In a 1984 book, Claire C, Robertson argued that, before colonialism

Question

In a 1984 book, Claire C. Robertson argued that, before colonialism, age was a more important indicator of status and authority than gender in Ghana and in Africa generally. British colonialism imposed European-style male dominant notions upon more egalitarian local situations to the detriment of women generally, and gender became a defining characteristic that weakened women’s power and authority.

Subsequent  research  in Kenya convinced Robertson that she had overgeneralized about Africa. Before colonialism, gender was more salient in central Kenya than it was in Ghana, although age was still crucial in determining authority. In contrast with Ghana, where women had traded for hundreds of years and achieved legal majority (not unrelated phenomena), the evidence regarding central Kenya indicated that women were legal minors and were sometimes treated as male property, as were European women at that time. Factors like strong patrilinearity and patrilocality, as well as women’s inferior land rights and lesser involvement in trade, made women more dependent on men than was generally the case in Ghana. However, since  age  apparently remained the overriding principle of social organization in central Kenya, some senior women had much authority. Thus, Robertson revised her hypothesis somewhat, arguing that in determining authority in precolonial Africa age was a primary principle that superseded gender to varying degrees depending on the situation.   1 
 B 
1. The primary purpose of the passage is to

(A) present evidence undermining a certain hypothesis
(B) describe a particular position and its subsequent modification
(C) discuss two contrasting viewpoints regarding a particular issue
(D) describe how a social phenomenon varied by region
(E) evaluate an assumption widely held by scholars

2 
 C 
2. The passage indicates that Robertson’s research in Kenya caused her to change her mind regarding which of the following?

(A) Whether age was the prevailing principle of social organization in Kenya before colonialism
(B) Whether gender was the primary determinant of social authority in Africa generally before colonialism
(C) Whether it was only after colonialism that gender became a significant determinant of authority in Kenyan society
(D) Whether age was a crucial factor determining authority in Africa after colonialism
(E) Whether British colonialism imposed European-style male-dominant notions upon local situations in Ghana

3 
 B 
3. The passage suggests that after conducting the research mentioned in highlighted text, but not before, Robertson would have agreed with which of the following about women’s status and authority in Ghana?

(A) Greater land rights and greater involvement in trade made women in precolonial Ghana less dependent on men than were European women at that time.
(B) Colonialism had a greater impact on the status and authority of Ghanaian women than on Kenyan women.
(C) Colonialism had less of an impact on the status and authority of Ghanaian women that it had on the status and authority of other African women.
(D) The relative independence of Ghanaian women prior to colonialism was unique in Africa.
(E) Before colonialism, the status and authority of Ghanaian women was similar to that of Kenyan women.

4 
 E 
4. The author of the passage mentions the status of age as a principle of social organization in precolonial central Kenya in highlighted text most likely in order to

(A) indicate that women’s dependence on men in precolonial Kenya was not absolute 
(B) contrast the situation of senior women to that of less senior women in precolonial Kenyan society
(C) differentiate between the status and authority of precolonial Kenyan women and that of precolonial Ghanaian women
(D) explain why age superseded gender to a greater extent in precolonial Kenya than it did elsewhere in Africa
(E) identify a factor that led Robertson to revise her hypothesis about precolonial Africa

Ravs113 · Answer

Hi,

Robinson thought, prior to colonialism, age was a more important factor than gender in Africa in general(which includes Kenya.)
First Sentence of Paragraph-
"In a 1984 book, Claire C. Robertson argued that, before colonialism, age was a more important indicator of status and authority than gender in Ghana and  in Africa generally ."

After further research, she got to know that in Kenya prior to colonialism, sometimes, gender also played a significant role. This changed her mind.

Before research: In Kenya, age >gender - ALWAYS.
After research: In Kenya, age >gender - NOT ALWAYS.

Hit Kudos, if it helps.

mSKR · Answer

What did she change: 
 Subsequent research in Kenya convinced Robertson that she had overgeneralized about Africa. 
What was overgeneralization?
 Before colonialism, gender was more salient in central Kenya than it was in Ghana, although age was still crucial in determining authority.
Robertson revised her hypothesis somewhat, arguing that in determining authority in precolonial Africa age was a primary principle that superseded gender to varying degrees depending on the situation.

