Reading comp PrepTest 145 · Section 1 · Question 17
Passage
. Passage A . During the 1990s, the study of history witnessed . both a dramatic integration of the study
Remaining source text redacted.
Passage walkthrough
Passage SummaryTopic: Social Science
Passage A
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
Passage A - While a shift in focus from the study of women's history to gender has allowed for deeper understanding of societal structures, it has lost a focus on how individual women interacted with the world.
Passage B - Augustus's focus on family-based morality made gender (roles) more constrained, visible, and political, a trend reflected in political and artistic trends of the time.
Key Lines:
Passage A:
Lines 1-4 - Two shifts are noted
Lines 7-11 - How experts reacted to the second shift
Lines 24-26 - The benefits of the second shift are noted
Lines 30-32 - What was lost with the second shift is noted
Passage B:
Lines 36-40 - A historical shift is noted
Lines 48-50 - Trends during the time period are noted
Meta-Structure - Relationship Between Passages:
These passages are written in a different tone/voice and seem to deal with different topics, but there is common ground. In both passages, a shift in the way that women and gender are viewed is noted. In Passage A, a shifting focus from women to gender is said to have some benefits (analytic framework; analyze structures) and some costs (loss of focus on individual stories). In Passage B, a shift in gender roles (more constrained, more visible, more politicized) is reflected in other aspects of society (government; art).
The bigger relationship, though, is that Passage A talks about the study of history and how it changed during a period of time. Passage B is a study of history, and it largely reflects what Passage A says. In Passage A, the Author notes that the study of history has shifted from the study of women's history to the issue of gender (Lines 1-4). Passage B is a study of history that doesn't talk about individual women but rather focuses on gender roles and how they shaped a particular time period. That's an interesting relationship!
Last Thoughts:
Not much else to say—let's head to the questions!
Passage A
Paragraph 1
- Paragraph note
- Two shifts in the study of history are described, and the implications of the second shift
- Views, minor Meta-Structures, points of intersection, and the author's attitude
- Shift 1 - Integration of study of women's history into mainstream
- Shift 2 - Shift from subject of women to subject of gender
- Gender involves societal systems, not individuals
- Some historians - Shift 2 is a retreat from studying women per se
- 3 forms of new work
- Paragraph note
- The benefits of the shift are noted
- Views, minor Meta-Structures, points of intersection, and the author's attitude
- Studying "women" - too narrow, celebratory
- Studying gender - explanatory power and analytic framework to analyze societal structures
- Paragraph note
- The downsides of the shift
- Views, minor Meta-Structures, points of intersection, and the author's attitude
- In first-person ("I")
- Gender obscures - focus on structure misses individual stories
Paragraph 1
- Paragraph note
- Roman history
- Views, minor Meta-Structures, points of intersection, and the author's attitude
- Augustus - Focused on traditional family-based morality
- Relocating women in a domestic context (wives/mothers)
- Paragraph note
- Outcome of this focus
- Views, minor Meta-Structures, points of intersection, and the author's attitude
- Rome prospered; Augustus tied it to family/women
- Gender roles - More constrained, more visible, more political
- Paragraph note
- Reflection in art
- Views, minor Meta-Structures, points of intersection, and the author's attitude
- Artists used house images to speak about Rome
Passage A - While a shift in focus from the study of women's history to gender has allowed for deeper understanding of societal structures, it has lost a focus on how individual women interacted with the world.
Passage B - Augustus's focus on family-based morality made gender (roles) more constrained, visible, and political, a trend reflected in political and artistic trends of the time.
Key Lines:
Passage A:
Lines 1-4 - Two shifts are noted
Lines 7-11 - How experts reacted to the second shift
Lines 24-26 - The benefits of the second shift are noted
Lines 30-32 - What was lost with the second shift is noted
Passage B:
Lines 36-40 - A historical shift is noted
Lines 48-50 - Trends during the time period are noted
Meta-Structure - Relationship Between Passages:
These passages are written in a different tone/voice and seem to deal with different topics, but there is common ground. In both passages, a shift in the way that women and gender are viewed is noted. In Passage A, a shifting focus from women to gender is said to have some benefits (analytic framework; analyze structures) and some costs (loss of focus on individual stories). In Passage B, a shift in gender roles (more constrained, more visible, more politicized) is reflected in other aspects of society (government; art).
