Events & Promotions
|
|
GMAT Club Daily Prep
Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.
Customized
for You
Track
Your Progress
Practice
Pays
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
Apr 2212:30 AM EDT
-01:30 AM EDT
At one point, she believed GMAT wasn’t for her. After scoring 595, self-doubt crept in and she questioned her potential. But instead of quitting, she made the right strategic changes. The result? A remarkable comeback to 695. Check out how Saakshi did it.
Apr 1612:00 PM EDT
-11:59 PM EDT
You’re first to know: Save $200 on GMAT prep starting tomorrow, 4/13. Get 6 official practice tests and study with real questions. Be ready to save!
Apr 2301:30 AM EDT
-02:30 AM EDT
Struggling with GMAT Verbal as a non-native speaker? Harsh improved his score from 595 to 695 in just 45 days—and scored a 99 %ile in Verbal (V88)! Learn how smart strategy, clarity, and guided prep helped him gain 100 points.
Apr 2308:00 PM PDT
-09:00 PM PDT
Video explanations + diagnosis of 10 weakest areas + 150+ short videos + study plan!
Apr 2610:00 AM EDT
-11:00 AM EDT
The Target Test Prep course represents a quantum leap forward in GMAT preparation, a radical reinterpretation of the way that students should study. Try before you buy with a 5-day, full-access trial of the course for FREE!
Apr 2711:00 AM EDT
-12:00 PM EDT
Prefer video-based learning? The Target Test Prep OnDemand course is a one-of-a-kind video masterclass featuring 400 hours of lecture-style teaching by Scott Woodbury-Stewart, founder of Target Test Prep and one of the most accomplished GMAT instructors
Apr 2808:00 AM PDT
-11:00 AM PDT
Whether you are just beginning your MBA journey or fine-tuning your path to a 700+ score, GMAT Day is designed to give you a competitive edge.
18 May 2025, 21:43
Kudos
Bookmarks
A
Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!
Difficulty:
(N/A)
Question Stats:
100% (00:50) correct
0%
(00:00)
wrong
based on 1
sessions
History
Date
Time
Result
Not Attempted Yet
Feminist movements in early twentieth-century Japan are often overshadowed by the country's rapid modernization and political reforms. Scholars have primarily focused on the Seitosha (Bluestocking Society), an elite group of women writers and intellectuals who advocated for gender equality through literary and cultural critique. This movement, while groundbreaking, was largely confined to urban centers and catered to a narrow audience of educated women. Its leaders faced intense backlash from a society deeply rooted in Confucian ideals, which prioritized familial roles over individual ambitions.
The Seitosha’s influence, though significant in sparking conversations on women’s rights, has often been overstated. Many rural women, who constituted the majority of Japan’s female population, were largely unaffected by the debates on education and employment that dominated the Seitosha’s agenda. For them, the pressing concerns were economic survival and access to basic healthcare, areas where incremental progress was made during this period.
The relationship between feminist movements and industrialization in Japan remains underexplored. While urban women engaged in intellectual debates, rural women often found themselves taking on greater economic responsibilities due to the migration of men to industrial hubs. This shift altered traditional family dynamics, creating spaces for women to assert influence within their communities, even if these changes were not widely recognized as part of the feminist movement.
Which of the following, if discovered, would MOST seriously undermine the author’s argument about feminist movements in early-twentieth-century Japan?
A. Letters from rural women describing their participation in Seitosha study groups
B. Government records showing rural women’s household duties did not expand during industrialisation
C. Articles by Seitosha leaders acknowledging that their influence seldom reached beyond Tokyo and Osaka
D. Data indicating urban women outnumbered rural women in factory employment from 1905 to 1920
E. Surveys from the period revealing that only a small minority of rural women had ever heard of the Seitosha
The Seitosha’s influence, though significant in sparking conversations on women’s rights, has often been overstated. Many rural women, who constituted the majority of Japan’s female population, were largely unaffected by the debates on education and employment that dominated the Seitosha’s agenda. For them, the pressing concerns were economic survival and access to basic healthcare, areas where incremental progress was made during this period.
