EigoPro 2級 読解 — The Invention of Writing

The Invention of Writing Of all the inventions in human history, few have been as important as writing. Speech allows us to share ideas with the people around us, but only writing lets us send a message across great distances, or pass our thoughts on to people who will not be born for hundreds of years. It is no exaggeration to say that recorded history itself begins with the first written words. Interestingly, writing does not seem to have been invented to record poems or great stories. The earliest known writing, made in the Middle East more than five thousand years ago, was used for something far more ordinary: keeping accounts. As villages grew into the first cities, rulers and traders needed to record how much grain was stored, who owed what to whom, and how many animals each family owned. Human memory alone was no longer enough. At first, these records were made with simple pictures: a drawing of an ox meant an ox, a picture of grain meant grain. Over time, however, the symbols became simpler and more abstract, until they no longer looked like the things they stood for. Eventually, some societies developed the alphabet, in which a small number of symbols represent sounds rather than whole words. This clever idea made writing far easier to learn, and helped it spread. The effects of writing are almost impossible to measure. It allowed laws to be fixed, knowledge to be collected and shared, and the experiences of one generation to be passed to the next. Without it, there could be no books, no science as we know it, and no record of the past. Though we now write on glowing screens rather than clay tablets, we are still using the same remarkable invention that those ancient accountants began so long ago.

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この単元の問題を3問、解説つきで公開しています

2級 · 読解 · 全5問

問 1

What is the main idea of the passage?

  • Writing can only share ideas with people standing nearby.
  • Writing is far less useful than ordinary speech.
  • Writing was one of the least important human inventions.
  • Writing is one of history's most important inventions, letting ideas cross distance and time.
Phrase

only writing lets us send a message across distances or pass thoughts to future people

文字だけが遠方へ伝え、未来の人へ思考を残せる

2級読解歴史記事主旨
⚡ひとことで

記事の主旨は「文字は人類史上最重要級の発明で、遠方や未来へ思考を伝え、記録された歴史そのものを始めた」。

選択肢の解説Choice Analysis

「Writing is one of history's most important inventions, letting ideas cross distance and time.」

正解

第1段落 "few have been as important as writing ... only writing lets us send a message across great distances, or pass our thoughts on to people who will not be born for hundreds of years" が主旨。記事は誕生理由 → 発展 → 影響と展開。pass ~ on to ... = 「〜を…へ伝える」、no exaggeration = 「誇張でない」。

  • 「Writing is far less useful to people than ordinary everyday speech.」

    = 文字は話し言葉よりずっと無用 ━ 本文 "only writing lets us send ... across distances" と矛盾。

  • 「Writing can only share ideas with the people who are standing nearby.」

    = 近くの人とだけ共有できる ━ それは speech、writing は distances/future。

  • 「Writing was one of the least important inventions in the whole of human history.」

    = 最も重要でない発明の一つ ━ 本文 "as important as writing" と矛盾。

▦Collocation
パターン意味例
as important as ~〜と同じくらい重要as important as writing
pass ~ on to ...〜を…へ伝えるpass our thoughts on to
across distances距離を越えてacross great distances
no exaggeration to say ~〜と言っても過言でないno exaggeration to say
recorded history記録された歴史recorded history itself
❝例文

  • Writing is a hugely important invention.

    文字は極めて重要な発明だ。

  • It sends ideas across distance and time.

    それは距離と時を越え考えを伝える。

  • Recorded history begins with writing.

    記録された歴史は文字で始まる。

💡Tip · 覚えるコツ

主旨設問の鉄則 ―― "few have been as important as writing ... only writing lets us ..." が主旨。誤答は本文と矛盾 (話し言葉より無用 / 近くだけ / 重要でない) で誘導。距離と時を越える点を含む選択肢が正解。

問 2

Why was writing first invented, according to the passage?

