Page 40 - index

2024 ‫מועד חורף‬ - 39 - ‫ פרק ראשון‬- ‫אנגלית‬

Reading Comprehension

This part consists of two passages, each followed by several related questions. For each
question, choose the most appropriate answer based on the text.

Text I (Questions 13-17)

(1) In all probability, residents of early medieval Europe enjoyed healthier conditions,
despite the crudeness of sanitary equipment, than their more prosperous 16th-century
descendants. This was due to the establishment, in the Middle Ages, of public
bathhouses. Sometimes run by private individuals, but more often by the local

(5) municipality, these bathhouses were common institutions in medieval European towns.
Their existence was an indication of the importance attached to cleanliness at the time.

A visit to the public bathhouse involved both bathing and steaming. It was
customary to engage in such extensive cleaning at least once in two weeks and
sometimes even weekly. Like the Roman bathhouse, the medieval bathhouse was a

(10) meeting place which promoted social contact. Paintings of the period depict people
gossiping and eating together at the bathhouse, unembarrassed by bodily exposure. In
addition, at the bathhouse one could be treated for pains and inflammatory conditions.
So popular was bathing in the Middle Ages that the practice even spread to rural
districts.

(15) By the 16th century, however, bathing had become less popular throughout Europe.
The city of Frankfurt, which had 29 bathhouse keepers in 1387, had none in 1530. The
scarcity of wood in the vicinity of large cities had made heating large quantities of water
prohibitively expensive. Bathing became a luxury that only the upper classes could
afford.

(20) In the 19th century, in an attempt to overcome the uncleanliness and disorder that
had prevailed in urban life for some time, many cities created public bathhouses in poor
neighborhoods. No doubt those cities' officials would have been astounded to learn that
they were returning to a common medieval practice.

Questions

13. The main purpose of the text is to describe -

(1) the importance of cleanliness in 16th-century Europe
(2) the differences between medieval and 16th-century villages
(3) the practice of public bathing in medieval Europe
(4) the development of sanitary equipment in the medieval home

)‫© כל הזכויות שמורות למרכז ארצי לבחינות ולהערכה (ע"ר‬
.‫ בלא אישור בכתב מהמרכז הארצי לבחינות ולהערכה‬- ‫ כולה או חלקים ממנה‬- ‫ או ללמדה‬,‫אין להעתיק או להפיץ בחינה זו או קטעים ממנה בכל צורה ובכל אמצעי‬