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AbdurRakib
Joined: 11 May 2014
Last visit: 08 Nov 2025
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Status:I don't stop when I'm Tired,I stop when I'm done
Location: Bangladesh
Concentration: Finance, Leadership
Schools: Wharton '20 Yale '20 Tepper '20
GPA: 2.81
WE:Business Development (Real Estate)
Updated on: 24 Mar 2021, 04:08
Originally posted by AbdurRakib on 15 Jun 2017, 03:42.
Last edited by bM22 on 24 Mar 2021, 04:08, edited 3 times in total.
Last edited by bM22 on 24 Mar 2021, 04:08, edited 3 times in total.
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Question 1
D
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Difficulty:
75%
(hard)
Question Stats:
43% (03:09) correct
57%
(03:24) wrong
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Question 2
A
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Difficulty:
15%
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Question Stats:
80% (01:17) correct 20%
(01:35) wrong
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Question 3
C
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35%
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Question Stats:
64% (01:25) correct 36%
(01:33) wrong
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Question 4
C
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The Official Guide for GMAT Verbal Review 2018 New RC
Antonia Castañeda has utilized scholarship from women's studies and Mexican-American history to examine nineteenth-century literary portrayals of Mexican women. As Castañeda notes, scholars of women's history observe that in the Unites States, male novelists of the period─during which, according to these scholars, women's traditional economic role in home-based agriculture was threatened by the transition to a factory-based industrial economy─define women solely in their domestic roles of wife and mother. Castañeda finds that during the same period that saw non-Hispanic women being economically displaced by industrialization, Hispanic law in territorial California protected the economic position of "Californianas" (the Mexican women of the territory) by ensuring them property rights and inheritance rights equal to those of males.
For Castañeda, the laws explain a stereotypical plot created primarily by male, non-Hispanic novelists: the story of an ambitious non-hispanic merchant or trader desirous of marrying an elite Californiana. These novels' favourable portrayal of such women is noteworthy, since Mexican-American historians have concluded that unflattering literary depictions of Mexicans were vital in rallying the United States public's support for the Mexican-American War (1846-1848). The importance of economic alliances forged through marriages with Californianas explains this apparent contradiction. Because of their real-life economic significance, the Californianas were portrayed more favourably than were others of the same nationality.
For Castañeda, the laws explain a stereotypical plot created primarily by male, non-Hispanic novelists: the story of an ambitious non-hispanic merchant or trader desirous of marrying an elite Californiana. These novels' favourable portrayal of such women is noteworthy, since Mexican-American historians have concluded that unflattering literary depictions of Mexicans were vital in rallying the United States public's support for the Mexican-American War (1846-1848). The importance of economic alliances forged through marriages with Californianas explains this apparent contradiction. Because of their real-life economic significance, the Californianas were portrayed more favourably than were others of the same nationality.
1. The “apparent contradiction” mentioned in line 29 refers to the discrepancy between the
A. legal status of Mexican women in territorial California and their status in the United States
B. unflattering depiction of Mexicans in novels and the actual public sentiment about the Mexican-American War
C. existence of many marriages between Californianas and non-Hispanic merchants and the strictures against them expressed in novels
D. literary depiction of elite Californianas and the literary depiction of other Mexican individuals
E. novelistic portrayals of elite Californianas’ privileged lives and the actual circumstances of those lives
A. legal status of Mexican women in territorial California and their status in the United States
B. unflattering depiction of Mexicans in novels and the actual public sentiment about the Mexican-American War
C. existence of many marriages between Californianas and non-Hispanic merchants and the strictures against them expressed in novels
D. literary depiction of elite Californianas and the literary depiction of other Mexican individuals
E. novelistic portrayals of elite Californianas’ privileged lives and the actual circumstances of those lives
2. Which of the following could best serve as an example of the kind of fictional plot discussed by Antonia Castañeda?
A. A land speculator of English ancestry weds the daughter of a Mexican vineyard owner after the speculator has migrated to California to seek his fortune.
