In a New Book About the Antiparty Feeling GMAT Reading Comprehension

Reading Passage Question

In a new book about the antiparty feeling of the early political leaders of the United States, Ralph Ketcham argues that the first six Presidents differed decisively from later Presidents because the first six held values inherited from the classical humanist tradition of eighteenth-century England. In this view, government was designed not to satisfy the private desires of the people but to make them better citizens; this tradition stressed the disinterested devotion of political leaders to the public good. Justice, wisdom, and courage were more important qualities in a leader than the ability to organize voters and win elections. Indeed, leaders were supposed to be called to office rather than to run for office. And if they took up the burdens of public office with a sense of duty, leaders also believed that such offices were naturally their due because of their social preeminence or their contributions to the country. Given this classical conception of leadership, it is not surprising that the first six Presidents condemned political parties. Parties were partial by definition, self-interested, and therefore serving something other than the transcendent public good.

Even during the first presidency (Washington's), however, the classical conception of virtuous leadership was being undermined by commercial forces that had been gathering since at least the beginning of the eighteenth century. Commerce—its profit-making, its self-interestedness, its individualism—became the enemy of these classical ideals. Although Ketcham does not picture the struggle in quite this way, he does rightly see Jackson's tenure (the seventh presidency) as the culmination of the acceptance of party, commerce, and individualism. For the Jacksonians, nonpartisanship lost its relevance, and under the direction of Van Buren, party gained a new legitimacy. The classical ideals of the first six Presidents became identified with a privileged aristocracy, an aristocracy that had to be overcome in order to allow competition between opposing political interests. Ketcham is so strongly committed to justifying the classical ideals, however, that he underestimates the advantages of their decline. For example, the classical conception of leadership was incompatible with our modern notion of the freedoms of speech and press, freedoms intimately associated with the legitimacy of opposing political parties.

‘In a new book about the antiparty feeling of the early political leaders of the United States’ is a GMAT reading comprehension passage with answers. Candidates need a strong knowledge of English GMAT reading comprehension.
This GMAT Reading Comprehension consists of 6 comprehension questions.
The GMAT Reading Comprehension questions are designed for the purpose of testing candidates’ abilities in understanding, analyzing, and applying information or concepts. Candidates can actively prepare with the help of GMAT Reading Comprehension Practice Questions.

Solution and Explanation

1. The passage is primarily concerned with

(A) describing and comparing two theories about the early history of the United States
(B) describing and analyzing an argument about the early history of the United States
(C) discussing new evidence that qualifies a theory about the early history of the United States
(D) refuting a theory about political leadership in the United States
(E) resolving ambiguity in an argument about political leadership in the United States

2. According to the passage, the author and Ketcham agree on which of the following points?

(A) The first six Presidents held the same ideas about political parties as did later Presidents in the United States.
(B) Classical ideals supported the growth of commercial forces in the United States.
(C) The first political parties in the United States were formed during Van Buren's term in office.
(D) The first six Presidents placed great emphasis on individualism and civil rights.
(E) Widespread acceptance of political parties occurred during Andrew Jackson's presidency.

3. It can be inferred that the author of the passage would be most likely to agree that modern views of the freedoms of speech and press are

(A) values closely associated with the beliefs of the aristocracy of the early United States
(B) political rights less compatible with democracy and individualism than with classical ideals
(C) political rights uninfluenced by the formation of opposing political parties
(D) values not inherent in the classical humanist tradition of eighteenth-century England
(E) values whose interpretation would have been agreed on by all United States Presidents

4. Which of the following, if true, provides the LEAST support for the author's argument about commerce and political parties during Jackson's presidency?

(A) Many supporters of Jackson resisted the commercialization that could result from participation in a national economy.
(B) Protest against the corrupt and partisan nature of political parties in the United States subsided during Jackson's presidency.
(C) During Jackson's presidency the use of money became more common than bartering of goods and services.
(D) More northerners than southerners supported Jackson because southerners were opposed to the development of a commercial economy.
(E) Andrew Jackson did not feel as strongly committed to the classical ideals of leadership as George Washington had felt.

5. The author of the passage would most likely to agree with which of following statements about Ketcham?

(A) He overemphasizes the influence of classical ideals on the first six Presidents of the United States.
(B) He fails to recognize that classical ideals had little influence on politics in the United States.
(C) He does not pay adequate attention to the negative aspects of the first six Presidents’ commitment to classical ideals.
(D) He inaccurately suggests that classical ideals gave rise to our modern notion of democracy.
(E) He underestimates the effect of ideologies other than the humanist tradition on the first six Presidents

6. Which of the following best describes the attitude of the first six Presidents toward political parties as it is discussed in the passage?

(A) Political parties were essential to the notions of democracy on which the United States government was based.
(B) Personal character in leadership was as important as affiliation with a political party.
(C) Political parties were one way to ensure that government could meet the needs of all citizens.
(D) Political parties, though undesirable, were inevitable in a democratic political system.
(E) Political parties represented opposing political interests rather than the general public good.

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