Jacob Burckhardt’s view that Renaissance European women stood on

Hi jack0997,

Please refer the below reply :
https://gmatclub.com/forum/jacob-burckhardt-s-view-that-renaissance-european-women-stood-on-218792.html#p1686893

Let me know if this doesn't clear your doubt.
Thanks.

Thank you, but the relevant discussion for Option B did not take place.

Hi jack0997,

Sorry for the late reply, let me know if this helps.

Last Sentence: "Krontiris is concerned to show women intentionally negotiating some power for themselves (at least in the realm of public discourse) against potentially constraining ideologies, but in her sober and thoughtful concluding remarks, she suggests that such verbal opposition to cultural stereotypes was highly circumscribed; women seldom attacked the basic assumptions in the ideologies that oppressed them."

Here we can see that Krontiris is portraying the Renaissance women optimistically by mentioning that women did fight for some power for themselves, while expressing the negative point as well.

Option B:

Incorrect, as we can infer that Krontiris is not undermining anything, she is simply expressing her views of the Renaissance women being optimistic but careful, as we can see that Krontiris mentions that Renaissance women did oppose the social constraints imposed on them, while also mentioning women seldom attacked the basic assumptions in the ideologies that oppressed them, implying that she doesn't undermine this argument completely.

Thanks.

Fem Schlr against JB view of (Rw)Rwomen=Rmen(Rm)
Eg: JK: Rw status decl comprd Rmen/ Mwomen
But recent schlr reject both JB & JK view, as both generalised.

W writers>> representation, but minority
Wwriter exp≠ all W exp
TK : All W= WWriters; gender-> homgns group
cont significant, but cautious optimistic, W seldom attk opprssn.

1.
Second paragraph elaborates the trend talked earlier in first paragraph which rejects both Kelly’s and Burckhardt’s extreme view and further gives an example of Krontiris work
Correct: Option D

2.
Scholars were against the generalization made by JB & JK, however Kelly , though following same trend of rejection of both JK & JB extreme view, made a generalization by considering experience of Women writer’s representative of experience of Women.
Correct: Option E

3. Fem Schlr against JB view of (Rw)Rwomen=Rmen(Rm) and feminist scholars which to refute JB’s view
Correct: C

4.
But recent schlr reject both JB & JK view, as both generalised.
Only option A & B come close. However its TK’s view that generalizes experience of Renaissance women writers as those of all Renaissance women, option A out.
Correct: B

5.
“Such women were, simply by virtue of their literacy, members of a tiny minority of the population, so it is risky to take their descriptions of their experiences as typical of “female experience” in any general sense. Tina Krontiris, for example… assuming that women’s gender, irrespective of other social differences, including literacy, allows us to view women as a homogeneous social group and make that group an object of analysis.”

Author mentions that experience of tiny minority cannot be generalised as experience of all women and further gives an example: how TK assumes All W= WWriters; gender-> homgns group.
Correct: A

6.
author says that TK contribution was significant, but cautious optimistic and then gives an example of her cautiously optimistic approach.
Correct: C

7.
TK studied literate women writers and small minority of population. So their writing could later be used by historians for further research while the experience of majority of women who were illiterate was not recorded and accessible.
Only C & D come close, but the writer women were not necessarily concerned about recording history accurately, so C out.
Correct: D

Hi, I have a very specific question, please.

For question 2, answer choice E (the correct one) states that Krontiris's views are based on a privileged group of women. I agree. However, in my opinion, the scholars mentioned also based their observations on upper-class Italian women. Aren't they also privileged? Therefore, Krontiris's work does not differ from the scholar's in that regard.

Where is my flaw in reasoning? Thank you for your help!

I can see your point, HustleG. At the same time, we cannot overlook the comparisons made in the first paragraph. The opening line says that Burckhardt adopted the view that Renaissance European women “stood on a footing of perfect equality” with Renaissance men (my italics), while in the next line, Kelly believed the opposite to be true, arguing that the Renaissance was a period of economic and social decline for women relative both to Renaissance men and to medieval women (again, my italics). So, while we cannot ignore the last line of the first paragraph, in which we learn that both Burckhardt and Kelly made [generalizations] on the basis of their observations about upper-class Italian women, we can appreciate that there is a larger context within which these women were studied and compared.

