Anthropologists studying the Hopi people of the southwestern United St

Question

Anthropologists studying the Hopi people of the southwestern United States often characterize Hopi society between 1680 and 1880 as surprisingly stable, considering that it was a period of diminution in population and pressure from contact with outside groups, factors that might be expected to cause significant changes in Hopi social arrangements.

The Hopis’ retention of their distinctive socio-cultural system has been attributed to the Hopi religious elite’s determined efforts to preserve their religion and way of life, and also to a geographical isolation greater than that of many other Native American groups, an isolation that limited both cultural contact and exposure to European diseases.  But equally important to Hopi cultural persistence may have been an inherent flexibility in their social system that may have allowed preservation of traditions even as the Hopis accommodated themselves to change. For example, the system of matrilineal clans was maintained throughout this period, even though some clans merged to form larger groups while others divided into smaller descent groups. Furthermore, although traditionally members of particular Hopi clans appear to have exclusively controlled particular ceremonies, a clan’s control of a ceremony might shift to another clan if the first became too small to manage the responsibility. Village leadership positions traditionally restricted to members of one clan might be similarly extended to members of other clans, and women might assume such positions under certain unusual conditions.   VRC000226-07  1 
 1. The author of the passage would be most likely to agree with which of the following statements about the explanation outlined in highlighted text?

(A) It fails to take into account the effect of geographical circumstances on Hopi culture.
(B) It correctly emphasizes the role of the religious elite in maintaining the system of matrilineal clans.
(C) It represents a misreading of Hopi culture because it fails to take into account the actual differences that existed among the various Hopi clans.
(D) It underestimates the effect on Hopi cultural development of contact with other cultural groups.
(E) It is correct but may be insufficient in itself to explain Hopi sociocultural persistence.

2 
 2. Which of the following can be inferred from the passage about the Hopis' geographic situation between 1680 and 1880?

(A) It prevented the Hopis from experiencing a diminution in population.
(B) It helped to promote flexibility within their social system.
(C) It limited but did not eliminate contact with other cultural groups.
(D) It reinforced the religious elite's determination to resist cultural change.
(E) It tended to limit contact between certain Hopi clans.

VRC000226-06 
 3 
 3. The passage is primarily concerned with

(A) reassessing a phenomenon in light of new findings
(B) assessing the relative importance of two factors underlying a phenomenon
(C) examining the assumptions underlying an interpretation of a phenomenon
(D) expanding on an explanation of a phenomenon
(E) contrasting two methods for evaluating a phenomenon

VRC000226-02 
 4 
 4. The author of the passage mentions the control of ceremonies by particular Hopi clans most likely in order to

(A) provide an example of the way in which the religious elite protected their position within Hopi society
(B) note an exception to a larger pattern evident in many Native American cultures
(C) explain the connection in Hopi culture between religious and political leadership
(D) illustrate how the Hopis combined flexibility with tradition
(E) cite evidence that counters a common misconception about the structure of Hopi society

000226-04 
 5 
 5. The passage suggests that sociocultural change in Hopi society between 1680 and 1880 was

A. initiated primarily by contact with other cultural groups
B. greater than that experienced by many other Native American peoples during that period
C. less pronounced than might be expected, given the demographic conditions and external pressures during that period
D. less pronounced than it had been previously because of diminution in the Hopi population occurring after 1680
E. accelerated by the particular geographic circumstances of the Hopis

mba1382 · Accepted Answer

Really short and good passage but questions seemed on 600-700 level.

Which of the following can be inferred from the passage about the Hopis' geographic situation between 1680 and 1880?

(A) It prevented the Hopis from experiencing a diminution in population. --Cant infer this from passage certainly. A trap basically
(B) It helped to promote flexibility within their social system. --Wrong in the context of the passage.
(C) It limited but did not eliminate contact with other cultural groups.-- This is the one mentioned in the passage.
The Hopis’ retention of their distinctive sociocultural system has been attributed to the Hopi religious elite’s determined efforts to preserve their religion and way of life, and also to a geographical isolation greater than that of many other Native American groups,an isolation that limited both cultural contact and exposure to European diseases.
(D) It reinforced the religious elite's determination to resist cultural change.-- Can't be inferred surely.
(E) It tended to limit contact between certain Hopi clans.---- Can't be inferred surely.

