most likely means that members of parliament are:

  • Solution

    The best answer is J. The phrase “tongue-incheek” implies humor at the expense of members of parliament. Skepticism of the true motives of legislators is evident in the passage.

According to the passage, when are citizens most pressed to act against the government?

  • Solution

    The best answer is C. The final two sentences of the passage state that “an individual will press back ... in defense of his beliefs.” This best supports answer choice C.

As it is used in line 60, the word exotic means:

  • Solution

    The best answer is H. The execution was meant to teach a lesson to the public. The king wanted to make a powerful statement against treason, so he chose an “unusual” punishment to shock the masses. The word “exotic” can refer to something that is “unusual” or “unexpected,” so it is the best choice here.

According to the passage, under which of the following government actions would an uprising most likely occur?

  • Solution

    The best answer is A. As Fawkes and his Catholic cohorts saw it, the king was unreasonably treading on their right to practice their own religion. In the second paragraph, the author asserts that the Church of England was “the king’s own,” insinuating that it held political sway. Hence, answer choice A is correct because it represents an action of government taken to preserve its power. The other choices reflect government actions taken for the common good.

The passage makes the claim that brutal threats from the government are not a solution to the risk of public rebellion because:

  • Solution

    The best answer is G. The passage implies that although the threat of punishment may deter most people from action, “no brutal threat can stop the most committed believer,” which best supports answer choice G.

As it is used in lines 33–34, the phrase stumbled upon most nearly means:

  • Solution

    The best answer is A. The passage states that the conspirators were lucky to find a cellar space beneath Westminster Palace. A physical sense of “stumbled upon,” as in answer choices B and C does not make sense in context. Answer choice D is incorrect because the decision to seek something seems unrelated to luck.

The mineshaft in line 35 refers to:

  • Solution

    The best answer is H. According to the passage, the conspirators were preparing an explosion underneath the floor of Parliament in order to maximize destruction. The “mineshaft” refers to the actual space to be filled with explosives.

Attempted

0

Correct

0

Wrong

0

Complete
Mock Tests
Attempted
Wrong
Correct
Passage Questions