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The passage given below is followed by four alternate summaries. Choose the option that best captures the essence of the passage.

Colonialism is not a modern phenomenon. World history is full of examples of one society gradually expanding by incorporating adjacent territory and settling its people on newly conquered territory. In the sixteenth century, colonialism changed decisively because of technological developments in navigation that began to connect more remote parts of the world. The modern European colonial project emerged when it became possible to move large numbers of people across the ocean and to maintain political control in spite of geographical dispersion. The term colonialism is used to describe the process of European settlement, violent dispossession and political domination over the rest of the world, including the Americas, Australia, and parts of Africa and Asia.

Solution

βœ… Correct Option: 4

We need to find what changed about colonialism in the 16th century and why.

From passage: "In the sixteenth century, colonialism changed decisively because of technological developments in navigation that began to connect more remote parts of the world."

The passage says colonialism existed before -> but transformed in the 16th century -> because of navigation technology -> this let Europeans move many people across oceans -> and control distant lands.


Let's check each option for what students often miss:

πŸ”΄ Option 1 -> scope-error -> says colonialism was "conceptualized" in 16th century, but passage clearly states it existed before and just changed then. This misses the key point about transformation.

πŸ”΄ Option 2 -> too narrow -> says "British" specifically, but passage talks about "European" colonialism generally. Students often pick this because it sounds detailed, but it's actually wrong.

🟠 Option 3 -> partial-truth -> correctly mentions navigation technology and European colonialism, but doesn't capture the crucial idea that colonialism transformed rather than just happened. Misses the "change" aspect.

🟒 Option 4 is correct -> uses "transformed colonialism" which perfectly matches "changed decisively" from the passage. Captures both the technology cause and the European scope accurately.

Key elimination tip: When you see "conceptualized" vs "transformed" - always check if the passage talks about something starting fresh or changing from what existed before!

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