Commented questions of Spanish in the Enem

In this article, we will analyze 6 questions of Spanish from the Enem, seeking to highlight the reading skills needed to answer them and commenting on the answers. Continue reading!

Read too: Most demanded Spanish topics in Enem

1. Example 1 of Enem Spanish question

(Enem 2016)

Text in Spanish written on a white wall: “No supe qué ponerme y puse Feliz” — Spanish question for Enem 2016.

LIME POETIC ACTION. Available in: https://twitter.com. Accessed on: May 30, 2016.

In this graffiti, created by a group that makes artistic interventions in the city of Lima, there is a play on words with the verb put on. In the first occurrence, the verb is equivalent to “wearing clothes”, in the second, it indicates

a) onset of action.

b) change of state.

c) completion of idea.

d) Simultaneity of facts.

e) process continuity.

Comment

This is a question that asks for the association of a word in the text — the verb put on(if) — to your topic. The command of the question explains to us that the verb has two meanings, with which the author of the graffiti (the Acción Poética Lima group) plays on words. In the case of the period "

I don't suppose you put me", the verb put on it is used in the sense of “dressing up”; already in the second period — “made me happy, it is a change in the state of mind of the lyrical self; in free translation, the period says "I was happy", and it's about a exchange verb. The correct answer is therefore letter D.

2. Example 2 of Enem Spanish question

(Enem 2017)

the eclipse

When Fray Bartolomé Arrazola felt lost he accepted that nothing could save him. The mighty jungle of Guatemala had hurried, implacable and definitive. In the face of his topographical ignorance, he sat down calmly to wait for death. Upon awakening, he found himself surrounded by a group of impassive-faced Indians who were ready to sacrifice him to a altar, an altar that seemed to Bartolomé like the bed on which he would rest, at the end, from his fears, from his destiny, from himself same. Three years in the country he had conferred a medium command of native languages. He tried something. He says a few words that were understood. Then it blossomed into an idea that I felt was worthy of his talent and his universal culture and his hard knowledge of Aristotle. He recalled that for that day a total solar eclipse was expected. And he disposed, in the most intimate way, to use that knowledge to deceive his oppressors and save his life. — If you kill me — they say — I can make the sun darken at its height. The natives stared at him fixedly and Bartolomé stared at the incredulity in his eyes. He saw that a small advice was being produced, and he waited confidently, without a hint of disdain. Two hours after the heart of Fray Bartolomé Arrazola wept his blood vehemently over the stone of the sacrifices (brilliant under the opaque light of an eclipsed sun), while one of the indigenous people recited without anyone inflection of voice, without arrest, one by one the infinite closings in which they they would produce solar and lunar eclipses, which the astronomers of the Mayan community had predicted and noted in their codices without the valuable help of Aristotle.

MONTERROSO, A. Complete works and other accounts. Bogotá: Norma, 1994 (adapted).

In the text, two visions of the world are confronted: that of Western culture, represented by Friar Bartolomé Arrazola, and that of pre-Hispanic myth, represented by the Mayan indigenous community. According to the narrative,

a) Spanish catechists endorse the knowledge produced by Hispano-American indigenous communities.

b) the indigenous people of the Mayan community are perplexed by the superiority of the Aristotelian knowledge of the Spanish friar.

c) the Spanish catechist Arrazola presents himself as adapted to native cultures, by promoting dialogue between Aristotelian and indigenous knowledge.

d) the episode represents, in a neutral way, the meaning of indigenous ancestral knowledge, when compared to Western knowledge.

e) Arrazola's academic knowledge is insufficient to save him from death, given the astronomical wisdom of the Mayan culture.

Comment

In this question, the skill mobilized is the recognition of the importance of cultural production in Spanish as a representation of cultural and linguistic diversity. It is an issue that had few successes during its application, which may be related to the length of the text and even to the fact that the question command asks for specific information, which leads many candidates to not read the text carefully and go straight in search of the response. This reading technique — expedition reading — is very effective when used by experienced readers. However, bear in mind that reading comprehension of a short story requires concentrated reading to identify its parts: initial situation, conflict, climax and outcome.

The tale of Monterroso recounts the situation of Friar Bartolomé, who was captured by Mayans who inhabited the current territory of Guatemala. Thinking to save himself from imminent death, the friar uses his knowledge of the local language, geography and astronomy to deceive the indigenous community, claiming that it will make the Sun disappear if not released. However, he didn't count that the Mayans also had knowledge of geography and astronomy. In the end, the friar is sacrificed and, during the process, one of the natives recites all the infinite dates of solar and lunar eclipses that the Mayans had already predicted “without the help of Aristotle”. It's a rather ironic ending because the Friar underestimated the Mayans and ended up dying for his arrogance and ignorance. We therefore conclude that the correct answer is letter e.

Read too: Tips for interpreting Spanish texts in the Enem test

3. Example 3 of Enem Spanish question

(Enem 2019)

What's up in the fable of the grasshopper and the ant

It tells a well-known fable that, after spending an entire summer singing and idle, a cicada found itself without food and decided to ask its neighbor, the ant for something to take to its mouth. Esta le offered grains of rice accompanied by a moraleja: it's better to be safe than sorry. Do the ants deserve their reputation as predictors and eager? No doubt. Leaf cutter ants (Atta cephalotes), for example, are considered the first agriculturists on the planet, dedicated to cutting, hauling and integrating leaves into the garden of fungi they feed on. Another curious fact is that it has been proven that, practically in all the species of ants, the bad old women take on more risky jobs. According to Dawid Moron of the Jagiellonian University (Poland), this is because it is better for the colony to sacrifice a life that is closer to its end than a young individual.

