Scholars often fail to see that music played an important role in the preservation of African culture in the United States. They correctly note that slavery stripped some cultural elements from Black people—their political and economic systems—but they underestimate the significance of music in sustaining other African cultural values. African music, unlike the music of some other cultures, was based on a total vision of life in which music was not an isolated social domain. In African culture music was pervasive, serving not only religion, but all phases of life, including birth, death, work, and play. The methods that a community devises to perpetuate itself come into being to preserve aspects of the cultural legacy that that community perceives as essential. Music, like art in general, was so inextricably a part of African culture that it became a crucial means of preserving the culture during and after the dislocations of slavery.

17. The primary purpose of the passage is to

(A) analyze the impact that slavery had on African political and economic systems
(B) review the attempt of recent scholarship to study the influence of African music on other music
(C) correct the failure of some scholars to appreciate the significance of music in African culture
(D) survey the ways by which people attempt to preserve their culture against the effects of oppression
(E) compare the relative importance of music with that of other art forms in culture



18. In the Passage “isolated social domain” refers to

(A) African music in relation to contemporary culture as a whole
(B) music as it may be perceived in non-African cultures
(C) a feature of African music that aided in transmitting African cultural values
(D) an aspect of the African cultural legacy
(E) the influence of music on contemporary culture



19. Which of the following statements concerning the function of African music can be inferred from the passage?

(A) It preserved cultural values because it was thoroughly integrated into the lives of the people.
(B) It was more important in the development of African religious life than in other areas of culture.
(C) It was developed in response to the loss of political and economic systems.
(D) Its pervasiveness in African culture hindered its effectiveness in minimizing the impact of slavery.
(E) Its isolation from the economic domains of life enabled it to survive the destructive impact of slavery.



20. According to the author, scholars would err in drawing which of the following conclusions?

I. Slavery stripped the slaves of their political and economic systems.
II. African music was similar to all other traditions of music in that it originated in a total vision of life.
III. Music was a crucial part of the African cultural legacy.

(A) I only
(B) II only
(C) I and II only
(D) II and III only
(E) I, II, and III