Thomas Hardy’s impulses as a writer, all of which he indulge

Question

4-1 SECTION B 17-24

Thomas Hardy’s impulses as a writer, all of which he indulged in his novels, were numerous and divergent, and they did not always work together in harmony. Hardy was to some degree interested in exploring his characters’ psychologies, though impelled less by curiosity than by sympathy. Occasionally he felt the impulse to comedy (in all its detached coldness) as well as the impulse to farce, but he was more often inclined to see tragedy and record it. He was also inclined to literary realism in the several senses of that phrase. He wanted to describe ordinary human beings; he wanted to speculate on their dilemmas rationally (and, unfortunately, even schematically); and he wanted to record precisely the material universe. Finally, he wanted to be more than a realist. He wanted to transcend what he considered to be the banality of solely recording things exactly and to express as well his awareness of the occult and the strange.

In his novels these various impulses were sacrificed to each other inevitably and often. Inevitably, because Hardy did not care in the way that novelists such as Flaubert or James cared, and therefore took paths of least resistance.  Thus, one impulse often surrendered to a fresher one and, unfortunately, instead of exacting a compromise, simply disappeared. A desire to throw over reality a light that never was might give way abruptly to the desire on the part of what we might consider a novelist-scientist to record exactly and concretely the structure and texture of a flower. In this instance, the new impulse was at least an energetic one, and thus its indulgence did not result in a  relaxed  style. But on other occasions Hardy abandoned a perilous, risky, and highly energizing impulse in favor of what was for him the fatally relaxing impulse to classify and schematize abstractly.  When a relaxing impulse was indulged, the style—that sure index of an author’s literary worth—was certain to become verbose. Hardy’s weakness derived from his apparent inability to control the comings and goings of these divergent impulses and from his unwillingness to cultivate and sustain the energetic and risky ones. He submitted to first one and then another, and the spirit blew where it listed; hence the unevenness of any one of his novels. His most controlled novel, Under the Greenwood Tree, prominently exhibits two different but reconcilable impulses—a desire to be a realist-historian and a desire to be a psychologist of love—but the slight interlockings of plot are not enough to bind the two completely together. Thus even this book splits into two distinct parts.   1 
 1. Which of the following is the most appropriate title for the passage, based on its content?

(A) Under the Greenwood Tree: Hardy’s Ambiguous Triumph
(B) The Real and the Strange: The Novelist’s Shifting Realms
(C) Energy Versus Repose: The Role of: Ordinary People in Hardy’s Fiction
(D) Hardy’s Novelistic Impulses: The Problem of Control
(E) Divergent Impulses: The Issue of Unity in the Novel

2 
 2. The passage suggests that the author would be most likely to agree with which of the following statements about literary realism?

(A) Literary realism is most concerned with the exploration of the internal lives of ordinary human beings.
(B) The term “literary realism” is susceptible to more than a single definition.
(C) Literary realism and an interest in psychology are likely to be at odds in a novelist’s work.
(D) “Literary realism” is the term most often used by critics in describing the method of Hardy’s novels.
(E) A propensity toward literary realism is a less interesting novelistic impulse than is an interest in the occult and the strange.

3 
 3. The author of the passage considers a writer’s style to be

(A) a reliable means by which to measure the writer’s literary merit
(B) most apparent in those parts of the writer’s work that are not realistic
(C) problematic when the writer attempts to follow perilous or risky impulses
(D) shaped primarily by the writer’s desire to classify and schematize
(E) the most accurate index of the writer’s literary reputation

4 
 4. Which of the following words could best be substituted for “relaxed” ( Highlighted ) without substantially changing the author’s meaning?

(A) informal
(B) confined
(C) risky
(D) wordy
(E) metaphoric

5 
 5. The passage supplies information to suggest that its author would be most likely to agree with which of the following statements about the novelists Flaubert and James?

(A) They indulged more impulses in their novels than did Hardy in his novels.
(B) They have elicited a greater degree of favorable response from most literary critics than has Hardy.
(C) In the writing of their novels, they often took pains to effect a compromise among their various novelistic impulses.
(D) Regarding novelistic construction, they cared more about the opinions of other novelists than about the opinions of ordinary readers.
(E) They wrote novels in which the impulse toward realism and the impulse away from realism were evident in equal measure.

6 
 6. Which of the following statements best describes the organization of  lines in Blue  (“Thus…abstractly”)?

(A) The author makes a disapproving observation and then presents two cases, one of which leads to a qualification of his disapproval and the other of which does not.
(B) The author draws a conclusion from a previous statement, explains his conclusion in detail, and then gives a series of examples that have the effect of resolving an inconsistency.
(C) The author concedes a point and then makes a counterargument, using an extended comparison and contrast that qualifies his original concession.
(D) The author makes a judgment, points out an exception to his judgment, and then contradicts his original assertion.
(E) The author summarizes and explains an argument and then advances a brief history of opposing arguments.