In summary, she updated that :
Before given: Age + gender was important factor in Kenya
She assumed: Only gender important than age after colonialism
Actually : Age is also important ;

In summary, Gender is not as important as she imagined

A, B and E are easy to eliminate

(A) Whether age was the prevailing principle of social organization in Kenya  before colonialism 
She updated her hypothesis after colonialism

(B) Whether gender was the primary determinant of social authority  in Africa  generally  before colonialism 
Whether gender was the primary determinant of social authority in KENYA generally AFTER colonialism

(E) Whether British colonialism imposed European-style male-dominant notions upon local situations in Ghana
She has no doubt that British colonialism imposed European-style male-dominant notions upon local situations in Ghana

Confused between C and D. I choose D but not C. 
Please help to clarify the doubt
(C) Whether it was only after colonialism that gender became a significant determinant of authority in  Kenyan society 
Before colonialism, gender was more salient in central Kenya than it was in Ghana, although age was still crucial in determining authority.
She thought gender has become dominant but actually gender was important in Kenya even before colonialism. 
I think , some point is missed . please help  GMATNinja   AndrewN   VeritasKarishma

(D) Whether age was a crucial factor determining authority in Africa after colonialism
Whether age was crucial even after colonialism. That’s what she updated. yes age is still important after colonialism . 
I think , D should be answer.

I know I am wrong . please help to identify where did i falter.

thanks in advance!

Michele4 · Answer

GMATNinja   IanStewart   GMATGuruNY  In Q2 I am really having a hard time eliminating Answer choice A, I can't find anything that contradicts it. Can you please help me? This is a really tough RC

GMATGuruNY · Answer

2. The passage indicates that Robertson’s research in Kenya caused her to change her mind regarding which of the following?

(A) Whether age was the prevailing principle of social organization in Kenya before colonialism

In paragraph 1, Robertson's original argument:
 Before colonialism, age was a more important indicator of status and authority...in Africa. 
According to paragraph 2, Robertson's research revealed the following:
 Age apparently remained the overriding principle of social organization in central Kenya .
Here, the usage of  remained  indicates that age was important not only AFTER colonialism but also BEFORE colonialism, with the result that age REMAINED important.
Thus, Robertson did NOT change her mind about the importance of age before colonialism.
Both in her original argument and after her research, Robertson considered age  the overriding principle .
Eliminate A.

AndrewN · Answer

Age was not just a  crucial factor ,  mSKR , but THE most crucial factor, according to Robertson, in determining authority in Africa either before or after colonialism. I think you could look at the same two lines from the passage that  GMATGuruNY  has quoted just above in response to (A) to see that (D) fails for the same reason.

- Andrew

Fdambro294 · Answer

I hate it, but I have to accept that E is the answer to question 4.

I’ve read all the explanations and I’m still on the fence. Rather than argue with the passage.....take the bruise and move on lol.

Great discussion, thanks.

Posted from my mobile device

GMATtoM7 · Answer

I didn't choose B because Robertson never considered gender to be a primary determinant before or after the research. Her conclusion before and after had age as a primary determinant (though to a lesser degree after the research).

sanjitscorps18 · Answer

GMATNinja  @workout

Request further clarification. The factor "age" continues to dominate in Clair's research even after her research modification, hence, IMHO the highlighted "age" is not the factor that led Robertson to revise her hypothesis about precolonial Africa. For me it would be "gender" because she generalized that earlier.

I would rather go with B which clearly states that "contrast the situation of senior women to that of less senior women in precolonial Kenyan society"

This is substantiated in passage section in the same line - "However, since age apparently remained the overriding principle of social organization in central Kenya, some senior women had much authority."

gmatimothy · Answer

GMATNinja

Hey Charles! Thanks for the awesome explanation. I just wanted to clarify a couple of things. I was choosing between (B) and (E) and chose (B) because the passage says "senior women had much authority." This phrase made me think "much authority vs. whom"? And then I went back back just a sentence: the author talks about how women (implied less senior) were inferior to men. This sequencing made me lean towards (B). And now on to my thought process of eliminating (E) -

For (E), the word, "led" made me walk away from this choice. I viewed "age" as one of the factors that involve the revision, but thought that "gender" is the main factor that actually "led" Robertson to revise her hypothesis. Her revised hypothesis still holds that age is the primary factor so no change there, right?

