As the social and religious objections appeared against the demand for

Question

McGraw-Hill

As the social and religious objections appeared against the demand for women’s political rights, the discussion became many-sided, contradictory, and as varied as the idiosyncrasies of individual character. Some said, “Man is woman’s natural protector, and she can safely trust him to make laws for her.” She might with fairness reply, as he uniformly robbed her of all property rights to 1848, he cannot safely be trusted with her personal rights in 1880, though the fact that he did make some restitution at last, might modify her distrust in the future. However, the calendars of our courts still show that fathers deal unjustly with daughters, husbands with wives, brothers with sisters, and sons with their own mothers. Though woman needs the protection of one man against his whole sex, in pioneer life, in threading her way through a lonely forest, on the highway, or in the streets of the metropolis on a dark night, she sometimes needs, too, the protection of all men against this one. But even if she could be sure, as she is not, of the ever-present, all-protecting power of one strong arm, that would be weak indeed compared with the subtle, allpervading influence of just and equal laws for all women. Hence woman’s need of the ballot, that she may hold in her own right hand the weapon of self-protection and self-defense.    1 
 1. The first sentence of the paragraph serves what purpose?

A. To explain that the idea that the need for women’s political rights was not universally shared among women
B. To make clear the prejudices against women’s political rights held by mainstream religious leaders
C. To change the course of the author’s argument in order to include an outsider’s perspective
D. To introduce and argue against one of the key objections that were made to women having political rights
E. To cast judgment on those who disagreed on the need for women’s political rights

2 
 2. Based on the passage, the author would agree with which of the following statements?

A. The arguments made against women’s political rights were all illogical.
B. The debate over women’s political rights did not generate much interest.
C. Women’s political rights are necessary for her ability to protect and defend herself.
D. Women do not need men in any way.
E. The loss of women’s property rights is not connected to the proposed loss of women’s political rights.

3 
 3. The main purpose of this passage is to

A. make a logical argument for why women need political rights
B. based on their ill-treatment by men in the past
C. trace the historical progression of women’s political rights to the time of the writing
D. provide an anecdotal look at the beginning of the women’s rights movement
E. highlight some of the important ideas that support the idea of women’s property rights argue against the notion of women’s political rights

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Official Explanation

1. The first sentence of the paragraph serves what purpose?

Explanation

The passage is quite short but the language within it is dense. Read it carefully. The sentence seems to be a structural question about the first sentence, but it soon becomes clear that understanding the entire passage is necessary to be able to point out the work that its introduction is doing.

Answer choices A  and  B  seem correct only if the entire passage has not been carefully read. However, it is clear that  A  is incorrect—the passage does not go on to detail concerning women in particular—as is  B , because the passage is not about mainstream religious leaders’ objections. We don’t see enough of the passage to know if  C  could be correct (what was the author’s original argument that he or she might be changing course from?), and  E  misstates the tone of the piece, which does not seem to be judgmental. That leaves  D  as the best choice. The passage does go on to explain a key objection that was raised, and to argue against it.

Answer: D

egmat · Answer

The key misunderstanding:  You're reading option D too narrowly. Let's examine what D actually says versus what you think it says.

What the first sentence does: 
The first sentence states:  "As the social and religious objections appeared against the demand for women's political rights, the discussion became many-sided, contradictory, and as varied as the idiosyncrasies of individual character."

This sentence  introduces  that there were  multiple  objections (social AND religious).

What happens in the rest of the paragraph: 
After introducing that multiple objections existed, the author then focuses on  ONE specific objection :  "Man is woman's natural protector, and she can safely trust him to make laws for her."  The entire rest of the paragraph argues against  this one objection .

What option D actually says: 
"To introduce and argue against  one of  the key objections..."

D is NOT saying the first sentence only mentions one objection.   Rather, D describes the  purpose of the first sentence within the paragraph as a whole :
1. First sentence:  Introduces  that objections existed (plural)
2. Rest of paragraph:  Argues against one  of those objections

Why option C is incorrect: 
C says "change the course of the author's argument" - but there's no course change here. The author isn't shifting perspectives; they're systematically addressing objections to support women's political rights.

The correct reading of D:  The first sentence sets up the discussion by introducing that various objections existed, which then allows the author to focus on refuting one particular objection in detail.

Common mistake:  Reading answer choices as describing  only  what's in that specific sentence, rather than the sentence's  function  in the paragraph.

dhruva09 · Answer

Hi  Sajjad1994  can you help me with how only first sentence in Q1 helps in reaching to D since I am requiring the second statement to objectively reach that point.

guddo · Answer

1. The first sentence of the paragraph serves what purpose?

The author notes that objections to women’s political rights came from many directions. She then presents one key objection (men will protect women and make laws for them), argues it is unreliable, and concludes women need the vote for true legal protection.

A. To explain that the idea that the need for women’s political rights was not universally shared among women

This is not supported. The sentence is about objections in the broader discussion, not about women disagreeing among themselves.

B. To make clear the prejudices against women’s political rights held by mainstream religious leaders

Too specific. The sentence mentions “social and religious objections” but does not single out mainstream religious leaders or detail their prejudices.

C. To change the course of the author’s argument in order to include an outsider’s perspective

No. The author is not shifting to an outsider’s perspective; she is setting up the debate and then rebutting an objection.

D. To introduce and argue against one of the key objections that were made to women having political rights

Yes . The sentence sets up that objections arose and the debate became varied, which prepares the reader for the author to introduce a specific objection (“Man is woman’s natural protector”) and then refute it.  It functions as the lead-in to a key objection she will argue against.

E. To cast judgment on those who disagreed on the need for women’s political rights

No. The sentence does not judge opponents; it describes the discussion as many-sided and contradictory.

Answer: (D)

guddo · Answer

Yes. The first sentence doesn’t “ prove ” the protector objection by itself. It  sets up the structure : it says objections appeared and the discussion became many sided and contradictory, which signals that the author is about to present a representative objection and then respond to it.

Then the very next sentence begins with “Some said ...” and gives the specific objection. So (D) fits because the first sentence  introduces the arrival of objections as a whole , and that directly leads into one key objection the author will argue against.

gullyboy09 · Answer

Hi  Bunuel ,  Sajjad1994 , In Q1, question asked is about first sentence, not the second. Where does first sentence - "introduce one of the key objections", its second sentence who introduces it. In my opinion no option matches the answer.

Context (Sentence 1): Mentions that objections exist in a general sense.

Content (Sentence 2): Actually describes the objection.

gullyboy09 · Answer

Hey man I appreciate your help, but at times just because answer is given, you try to prove it no matter what. Here clearly option D is saying to introduce key objection, whereas sentence 2 introduces that key objection.

Context (Sentence 1):  Mentions that objections exist in a general sense.
  Content (Sentence 2):  Actually names the objection.

gullyboy09 · Answer

Hi  egmat ,

The correct reading of D:  The first sentence sets up the discussion by introducing that various objections existed, which then allows the author to focus on refuting one particular objection in detail.

but that's not what D option is saying. D is saying introduce key objection.

Bunuel · Answer

I'm archiving this topic. Practice better ones.

As the social and religious objections appeared against the demand for

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

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

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards