Question

The passage given below is followed by four alternate summaries. Choose the option that best captures the essence of the passage. It’s not that modern historians of medieval Africa have been ignorant about contacts between Ethiopia and Europe; they just had the power dynamic reversed. The traditional narrative stressed Ethiopia as weak and in trouble in the face of aggression from external forces, so Ethiopia sought military assistance from their fellow Christians to the north. But the real story, buried in plain sight in medieval diplomatic texts, simply had not yet been put together by modern scholars. Recent research pushes scholars of medieval Europe to imagine a much more richly connected medieval world: at the beginning of the so-called Age of Exploration, there is evidence that the kings of Ethiopia were sponsoring their own missions of diplomacy, faith and commerce.

• A. Medieval historical sources selectively promoted the narrative that powerful European forces were called on to protect weak African civilisations such as Ethiopia, but this is far from reality.
• B. Historians were under the illusion that Ethiopia needed military protection from their neighbours, but in fact the country had close commercial and religious connections with them
• C. Medieval texts have documented how strong connections between the Christian communities of Ethiopia and Europe were invaluable in establishing military and trade links between the two civilisations.
• D. Medieval texts have been ‘cherry-picked’ to promote a view of Ethiopia as weak and in need of Europe’s military help with aggressive neighbours, but recent studies reveal it was a well-connected and outwardlooking culture.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Option 1 is problematic as it lacks a mention of the actual reality; it merely states '...far from reality' without specifying what that reality is. Therefore, option 1 is excluded. Option 2 is factually inaccurate, stating 'Ethiopia needed military protection from their neighbors,' when, in fact, it needed protection from the Europeans, not their neighbors. Option 3 is dismissed for not addressing the traditional narrative concerning Ethiopia's relations with Europe. Consequently, option 4 is the optimal choice. Cherry-picking refers to being selective about what one chooses and what one ignores.