Initially the Vinaver theory that Malorys eight romances, once though

Question

Initially the Vinaver theory that Malory’s eight romances, once thought to be fundamentally unified, were in fact eight independent works produced both a sense of relief and an unpleasant shock. Vinaver’s theory comfortably explained away the apparent contradictions of chronology and made each romance independently satisfying. It was, however, disagreeable to find that what had been thought of as one book was now eight books. Part of this response was the natural reaction to the disturbance of set ideas. Nevertheless, even now,after lengthy considerations of the theory’s refined but legitimate observations, one cannot avoid the conclusion that the eight romances are only one work. It is not quite a matter of disagreeing with the theory of independence, but of rejecting its implications: that the romances may be taken in any or no particular order, that they have no cumulative effect, and that they are as separate as the works of any modern novelist.   1 
 A 
 Q1) The primary purpose of the passage is to

A. discuss the validity of a hypothesis
B. summarise a system of general principles
C. propose guidelines for future arguments
D. stipulate conditions for acceptance of an interpretation
E. deny accusations about an apparent contradiction

2 
 C 
 Q2) It can be inferred from the passage that the author believes which of the following about Malory’s works?

I. There are meaningful links between and about the romances
II. The subtleties of the romances are obscured when they are taken as one work
III. Any contradictions in chronology among the romances are less important than their overall unity

A. I only
B. III only
C. I and III only
D. II and III only
E.I, II and III

3 
 E 
 Q3) The author of the passage concedes which of the following about Vinaver’s theory?

A. It gives a clearer understanding of the unity of Malory’s romances
B. It demonstrates the irrationality of considering Malory’s romances to be unified.
C. It establishes acceptable links between Malory’s romances and modern novels.
D. It unifies earlier and later theories concerning the chronology of Malory’s romances.
E. It makes valid and subtle comments about Malory’s romances.

4 
 B 
 Q4) It can be inferred from the passage that in evaluating the Vinaver theory, some critics were

A. Frequently misled by the inconsistencies in Malory’s work.
B. Initially biased by previous interpretations of Malory’s work.
C. Conceptually displeased by the general interpretations that Vinaver rejected.
D. Generally in agreement with Vinaver’s comparisons between Malory and modern novelists
E. Originally skeptical about Vinaver’s early conclusions with respect to modern novels.

bM22 · Accepted Answer

Hi  medha312 ,

Q4) It can be inferred from the passage that in evaluating the Vinaver theory, some critics were

A. Frequently misled by the inconsistencies in Malory’s work.
  B. Initially biased by previous interpretations of Malory’s work.  
C. Conceptually displeased by the general interpretations that Vinaver rejected.
D. Generally in agreement with Vinaver’s comparisons between Malory and modern novelists
E. Originally skeptical about Vinaver’s early conclusions with respect to modern novels.

Explanation: B can inferred from the lines: "Part of this response was the natural reaction to the disturbance of set ideas." and "It is not quite a matter of disagreeing with the theory of independence, but of rejecting its implications".
The lines mentioned imply that the response that Malory's work received was initially biased. The critics did not completely disagree with his work also, thus B is the correct answer.

Option C is incorrect, because it mentions that critics were conceptually  displeased by the general interpretations that Vinaver rejected , what we can infer is that critics were displeased with his interpretations  and not by the interpretations that Vinaver rejected .
Thus C is incorrect.

Hope This Helps.
Thanks.

deep31993 · Answer

Ok this is a good difficult passage. Got only 2 right. Anyone with explanations? Can passages like this be expected in GMAT? Will practicing such passages helps?

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Hello deep31993

When GMAC write new RCs they make 5-10 questions with each passage containing easy, medium and hard questions. GMAC can use the same passage for all difficulty levels. When a test taker is floating in the easy level the passage contains only easy level questions. When a student is in the medium level of verbal section the same passage can be served with medium level questions and same for the hard level.

This passage also contains easy, medium and hard questions. The passage like this be served in the real exam but will contain only the related difficulty level questions. Below in the difficulty levels of this passage.

Question #1: 650
Question #2: 700
Question #3: 750
Question #4: 750

Thanks and regards

Harshjha001 · Answer

I found the respective answers in these statements -:

Q2 -:"that the eight romances are only one work" and "rejecting its implications: that the romances may be taken in any or no particular order "
Q3-:"Nevertheless, even now,after lengthy considerations of the theory’s refined but   legitimate observations   "
Q4-:"response was the natural reaction to the disturbance of   set ideas   "

medha312 · Answer

please explain Q4.

I marked 'c' thinking that passage mentions 'unpleasant shock' as an initial reaction of some critics.

Deyoz · Answer

it took me very long tome to read and understand this short passage..got 3 right so...can anyone please explain the answer of question no. 2

bM22 · Answer

Hi  Deyoz ,

Q2) It can be inferred from the passage that the author believes which of the following about Malory’s works?

I can be inferred from the lines: "Nevertheless, even now,after lengthy considerations of the theory’s refined but legitimate observations,  one cannot avoid the conclusion that the eight romances are only one work " 
and
"It is not quite a matter of disagreeing with the theory of independence, but of  rejecting its implications: that the romances may be taken in any or no particular order, that they have no cumulative effect, and that they are as separate as the works of any modern novelist. ".

The above highlighted lines imply that there are meaningful links between and about the romances.

This is exactly opposite of what author has mentioned in the passage. Thus, II is incorrect.

III can be inferred from the lines: "Vinaver’s theory comfortably  explained away the apparent contradictions of chronology  and made each romance independently satisfying. It was,  however, disagreeable to find that what had been thought of as one book was now eight books. ", implying that though Vinaver had explained the contradictions of the chronology of the romances, it was against the idea that the eight books were just one book. Thus, we can infer that author believes that any contradictions in chronology among the romances are  less important   than their overall unity.