Krontiris, on the other hand, focuses exclusively on the views expressed by six Renaissance women writers... assuming that women’s gender, irrespective of other social differences, including literacy, allows us to view women as a homogeneous social group and make that group an object of analysis (again, my italics). In short, the upper-class Italian women under study by Burckhardt and Kelly were indeed part of a privileged group, but both authors also kept an eye on other groups (or "studied" them), namely men and, at least in the case of Kelly, medieval women. Krontiris was more narrowly focused on a privileged group of a half dozen literate women.

That is the best way I can think to justify the answer (besides disqualifying the others). I hope that helps. Good luck with your studies.

- Andrew
_________________

Hi Andrew,

Thank you for your explanation, it makes total sense!

Much appreciated

Hey AndrewN, I have a different opinion on this one.

I am totally with you on the Krontiris part. She has based her perception on a select group of privileged women. However, I do not think the question wants us to compare Krontiris with Buckhard and Kelly. The question specifically asks us to compare Krontiris with the "scholars mentioned in highlight text". Below is an extract from the passage -

"Recently, however, a significant trend among feminist scholars has entailed a rejection of both Kelly’s dark vision of the Renaissance and Burckhardt’s rosy one. Many recent works by these scholars stress the ways in which differences among Renaissance women—especially in terms of social status and religion—work to complicate the kinds of generalizations both Burckhardt and Kelly made on the basis of their observations about upper-class Italian women "

It is evident that these recent scholars do not focus on a privileged group, but they rather want to stress on the social differences among women so the contrast with Krontiris is crystal clear and so is the option E.

Would be interesting to know what you think Andrew. I learn a lot from your posts throughout the forum, thanks in advance!

I agree, Brian123. The answer is right there between the em dashes, rather close to the highlighted part at that (in other words, just where we might expect to find the answer to such an according-to-the-passage question). That is a much simpler take on the question than the process I had outlined above. The mind races sometimes, and we can arrive at the same conclusion for different reasons.

Thank you for following up, and also for the kind words. Good luck with your studies.

- Andrew
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This is my opinion to your query.
The stand of FScholars is clearly mentioned as inequality for Renaisance women. It is opposite of JB view which is rosy and talks about equality.
FS used JB view as prelude to their presentation. It means something to start their presentation and later FS put their stand about inequality.

The author of the passage discusses Krontiris primarily to provide an example of a writer who

A. is highly critical of the writings of certain Renaissance women Krontiris is not highly critical of Renaissance women

B. supports Kelly's view of women's status during the Renaissance Krontiris rejects Kelly's view

C. has misinterpreted the works of certain Renaissance women Krontiris has not misinterpreted the works. His work focused only on a certain class of women who were literate.

D. has rejected the views of both Burckhardt and Kelly Krontiris has rejected the views of both Burckhardt and Kelly

E. has studied Renaissance women in a wide variety of social and religious contexts The passage does not state this.


According to the passage, Krontiris's work differs from that of the scholars mentioned in line 12 in which of the following ways?

A. Krontiris's work stresses the achievements of Renaissance women rather than the obstacles to their success. Krontiris discusses both achievements and obstacles faced by Renaissance women.

B. Krontiris's work is based on a reinterpretation of the work of earlier scholars. Out of context.

C. Krontiris's views are at odds with those of both Kelly and Burkhardt. This was not a difference; it was a similarity. Feminist scholars including Krontiris were at odds to the views of Kelly and Burkhardt.

D. Krontiris's work focuses on the place of women in Renaissance society. Out of context.

E. Krontiris's views are based exclusively on the study of a privileged group of women. Krontiris work is based only on literate women.


According to the passage, feminist scholars cite Burckhardt's view of Renaissance women primarily for which of the following reasons?