The passage is primarily concerned with
A) reassessing a phenomenon in light of new findings---No reassessment of new findings. Out
B) assessing the relative importance of two factors underlying a phenomenon ---Wrong
C) examining the assumptions underlying an interpretation of a phenomenon--- This was a trap. But closely reading the words, we see that the passage is not examining any assumptions
D) expanding on an explanation of a phenomenon-- Yes. Passage is expanding on the explanation of a phenomenon i.e. Hopis’ retention of their distinctive sociocultural system as stated in 1st para
E) contrasting two methodsfor evaluating a phenomenon--- Wrong

Hope it helps :-)

GMATNinja · Answer

Here's the question again: 
 
And here's the relevant portion of the passage:
 
The highlighted text itself presents two factors to explain why the Hopis retained their distinctive socio-cultural system: the efforts of Hopi religious elites and the group's geographical isolation. Moving on from this highlighted text, the author presents a third factor: the flexibility of that system. The author brings this up to stress that this third factor was equally important to the retention of the Hopi's system.

As we evaluate answer choices, remember that "it" always refers to the highlighted text.

This completely contradicts the highlighted text, which plainly states that geographical circumstances were one of the key factors contributing to retention of the Hopi socio-cultural system. Eliminate (A).

The phrase "matrilineal clans" stops us from accepting this answer choice. The consideration of these clans is not part of the highlighted text. It comes later, in support of the author's consideration of social flexibility. Eliminate (C).

This is totally off the mark. The highlighted text may leave out the third factor of flexibility, but the author never indicates that accepting these other two factors is a  misreading  of Hopi culture. Rather, the author agrees with the highlighted text and wishes to add a third piece of the puzzle to complete this picture. Eliminate (C).

The author wrote this passage to explain why contact with outside groups did  not  lead to significant changes in Hopi society. This choice goes in a totally different direction, which doesn't reflect the highlighted text and runs completely counter to why the author writes those highlighted statements. Eliminate (D).

This is the correct choice we've been looking for! It perfectly matches why the author is bringing up the highlighted text: the author believes that these statements are true, but also believes there is a third, equally important factor that must be considered.

(E) is the best choice, and every other choice can be eliminated confidently. I hope this helps!

Great work,  AdityaHongunti !

pretzel · Answer

Can anyone explain the second question?

My interpretation:

".. attributed to the Hopi religious elite’s  determined efforts to preserve their religion and way of life ,  and  also to a  geographical isolation  greater than that of many other Native American groups, an isolation that limited both cultural contact and exposure to European diseases.  But equally important to Hopi cultural persistence may have been an inherent flexibility  in their social system"

There are two factors - preserve and isolation. No?

TGC · Answer

I also did the same mistake as you did, the only difference being I considered two factors as below:

Determined efforts and inherent flexibility.

However, here we have three factors as give below:

Attributed X to Y and Z

Here
Y=Determined Efforts
Z=Geographical isolation

.But equally important to hopi may have been INHERENT FLEXIBILITY which is the third factor. So,answer cannot be (B).

Had it been only two factors with above phrasing, (B) would have been the correct answer

Skywalker18 · Answer

1 . E - It is correct but may be insufficient in itself to explain Hopi socio-cultural persistence.- This can be inferred from the lines following the highlighted text.
"But equally important to Hopi cultural persistence may have been an inherent flexibility in their social system that may have allowed preservation of traditions even as the Hopis accommodated themselves to change "

2) Which of the following can be inferred from the passage about the Hopis’ geographic situation between 1680 and 1880?
C. It limited but did not eliminate contact with other cultural groups. It can be inferred from the lines -
also to a geographical isolation greater than that of many other Native American groups, an isolation that limited both cultural contact and exposure to European diseases.

3) The passage is primarily concerned with
D. expanding on an explanation of a phenomenon. Correct

4. The author of the passage mentions the control of ceremonies by particular Hopi clans most likely in order to
(D) illustrate how the Hopis combined flexibility with tradition
But equally important to Hopi cultural persistence may have been an inherent flexibility in their social system that may have allowed preservation of traditions even as the Hopis accommodated themselves to change.