B. A Californian woman of Hispanic ancestry finds that her agricultural livelihood is threatened when her husband is forced to seek work in a textile mill.
C. A Mexican rancher who loses his land as a result of the Mexican-American War migrates to the northern United States and marries an immigrant schoolteacher.
D. A wealthy Californiana whose father has bequeathed her all his property contends with avaricious relatives for her inheritance.
E. A poor married couple emigrate from French Canada and gradually become wealthy as merchants in territorial California.
A. A land speculator of English ancestry weds the daughter of a Mexican vineyard owner after the speculator has migrated to California to seek his fortune.
B. A Californian woman of Hispanic ancestry finds that her agricultural livelihood is threatened when her husband is forced to seek work in a textile mill.
C. A Mexican rancher who loses his land as a result of the Mexican-American War migrates to the northern United States and marries an immigrant schoolteacher.
D. A wealthy Californiana whose father has bequeathed her all his property contends with avaricious relatives for her inheritance.
E. A poor married couple emigrate from French Canada and gradually become wealthy as merchants in territorial California.
3. Which of the following, if true, would provide the most support for Castañeda’s explanation of the “stereotypical plot” mentioned in lines 18-19?
A. Non-Hispanic traders found business more profitable in California while it was a territory than when it became a state.
B. Very few marriages between Hispanic women and non-Hispanic men in nineteenth-century territorial California have actually been documented.
C. Records from the nineteenth century indicate that some large and valuable properties were owned by elite Californianas in their own right.
D. Unmarried non-Hispanic women in the nineteenth-century United States were sometimes able to control property in their own right.
E. Most of the property in nineteenth-century territorial California was controlled by Hispanic men.
A. Non-Hispanic traders found business more profitable in California while it was a territory than when it became a state.
B. Very few marriages between Hispanic women and non-Hispanic men in nineteenth-century territorial California have actually been documented.
C. Records from the nineteenth century indicate that some large and valuable properties were owned by elite Californianas in their own right.
D. Unmarried non-Hispanic women in the nineteenth-century United States were sometimes able to control property in their own right.
E. Most of the property in nineteenth-century territorial California was controlled by Hispanic men.
4. The primary purpose of the passage is to
A. trace historical influences on the depiction of Mexican Americans in the nineteenth century
B. explain how research in history has been affected by scholarship in women's studies
C. describe the historical origins of a literary stereotype
D. discuss ways in which minority writers have sought to critique a dominant culture through their writing
E. evaluate both sides in a scholarly debate about a prominent literary stereotype
RC00548-01.02
A. trace historical influences on the depiction of Mexican Americans in the nineteenth century
B. explain how research in history has been affected by scholarship in women's studies
C. describe the historical origins of a literary stereotype
D. discuss ways in which minority writers have sought to critique a dominant culture through their writing
E. evaluate both sides in a scholarly debate about a prominent literary stereotype
RC00548-01.02
24 Aug 2017, 15:17
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ukunal
The apparent contradiction is, in fact, explained before line 29.
Quote:
This sentence says that elite Californians (i.e. "such women") were portrayed favorably by male, non-Hispanic novelists. Thus, the literary depiction of elite Californianas was favorable.
In contrast, this sentence implies that literary depictions of Mexicans, in general, were unflattering (and, thus, unfavorable), because such unflattering depictions were vital in rallying support for the M-A War.
So we have an apparent contradiction: in general, literary depictions of Mexicans were unflattering, but elite Californianas (Mexican women in California) were portrayed favorably. This is the contradiction described by choice (D) in the first question.
10 May 2020, 09:52
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willacethis
SanjaySrini
NandishSS
Wow, a lot of digital ink has been spilled recently on Question 4. Interestingly enough, the question was dropped from both the 2019 and 2020 editions of the OG Verbal Review. Nevertheless, in the interest of helping willacethis, SanjaySrini, and NandishSS, as well as the community at large, here are my thoughts on this tricky question.