The relationship between feminist movements and industrialization in Japan remains underexplored. While urban women engaged in intellectual debates, rural women often found themselves taking on greater economic responsibilities due to the migration of men to industrial hubs. This shift altered traditional family dynamics, creating spaces for women to assert influence within their communities, even if these changes were not widely recognized as part of the feminist movement.
Which of the following, if discovered, would MOST seriously undermine the author’s argument about feminist movements in early-twentieth-century Japan?
A. Letters from rural women describing their participation in Seitosha study groups
B. Government records showing rural women’s household duties did not expand during industrialisation
C. Articles by Seitosha leaders acknowledging that their influence seldom reached beyond Tokyo and Osaka
D. Data indicating urban women outnumbered rural women in factory employment from 1905 to 1920
E. Surveys from the period revealing that only a small minority of rural women had ever heard of the Seitosha
18 May 2025, 21:43
Kudos
Bookmarks
Official Solution:
Feminist movements in early twentieth-century Japan are often overshadowed by the country's rapid modernization and political reforms. Scholars have primarily focused on the Seitosha (Bluestocking Society), an elite group of women writers and intellectuals who advocated for gender equality through literary and cultural critique. This movement, while groundbreaking, was largely confined to urban centers and catered to a narrow audience of educated women. Its leaders faced intense backlash from a society deeply rooted in Confucian ideals, which prioritized familial roles over individual ambitions.
The Seitosha’s influence, though significant in sparking conversations on women’s rights, has often been overstated. Many rural women, who constituted the majority of Japan’s female population, were largely unaffected by the debates on education and employment that dominated the Seitosha’s agenda. For them, the pressing concerns were economic survival and access to basic healthcare, areas where incremental progress was made during this period.
The relationship between feminist movements and industrialization in Japan remains underexplored. While urban women engaged in intellectual debates, rural women often found themselves taking on greater economic responsibilities due to the migration of men to industrial hubs. This shift altered traditional family dynamics, creating spaces for women to assert influence within their communities, even if these changes were not widely recognized as part of the feminist movement.
Which of the following, if discovered, would MOST seriously undermine the author’s argument about feminist movements in early-twentieth-century Japan?
A. Letters from rural women describing their participation in Seitosha study groups
B. Government records showing rural women’s household duties did not expand during industrialisation
C. Articles by Seitosha leaders acknowledging that their influence seldom reached beyond Tokyo and Osaka
D. Data indicating urban women outnumbered rural women in factory employment from 1905 to 1920
E. Surveys from the period revealing that only a small minority of rural women had ever heard of the Seitosha
A) Correct. Firsthand letters from rural women describing direct involvement in Seitosha activities contradict the author’s claim that the movement’s influence was “largely confined to urban centers” and that rural women were mostly unaffected, thereby seriously undermining the argument.
B) Incorrect. Evidence that rural women’s household duties did not expand would weaken only the secondary point about industrialization reshaping rural gender roles; it leaves untouched the primary claim that Seitosha’s reach in rural areas was minimal.
C) Incorrect. Articles in which Seitosha leaders admit their influence rarely extended beyond major cities actually support the author’s thesis that the movement’s impact on rural women has been overstated.
D) Incorrect. Data showing urban women dominated factory employment aligns with the author’s narrative that industrialization affected family dynamics mainly in cities and does not challenge the assertion of limited rural engagement with Seitosha.
E) Incorrect. Surveys revealing that few rural women even knew of Seitosha reinforce, rather than undermine, the author’s claim that rural populations remained largely outside the movement’s sphere of influence.