All the 3 correct in 7 mins 15 seconds

, took 2 mins and 40 seconds to read the passage (Latest attempt -- All correct(including the newly added Q4)in 8 mins , including 3 mins 10 seconds to read )

Divyadisha · Answer

4:52 and all correct

1) E is correct as the highlighted part is correct, but 'But equally important to Hopi cultural' after the highlighted part indicates something else to contribute in addition to the highlighted part. 2) C is correct as it is mentioned 'an isolation that limited both cultural contact and exposure ' 3) D is correct because the passage explains why the Hopi society was surprisingly stable

AdityaHongunti · Answer

I'll volunteer.

2. Which of the following can be inferred from the passage about the Hopis' geographic situation between 1680 and 1880?

(A)  It prevented the Hopis from experiencing a diminution in population .- the choice implies that the Geo location helpedin preventing hopis from diminution -para 1( often characterize Hopi society between 1680 and 1880 as surprisingly stable, considering that it was a period of diminution in population and pressure from contact with outside groups, factors that might be expected to cause significant changes in Hopi social arrangements. ) the anthropologists say that the hopis society was surprisingly stable . why was it surprising? read the next part after surprisingly stable. The diminution of Pop has been cited as a contast just to weigh in on the surprising stability.Nowhere is it related to Geo Loc.

(B)  It helped to promote flexibility within their social system . - Entirely goes against the given facts. In fact not the GL but the society's inherent flexibilty helped the retention of culture.

(C)  It limited but did not eliminate contact with other cultural groups .- para 2 (a geographical isolation greater than that of many other Native American groups, an  isolation that limited  both cultural contact and exposure to European diseases). Now the passage states that the GL limited the cultural contact. it did not eliminate it! how do we know this? read the later part of the para 2. evidently other cultural groups(clans) did come into their contact and even were a part of the culture.
 
(D)  It reinforced the religious elite's determination to resist cultural change .- para 2. (Hopis’  retention of their distinctive sociocultural system has been attributed to  the Hopi religious elite’s determined efforts to preserve their religion and way of life, and also to a geographical isolation )note here that the passage states that the retention was attributed to 2 things. nowhere is it mentioned that the elite's stance was strengthed by the GL.

(E)  It tended to limit contact between certain Hopi clans. - certain hopi clans? nowhere is it mentioned that there were particular clans the hopis's tried to stay away from. " certain" is the culprit here

NAvinash · Answer

goodyear2013 ,  workout ,  GMATNinja

Question 4 answer is D where as I think it can be answer B because passage says  " Furthermore, although traditionally members of particular Hopi clans appear to have exclusively controlled particular ceremonies................"  so word traditionally means Hopi clans are doing something unusual.

LauraOrion · Answer

Hey  leo125 ,

The trick with Q1 is the phrase in the highlighted text "and also to a geographical isolation greater than that of many other Native American groups, an isolation that limited both cultural contact and exposure to European diseases." This tells you that there was some isolation, but because it allowed for some cultural contact that isolation was not complete.

A can be eliminated since they did experience a population decline, B can be eliminated because their social system was inherently flexible - it wasn't the geography that caused the flexibility. D exists without the geographic isolation, and E is probably just not true - because the different ceremonies shifted from clan to clan, they probably didn't become isolated from one another.

LordStark · Answer

Dear Mods  workout   Gnpth

Please add this missing question

000226-04 
The passage suggests that sociocultural change in Hopi society between 1680 and 1880 was
A. initiated primarily by contact with other cultural groups
B. greater than that experienced by many other Native American peoples during that period
C. less pronounced than might be expected, given the demographic conditions and external pressures during that period
D. less pronounced than it had been previously because of diminution in the Hopi population occurring after 1680
E. accelerated by the particular geographic circumstances of the Hopis

Thanks

dave13 · Answer

Saumya2403

4. The author of the passage mentions the control of ceremonies by particular Hopi clans most likely in order to

(D) illustrate how the Hopis combined flexibility with tradition

In the second paragraph author uses  ‘example”  and addition word such as  “furthermore”  to set up additional evidence, establish similar ideas or buffer a line of reasoning. Examples/ Addition words add on to an idea, or in the case of an argument, preceding reasons or premises.