Reading your explanation, I now understand why (E) is correct - but unsure if I can pick this answer on the actual test day - do you have any advice after reading my thought process when I first solved this problem? Thanks!

GMATNinja · Answer

Question 4 
 
Let's start by considering the purpose of each paragraph:

Purpose of Paragraph 1: To present Robertson's argument that "age was a more important indicator of status and authority than gender in Ghana and in Africa generally."   Purpose of Paragraph 2: To show how "subsequent research" led Robertson to revise her hypothesis about authority and gender in Africa.

Let's now consider (B):

Essentially, this question is asking us to identify the author's  purpose  in mentioning "the status of age as a principle of social organization" in Kenya. In other words, why did the author mention this detail? How does it function in relation to the author's overall purpose?

As you suggest, the author definitely contrasts the "situation of senior women to that of less senior women." But the author doesn't mention age  simply  to draw this contrast. Rather, age is mentioned in order to flesh out Robertson's reasons for revising her hypothesis.

Initially, she'd believed that "age was a more important indicator of status and authority than gender" in Africa generally. However, the fact that non-senior women in Kenya were worse off than women in Ghana led her to change her thinking. At the same time, senior women in Kenya still had "much authority." So ultimately, she only revised her hypothesis "somewhat," since senior Kenyan women still had "much authority."

Overall, age isn't mentioned simply to make a point about Kenyan society, but to develop the author's discussion of why Robertson revised her hypothesis. For that reason, (B) is incorrect.

Let's now consider (E):

You're correct that age is  only one  of the factors that led Robertson to revise her hypothesis, but that's good enough for this answer choice. Notice that (E) doesn't describe age as the "main factor" or the "only factor," but simply "a factor."

Since the "status of age as a principle of social organization in precolonial central Kenya" is  one  of the factors that led Robertson to revise her hypothesis, (E) is correct.

I hope that helps!

Rickooreo · Answer

Can you please help me understand where I am going wrong

A. indicate that women???s dependence on men in precolonial Kenya was not absolute

>Exactly ??? the portion is said with relevance to the situation in Kenya ??? after mentioning how women were already gender wise discriminated against at certain instances, the author mentions the highlighted portion to show indicate that age still had enough influence to get some elder women independent and with much authority ??? CORRECT

B. contrast the situation of senior women to that of less senior women in precolonial 
Kenyan society

>Age being the overriding principle does little to contrast the situation of the two groups mentioned in the answer option

C. differentiate between the status and authority of precolonial Kenyan women and that 
of precolonial Ghanaian women

>whatever the highlighted portion says is true for both Ghanaian and Kenyan women ??? thus there is no differentiation as such

D. explain why age superseded gender to a greater extent in precolonial Kenya than it did elsewhere in Africa

>Kenya is never compared with places elsewhere in Africa

E. identify a factor that led Robertson to revise her hypothesis about precolonial Africa

>age was never a factor that led her to revise her stance, it was relative influence of 
Gender in Ghana and Kenya

RonTargetTestPrep · Answer

First, a quick rundown of this problem.

According to the passage, Ms. Robertson's INITIAL hypothesis had two parts:
• Before British colonization, African social structures were more heavily influenced by age distinctions than by the sex distinction.
• After British colonization, it was the other way around.

The blurb about age in the second paragraph, though, says...
 age apparently remained the overriding principle of social organization in central Kenya 
In other words, age was more influential than sex in Kenyan social structure, even after the British made Kenya a colony.
This  directly contravenes Ms. Robertson's original hypothesis , so, it must have been a reason to revise that hypothesis to allow for the opposite in some instances.

RonTargetTestPrep · Answer

Now, to address your questions

Remember—Questions about the  function of some element  (sentence, word/phrase/concept, etc) are about  HOW THAT ELEMENT FITS INTO THE PASSAGE AS A WHOLE .

I briefly summarized this passage in the post above. Please note that the entire passage fundamentally ••IS•• about Ms. Robertson's old hypothesis (and how she altered it in response to new evidence)—but NOT AT ALL about women's dependence on men (an idea that is not mentioned anywhere in the passage at all).

For choice A to be correct, the author would actually need to have a reason to point out explicitly that "women's dependence on men in Kenya was not absolute"!
The only possible context in which that would make sense would have some earlier statement(s) that might make the reader think women WERE absolutely dependent on men, thus necessitating a counterpoint like what choice A describes.
In this context, though, that's just irrelevant nonsense.

