Passage 25
In 1977 the prestigious1 Ewha Women‘s University inSeoul, Korea, announced the opening of the firstwomen’s studies program in Asia. Few academicprograms have ever received such public attention. In(5) broadcast debates, critics dismissed the program as abetrayal of national identity, an imitation of Westernideas, and a distraction2 from the real task of nationalunification and economic development. Even supportersunderestimated the program ; they thought it would be(10) merely another of the many Western ideas that hadalready proved useful in Asian culture, akin3 to airlines,electricity, and the assembly line. The founders4 of theprogram, however, realized that neither view wascorrect. They had some reservations about the appli-(15) cability of Western feminist5 theories to the role ofwomen in Asia and felt that such theories should beclosely examined. Their approach has thus far yieldedimportant critiques of Western theory, informed by thespecial experience of Asian women.
(20)For instance, like the Western feminist critique of theFreudian model of the human psyche6, the Korean critique finds Freudian theory culture-bound, but inways different from those cited by Western theorists.The Korean theorists claim that Freudian theory(25) assumes the universality of the Western nuclear, male-headed family and focuses on the personality formationof the individual, independent of society, An analysisbased on such assumptions could be valid7 for a highlycompetitive, individualistic society. In the Freudian(30) family drama, family members are assumed to beengaged in a Darwinian struggle against each other-father against son and sibling8 against sibling. Such aconcept of projects the competitive model of Westernsociety onto human personalities9. But in the Asian(35) concept of personality there is no ideal attached to individualism or to the independent self. The Western modelof personality development does not explain major char-acteristics of the Korean personality, which is social andgroup-centered. The “self” is a social being defined by(40) and acting10 in a group, and the well-being11 of both menand women is determined12 by the equilibrium13 of thegroup, not by individual self-assertion. The ideal is oneof interdependency.
In such a context, what is recognized as “depen-(45) dency” in Western psychiatric terms is not, in Koreanterms, an admission of weakness or failure. All this bearsdirectly on the Asian perception of men‘s and women’spsychology because men are also “ dependent”, InKorean culture, men cry and otherwise easily show their(50) emotions, something that might be considered a betrayalof masculinity in Western culture. In the kinship-basedsociety of Korea, four generations may live in the samehouse, which means that people can be sons and daugh-ters all their lives, whereas in Western culture, the rolesof husband and son, wife and daughter, are often incom-patible.
1. Which of the following best summarizes the content of the passage?
(A) A critique of a particular women‘s studies program
(B) A report of work in social theory done by a particular women‘s studies program
(C) An assessment14 of the strengths and weaknesses of a particular women‘s studies program
(D) An analysis of the philosophy underlying15 women‘s studies programs
(E) An abbreviated16 history of Korean women‘s studies programs
2. It can be inferred from the passage that Korean scholars in the field of women‘s studies undertook an analysis of Freudian theory as a response to which of the following?
(A) Attacks by critics of the Ewha women‘s studies program
(B) The superficiality of earlier critiques of Freudian theory
(C) The popularity of Freud in Korean psychiatric circles
(D) Their desire to encourage Korean scholars to adopt the Freudian model
(E) Their assessment of the relevance17 and limitations of Western feminist theory with respect to Korean culture
3. Which of the following conclusions about the introduction of Western ideas to Korean society can be supported by information contained in the passage?
(A) Except for technological18 innovations, few Western ideas have been successfully transplanted into Korean society.
(B) The introduction of Western ideas to Korean society is viewed by some Koreans as a challenge to Korean identity.
(C) The development of the Korean economy depends heavily on the development of new academic programs modeled after Western programs.
(D) The extent to which Western ideas must be adapted for acceptance by Korean society is minimal19.
(E) The introduction of Western ideas to Korean society accelerated after 1977.
4. It can be inferred from the passage that the broadcast media in Korea considered the establishment of the Ewha women‘s studies program
(A) praiseworthy
(B) insignificant20
(C) newsworthy
(D) imitative
(E) incomprehensible
5. It can be inferred from the passage that the position taken by some of the supporters of the Ewha women‘s studies program was problematic to the founders of the program because those supporters
(A) assumed that the program would be based on the uncritical adoption21 of Western theory
(B) failed to show concern for the issues of national unification and economic development
(C) were unfamiliar22 with Western feminist theory
(D) were not themselves scholars in the field of women‘s studies
(E) accepted the universality of Freudian theory
6. Which of the following statements is most consistent with the view of personality development held by the Ewha women‘s studies group?
(A) Personality development occurs in identifiable stages, beginning with dependency in childhood and ending with independence in adulthood23.
(B) Any theory of personality development, in order to be valid, must be universal.
(C) Personality development is influenced by the characteristics of the society in which a person lives.
(D) Personality development is hindered if a person is not permitted to be independent.
(E) No theory of personality development can account for the differences between Korean and Western culture.
7. Which of the following statements about the Western feminist critique of Freudian theory can be supported by information contained in the passage?
(A) It recognizes the influence of Western culture on Freudian theory.
(B) It was written after 1977.
(C) It acknowledges the universality of the nuclear,male-headed family.
(D) It challenges Freud‘s analysis of the role of daughters in Western society.
(E) It fails to address the issue of competitiveness in Western society.
8. According to the passage, critics of the Ewha women‘s studies program cited the program as a threat to which of the following?
Ⅰ. National identity
Ⅱ. National unification
Ⅲ. Economic development
Ⅳ.Family integrity
(A) Ⅰ only
(B) Ⅰ and Ⅱ only
(C) Ⅰ,Ⅱ,and Ⅲ only
(D) Ⅱ, Ⅲ, and Ⅳ only
(E) Ⅰ,Ⅱ,Ⅲ, and Ⅳ