The first Philippine Revolution occurred at the end of the 1800s, but it was fueled in part by a movement that had grown up earlier. Filipinos who had emigrated to Europe, either in exile or to study, began to come together to strive for equal rights for Filipino and Spanish citizens in the Philippines. They asked for representation in the Spanish parliament, freedoms of speech and assembly, and equal opportunities for Filipinos when it came to getting jobs in government.
La Solidaridad, a newspaper published in Spain by exiled Filipinos, was the main organ of this Propaganda Movement. La Solidaridad was the name of an organization as well as a newspaper, but it was the paper that mattered more. Between the years 1889 and 1895, the little paper, whose ambitions were modest and whose readership was small, lit a fire of nationalist pride under those few individuals who would go on to lead the Filipino people in their fight against Spanish exploitation.
Perhaps the most prominent member of the Propaganda Movement was José Rizal. A scientist by trade, he strove scientifically to refute Europeans" notions of Filipinos as an inferior people. His papers and orations were important, but his two novels, Noli Me Tangere (1886) and El Filibusterismo (1891), were even more influential. Their heavy-handed symbolism portrayed corruption and abuse in the Spanish-led government and clergy of the Philippines. Although Rizal mainly wanted equality and representation, his books led to a sense of Filipino self-respect that stimulated true revolution.
单选题 Paragraph two of the passage suggests that La Solidaridad was a success because it
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】The newspaper had modest goals (choice A), but they are not presented as a reason for its success. Instead of reaching thousands of readers (choice B), it had a small readership, but those readers were important (choice C).
单选题 It can be inferred from the passage that in the Philippines around the year 1890,
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】La Solidaridad was published in Spain, not the Philippines (choice A), and Rizal worked in Europe, not in the Philippines (choice C). There is no support for choice B, and the revolution (choice E) came late in the decade. The best inference is choice D.
单选题 The author suggests that the sense of cultural pride engendered by Rizal"s books helped to goad Filipinos into revolution, but another possibility might be that
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】Choices A, B, and D would not foment revolution among Filipinos, but descriptions of abuses (choice C) might.
单选题 How might the organization of the passage be described?
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】Paragraph one introduces the Propaganda Movement, and paragraphs two and three present two examples, one an organization and newspaper, and the other a key leader of the movement.