Nu Shu Reading Answers

Feb 4, 2023

Nu Shu Reading Answers has a total of 40 questions and is scheduled for an hour. The reading abilities of students are assessed in the IELTS Reading section via a passage followed by questions. The IELTS Reading part tests students' skills using a range of question types. There are three types of questions in Nu Shu Reading Answers. They are Choose the correct heading, Choose two letters, True/false/ Not Given. Candidates need to go through the passage and understand the brief before choosing the heading. The candidate’s judging power is accessed in True false and Not Given. The topic: Nu Shu Reading Answers has been taken from the book: Cambridge Vocabulary for IELTS. Candidates can get more similar topics from IELTS Reading Practice papers.

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Section 1

Read the Passage to Answer the Following Questions

Nu Shu Reading Answers

It is sometimes said that men and women communicate in different languages. For hundreds of years in the Jiangyong county of Hunan Province, China, this was quite literally the case. Sometime between 400 and 1,000 years ago, women defied the patriarchal norms of the time that forbade them to read or write and conceived of Nu Shu — literally, ‘ women’s language ’ — a secretive script and language of their own. Through building informal networks of ‘sworn sisters’ who committed themselves to teach the language only to other women, and by using it artistically in ways that could be passed off as artwork (such as writing characters on a decorative fan), Nushu was able to grow and spread without attracting too much suspicion.
Nushu has many orthographical distinctions from the standard Chinese script. While the standard Chinese has large, bold strokes that look as if they might have been shaped with a thick permanent marker pen, Nushu characters are thin, slanted, and have a slightly ‘scratchy’ appearance that bears more similarity to calligraphy. Whereas standard Chinese is logographic, with characters representing words and meanings, Nushu is entirely phonetic — each character represents a sound; the meaning must be acquired from the context of what is being said. Users of Nushu developed coded meanings for various words and phrases, but, likely, only a tiny fraction of these will ever be known. Many secrets of Nushu have gone to the grave.
Nushu was developed as a way to allow women to communicate with one another in confidence. To some extent, this demand came from a desire for privacy, and Nushu allowed women a forum for personal written communication in a society that was dominated by a male-orientated social culture. There was also a practical element to the rise of Nushu, however: until the mid 20th century, women were rarely encouraged to become literate in the standard Chinese script. Nushu provided a practical and easy-to-learn alternative. Women who were separated from their families and friends by marriage could, therefore, send ‘letters’ to each other. Unlike traditional correspondence, however, Nushu characters were painted or embroidered onto everyday items like fans, pillowcases, and handkerchiefs and embodied in ‘artwork’ to avoid making men suspicious.
After the Chinese Revolution, more women were encouraged to become literate in the standard Chinese script, and much of the need for a special form of women’s communication was dampened. When the Red Guard discovered the script in the 1960s, they thought it to be a code used for espionage. Upon learning that it was a secret women’s language, they were suspicious and fearful. Numerous letters, weavings, embroideries, and other artifacts were destroyed, and women were forbidden to practise Nushu customs. As a consequence, the generational chains of linguistic transmission were broken up, and the language ceased being passed down through sworn sisters. There is no longer anyone alive who has learnt Nushu in this traditional manner; Yang Huanyi, the last proficient user of the language, died on September 20, 2004, in her late 90s.
In recent years, however, popular and scholarly interest in Nushu has blossomed. The Ford Foundation granted US$209,000 to build a Nu Shu Museum that houses artifacts such as audio recordings, manuscripts, and articles, some of which date back over 100 years. The investment from Hong Kong SAR is also being used to build infrastructure at potential tourist sites in Hunan, and some schools in the area have begun instruction in the language. Incidentally, the use of Nushu is also a theme in Lisa See’s historical novel. Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, which has since been adapted for film.

Section 2

Solution and Explanation
Questions 1-5
Reading Passage has five sections, A-E.
Choose the correct heading for each section from the list of headings below.
Write the correct number i-viii in boxes 1-5 on your answer sheet.

Section A
Section B
Section C
Section D
Section E

Financial costs
Decline and disuse
Birth and development
Political uses of Nushu
The social role of Nushu
Last of the Nushu speakers
Characteristics of written Nushu
Revival and contemporary interest

Question 1

Answer: iii- birth and development
Supporting Sentence: Sometime between 400 and 1,000 years ago, women defied the patriarchal norms of the time that forbade them to read or write and conceived of Nu Shu — literally, ‘ women’s language ’ — a secretive script and language of their own.
Keywords: patriarchal norms, women’s language
Keyword Location: Paragraph A, 3^rd sentence
Explanation: As per the passage, we see that Nushu was able to flourish and spread without drawing too much suspicion. It was done by forming informal networks of sworn sisters' who pledged to teach the language solely to other women. They utilized it creatively in ways that could be passed off as artwork (such as painting characters on a beautiful fan). These all refer to birth and development.

Question 2

Answer: vii-Characteristics of written Nushu
Supporting Sentence: Nushu has many orthographical distinctions from the standard Chinese script.
Keywords: orthographical, distinctions
Keyword Location: Paragraph B, 1^st sentence.
Explanation: The first line of the paragraph starts by differentiating Nushu and Chinese script. The passage also says that Nushu is entirely phonetic, with each letter representing a sound, and the meaning must be deduced from the context. The author also mentions that many of Nushu's secrets have been lost. These are charecteristics of Nushu.

