Childbirth in Colonial America was a difficult and sometimes dangerous experience for women. During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, between 1 and 1.5 percent of all births ended in the mother’s death—as a result of exhaustion, dehydration, infection, hemorrhage, or convulsions. Since the typical mother gave birth to between five and eight children, her lifetime chances of dying in childbirth ran as high as one in eight. This meant that if a woman had eight female friends, it was likely that one would die in childbirth. Understandably, many colonial women regarded pregnancy with dread. In their letters, women often referred to childbirth as “the greatest of earthly miserys,” or “that evel hour I loock forward to with dread.” Many, like New England poet Ann Bradstreet,
approached childbirth with a fear of impending death. In addition to her anxieties about pregnancy, an expectant mother was filled with apprehensions about the survival of her newborn child. The death of a child in infancy was far more common than it is today. In the healthiest seventeenth-century communities, one infant in ten died before the age of five. In less healthy environments, three children in ten died before their fifth birthday. Puritan minister Cotton Mather saw eight of his fifteen children die before reaching the age of two.
1. The tone of the passage is
a. academic.
b. informal.
c. nostalgic.
2. The purpose of the passage is to
a. contrast Colonial Era childbirth to current-day childbirth.
b. inform the reader of the realities of childbirth during the Colonial Era.
c. persuade the reader that men took advantage of women during the Colonial Era.
3. A colonial woman’s chances of dying in childbirth were
a. one in ten.
b. one in 1.5.
c. one in eight.
4. The sentence, “In the healthiest seventeenth-century communities, one infant in ten died before the age of five,” is a statement of
a. opinion.
b. fact.
c. inference.
5. The words “miserys,” “evel,” and “loock,” are most likely
a. examples of colonial spelling.
b. misspellings.
c. typographical errors.
1. a.
2. b.
3. c.
4. b.
5. a.
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Professor Pantet is asking one of his students about today’s date and the days of the week. You will hear their conversation in French twice. The first time, listen for general meaning. The second time, write “V” (vrai) or “F” (faux) for “true” or “false.”
_____ 1. The professor thinks it is September 15. _____ 2. The professor knows what day it is. _____ 3. The student knows what day and what date it is today. _____ 4. The professor knows the student’s first name. _____ 5. Tomorrow is Tuesday.
Ascolto: Al ristorante. Marcello è in un ristorante in Piazza Maggiore con alcuni colleghi per festeggiare la promozione sul lavoro. Arriva il cameriere. Ascolta la conversazione e scrivi le parole che mancano.
[Cameriere:] Buona sera, cosa ordinate? [Marcello:] Io vorrei cominciare con degli ________________. Cosa ci consiglia? [Cameriere:] Vi consiglio dei salumi e dei ________________misti, oppure delle piadine miste. Alcune piadine sono farcite con del ________________ e formaggio. Possiamo anche fare delle piadine ________________. Come primi piatti vi consiglio degli ________________, o dei tortellini in brodo. Tra i secondi, stasera abbiamo del ________________ con i funghi porcini, una vera delizia. [Marcello:] Bene, per antipasto prendiamo qualche ________________ mista. Poi, per primo prendiamo i tortellini. Ragazzi, per voi va bene? [Ilaria:] Sì, e come secondo piatto prendiamo il filetto e dell’insalata come ________________. [Cameriere:] E da bere cosa prendete? [Marcello:] Dell’________________e del vino della casa. Ah, anche dello spumante secco. Stasera brindiamo alla mia promozione sul lavoro. [Cameriere:] Auguri allora! Poi prendiamo anche del ________________. Bene, torno fra qualche minuto con gli antipasti.
Tuo padre compra i biglietti dell’aereo oggi? (last month)
Già fatto! Rispondete usando il passato prossimo e traducete le espressioni di tempo in parentesi. (18 pts – 2 each) (Answer with the passato prossimo and translate the expressions of time in parentheses.)
Ci sono due docce in questa casa?
Ascoltate la descrizione e poi rispondete alle domande con una frase completa. (Answer the questions with a complete sentence, based on the description you hear.)