  • Writing began for keeping accounts, as growing cities needed records memory could not hold.
  • Human memory was always more than enough for cities.
  • Early cities had no need to keep any records.
  • Writing was first invented to record beautiful poems.
Phrase

the earliest writing was used for keeping accounts; memory was no longer enough

最古の文字は会計記録に使われ、記憶だけでは足りなくなった

2級読解歴史記事詳細 (なぜ生まれた)
⚡ひとことで

意外にも文字は詩や物語の記録のためでなく、もっと平凡な目的 ─ 会計記録 ─ に使われた。村が最初の都市に育つと、支配者や商人が貯蔵穀物の量、誰が誰に何を借りているか、各家の家畜数を記録する必要が生じ、人の記憶だけでは足りなくなった。

選択肢の解説Choice Analysis

「Writing began for keeping accounts, as growing cities needed records memory could not hold.」

正解

第2段落 "writing does not seem to have been invented to record poems ... was used for something far more ordinary: keeping accounts. As villages grew into the first cities, rulers and traders needed to record how much grain was stored ... Human memory alone was no longer enough" より、誕生理由 = 会計記録のため(都市化で記憶だけでは不足)。keep accounts = 「会計をつける」、owe ~ to ... = 「…に〜を借りている」。

  • 「Writing was first invented in order to record beautiful poems, songs and stories.」

    = 美しい詩の記録のため発明 ━ 本文 "does not seem to have been invented to record poems" と矛盾。

  • 「The early cities had no need at all to keep records of any kind.」

    = 初期都市は記録不要だった ━ 本文 "needed to record ..." と矛盾。

  • 「Human memory was always more than enough for the growing early cities.」

    = 記憶は都市に常に十分だった ━ 本文 "no longer enough" と矛盾。

▦Collocation
パターン意味例
keep accounts会計をつけるkeeping accounts
grow into ~〜に成長するgrew into the first cities
owe ~ to ...…に〜を借りているwho owed what to whom
no longer enoughもはや足りないno longer enough
far more ordinaryもっと平凡なfar more ordinary
❝例文

  • Early writing was used for accounts.

    初期の文字は会計に使われた。

  • Cities needed to record grain and debts.

    都市は穀物や借りを記録する必要があった。

  • Memory alone was not enough.

    記憶だけでは足りなかった。

💡Tip · 覚えるコツ

誕生理由設問の鉄則 ―― "does not seem to have been invented to record poems ... for ... keeping accounts" の意外な事実を拾う。誤答は本文が否定する点 (詩のため / 記録不要 / 記憶で十分) で誘導。

問 3

How did writing develop over time?

  • Writing began with the alphabet and later became pictures.
  • The alphabet made writing much harder to learn.
  • The symbols always looked exactly like real objects.
  • Writing went from pictures to abstract symbols, and then to alphabets standing for sounds.
Phrase

simple pictures → simpler, abstract symbols → the alphabet

/symbols for sounds/

単純な絵→簡略で抽象的な記号→アルファベット(音を表す記号)

2級読解歴史記事詳細 (どう発展)
⚡ひとことで

最初の記録は単純な絵(牛の絵=牛、穀物の絵=穀物)。やがて記号は簡略で抽象的になり、表す物に似なくなった。ついに一部の社会が、少数の記号が語全体でなく音を表すアルファベットを発展させ、文字の習得をずっと容易にし普及を助けた。

選択肢の解説Choice Analysis

「Writing went from pictures to abstract symbols, and then to alphabets standing for sounds.」

正解

第3段落 "these records were made with simple pictures ... the symbols became simpler and more abstract, until they no longer looked like the things they stood for ... developed the alphabet, in which a small number of symbols represent sounds rather than whole words" より、発展 = 絵→抽象的記号→音を表すアルファベット。stand for ~ = 「〜を表す」、represent ~ = 「〜を表す」。

  • 「Writing began with the alphabet and only much later turned into simple pictures.」

    = アルファベットで始まり後に絵に ━ 本文は絵→アルファベットの順、逆。

  • 「The written symbols always looked exactly like the real objects.」

    = 記号は常に実物そっくりだった ━ 本文 "no longer looked like the things" と矛盾。

  • 「The invention of the alphabet made writing much harder to learn.」

    = アルファベットは習得を難しくした ━ 本文 "far easier to learn" と逆。

▦Collocation
パターン意味例
stand for ~〜を表すthe things they stood for
become abstract抽象的になるmore abstract
represent sounds音を表すrepresent sounds
rather than ~〜よりむしろrather than whole words
easier to learn学びやすいfar easier to learn
❝例文

  • First, writing used simple pictures.

    最初、文字は単純な絵を使った。

  • Symbols became simpler and abstract.

    記号は簡略で抽象的になった。

  • The alphabet uses symbols for sounds.

    アルファベットは音を表す記号を使う。

💡Tip · 覚えるコツ

発展段階設問の鉄則 ―― "At first ... pictures ... Over time ... abstract ... Eventually ... the alphabet" の順を守る。誤答は順序逆転 (アルファベットが先) / 本文と矛盾 (実物そっくり / 習得を難しく) で誘導。

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