SSAT Middle Level Reading Practice Test 57

When Dorothea Lange was seven years old, she contracted polio, a disease that caused her to walk with a limp. Her father abandoned the family when Dorothea was 12, and her mother went to work, first as a librarian and then as a social worker. Dorothea attended school in New York City, where, on her way home, she saw many people who were poor and homeless. Her illness, the abandonment by her father, and the people she observed in New York may have helped her understand some of the suffering of the people she would later photograph.

Lange decided at 18 that she wanted to be a photographer and began learning the skill through classes, in which she worked with other photographers to learn her craft. She also attended classes in New York City. She did not consider photography to be an art form, but today many of her pictures hang in museums.

Although Lange could not see the "art" in her pictures, her work has many of the same features as a painting. She captured not only images of people on film, but also the conditions under which they lived. Like many paintings, Dorothea Lange's photographs tell a story, often sending a powerful social message.

-America's Library

1. All of the following contributed to Lange's life as a photographer EXCEPT:

• A. Her father leaving her at an early age.
• B. Receiving a camera at the age of seven.
• C. Taking photography classes as a young adult.
• D. Suffering from a disease as a child.
• E. The poor and homeless of New York City.

2. Why did the author refer to Lange's photography as "art"?

• A. Lange wanted to be an artist and not a photographer.
• B. Lange's classes only offered art certificates.
• C. Lange did many paintings that are in museums.
• D. Lange took many photographs of New York artists.
• E. Lange's pictures had some attributes of paintings.

3. The mood of this passage can best be described as

• A. respectful
• B. humorous
• C. analytical
• D. anxious
• E. earnest

4. The main purpose of the first paragraph is to

• A. understand how Lange survived her childhood.
• B. describe the suffering of New York City's poor.
• C. show how Lange's mother influenced her daughter.
• D. provide a basis for Lange's photography career.
• E. explain why Lange first loved social work.

5. It can be inferred from the passage that Lange

• A. took many pictures of her mother.
• B. learned from other photographers.
• C. first wanted to be a librarian.
• D. stayed in New York her whole life.
• E. lived near a museum as a child.