Because writing has become so important in our culture, we sometimes think of it as more real than speech. A little thought, however, will show why speech is primary and writing secondary to language. Human beings have been writing at least 5,000 years, but they have been talking for much longer, doubtless ever since there have been human beings. When writing developed, it was derived from and represented speech, although imperfectly. Even today, there are spoken languages that have no written form. Furthermore, we all learn to talk well before we learn to write; any child who is not severely handicapped physically or mentally will learn to talk: a normal man cannot be prevented from doing so. On the other hand, it takes a special effort to learn to write; in the past, many intelligent and useful members of society did not acquire the skill, and even today many who speak languages with writing systems never learn to read or write while some who learn the rudiments of those skills do so imperfectly.

To affirm the primacy of speech over writing is not to disparage the later. One advantage writing has over speech is that it is more permanent and makes possible the records that any civilization must have. Thus, if speaking makes us human, writing makes us civilized.

According to the passage, writing ..............

The phrase "split off" in paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to ........

Which statement is NOT supported by the information in the passage?

According to the passage, an exuberant tone of voice may be an indication of a person’s ____________.

What surprised John most about the flight?

Which of the following can be inferred from the first paragraph?

Which of the following is NOT true?

The word "discrete" in line 16 is closest in meaning to ......

According to the passage, the difficulty in diagnosing allergies to foods is due to ______________.

The author mentions that all of the following are aware of quantities in some ways EXCEPT ............

The statement: "Colloquialisms, on the other hand, are familiar words and idioms that are understood by almost all speakers of a language and used in informal speech or writing, but not considered acceptable for more formal situations." means:

The word “alarmingly” in paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to ____.

According to the passage, when James Monroe came to the White House, it had been .......

It can be inferred from the passage that the Puritans who traveled to the Massachusetts colony were __________.

The series was designed _____________

According to the passage, in what way did the climate changes in the ice ages differ from the modern ones?

Which aspect of colonial printing does the passage mainly discuss?

According to the passage, which of the following is true?

What is the author's main purpose?

The word “elegant” is closest in meaning to ...........

Why does the author refer to Gilbert White’s book in line 2?