7 
 7. ​​​​​Which of the following statements about the use of comedy in Hardy’s novels is best supported by the passage?

(A) Hardy’s use of comedy in his novels tended to weaken his literary style.
(B) Hardy’s use of comedy in his novels was inspired by his natural sympathy.
(C) Comedy appeared less frequently in Hardy’s novels than did tragedy.
(D) Comedy played an important role in Hardy’s novels though that comedy was usually in the form of farce.
(E) Comedy played a secondary role in Hardy’s more controlled novels only.

8 
 8. The author implies which of the following about Under the Greenwood Tree in relation to Hardy’s other novels?

(A) It is Hardy’s most thorough investigation of the psychology of love.
(B) Although it is his most controlled novel, it does not exhibit any harsh or risky impulses.
(C) It, more than his other novels, reveals Hardy as a realist interested in the history of ordinary human beings.
(D) In it Hardy’s novelistic impulses are managed somewhat better than in his other novels.
(E) Its plot, like the plots of all of Hardy’s other novels, splits into two distinct parts.

Sajjad1994 · Accepted Answer

Question #2

Lines 8-9  in the passage supports answer  B

He was also inclined to  literary realism  in the  several senses of that phrase.

Question #3

There is no explicit text which supports answer  option A . We have to infer that option and we can do that by reading all the text and feel of the writing.  First 3-4  lines suggests that feeling of the author about the writing style

Question #4

You can easily ignore question #4 for the purpose of the GMAT. This RC passage originates from GRE which focuses on vocabulary testing while GMAT didn't care for your vocabulary bank. So this question make sense only for the purpose of GRE.

Question #6

This question needs to be edited so i did it. Read the text and question again hope it helps. For the answer you should read the second paragraph from the start. Just text in blue couldn't help you answer the question.

Vidhi96 · Answer

Answer for question 2 , 3 and 4 pls?

Kratul412 · Answer

Explain answer of question no 4,3,6

Posted from my mobile device

Kratul412 · Answer

I figured out the answer in this way of question no 4
"When a relaxing impulse was indulged, the style—that sure index of an author’s literary worth—was certain to become verbose." Here it means relaxing impulse is somewhat verbose and in option word which is closest to the meaning of verbose is wordy

Posted from my mobile device

saumyagupta1602 · Answer

Can someone please explain for Ques2 , why option A is incorrect (clearly stated and Option B the correct choice?
Option A ref para 1 L5 "He was also inclined to literary realism in the several senses of that phrase. He wanted to describe ordinary human beings; he wanted to speculate on their dilemmas rationally (and, unfortunately, even schematically); and he wanted to record precisely the material universe."
Option B ref- I am unable to identify where does the author imply multiple definitions regarding literary realism. Since the last few lines of Para 1 do not state a definition but the intentions of Thomas Hardy (record, express..occult and strange)

mrr0821 · Answer

I find it hard to figure out why A is the answer of the question 6. The word that bugging me most is the word 'disapproving'.

Can someone please explain it in details.

Mizar18 · Answer

Thus, one impulse often surrendered to a fresher one and,  unfortunately , instead of exacting a compromise, simply disappeared. A desire to throw over reality a light that never was might give way abruptly to the desire on the part of what we might consider a novelist-scientist to record exactly and concretely the structure and texture of a flower.  In this instance, the new impulse was at least an energetic one,  and thus its indulgence did not result in a relaxed style.  But on other occasions Hardy abandoned a perilous, risky, and highly energizing impulse  in favor of what was for him the fatally relaxing impulse to classify and schematize abstractly.

6. Which of the following statements best describes the organization of lines in Blue (“Thus…abstractly”)?

(A) The author makes a disapproving observation and then presents two cases, one of which leads to a qualification of his disapproval and the other of which does not.

The keyword here is "unfortunately", then, you can see above in bold text the examples that qualify author's opinion.  Correct

(B) The author draws a conclusion from a previous statement, explains his conclusion in detail, and then gives a series of examples that have the effect of resolving an inconsistency.

Certainly this part is a conclusion but then the author neither explain it in detail nor resolve any inconsistency. Out

(C) The author concedes a point and then makes a counterargument, using an extended comparison and contrast that qualifies his original concession.

It concedes a point for sure, but where is the counterargument? Out

(D) The author makes a judgment, points out an exception to his judgment, and then contradicts his original assertion.

Never contradicts his original assertion, Out

(E) The author summarizes and explains an argument and then advances a brief history of opposing arguments.