A. Burckhardt's view forms the basis for most arguments refuting Kelly's point of view. This is not the reason feminist scholars have cited Burckhardt's view of Renaissance

B. Burckhardt's view has been discredited by Kelly. This is not the reason feminist scholars have cited Burckhardt's view of Renaissance

C. Burckhardt's view is one that many feminist scholars wish to refute. The first sentence clearly indicates that this is why feminist scholars cite Burckhardt's view of Renaissance women

D. Burckhardt's work provides rich historical evidence of inequality between Renaissance women and men. This is not the reason feminist scholars have cited Burckhardt's view of Renaissance

E. Burckhardt's work includes historical research supporting the arguments of the feminist scholars. This is not the reason feminist scholars have cited Burckhardt's view of Renaissance


It can be inferred that both Burckhardt and Kelly have been criticized by the scholars mentioned in red for which of the following?

A. Assuming that women writers of the Renaissance are representative of Renaissance women in general Feminist scholars do not assume this.

B. Drawing conclusions that are based on the study of an atypical group of women The passage mentions that “generalizations both Burckhardt and Kelly made on the basis of their observations about upper-class Italian women”, which was an atypical group of women.

C. Failing to describe clearly the relationship between social status and literacy among Renaissance women Passage states that feminist scholars have made analysis of the relationship between social status and literacy.

D. Failing to acknowledge the role played by Renaissance women in opposing cultural stereotypes This is not why Burckhardt and Kelly have been criticized by the scholars

E. Failing to acknowledge the ways in which social status affected the creative activities of Renaissance women Out of context


The author of the passage suggests that Krontiris incorrectly assumes that

A. social differences among Renaissance women are less important than the fact that they were women The passage states that Krontiris assumes that women’s gender, irrespective of other social differences, including literacy, allows us to view women as a homogeneous social group and make that group an object of analysis.

B. literacy among Renaissance women was more prevalent than most scholars today acknowledge This can’t be inferred

C. during the Renaissance, women were able to successfully oppose cultural stereotypes relating to gender In contrast, Krontiris suggests that such verbal opposition to cultural stereotypes was highly circumscribed (restricted)

D. Renaissance women did not face many difficult social obstacles relating to their gender she also In contrast, Krontiris stresses on the social obstacles Renaissance women faced when they sought to raise their "oppositional voices”

E. in order to attain power, Renaissance women attacked basic assumptions in the ideologies that oppressed them also In contrast, Krontiris suggests that such verbal opposition to cultural stereotypes was highly circumscribed; women seldom attacked the basic assumptions in the ideologies that oppressed them.


The last sentence in the passage serves primarily to

A. suggest that Krontiris's work is not representative of recent trends among feminist scholars Not relevant

B. undermine the argument that literate women of the Renaissance sought to oppose social constraints imposed on them Krontiris does not undermine the argument. She takes a cautiously optimistic stand.

C. show a way in which Krontiris's work illustrates a "cautiously optimistic" assessment of Renaissance women's achievements The last line indicates that she has not taken a firm stand that leans either way. Her stance is indeed “cautiously optimistic”

D. summarize Krontiris's view of the effect of literacy on the lives of upper- and middle-class Renaissance women Not relevant

E. illustrate the way in which Krontiris's study differs from the studies done by Burckhardt and Kelly Not relevant


The author of the passage implies that the women studied by Krontiris are unusual in which of the following ways?

A. They faced obstacles less formidable than those faced by other Renaissance women. This comparison is not what has made the women studied by Krontiris unusual

B. They have been seen by historians as more interesting than other Renaissance women. This is not what has made the women studied by Krontiris unusual

C. They were more concerned about recording history accurately than were other Renaissance women. This is not what has made the women studied by Krontiris unusual

D. Their perceptions are more likely to be accessible to historians than are those of most other Renaissance women. The passage states that middle- and upper-class European women’s ability to write gave them disproportionate representation in the historical record implying that the perception of the women studied by Krontiris are more likely to be accessible to historians

E. Their concerns are likely to be of greater interest to feminist scholars than are the ideas of most other Renaissance women. This is not what has made the women studied by Krontiris unusual

- Nitha Jay

GMATNinja, can you please explain why C is not correct? According to 1st par, feminist scholars stresses the ways in which differences among Renaissance women in terms of social status and religion complicated generalization made by B and K. Since social status and religion are used to complicate generalization made by B and K, I assumed that B and K failed to consider social status and literacy. Can you please explain where I am getting wrong with my analysis?

