Although I am familiar with Rembrandt's work, through photographs and

Question

New Project RC Butler 2019  -  Practice 2 RC Passages Everyday   
Passage # 52, Date : 26-FEB-2019
 This post is a part of New Project RC Butler 2019 .  Click here for Details

Although I am familiar with Rembrandt's work, through photographs and black and white reproductions, I invariably experience a shock from the colour standpoint whenever I come in touch with one of his pictures. I was especially struck with that masterpiece of his at the Hermitage, called the ‘ Slav Prince’ , which, by the way, I am convinced is a portrait of himself; anyone who has had the idea suggested cannot doubt it for a moment; it is Rembrandt's own face without question. The reproductions I have seen of this picture, and, in fact, of all Rembrandt's works, are so poor and so unsatisfactory that I was determined, after my visit to St. Petersburg, to devise a means by which facsimile reproductions in colour of Rembrandt's pictures could be set before the public. The black and white reproductions and the photographs I put on one side at once, because of the impossibility of suggesting colour thereby.

Rembrandt has been reproduced in photograph and photogravure, and by every mechanical process imaginable, but all such reproductions are not only disappointing, but wrong. The light and shade have never been given their true value, and as for colour, it has scarcely been attempted.

After many years of careful thought and consideration as to the best, or the only possible, manner of giving to those who love the master a work which should really be a genuine reproduction of his pictures, I have adapted and developed the modern process of color printing, so as to bring it into sympathy with the subject.   1 
 D 
 1. Which of the following would the author most probably agree with?

(A) Rembrandt’s paintings have been reproduced effectively in black and white
(B) The works of Rembrandt have been misrepresented
(C) Facsimile reproductions of Rembrandt’s paintings are available in St. Petersburg
(D) The interplay of light and shade in Rembrandt’s paintings has never completely been replicated
(E) Rembrandt’s paintings are a disappointment to the public

2 
 C 
 2. Why does the author mention the ‘Slav Prince’ in the passage?

(A) To provide an example of Rembrandt’s work that does not measure up to his other works
(B) To prove that the Slav Prince is a portrait of Rembrandt himself
(C) To provide an example of a problem he mentions earlier in the passage
(D) To assert that color printing was the only way to reproduce great works of art such as the Slav Prince
(E) To highlight the importance of using the right colors in a painting

3 
 E 
 3. Which of the following can be concluded about the Slav Prince from the information in the passage?

(A) It is a self portrait of Rembrandt
(B) It is Rembrandt’s best work ever
(C) No other work of Rembrandt has been reproduced as many times as the Slav Prince
(D) The colors of this painting can be improved through color printing
(E) It is housed at The Hermitage

Difficulty Level:   700

Masterscorp · Accepted Answer

I found the passage hard to read but the questions easy to answer.

2. Why does the author mention the ‘Slav Prince’ in the passage?
(A) To provide an example of Rembrandt’s work that does not measure up to his other works  nothing like this is mentioned in the passage 
(B) To prove that the Slav Prince is a portrait of Rembrandt himself  this might looks like a contender. Yes, the author mentions that he thinks that the Slav Prince contains Rembrandt's face but he doesn't state any prove nor does he want to prove it. 
(C) To provide an example of a problem he mentions earlier in the passage  This looks good and is supported by the passage: "I invariably experience a shock from the colour standpoint whenever I come in touch with one of his pictures. I was especially struck with that masterpiece". This proves that the color issue is especially present in the mentioned painting. 
(D) To assert that color printing was the only way to reproduce great works of art such as the Slav Prince  This is wrong for multiple reasons. I don't think this needs to get explained further. 
(E) To highlight the importance of using the right colors in a painting  It is nowhere mentioned which colors are right or are wrong. It is more about the opinion that colors play an important role in expressing the art of a picture.

3. Which of the following can be concluded about the Slav Prince from the information in the
passage?
(A) It is a self portrait of Rembrandt  The author claims that you can see Rembrandt's face in the picture. However, because of a lack of proof this can't be reasonably concluded. 
(B) It is Rembrandt’s best work ever  This isn't mentioned anywhere and it also is very subjective. 
(C) No other work of Rembrandt has been reproduced as many times as the Slav Prince  This also isn't mentioned anywhere. 
(D) The colors of this painting can be improved through color printing  This looks like a contender. The problem is, however, that it is based on the author's claim too. We don't know whether the color really can be improved and hence we can't safely conclude it. 
(E) It is housed at The Hermitage  This is mentioned in the passage: " I was especially struck with that masterpiece of his at the Hermitage". There is no reason why the author should lie about the location of the painting and hence this is the correct answer.

anmit123 · Answer

Q1-
D is the answer as the second para mentions- 'The light and shade have never been given their true value'

Q2-
A is wrong because if anything, the slav prince is better than the others.
B is wrong, author has said nothing like that
C is correct. The first para reads-'The reproductions I have seen of this picture, and, in fact, of all Rembrandt's works, are so poor and so unsatisfactory that I was determined, after my visit to St. Petersburg, to devise a means by which facsimile reproductions in colour of Rembrandt's pictures could be set before the public. The black and white reproductions and the photographs I put on one side at once, because of the impossibility of suggesting colour thereby.' This proves that the reproductions in colour are nowhere near the colour in the slav prince.
D & E are irrelevant.