As for the cicadas, you cannot accuse them of being dull. What is true is that the males go through the summer “singing” — a sound they produce with membranes called timbales — and facing a tree, whose sap they feed on.

Available at: www.muyinteresante.es. Accessed on: 31 Oct. 2012 (adapted).

The fable is a widely disseminated genre often revisited with different objectives. In the text, the fable The grasshopper and the ant is resumed for

a) present the reader with a moral teaching.

b) reinforce the stereotype associated with cicadas.

c) describe the behavior of insects in nature.

d) expose the superiority of ants in relation to cicadas.

e) describe the social relationship between ants and cicadas in nature.

Comment

In this question, the skill mobilized is to use knowledge of Spanish to access information, technologies and cultures, given that it is a magazine article (always read the references of the texts; there is relevant information in them that can help you identify the genus) that talks about the behavior of ants and cicadas.

In the text, the fable of the grasshopper and the ant is taken up again to explain whether grasshoppers are really lazy and ants are hard workers. Throughout the text, it is argued that neither of the two insects is lazy, which is evidenced by the description of the activities of the leaf-cutting ant — a species of leaf-cutting ant — and, to a lesser extent, of the cicadas. As this is a descriptive journal article, the correct answer is letter C.

4. Example 4 of Enem Spanish question

(Enem PPL 2019)

Strip in Spanish used in the Enem PPL 2019 test.

The word clef, repeated several times in Gaturro's strip, leads the reader to reflect on the

a) exhaustive use of technologies in modern life.

b) quality of life achieved with technological advances.

c) practicality of using technological and social codes.

d) need to learn to use new technologies.

e) amount of information needed to solve problems.

Comment

Gaturro is a character created by the Argentine cartoonist Cristian Dzwonik and that has become quite common in the Spanish questions of the Enem. In question, the crafted skill is to relate the text to linguistic structures, their function and their social use.

In the strip, Daniel — owner of Gaturro — is stressed by the amount of passwords and keys he needs (the word clef encompasses both). His wife Valeria tries to reassure him that he needs to relax and enjoy the good things in life. Daniel's face becomes calmer until we reach the last panel, in which he appears to have a doubt, both through his facial expression and the phrase “¿y cuál es la clave?” (what is the key/password/secret?). Already in the first panel, the word stressed— and even a careful analysis of the non-verbal language of the strip — leads us to the correct answer: the letter a.

5. Example 5 of Enem Spanish question

(Enem PPL 2021)

Ad in Spanish used in question of Enem PPL 2021.

Considering the verbal and non-verbal elements expressed in the poster, the purpose of the ad is

a) promote the literary encounter between people with visual impairments.

b) promote the loan of books to students with accessibility difficulties.

c) demand the digitization of the collection of public libraries for blind readers.

d) offer the opportunity to support a project for readers with special needs.

e) encourage the collection of appropriate books for students with reading difficulties.

Comment

The command of the question mobilizes the recognition of the function and social use of the text. In the ad, volunteers are asked to digitize and edit texts for students with disabilities visual, and some demands are placed, such as commitment, responsibility and predisposition to work in team. As it is voluntary work, therefore, we understand that it is a social action whose result will benefit a minority group that seeks equal access to a certain good or service — in this case, blind people will be able to access digitized books edited by these volunteers. Therefore, the correct answer is letter D.

Read too: List of exercises with Spanish questions for the Enem

6. Example 6 of a Spanish question in the Enem

(Enem 2022)

Poster with text in Spanish used in question of Enem 2022.

In the text, the words child It is tribu are used for

a) highlight the importance of a support network for mothers in raising their children.

b) denounce the disparity between the work of mothers from different classes.

c) emphasize the closure of schools and day care centers during the pandemic period.

d) ratify the romanticization of mothers' dedication to children's education.

e) emphasize the protection of children due to the social isolation of families.

Comment

The command for this question mobilizes the ability to associate a word from the text to its theme. The advertisement talks about motherhood and how the task of being a mother has become more difficult due to isolation during the covid-19 pandemic. Adjectives are used that highlight the difficulties of motherhood in isolation — exhaustor, exhausting, romanticized —, as well as highlighting the need for a tribe that engages in the child (creation — look at one False friend there!) of the children. This conclusion appears in the penultimate part of the advertisement, followed by the identification of the group that idealized, the collective Mujeres en Red para la Igualdad de Género (Women in Network for the Equality of Gender).

These observations lead us to conclude that the correct answer is letter a.

image credits

[1]rafapress / Shutterstock

Sources:

BAX, S. The cognitive processing of candidates during reading tests: Evidence from eye tracking. Language Testing, London, vol. 30, no. 4, p. 441-465, 2013. Available in: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0265532212473244.

MIRANDA, m. from S.; RODRIGUES, I. of the S.; ORTIZ-PREUSS, I. The process of reading Enem Spanish questions: eye tracking evidence. Letrônica, Porto Alegre, v. 13, no. 4, p. 1-18, Oct.-Dec. 2020. Available in: https://revistaseletronicas.pucrs.br/ojs/index.php/letronica/article/view/37530/26432.

NETO, I. A. M.; SILVA, m. F.; SOUZA, R. j. Reading and comprehension strategies as a meaning building activity. VII International Colloquium Education and Contemporaneity, São Cristóvão-SE, p. Sep 1-9, 19-21 2013. Available in: https://ri.ufs.br/bitstream/riufs/9898/25/24.pdf.

Source: Brazil School - https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/espanhol/questoes-comentadas-de-espanhol-no-enem.htm

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