So below author provides a reason for stability of Hopi culture.

But  equally important to Hopi cultural persistence may have been an inherent  flexibility   in their social system that may have allowed preservation of traditions even as the Hopis accommodated themselves to change.

See here author gives a flexibility as a factor that contributed to persistence of Hopi culture.

To strengthen validity of the above line of reasoning author gives example.

For example,  the system of matrilineal clans was maintained throughout this period, even though some clans merged to form larger groups while others divided into smaller descent groups.

Below author gives additional evidence in favor of flexibility factor.

Furthermore,  although  traditionally members of particular Hopi clans appear to have exclusively  controlled particular ceremonies,  a clan’s control of a ceremony might shift to another clan if the first became too small to manage the responsibility.

in the above sentence you can see combination of  flexibility with tradition

So (D) is correct answer ---- > illustrate how the Hopis combined flexibility with tradition

5. The passage suggests that sociocultural change in Hopi society between 1680 and 1880 was

A. initiated primarily by contact with other cultural groups  ( this is false information )  
B. greater than that experienced by many other Native American peoples during that period  ( on the contrary, we know that Hopi society remained stable. )  
C. less pronounced than might be expected, given the demographic conditions and external pressures during that period  (correct since Hopi society remained stable despite being exposed to such factors as pressure from other culture and demographic reduction of Hopi society itself) 
 
D. less pronounced than it had been previously because of diminution in the Hopi population occurring after 1680  (this is not accurate information ) 
E. accelerated by the particular geographic circumstances of the Hopis  (out of scope)

The answer to correct answer is in the first paragraph.

Read it below.

"Anthropologists studying the Hopi people of the southwestern United States often characterize Hopi society between 1680 and 1880 as surprisingly stable, considering that it was a period of diminution in population and pressure from contact with outside groups, factors that might be expected to cause significant changes in Hopi social arrangements."

So let`s summarize the first paragraph.

Despite pressure from other contacts, Hopi society that also was experiencing a demographic reduction at that time, remained  SURRPRISINGLY STABLE.  So it is a phenomenon, because normally when society has pressure from other communities, it undergoes some culture changes.

Now based on the summarized information lets analyze answer choices. see above.

thangvietnam · Answer

I want to say something about RC. I already said this point in a few last posting. now, I want to say it again.

there is difference between lsat passages and gmat passage. from this difference , we, non native ,can know how to study for RC.

lsat passages are harder and longer but their questions are easy, and so, we need to do prethinking for answering questions. in contrast, gmat passages are easy to understand and are shorter but their questions are harder to answer. because their questions are harder, we need to do both prethinking and POE (power of elimination) to find the correct answer. prethinking help us find some wrong answers which are contradicts the information in the passage flagrantly. POE is powerfull method and requires a higher level of infering. POE permit us to eliminate the wrong answers which is wrong in one or 2 words.

if you focus on understanding the hard passages and do not focus on inferring for answering the question , you can fail because that is not the point gmat want to test us. of course, at a 700+ level, gmat passage is also hard and long.

normally, understanding the hard passages is more easy than inferring for answering hard questions.

so, be aware that there are two skills inhere, understanding the hard passages and inferring at high level to answer the hard question. knowing these two skills is particularly helpful in studying RC for the non-natives.

thank you for reading this text.

this gmat passage is typical of gmat passage. the passage is easy to understand but answering questions are not so easy. it requires us a high level of inferring for answerng the questions.

teaserbae · Answer

Skywalker18   souvik101990   JarvisR   Divyadisha   workout 
Can you please brief Q3 ?
 I couldn't solve it. I didn't know how to proceed with it

mallya12 · Answer

The passage is primarily concerned with ?? Answer choice C vs D. Please explain

LordStark · Answer

A. reassessing a phenomenon in light of new findings   Nowhere in the passage new findings are provided  
B. assessing the relative importance of two factors underlying a phenomenon   The author does provide two factors but does not compare their relative importance  
C. examining the assumptions underlying an interpretation of a phenomenon  It is a contender   
D. expanding on an explanation of a phenomenon   This is a clear winner because the author mentions "But equally important to Hopi cultural persistence may have been an inherent flexibility in.. " and thereafter goes on providing supporting information. This is the point of the passage. This is why the author has written the passage.   
E. contrasting two methods for evaluating a phenomenon    There is no contrast given. 
 