Question 3

Answer: v-The social role of Nushu
Supporting Sentence: Nushu was developed as a way to allow women to communicate with one another in confidence.
Keywords: allow women, communicate
Keyword Location: Paragraph C, 1^st sentence.
Explanation: The author states that Nushu was created as a method for women to connect with one another in a secure environment. Connecting with one another means being social. Hence, it was the social role of Nushu.

Question 4

Answer: ii- Decline and disuse
Supporting Sentence: When the Red Guard discovered the script in the 1960s, they thought it to be a code used for espionage.
Keywords: Red Guard, espionage
Keyword Location: Paragraph D, 2^nd sentence
Explanation: The passage states that linguistic transmission lines were broken. The language was also no longer passed on by sworn sisters. Yang Huanyi, the last fluent practitioner of the language, died on September 20, 2004, in her late 90s, leaving no one living who has learned Nushu in this traditional method. Hence, it was stopped and not used. Decline has the same meaning, making it the correct answer.

Question 5

Answer: viii- Revival and contemporary interest
Supporting Sentence: In recent years, however, popular and scholarly interest in Nushu has blossomed.
Keywords: popular and scholarly interest
Keyword Location: Paragraph E
Explanation: In recent years, there has been a surge in public and intellectual interest in Nushu. The Ford Foundation provided funding for the construction of a Nu shu Museum, which holds artefacts such as audio recordings, manuscripts, and publications, some of which are over 100 years old.

Questions 6 and 7
Choose TWO letters, A-E. Write your answers in boxes 6 and 7 on your answer sheet.

Why was there a need for Nushu? Which TWO reasons are given in the text?

It provided new artistic opportunities for female artisans.
It was a way for uneducated women to read and write.
Not enough women were taking an interest in literature.
It was a way for women to correspond without men knowing.
It helped women believe in themselves and their abilities.

Question 6

Answer: B- It was a way for uneducated women to read and write.
Supporting Sentence: There was also a practical element to the rise of Nushu, however: until the mid 20th century, women were rarely encouraged to become literate in the standard Chinese script.
Keywords: rarely encouraged, easy-to-learn
Keyword Location: Paragraph C, 3^rd sentence
Explanation: As per the passage, the author states that Nushu provided a easy way to learn procedure. Women rejected patriarchal traditions of the time, which banned females from reading or writing. They invented Nu shu, a clandestine script and language of their own, somewhere between 400 and 1,000 years ago. hence, it was a way for uneducated women to read and write.

Question 7

Answer: D- It was a way for women to correspond without men knowing.
Supporting Sentence: Women who were separated from their families and friends by marriage could, therefore, send ‘letters’ to each other.
Keywords: families, friends by marriage
Keyword Location: Paragraph C, 5^th sentence.
Explanation: As per the author, Nushu was able to flourish and spread without drawing too much suspicion. It formed informal networks of sworn sisters' who pledged to teach the language solely to other women. This means that they did not allow the men to know about this.

Questions 8-13
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage?
In boxes 8-13 on your answer sheet, write

TRUE, if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE, if the statement contradicts with the information
NOT GIVEN, if there is no information on this

Question 8: The post-Revolution government did not want women to read or write in any language.

Answer: False
Supporting Sentence: After the Chinese Revolution, more women were encouraged to become literate in the standard Chinese script, and much of the need for a special form of women’s communication was dampened.
Keywords: Chinese Revolution
Keyword Location: Paragraph D, 1^st sentence
Explanation: Following the Chinese Revolution, more women were encouraged to become educated in the regular Chinese script, which reduced the necessity for a unique form of female communication.

Question 9: At first, the Red Guard thought Nushu might be a tool for spies.

Answer: true
Supporting Sentence: When the Red Guard discovered the script in the 1960s, they thought it to be a code used for espionage.
Keywords: women’s communication
Keyword Location: Paragraph D
Explanation: The author mentions that when the Red Guard first found the writing in the 1960s, they mistook it for an espionage code. They thought spies might be using this. However, they were shocked to find it was a women’s language. This makes the statement true.

Question 10: Women could be punished with the death penalty for using Nushu.

Answer: Not Given
Explanation: There is no such information provided in the passage. Hence, Not Given is the correct answer.

Question 11: The customary way of learning Nu Shu has died out

Answer: True
Supporting Sentence: As a consequence, the generational chains of linguistic transmission were broken up, and the language ceased being passed down through sworn sisters.
Keywords: linguistic transmission, sworn sisters
Keyword Location: Paragraph D
Explanation: Women were banned to practise Nushu traditions, and several letters, weavings, embroideries, and other artifacts were burned. As a result, the language's generational transmission lines were broken, and the language was no longer passed down through sworn sisters. Yang Huanyi, the last fluent practitioner of the language, died on September 20, 2004, in her late 90s, leaving no one living who has learned Nushu in this traditional method.

Question 12: There is a lot of money to be made out of public interest in Nushu.

Answer: Not Given
Explanation: There is no such information provided in the passage. Hence, Not Given is the correct answer.

Question 13: Nushu is now being openly taught.

Answer: True
Supporting Sentence: The investment from Hong Kong SAR is also being used to build infrastructure at potential tourist sites in Hunan, and some schools in the area have begun instruction in the language.
Keywords: infrastructure, potential tourist
Keyword Location: Paragraph E
Explanation: The author states that some schools have begun instructions in the Nushu language. There has been a surge in public and intellectual interest in Nushu. The Ford Foundation provided funding for the construction of a Nu shu Museum, which holds artifacts such as audio recordings, manuscripts, and publications, some of which are over 100 years old. Hence, the statement is True.

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