Quote:
Okay, a primary purpose/main idea question should be pretty straightforward. One consideration in your approach to such questions is to justify the presence of each paragraph. That is, it is not good enough to choose an answer that summarizes a paragraph at the exclusion of another or, worse yet, focuses on a detail within a single part of the passage. So what is this passage about, both paragraphs considered? What is the authorial presence? Let us see what the answers have in store.
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I typically put problematic parts of an answer choice in red font, but this one warrants more of a yellow-light, look-before-you-leap highlight. To be clear, I have no problem with trace historical influences, and the passage does, in fact, discuss how Mexican Americans were depicted in nineteenth-century literature. However, the first line of the passage makes it clear that Castañeda, through whose lens we view the content of the text, has peered into scholarship on the period to examine... portrayals of Mexican women. It is the women, not all Mexican Americans, who are the focus of the research. Although the second paragraph mentions unflattering depictions of Mexicans, the description only serves as a contrast to the more favorable portrayal of the Californianas--the Mexican women of the territory, as the group is defined at the end of paragraph one. Finally, this answer omits the keyword literary. The passage mentions literary depictions from beginning to end. To say that the primary purpose is to examine influences on the general depiction of any or all Mexican Americans of the time is an overstatement. I would not get rid of this answer choice right away, but I would explore other options that might place women in particular front and center.
Quote:
Phew, this one is much easier to eliminate. To straighten the answer out, scholarship in women's studies is affecting research in history? Women's studies is mentioned as a discipline through which Castañeda has conducted research, but so, too, is history itself. Look at the first line of the passage again:
Antonia Castañeda has utilized scholarship from women's studies and Mexican-American history to examine nineteenth-century literary portrayals of Mexican women.
Women's studies and Mexican-American history are mentioned side by side, with no cause-and-effect relationship in sight. Keep moving.
Quote:
This is a difficult one to make heads or tails of in a first pass. If a literary stereotype lies at the heart of the passage, then first, what is that stereotype, and second, do both paragraphs, or, in other words, does the entire passage, center on this idea? It takes a little detective work, but yes, the passage map is clear. The literary stereotype is not mentioned explicitly until the beginning of the second paragraph, conveniently with the word stereotypical preceding it—the story of an ambitious non-hispanic merchant or trader desirous of marrying an elite Californiana. Aha, so the plot is the stereotype! Now the pieces start to fall into place. The first paragraph sets the stage, providing the historical information, while the second paragraph delves into the literature itself. The concluding line of the first paragraph tells us that although non-Hispanic women were being economically displaced by industrialization, their Mexican counterparts in territorial California, the "Californianas," were ensured property rights and inheritance rights equal to those of males. And now the stereotypical or patent plot makes sense: scheming men wanted to marry up to an elite social status, and marriage to Californianas was the vehicle through which that upward mobility could be achieved. A little Barry Lyndon-ish, right? If you were a little standoffish on your first read, I would understand. (I was, too.) But this is a qualified answer.
Quote:
This is a fitting description of another passage, perhaps, but not the one in front of us, in which minority writers are not even mentioned. No, this passage focuses on the works of primarily male, non-Hispanic novelists of the nineteenth century. Another answer that is clearly incorrect.
Quote:
About the only thing this answer choice is good for is that it shines more light on this notion that the passage concerns a literary stereotype. The scholarly debate is noticeably absent, however, with Castañeda serving as our only guide.
To sum up, between (A) and (C), (A) presents too much of a blanket statement. In a passage that starts and ends with a focus on women, it is too broad to say the primary purpose concerns the depiction of Mexican Americans in general. Meanwhile, choice (C) ties together the information from the two paragraphs of the passage in a manner that is hard to argue against, even if we usually think of a stereotype as a description of a type of person.
I hope that helps. I would love to know why GMAC™ decided to exclude the question from more recent editions of the Verbal Review. In any case, good luck, everyone, with your studies.
- Andrew