Q3-
A could confuse some people, however it is not correct since it is the author's opinion, it is not a fact.
B,C,D are wrong.
E is correct as the first para mentions -'I was especially struck with that masterpiece of his at the Hermitage'

LevanKhukhunashvili · Answer

Though I've marked the correct answer in Q3, as other choices were worse, I have doubts about the correct answer choice.
The author of the passage says that he has seen the "Slav Prince" at Hermitage, but we dont have any evidence that the masterpiece is housed there or temporarily exhibited

I know that finding the worst 4 answer choices is the case for SC, but does the same apply for RC?

mrcentauri · Answer

Q3 answer choice E seems to be the least worst option, it's pretty flawed. How can we say it's housed there when the author only "Saw" it there.
Can someone explain?

It's like saying I saw a car in a garage therefore it must be housed there I mean it's ridiculous.

bM22 · Answer

Hi  mrcentauri ,

I agree that option E for Question 3 is the least worst of all and that we cannot infer it with certainty. My suggestion would be to approach the question using elimination technique and referring the lines: "I was especially struck with that masterpiece of his at the Hermitage, called the ‘Slav Prince’,", for inferring the best possible option.

Hope this Helps.
Thanks.

sarphant123 · Answer

I really can't understand how E is incorrect in the Q1.
It has been mentioned in the para that "his reproductions were not only disappointing but also wrong "

bM22 · Answer

Hi  sarphant123 ,

Option E is wrong as public's reactions or opinions have not been discussed in the passage.

Hope This Helps.
Thanks.

Harsh9676 · Answer

Hi  sarphant123

To add to  bm2201 , E is incorrect because the author clearly mentioned that the Rembrandt’s reproductions are incorrect not his paintings.

Also, if you notice Choice B could be the contender, as one may think that the reproductions are incorrect cause people who produced those could have mis-interprented and hence misrepresented. This choice highlights or rather gives an example of extreme scope and it is really necessary to develop the skill of staying connected to the passage while answering questions.

Harsh9676 · Answer

Hi  sarphant123

To add to  bm2201 , E is incorrect because the author clearly mentioned that the Rembrandt’s reproductions are incorrect not his paintings.

Also, if you notice Choice B could be the contender, as one may think that the reproductions are incorrect cause people who produced those could have mis-interprented and hence misrepresented. This choice highlights or rather gives an example of extreme scope and it is really necessary to develop the skill of staying connected to the passage while answering questions.

Overall its a very good RC  AgarwalArpit20 . Loved Q3, though I got it wrong.

gauranggarg · Answer

Hey guys, can anyone explain question 1 to me. The correct answer choice doesn't seem 100 percent correct to me. Option D talks about interplay of light and shade. But the passage never mentions any form of interplay. The passage only suggests that "the light and shade have never been given their true value." There is no interplay here or any suggestion of one. Can anyone explain?

Thanks in advance.

Thanks in advance.

mukherjeeabhish · Answer

For Q2, the answer given is To provide an example of a problem he mentions earlier in the passage.

However can anyone explain this . I don't see author mentions any problem earlier in the passage when he mentions Slav Prince. The problems are discussed after it.

bM22 · Answer

Hi  gauranggarg ,

Interplay between 2 things means the effects the two things have on each other. True that the passage doesn't mention the interplay of light and shade, but the intent of this option is to imply that light and shade have never been completely duplicated in the reproductions of Rembrandt's pictures and this intent can be inferred from the lines: "The light and shade have never been given their true value, ".

Hope This Helps.
Thanks.

bM22 · Answer

Hi  mukherjeeabhish ,

The problem that author is talking about is about the colors in the painting and it can be inferred from the lines: "I  invariably experience a shock from the colour standpoint whenever I come in touch with one of his pictures.  I was especially struck with that masterpiece of his at the Hermitage, called the ‘Slav Prince’,".

Hope This Helps.
Thanks.

Although I am familiar with Rembrandt's work, through photographs and

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GMAT Reading Comprehension (RC) Questions

Although I am familiar with Rembrandt's work, through photographs and

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