Answer: A
Feminist movements in early twentieth-century Japan are often overshadowed by the country's rapid modernization and political reforms. Scholars have primarily focused on the Seitosha (Bluestocking Society), an elite group of women writers and intellectuals who advocated for gender equality through literary and cultural critique. This movement, while groundbreaking, was largely confined to urban centers and catered to a narrow audience of educated women. Its leaders faced intense backlash from a society deeply rooted in Confucian ideals, which prioritized familial roles over individual ambitions.
The Seitosha’s influence, though significant in sparking conversations on women’s rights, has often been overstated. Many rural women, who constituted the majority of Japan’s female population, were largely unaffected by the debates on education and employment that dominated the Seitosha’s agenda. For them, the pressing concerns were economic survival and access to basic healthcare, areas where incremental progress was made during this period.
The relationship between feminist movements and industrialization in Japan remains underexplored. While urban women engaged in intellectual debates, rural women often found themselves taking on greater economic responsibilities due to the migration of men to industrial hubs. This shift altered traditional family dynamics, creating spaces for women to assert influence within their communities, even if these changes were not widely recognized as part of the feminist movement.
Which of the following, if discovered, would MOST seriously undermine the author’s argument about feminist movements in early-twentieth-century Japan?
A. Letters from rural women describing their participation in Seitosha study groups
B. Government records showing rural women’s household duties did not expand during industrialisation
C. Articles by Seitosha leaders acknowledging that their influence seldom reached beyond Tokyo and Osaka
D. Data indicating urban women outnumbered rural women in factory employment from 1905 to 1920
E. Surveys from the period revealing that only a small minority of rural women had ever heard of the Seitosha
A) Correct. Firsthand letters from rural women describing direct involvement in Seitosha activities contradict the author’s claim that the movement’s influence was “largely confined to urban centers” and that rural women were mostly unaffected, thereby seriously undermining the argument.
B) Incorrect. Evidence that rural women’s household duties did not expand would weaken only the secondary point about industrialization reshaping rural gender roles; it leaves untouched the primary claim that Seitosha’s reach in rural areas was minimal.
C) Incorrect. Articles in which Seitosha leaders admit their influence rarely extended beyond major cities actually support the author’s thesis that the movement’s impact on rural women has been overstated.
D) Incorrect. Data showing urban women dominated factory employment aligns with the author’s narrative that industrialization affected family dynamics mainly in cities and does not challenge the assertion of limited rural engagement with Seitosha.
E) Incorrect. Surveys revealing that few rural women even knew of Seitosha reinforce, rather than undermine, the author’s claim that rural populations remained largely outside the movement’s sphere of influence.
Answer: A
25 May 2025, 07:16
Kudos
Bookmarks
Not trying to be harsh but think this is a low quality question. The OA is A, however, the passage reads "rural women are...largely unaffected". This means some can be affected and it is totally possible that this some were those who wrote the letters expressing strong support. This does not undermine the author's argument that most rural women were not affected by the movement.
E attacks awareness, not impact — not enough to shake the author’s nuanced position. Fair enough.
B also has merits because it actually threatens a foundational premise of the broader argument made by the author that "Seitosha is limited and feminist movement was as broader than Seitosha". The second part of this is clearly indicated in the last sentence which says “...even if these changes were not widely recognized as part of the feminist movement” - the author believes the rural part is a part of the feminist movement. If evidence showed that rural women’s economic roles were completely unaffected by industrialization, then the idea that feminism was not limited to urban intellectuals becomes much harder to support.
E attacks awareness, not impact — not enough to shake the author’s nuanced position. Fair enough.
B also has merits because it actually threatens a foundational premise of the broader argument made by the author that "Seitosha is limited and feminist movement was as broader than Seitosha". The second part of this is clearly indicated in the last sentence which says “...even if these changes were not widely recognized as part of the feminist movement” - the author believes the rural part is a part of the feminist movement. If evidence showed that rural women’s economic roles were completely unaffected by industrialization, then the idea that feminism was not limited to urban intellectuals becomes much harder to support.