You may have focused too much on the detail. 
check out  this post by  Harley1980  time saving and the best way to tackle primary purpose question IMO.

GMATNinja · Answer

To understand the primary concern of the passage, let's break it down into more manageable chunks:

Paragraph 1: The author introduces a surprising phenomenon (the stability of the Hopi tribe despite the fact that "  was a period of diminution in population and pressure from contact with outside groups"). 
 First sentence of paragraph 2: What this phenomenon "has been attributed to" ("the Hopi religious elite’s determined efforts" and "geographical isolation"). 
 The rest of the passage: Another explanation for the phenomenon ("inherent flexibility in   social system"), and several examples of this explanation.

From this, we can see that the author is primarily concerned with adding to an already existing explanation of a phenomenon.

Take a look at answer choice (C):
 
This answer choice implies that the primary purpose of the passage is to examine  assumptions  underlying an interpretation of a phenomenon. Looking back at our breakdown of the passage, this is clearly not the case -- the author does offer several factors to explain a phenomenon, but never examines the assumptions that led to these interpretations. So, examining these assumptions cannot be the primary concern of the passage. (C) is out.

Now look at (D):
 
This fits nicely with our breakdown of the passage. The author introduces a surprising phenomenon, gives an existing explanation, and then expands on this explanation at length. (D) is the answer to question #3.

I hope that helps!

ajmekal · Answer

Hi,
Q3) (Option I chose)-  B  - assessing the relative importance of two factors underlying a phenomenon.
I am unable to eliminate this option and land to the correct response. Could anyone please give me a brief outline on how to eliminate this answer option?

Thanks.

jawele · Answer

Hi

I'm curious why E in Q2 is incorrect: what's your reasoning?

2) Which of the following can be inferred from the passage about the Hopis’ geographic situation between 1680 and 1880?
E. It tended to limit contact between certain Hopi clans.

After all, it says that the isolation limited cultural contact. Do we need to assume that, and if so why, "cultural contact" refers only to outside cultures? Perhaps there are other reasons to eliminate this option?

Thanks guys

GMATNinja   SajjadAhmad ,  workout   u1983   Gnpth

deepshikha12 · Answer

1) The author of the passage would be most likely to agree with which of the following statements about the explanation outlined in the highlighted text?
the highlighted portion talks about what are the factor leading to sustaining the essence of the culture. hwever the very next line states that equally important aspect is flexibility. option e capture the same point. It is correct but may be insufficient in itself to explain Hopi socio-cultural persistence.

2) Which of the following can be inferred from the passage about the Hopis’ geographic situation between 1680 and 1880?
since it is inference question, it is going to be the re-statement of already written argument. refer "an isolation that limited both cultural contact and exposure to European diseases." choice c is exactly doing this

3) 3) The passage is primarily concerned with, 
It covers a surprising stable culture; then talks about what are key things which kept it stable (location, flexibility etc); then give an example of flexibility from culture activity

POE:
A. reassessing a phenomenon in light of new findings - no reassessment, irrelevant 
B. assessing the relative importance of two factors underlying a phenomenon - no reassessment, irrelevant 
C. examining the assumptions underlying an interpretation of a phenomenon - no assumption, irrelevant 
D. expanding on an explanation of a phenomenon, yep. 
E. contrasting two methods for evaluating a phenomenon: irrelevant

4. The author of the passage mentions the control of ceremonies by particular Hopi clans most likely in order to

detail type question, so going back to the para and reading one line before the preceeding example. it talks about flexiblity of the culture and then followed it up with marriage and clan example. option d illustrate how the Hopis combined flexibility with tradition

Anthropologists studying the Hopi people of the southwestern United St

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GMAT Reading Comprehension (RC) Questions

Anthropologists studying the Hopi people of the southwestern United St

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