There's also the problem of the word "absolute", which makes this choice even further removed from anything that happens in the passage. The only quantification of women's dependence on men in this passage is the  relative comparison  in the immediately preceding sentence—MORE dependent vs. LESS dependent. There's nothing about absolute dependence. (This observation alone would be grounds for elimination, even without the more general insight about function problems above.)

RonTargetTestPrep · Answer

...but, relative to WHAT? (Relative to  age , as it turns out. The theme of the passage is the relative importance of AGE vs. SEX in structuring African societies.

The point of this observation (the one called out for problem 4) is that "senior women" DID have some significant power of their own—meaning that  "senior"  (which corresponds to HAVING power, in an age-based social structure)  was more important than "woman"  (which would correspond to NOT having power, in a sex-based social structure).
In other words, this finding served as evidence that age >>> sex in post-colonial Kenya, an observation that forced Ms. Robertson to revise her original hypothesis (which had predicted that the opposite would obtain).

louisinau · Answer

I have to say Ron is the only tutor who convinced me on this question. Although he might cannot read this message. Respect

IN2MBB2PE · Answer

I just wanted to say this out loud, this passage is a B**** I HATE IT, I HATE IT, I HATE IT .... After doing 500 or so LSAT Passage, here I am staring at this crap ...

Raman109 · Answer

In question 4 - look at this piece of the argument: "made women more dependent on men than was generally the case in Ghana. However, since age apparently remained the overriding principle of social organization in central Kenya, some senior women had much authority. " The comparison is made between Keneyan and Ghana woman. Say if Ghana women were 20% dependent on men. MORE may mean 25%. It doesn't mean 100% in the first place.

"However," states the contrast, saying women in Kenya are more dependent on men than in Ghana, and age remained the overriding principle.
Option E indicates that women’s dependence on men in precolonial Kenya was not absolute. First, it was not absolute in the first place, and second, mentioning age shows it was an overriding factor.

Had the "age" not been mentioned in Kenya, the CCR might not be right in saying that "age was a primary principle that superseded gender." This hypothesis is only possible if, despite Kenya being more influenced by gender, as was the case in Europe, age was still an overriding factor.

Aishna1034 · Answer

GMATNinja , can you please throw some light on option C as well, confused between options C and E. Doesnt the previous lines of the passage to the highlighted text when connected with option highlighted term AGE, infer exactly what option c says?

GMATNinja · Answer

More on Question 4 
 
Remember that we're trying to figure out  why  the author included the highlighted bit in the passage. How does it serve the passage as a whole?

The last sentence of the passage starts with the word "thus." This is a clear indication that this last sentence is some kind of conclusion that is supported by the preceding sentences.

That conclusion is: "Thus, Robertson revised her hypothesis somewhat, arguing that in determining authority in precolonial Africa age was a primary principle that superseded gender to varying degrees depending on the situation."

How does Robertson support this conclusion? She presents  two situations  that show the "varying degrees" mentioned in her conclusion. Those two situations are:

Ghana: "Factors like strong patrilinearity and patrilocality, as well as women’s inferior land rights and lesser involvement in trade, made women more dependent on men than was generally the case in Ghana."
 
 Kenya: "Since age apparently remained the overriding principle of social organization in central Kenya, some senior women had much authority."

You're right that these two situations contrast one another. But the  purpose  of including this contrast is to support the overall conclusion in the last sentence. That's why (C) doesn't capture the role of the highlighted portion.

(C) is out, and (E) is the correct answer to question 4.

I hope that helps!

VerbalBot · Answer

Hello from the GMAT Club VerbalBot!

Thanks to another GMAT Club member, I have just discovered this valuable topic, yet it had no discussion for over a year. I am now bumping it up - doing my job. I think you may find it valuable (esp those replies with Kudos).

Want to see all other topics I dig out? Follow me (click follow button on profile). You will receive a summary of all topics I bump in your profile area as well as via email.

In a 1984 book, Claire C, Robertson argued that, before colonialism

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards

GMAT Reading Comprehension (RC) Questions

In a 1984 book, Claire C, Robertson argued that, before colonialism

Prep Toolkit

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards