Question

read the excerpt from \keep things stirring.\
i have done a great deal of work, as much as a man, but did not get so much pay. i used to work in the field and bind grain, keeping up with the cradler, but men doing no more got twice as much pay. so with the german women: they work in the field and do as much work, but do not get the pay.
which is a key idea that belongs in a summary of this excerpt?
○ black women and german women both work in the fields as hard as men.
○ the speaker has done a great deal of work, even more than most men.
○ women who perform the same work as men get paid half as much.
○ jobs such as keeping up with the cradler can be done equally well by both men and women.

Explanation:

• Analyze each option:
• First option: The excerpt focuses on pay disparity, not comparing Black and German women's work to men's in terms of "as hard as men" (the main point is pay, not work intensity comparison), so eliminate.
• Second option: The speaker says she did as much as a man, not "even more than most men", so this misrepresents the text, eliminate.
• Third option: The excerpt states the speaker (a woman) did as much work as a man but got half the pay (men got twice as much), and German women also did as much work as men but didn't get equal pay. This option accurately captures the key idea of pay disparity for equal work.
• Fourth option: The excerpt's main point is pay, not whether men and women can do jobs equally well. The job example is to illustrate pay disparity, not job capability, so eliminate.

Answer:

C. Women who perform the same work as men get paid half as much.