Hope This Helps.
Thanks.

IMTIAJUR · Answer

>>>passage starts with Initially >>

Initially starts with something than turns into another thing

>> initially often brings contrast>>
So initially it was independent works and finally it become same work,scan the word that indicate contrast / change, here it is Nevertheless,
Boom the passage main idea is done.

Posted from my mobile device

ashutosh_73 · Answer

Hi Experts, 
I need help with Q2. Tone of the passage seems to be merely presenting facts. Author doesn't seem to side much with either Vinaver theory OR Unified theory.

Rather author seems to slightly side with Vinaver theory when he says: comfortably explained away the apparent contradictions of chronology and made each romance independently satisfying

So i am not sure how author would agree to below two statements. Sounds like a big leap use words such as ''meaningful links in 1st'' and ''less important'' in 2nd statement

I. There are meaningful links between and about the romances
III. Any contradictions in chronology among the romances are less important than their overall unity

Rohan30 · Answer

Can someone give an explanation for Question 3?

Posted from my mobile device

lionx7 · Answer

I dont like questions like this. Q3 Answer:

Q3) The author of the passage concedes which of the following about Vinaver’s theory?

A. It gives a clearer understanding of the unity of Malory’s romances
B. It demonstrates the irrationality of considering Malory’s romances to be unified.
C. It establishes acceptable links between Malory’s romances and modern novels.
D. It unifies earlier and later theories concerning the chronology of Malory’s romances.
E. It makes valid and subtle comments about Malory’s romances.

B+E are the main contenders here.

Text: 
Vinaver’s theory comfortably explained away  the apparent contradictions of chronology  and made each romance independently satisfying. It was, however, disagreeable to find that what had been thought of as one book was now eight books.

If you explain something aways you are saying what YOU say is rational while showing why believing in unified books is irrational. However the text doesn't explain HOW he is doing that. This is what demonstrate means: give a practical exhibition and explanation.

I was between B and E, i chose B because how the **** do you know that it are subtle comments? But next time i understand, choose the answer that is 100% right, and look better for what they are asking.

glagad · Answer

Hello  Sajjad1994   GMATNinja  - I faltered in all questions. This was just when I thought I am getting better at RC. Do you mind sharing why the answers are correct? Thanks

Purnank · Answer

GMATNinja  Can you post explanation for all questions?

druparel · Answer

can someone please explain Q1?

i was stuck between A (discuss the validity of a hypothesis) and D (stipulate conditions for acceptance of an interpretation).

I ruled out A because of the line "It is not quite a matter of disagreeing with the theory of independence, but of rejecting its implications". that basically means that there's no discussion around whether the theory is valid or not but rather people's reactions/acceptance of the theory, right?

Gemmie · Answer

1. The primary purpose of the passage is to:
A. discuss the validity of a hypothesis

The passage discusses the Vinaver theory, evaluates its implications, and ultimately concludes that despite the theory's refined observations, the romances are still considered as one unified work. This indicates a discussion about the validity of the hypothesis.

2. It can be inferred from the passage that the author believes which of the following about Malory’s works?
C. I and III only

I. There are meaningful links between and about the romances:   This is supported by the author's belief that the eight romances are ultimately one work, implying meaningful connections.

II. The subtleties of the romances are obscured when they are taken as one work:  The passage does not support this. The author does not mention that the subtleties are obscured; instead, they discuss the discomfort with viewing them as separate works.

III. Any contradictions in chronology among the romances are less important than their overall unity:   This is supported by the author's ultimate conclusion that the romances form one unified work despite chronological contradictions.

3. The author of the passage concedes which of the following about Vinaver’s theory?
E. It makes valid and subtle comments about Malory’s romances.

The author acknowledges that Vinaver’s theory offers "refined but legitimate observations," indicating a concession that the theory makes valid and subtle comments about the romances.

4. It can be inferred from the passage that in evaluating the Vinaver theory, some critics were
B. Initially biased by previous interpretations of Malory’s work.

The passage indicates that the initial reaction to the Vinaver theory included both a sense of relief and an unpleasant shock. This suggests that critics were initially influenced by the long-held belief that Malory's works were fundamentally unified, and this bias affected their evaluation of Vinaver's theory.

GMATNinja · Answer

When you miss all or most of the questions for a given RC passage, it is likely that you haven't grasped the big picture of the passage itself. Instead of going through explanations of each question, check out  this article  or  this video  and take another crack at reading the passage. Can you articulate why the author wrote each chunk? If yes, go ahead and try the questions again.

If you have more specific questions after completing the above, please let us know.

I hope that helps a bit!

Sneha2021 · Answer

KarishmaB   GMATNinja

Q2) It can be inferred from the passage that the author believes which of the following about Malory’s works?

I. There are meaningful links between and about the romances
II. The subtleties of the romances are obscured when they are taken as one work
III. Any contradictions in chronology among the romances are less important than their overall unity

How to infer "meaningful links between and about the romances" from the passage?Since the last line says "they are as separate as the works of any modern novelist" - i thought there are no links btw romances. 
can you explain meaning of this last line? - It is not quite a matter of disagreeing with the theory of independence, but of rejecting its implications: that the romances may be taken in any or no particular order, that they have no cumulative effect, and that they are as separate as the works of any modern novelist.

Thanks!

Initially the Vinaver theory that Malorys eight romances, once though

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GMAT Reading Comprehension (RC) Questions

Initially the Vinaver theory that Malorys eight romances, once though

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

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