Question

The arkatis (recruiters) who were hired by shipping companies were Indians themselves; they knew villagers would not want to cross the water. But they also knew where there were hungry, desperate people. So they fanned out to the countryside and began to look for strong men. Bharath, who was about to leave for Trinidad, later explained how that happened. His version of English is hard to understand, but it is how the Indians began to speak on the islands. “E no tell e I go chinedad you know . . . e no tell e no come back, e no greet mumma fadder again.” (“He did not tell me I was going to Trinidad, you know. He didn't tell me I would never come back, or never see my mother and father again.”)

–Sugar Changed the World,
Marc Aronson and Marina Budhos

Which sentence best states the central idea of the passage?


What type of evidence does the passage provide to support the central idea?

Answer 1

Central idea: Indian recruiters (arkatis) exploited hungry, desperate villagers by finding and deceiving them into leaving for indentured labor overseas without telling them they would never return or see their families again.

Type of evidence: a brief descriptive explanation plus a firsthand anecdotal quote (primary-source testimony) from an affected man, which illustrates the recruiters’ deception and its emotional impact.