What atypical group of women B and K drew their conclusion upon?

Question 4

Take another look at the exact language of (C):

(C) talks about the relationship BETWEEN social status and literacy among Renaissance women. That's very different than failing to consider social status and literacy AT ALL, as you've stated in your analysis.

The relationship between social status and literacy is discussed in the second paragraph, and is actually a criticism directed at Krontiris. Krontiris relies on the writings of Renaissance women, and sometimes fails to acknowledge that these women must have been upper class and thus not representative of women in general.

Burckhardt and Kelly based their work on "upper-class Italian women," but we have no idea whether these women were literate. So, Burckhardt and Kelly really can't be criticized for failing to discuss the relationship between literacy and social class, because we don't know whether their work was flawed in the same way as Krontiris' work.

Eliminate (C).

Here's (B):

At the end of paragraph 1, we learn that recent scholars reject both Burckhardt and Kelly's views. These new scholars discuss complicating factors such as "social status and religion," which correct the "generalizations both Burckhardt and Kelly made on the basis of their observations about upper-class Italian women."

From this, we can infer that Burckhardt and Kelly drew conclusions based on an atypical group of women.

(B) is the correct answer to question 4.

I hope that helps!
_________________

KarishmaB ExpertsGlobal5 - Can you pls help me in understanding the intent that the author is trying to convey in below part of the passage?

Many recent works by these scholars stress the ways in which differences among Renaissance women—especially in terms of social status and religion—work to complicate the kinds of generalizations both Burckhardt and Kelly made on the basis of their observations about upper-class Italian women.

The trend is also evident, however, in works focusing on those middle- and upper-class European women whose ability to write gives them disproportionate representation in the historical record.

Thanks,
Anshul

Dear Expert,

RC00313-01. The author of the passage discusses Krontiris primarily to provide an example of a writer who

A.is highly critical of the writings of certain Renaissance women
B.supports Kelly???s view of women???s status during the Renaissance
C.has misinterpreted the works of certain Renaissance women
D.has rejected the views of both Burckhardt and Kelly
E.has studied Renaissance women in a wide variety of social and religious contexts


Which part of passage or what phrase that we can imply K has rejected the views of both Burckhardt and Kelly ?

3. According to the passage, feminist scholars cite Burckhardt’s view of Renaissance women primarily for which of the following reasons?

A.Burckhardt’s view forms the basis for most arguments refuting Kelly's point of view.
B.Burckhardt’s view has been discredited by Kelly.
C.Burckhardt’s view is one that many feminist scholars wish to refute.
D.Burckhardt’s work provides rich historical evidence of inequality between Renaissance women and men.
E.Burckhardt’s work includes historical research supporting the arguments of the feminist scholars.

In the passage, there are two references of femisnist scholar, as given in the lines shown below:

"Jacob Burckhardt’s view that Renaissance European women “stood on a footing of perfect equality” with Renaissance men has been repeatedly cited by feminist scholars as a prelude to their presentation of rich historical evidence of women’s inequality." --- This line says that feminist scholar cited Burckhardt’s view that Renaissance European to explain about the rich historical evidence of women's inequality, which is technically option (D)

"Recently, however, a significant trend among feminist scholars has entailed a rejection of both Kelly’s dark vision of the Renaissance and Burckhardt’s rosy one." ---- This line is actually the explaination for option (C)

Just as an observation, all the other question where it has been mentioned "feminist scholar" has the words "highlighted text", clearing which feminist scholar they are talking about.

Is the difference because the option talks about Renaissance women and men and the passage talks about women's inequality?

Kindly please help me solve this issue.
Sajjad1994 KarishmaB BillyZ egmat GMATNinja

The question doesn't say 'highlighted text' because it doesn't need to say it. It is talking about the feminist scholars who cited Burckhardt’s view. We know who those scholars are.

Jacob Burckhardt’s view that Renaissance European women “stood on a footing of perfect equality” with Renaissance men has been repeatedly cited by feminist scholars as a prelude to their presentation of rich historical evidence of women’s inequality.