The bigger relationship, though, is that Passage A talks about the study of history and how it changed during a period of time. Passage B is a study of history, and it largely reflects what Passage A says. In Passage A, the Author notes that the study of history has shifted from the study of women's history to the issue of gender (Lines 1-4). Passage B is a study of history that doesn't talk about individual women but rather focuses on gender roles and how they shaped a particular time period. That's an interesting relationship!
Last Thoughts:
Not much else to say—let's head to the questions!
Question prompt
Which one of the
Remaining source text redacted.
Why the credited answer is right
Credited answer: D
The notes below walk through why it fits the stem and how to eliminate the rest.
Question Type
Social Science
Answer choices
-
APassage A endorses a Remaining source text redacted.
Why choice A is not credited
Incorrect. (Lines 27-32) The Author of Passage A does not endorse a trend in the study of social history, expressing regret at what's been lost because of it in Paragraph 3 of Passage A. While she does bring up positives of a focus on gender, that's not enough to say that she endorses that view in light of the downside she highlights. -
BPassage A criticizes passage Remaining source text redacted.
Why choice B is not credited
Incorrect. Passage A doesn't directly speak to Passage B at all, so it would be hard to criticize it for anything! -
CPassage A offers an Remaining source text redacted.
Why choice C is not credited
Incorrect. Passage A and Passage B are completely different types of writing. Passage A discusses trends in the study of history, while Passage B is a study of history. As such, they're not making similar arguments and using similar evidence to reach similar conclusions. -
DPassage A discusses the Remaining source text redacted.
Why choice D matches the stem
Correct. Question Type:
Methods of Reasoning
Strategy Overview:
Review what we said about the relationship between the two passages after we read them, then find an answer reflecting that
Answer Anticipation/Relevant Lines:
The relationship between the two passages in a Comparative RC set should always be thought through before heading to the questions. It helps us answer a lot of the questions that relate to both passages, but it also directly sets us up to answer a question such as this one.
Heading back, we can see that we said:
Passage A talks about the study of history and how it changed during a period of time. Passage B is a study of history, and it largely reflects what Passage A says. In Passage A, the Author notes that the study of history has shifted from the study of women's history to the issue of gender (Lines 1-4). Passage B is a study of history that doesn't talk about individual women but rather focuses on gender roles and how they shaped a particular time period.
Let's find an answer stating that Passage A discusses a trend in the study of history (and gives some judgment on it), while Passage B is a study of history that reflects that trend.
Answer Explanation:
Passage A talks about a trend in the study of history that discusses gender rather than focused on the study of women's history, noting an upside (a strong analytical framework) and a downside (overlooking the stories of individual women). That counts as discussing strengths and weaknesses. Passage B is a study of a period of Roman history that focuses on the role gender and gender roles played in the politics and culture of the time, while overlooking any histories of individual women who lived during that period. As such, Passage B exemplifies the trend mentioned in Passage A. This answer is therefore correct.
Key Takeaway:
This question type is common in Comparative RC passages, which is why we anticipate an answer to it before it even comes up. Even if they don't ask you this question, knowing the relationship between the passages can be helpful in analyzing the answers to other questions that refer to both passages, so it's always worth thinking through that relationship before tackling the questions. -
EPassage A advances an Remaining source text redacted.
Why choice E is not credited
Incorrect. Passage A talks about the pros and cons of a trend in the study of history. Passage B talks about a specific period in history. Their arguments aren't parallel in general terms in any sense of the word!
What this tests
Question analytics
Based on historical answer selection rates for this question.
Answer choice distribution
Accounts
Save your place across PrepTests
Bookmark questions, build weak-spot lists, and pick up exactly where you left off—built for serious repeat practice.
No payment yet. We will only email when accounts open.
Already have an account? Log in
Deeper help
Ask follow-ups on any step
Optional AI tutor mode will let you interrogate assumptions, compare answers, and drill weak patterns without leaving the page.
Human-written explanations stay primary; AI is an add-on when you want it.
Discussion
No threads yet—be the first to ask a question or share an approach.