#14 - Global Reference, Must Be True, Subject Perspective

[Administrator]

Complete Question Explanation

The correct answer choice is (B).

Answer choice (A):

Answer choice (B): This is the correct answer choice.

Answer choice (C):

Answer choice (D):

Answer choice (E):

This explanation is still in progress. Please post any questions below!

[ashpine17]

I am confused about the difference between passage A and B. Both mention women but A talks about history trending towards talking about gender more broadly so would B fall into that category? Because B seems to be mainly focused on women in general. I thought answer choice A was correct because Passage A mentioned the decline and I thought B was an example of that said decline...

[ashpine17]

Could someone answer? I thought the main point of passage A was to talk about how the focus on how the focus on gender instead of individual women had its pros and cons. I thought the bit about gender and it’s influence on gender and culture was a side bit. Why is that wrong?

[Robert Carroll]

ashpine,

It's not accurate to describe Passage B as having the topic of "decline of historical research on individual women" because it doesn't talk about individual women. This post I'm writing here doesn't discuss individual women - in what sense could it be described as having a topic of the decline of historical research on individual women? The topic is determined by the author. Not talking about a thing doesn't entail that the author has chosen the topic of speaking on the decline of that neglected thing.

For your second post, in what sense does the focus on gender have "pros and cons"? Pros and cons for what? If the answer is "culture", that's actually support for answer choice (B). And indeed, that's why answer choice (B) is correct. The concept of gender has affected people's perception of politics and culture, and that can be a good or bad thing.

Robert Carroll

[CJ12345:]

Hi, Powerscore,
I am still a little bit confused why AC B is correct. Passage A's central topic should be about the study of women history and the decline of research on individual women. It barely discusses about the role of gender in shaping politics and culture (at least not its main topic)

[CJ12345:]

Hi, Powerscore,
I am still a little bit confused why AC B is correct. Passage A's central topic should be about the study of women history and the decline of research on individual women. It barely discusses about the role of gender in shaping politics and culture (at least not its main topic). Also, could you explain why AC E is incorrect?

[CJ12345:]

Hi, Powerscore,
Can I ask a general question about this passage? This passage is very abstract and uses different terms to demonstrate the two approaches (study of women as individuals and study the gender relationship). I found it very difficult to sort ideas together into groups, especially given that the author used different terms. For example, when I read it first time, I did not realize that the "study of the history of women is seen today as having celebratory content" belongs to the "study of women as individuals" and "gender offers an analytic framework within which to analyze social and political structures" belongs to "study of the gender." I found it hard to put these contents into different groups clearly; instead, I tend to mix all of them together. Do you have any suggestions on how to approach this kind of passage best and tackle the questions that rely on these categorizations and abstract ideas?

[Jeff Wren]

Hi CJ,

To reply to your first question, the central topic of Passage A is the shift or "transition" (line 3) from the study of the subject of women in history to the issue of gender in history. Lines 5-7 explain this difference. (As a general rule of thumb, anytime two things are compared or contrasted in a RC passage, you should pay very close attention and make a note of it, as this is usually tested.)

As for Answer B, "the role of gender in shaping politics and culture," this is discussed in Passage A in lines 15-16 (the concepts of imagined domesticity or separate sphere for women are gender concepts). It's mentioned again in lines 24-26.

In Passage B, this is discussed in lines 48-50 "the gender roles assigned to women were becoming ... more visible and more politicized."

As for your second question, the key is to use the context in the passage to guide you. Everything that you need to understand these terms is provided in the passage. For example, in everyday life, I may not know the exact differences and nuances between "Women's Studies" and "Gender Studies," but Passage A clarifies the difference as it relates to the passage, which is all that we care about when answering the questions. "Women as individuals receded into the background and something more abstract called gender relations came to the fore" (lines 5-7).