They are the ones who mentioned it as a prelude to their presentation and proceeded to give evidence of why he was wrong.
_________________

Question 1

Let's start by identifying the author's main purpose in each paragraph:

• Paragraph 1: To point out a recent trend in feminist scholarship on Renaissance women -- more specifically, that many scholars have rejected both Burckhadt's "rosy" view and Kelly's "dark" view.
• Paragraph 2: To provide an example of one of these recent scholars (Tina Krontiris), who offers a "cautiously optimistic" view on Renaissance women, while also stressing the "social obstacles" they faced.

Let's now consider question #1:


Based on our breakdown of the passage, we see the author discusses Tina Krontiris to provide an example of the recent trend mentioned in the first paragraph. In other words, Krontiris is mentioned as an example of a scholar who rejects both Burckhardt's rosy view and Kelly's dark view.

Let's take a look at (D):


This captures the author's purpose in discussing Krontiris, so (D) is correct.

I hope that helps!
_________________

I begin by taking some notes to help me navigate back to the reading to answer a question, and I identify the main idea at the end to help with answering any questions that could relate to the main idea.

[*] Buckhardt has a rosy view of Renaissance women, equality was perfect
[*] Kelly has a dark view of Renaissance women, inequity was rampant
[*] Feminist scholars refute both perspectives, they want balance and a broader view(only upper class by B & K)
[*] Krontiris is an example of a write that shows a contained progress for women in the Renaissance

Question 1 is looking at the reason why Krontiris is discussed as an example.

A is out since there is no critical view on Renaissance women, the view is pretty balanced

B doesn't support Kelly or Buckhardt's view

C is never mentioned as misinterpreting works

E is in the reading but it applies to the feminist scholars, not Krontiris

D is correct because Krontiris writings don't show a rosy, or dark view of Renaissance women. Rejecting both perspectives.

Question 2 focuses on the differences between Krontiris and feminist scholars. We need to keep this key phrase in mind for the options "especially in terms of social status and religion", which is mentioned with feminist scholars.

A doesn't include social status, or religion, although, Krontiris didn't mention religion in her work. So we'll only focus on social status.

B is out of scope, and doesn't apply.

C is wrong. While Krontiris's work is at odds with both K&B, it is not different from feminist scholars, whose views are at odds with both K&B too.

D is wrong because that isn't the focus of Krontiris's work, nor the scholars. This is still kinda close, I'll hold on to the option to see if it's better than E.

E is right since Krontiris's views are focus on the privileged women who are "members of a tiny minority of the population"

Question 3 wants us to find the reason why feminist scholars cite Burckhardt's view.

A is wrong, since feminist scholars are refuting Kelly's, and Burckhardt's view.

B is never mentioned as being discredited.

D is wrong because this option would apply to Kelly, not Burckhardt.

E is incorrect. The arguments from the feminist scholars are against Burckhardt and Kelly.

C is the most correct, and Burckhardt is ONE of the views that they wish to refute.

Question 4 wants us to infer what both Burckhardt and Kelly were criticized for by feminist scholars.

A, C, and D are wrong because they are reasons Krontiris is criticized for or ideas from Krontiris.

E is out of scope, and never mentioned.

B is the most correct because "upper-class Italian women" is an atypical group, and very specific demographic that both B&K studied.

Question 5 wants us to find what Krontiris incorrectly assumed among the options. The author should highlight what was incorrectly assumed.

B is incorrect since Krontiris doesn't mentioned anything related to how many women were literate.

C is wrong because the approach was cautious, and calculated but the scholars don't refute this assumption.

D is wrong, women did face a lot of social obstacles.

E isn't refuted by the author either. Wrong.

A is refuted by the author with "irrespective of other social differences". Correct!

Question 6 wants the purpose of the final sentence. My notes already tell me that Krontiris shows "a contained progress for women in the Renaissance".

C is the first one that gets closest to my notes, and aligns with my understanding of Krontiris's purpose.

Question 7 wants us to identify why the women studied by Krontiris are unusual.

A, B, C, and E are never mentioned in Krontiris's work.

D is the most accurate since the women were literate, and able to record their experiences over other women during the Renaissance.