The author is not explaining the point in this part. Also, "a brief history of opposing arguments" is not accurate, as stated in (A) the author present 2 separate opposing cases. Out

Best

adstudy · Answer

Hi  mrr0821 ,

The word 'disapproving' is showcasing its meaning as  "something not approved or not favourable" , or in other words we can say,  "something that does not follow the approved or generic trend"

Now lets look at first few lines of the 2nd para once - 
  In his novels these various impulses were sacrificed to each other inevitably and often.  Inevitably, because  Hardy did not care  in the way that novelists such  as Flaubert or James cared  ,  and therefore took paths of least resistance. Thus, one impulse often surrendered to a fresher one and,   unfortunately, instead of  exacting a    compromise ,   simply disappeared.

The parts of the above mentioned excerpt tell us that Hardy was not following the generic or common trend as other novelists such as Flaubert or James did.
And hardy also did not care for the same. This idea of not following, unfortunately, did not show comprise among various impulses, which was a common trend in the novels of others novelists such as James or Flaubert, in Hardy's novels

Hence, IMO, this is how we can say it was a   'disapproving observation'   by the author.
Hope this helps in clarifying your doubt

mrr0821 · Answer

adstudy  &  Mizar18

Thanks! Now it makes sense.

mafuz · Answer

Such an excellent RC! Thanks  pathy

Westminster · Answer

A)
Thus, one impulse often surrendered to a fresher one and, unfortunately, instead of exacting a compromise, simply disappeared. A desire to throw over reality a light that never was might give way abruptly to the desire on the part of what we might consider a novelist-scientist to record exactly and concretely the structure and texture of a flower. In this instance, the new impulse was at least an energetic one, and thus its indulgence did not result in a relaxed.

B)

But on other occasions Hardy abandoned a perilous, risky, and highly energizing impulse in favor of what was for him the fatally relaxing impulse to classify and schematize abstractly.

A --did't qualifies the author's observation
B -- did it

am i ryt ?

mafuz · Answer

Westminster  In my opinion, Yes! With this line of thinking, I reached the correct answer.

Apeksha55 · Answer

8. The author implies which of the following about Under the Greenwood Tree in relation to Hardy’s other novels?

(A) It is Hardy’s most thorough investigation of the psychology of love.
(B) Although it is his most controlled novel, it does not exhibit any harsh or risky impulses.
(C) It, more than his other novels, reveals Hardy as a realist interested in the history of ordinary human beings.
 (D) In it Hardy’s novelistic impulses are managed somewhat better than in his other novels.
(E) Its plot, like the plots of all of Hardy’s other novels, splits into two distinct parts.

What is the problem with option E, even the author says in the last line   "Thus even this book splits into two distinct parts."

bM22 · Answer

Hi  Apeksha55 ,

Let me know if you still have doubts.

D can be inferred from the lines:"His  most controlled novel,  Under the Greenwood Tree,  prominently exhibits two different but reconcilable impulses —a desire to be a realist-historian and a desire to be a psychologist of love—but the slight interlockings of plot are not enough to bind the two completely together. Thus even this book splits into two distinct parts."

E is incorrect as though it mentions the plot being split into 2 distinct parts, but how is it different from his others novels? It's different because "Greenwood Tree", was the novel in which the distinction was most controlled and smooth and Hardy was able to maintain that distinction in the transition of impulses well.

Thanks.

Skythelimit · Answer

Feeling dejected after getting only 4 correct. Therefore I am here to elaborate for my better understanding and identification of my mistakes.

P1- 1st sentence is all about how Hardy uses manifold impulses. One of it is also realism, but his use of realism is beyond being realistic. His way of using realism in his work -- 1) beyond just recording 2) schematically guessing the dilemmas

P2- there was no balance/compromising when he represented new impulse (i.e. when he used new impulse, the old impulses he used were completely absent. Putting some sense(light) in realism made his writing not relaxing one (his writing was usually relaxing one). But in general, he chose relaxing style (making his writing verbose) over energetic ones. All this was due to inability to control divergent impulses. Example of one which used divergent impulses but somewhat not a successful try.

18)

A) Literary realism is most concerned with the exploration of the internal lives of ordinary human beings 
MOST? how?

(B) The term "literary realism" is susceptible to more than a single definition. 
"in the several sense of that phrase" SO YES 
Ps remember susceptible has another meaning for ideas and statements: able to explained in two or more ways.

(C) Literary realism and an interest in psychology are likely to be at odds in a novelist's wor
It does not say how he novelist's work turned out. In fact in line 35 " In this instance, the new impulse... " gives somewhat positive aspect of shedding light on realism.

(D) "Literary realism" is the term most often used by critics in describing the method of Hardy'S novels.
Critics? NO information. Only the author is giving his or her thought. No information about what others thought of it.

(E) A propensity toward literary realism is a less interesting novelistic impulse than is an interest in the ~ccu1t and the strang
No information about favoring a single aspect.

19. The author of the passage considers a writer's style to be 
(A) a reliable means by which to measure the writer's literary merit 
" the style—that sure index of an author’s literary worth" DOES NOT HAVE EXTREME so CORRECT

(B) most apparent in those parts of the writer's work that are not realistic 
Line 35 to 39 looks like it supports the option. But reading careful, the option talks about PARTS and the lines is about two different realistic and non realistic work. If the option was true then even in realistic work having non realistic part would show his style. But this information is not given.

(C) problematic when the writer attempts to follow perilous or risky impulses 
No because the author points out Hardy's inability to incorporate this aspects as something negative

(D) shaped primarily by the writer's desire to classify and schematize
Writer's uneveness

(E) the most accurate index of the writer's literary reputation 
"the style-that sure index of an author's literary worth" IT IS SURE INDEX BUT THE MOST??? EXTREME OPTION

20. Which of the following words could best be substituted for "relaxed" (line 37) without substantially changing the author's meaning? 
(A) informal : could seem like a synonym but no any cue for relaxed style to be an informal one. 
(B) confined : relaxing and confined could be somewhat antonym in general 
(C) risky : another style is the risky one 
(D) wordy : relaxed style makes it verbose . SO CORRECT 
(E) metaphoric : irrelevant

(REFER TO LINE 23) Hardy did not resist like the other authors in sacrificing impulses. 
21. The passage supplies information to suggest that its author would be most likely to agree with which of the following statements about the novelists Flaubert and James? 
(A) They indulged more impulses in their novels than did Hardy in his novels.
 but was it more ? 
(B) They have elicited a greater degree of favorable response from most literary critics than has Hardy. 
No information about what was favored by critics.

(C) In the writing of their novels, they often took pains to effect a compromise among their various novelistic impulses. 
COMPROMISED and had resistance. SO YES.

(D) Regarding novelistic construction, they cared more about the opinions of other novelists than about the opinions of ordinary readers. 
it's not about opinion from others, but about not forgoing other impulses while using new one.

(E) They wrote novels in which the impulse toward realism and the impulse away from realism were evident in equal measure. 
No specification about them using realism

ricardorr04 · Answer

13.5 mins to read and answer all questions, got 7/8 correct. Missed question 6.

Good passage and questions! Great for practice. Can someone please provide difficulty levels of the questions? Thanks!

Sajjad1994 · Answer

The difficulty level of each question should be as such in my opinion:

Question #1: 600
Question #2: 700
Question #3: 750
Question #4: 750
Question #5: 600
Question #6: 750
Question #7: 550-600
Question #8: 600

Good Luck

KarishmaB · Answer

Thomas Hardy’s impulses as a writer ... were numerous and divergent, and they did not always work together in harmony. Hardy was to some degree interested in exploring his characters’ psychologies ... Occasionally he felt the impulse to comedy ...
 
(First paragraph discusses his impulses)

In his novels these various impulses were sacrificed to each other inevitably and often... Thus, one impulse often surrendered to a fresher one and, unfortunately, instead of exacting a compromise, simply disappeared... But on other occasions Hardy abandoned a perilous, risky, and highly energizing impulse in favor of what was for him the fatally relaxing impulse to classify and schematize abstractly... Hardy’s weakness derived from his apparent inability to control the comings and goings of these divergent impulses ...
 
(Second paragraph discusses his problems controlling these impulses)

1. Which of the following is the most appropriate title for the passage, based on its content?

(A) Under the Greenwood Tree: Hardy’s Ambiguous Triumph
(B) The Real and the Strange: The Novelist’s Shifting Realms
(C) Energy Versus Repose: The Role of: Ordinary People in Hardy’s Fiction
(D) Hardy’s Novelistic Impulses: The Problem of Control
(E) Divergent Impulses: The Issue of Unity in the Novel

Hence, (D) is correct.

KarishmaB · Answer

ADITIDESHMUKH

3. The author of the passage considers a writer’s style to be

(A) a reliable means by which to measure the writer’s literary merit
(B) most apparent in those parts of the writer’s work that are not realistic
(C) problematic when the writer attempts to follow perilous or risky impulses
(D) shaped primarily by the writer’s desire to classify and schematize
(E) the most accurate index of the writer’s literary reputation

When a relaxing impulse was indulged, the style—that sure index of an author’s literary worth—was certain to become verbose

The part in hyphen describes "style". It tells us that style defines an author's literary worth. 
Hence (A) is correct.

Thomas Hardy’s impulses as a writer, all of which he indulge

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GMAT Reading Comprehension (RC) Questions

Thomas Hardy’s impulses as a writer, all of which he indulge

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