Reading Passage Questions
Labeling Zora Neale Hurston "a writer of the Harlem Renaissance" is a characterization that may, at first glance, obscure, rather than clarify, the particularities of her career. The Harlem Renais-(5) sance was a spirit more than a movement, and because a spirit is ephemeral, generalizations about the Harlem Renaissance and its writers are either too hard or too easy. They have come easily enough to a whole generation of critics, but their(10) pithy summaries seldom reflect the wide divisions between Blacks and Whites, the Black intelligentsia and Black workers, Black writers and their middle-class audience, that marked the era. When one studies in depth the phenomenon of what was then(15) called the Negro Renaissance or the New Negro Renaissance, and what is now called the Harlem Renaissance, one comes away with a bewildering complex of notions, statements, affirmations, and manifestos. Although there is general agreement(20) that the Harlem Renaissance is bounded by the 1918 armistice ending the First World War and the beginning of the Great Depression in 1930, some historians have stretched the boundaries to before the war (1914) and after Franklin Delano Roo-(25) sevelt's second term (1941). There has been a wide-spread tendency to regard the Harlem Renaissance as a monolithic cultural movement, capable of reduction to one orthodoxy or another or to a set of characteristic principles. This presumption(30) reflects the bias in most American scholarship that postulates Black people as a united entity and then poses theories ignoring individuation of thought and feeling.
Sometimes, however, an individual career can be (35) best assessed in the context of an age, and this is largely the case with the writer and anthropologist Zora Neale Hurston. She spends exactly two para-graphs on the Renaissance in her autobiography, and her other writing, public and private, offers(40) a very little discussion of what the Harlem Renaissance meant to her. Yet her part in the Renaissance is well-documented in the reminiscences of others, with unanimous agreement that she was one of the most memorable personages of the period. As(45) Langston Hughes put it in The Big Sea, she "was certainly the most amusing" of the Harlem Renaissance artists, "full of side-splitting anecdotes, humorous tales, and tragicomic stories." Hughes's words should not imply that she was solely an(50) entertainer. Although she was independent and scornful of literary movements, she shared in the historical and cultural forces that made the Harlem Renaissance an identifiable moment in American intellectual history, a part of a historical process(55) that, as most critics recognize, altered Black life in America. She, in turn, responded to and helped to shape the aesthetic assumptions of that era. Between 1919 and 1930, Black writers were published in greater numbers than in any single decade(60) in American life prior to the 1960's. Hurston's awareness of this literary ferment certainly contributed to her development as a writer.
“Labeling Zora Neale Hurston "a writer of the Harlem Renaissance"” - is a GMAT reading comprehension passage with answers. Candidates need a strong knowledge of English GMAT reading comprehension.
This GMAT Reading Comprehension consists of 4 comprehension questions. The GMAT Reading Comprehension questions are designed for testing candidates’ abilities in understanding, analyzing, and applying information or concepts. Candidates can actively prepare with the help of GMAT Reading Comprehension Practice Questions.
Solution and Explanation
- The main purpose of the passage is to
(A) define the Harlem Renaissance as a distinct period in Afro-American culture and Ameri- can culture as a whole
(B) demonstrate that the Harlem Renaissance included more varied points of view than scholars generally assume
(C) dispute the accepted estimation of Zora Neale Hurston's contribution to Afro-American culture
(D) acknowledge the conflicts and contradictions that were a distinct part of the cultural life of the Harlem Renaissance
(E) place Zora Neale Hurston within a historical and intellectual context
Answer: E
Explanation: We are asked to identify the purpose of the passage. Option E includes the historical and cultural context in the passage. The passage also talks about the same making E, the correct answer..
- It can be inferred from the passage that the author would regard which of the following as characteristic of a movement but not of a spirit?
(A) Individual statements of purpose
(B) Conflicts between rivals
(C) The cultivation of notoriety
(D) The development of new ideas
(E) An explicit ideology
Answer: E
Explanation: Something that is not easy to pin down is spirit and movement is just opposite of spirit. The ideology behind the movement is explicit. Hence, the movement is something which can be easily stated. Therefore, answer choice E is the correct one.
- The author suggests that which of the following is an overlooked yet significant aspect of the Harlem Renaissance?
(A) The similarity of the works produced by Black writers during the Harlem Renaissance
(B) The perceptions of the central figures of the Harlem Renaissance as recorded in autobi- ographies and letters
(C) The interdisciplinary nature of Hurston's work
(D) The nature of the relationship between Black artists and their audiences
(E) The effect of Roosevelt's policies on artists and writers
Answer: D
Explanation: There are statements in the passage that reflect the wide divisions between Blacks and Whites. It also shows the difference between the Black intelligentsia and Black workers, Black writers and their middle- class audience. So, the fact that the relationship between the Black writers and their middle class audience is overlooked is correct. Hence, D is the correct answer.
- Which of the following facts, mentioned in the passage, supports the author's statement that the Harlem Renaissance was "an identifiable moment in American intellectual history" in the highlighted text?
(A) During this period, scholars who had previously been unaware of Black literary tradition began to assess that tradition.
(B) Widespread social reform took place during this period.
(C) During this period, Black people acted upon common concerns for the first time in the twentieth century.
(D) The number of published works by Black writers increased dramatically during this period.
(E) The armistice ending the First World War began a period of increased prosperity for Americans.
Answer: D
Explanation: In the second paragraph we’re told “Between 1919 and 1930, Black writers were published in greater numbers than in any single decade in American life prior to the 1960's”. If we can identify the means, the outcome was that the number of published works increased. Hence, option D which states that the number of works by Black writers increased is correct.
- According to the passage, Hurston's attitude toward literary movements in general was
(A) bemused
(B) ambivalent
(C) indifferent
(D) disdainful
(E) belligerent
Answer: D
Explanation: As per the second paragraph “she was independent and scornful of literary movements, she shared in the historical and cultural forces that made the Harlem Renaissance an identifiable moment in American intellectual history.” We can understand that she was not particularly a fan of literary movements. Hence, D is the correct answer.
- The author implies that Hurston's account of her role in the Harlem Renaissance is
(A) embellished
(B) unenlightening
(C) comic
(D) sardonic
(E) sentimental
Answer: B
Explanation: Hurston’s account of her role in the Harlem Renaissance was not embellished. The word “Embellished'' means to make something attractive by adding details. She writes only two paragraphs in her autobiography about this period of time. Unenlightening or not providing enough knowledge is the best word to describe such a thing. Since she didn't mention more than two para in her autobiography, B is the correct answer.
- It can be inferred from the passage that accounts of Hurston given by her contemporaries emphasized which of the following?
(A) Her work as an anthropologist
(B) Her independence from political movements
(C) Her humor
(D) Her friendliness
(E) Her contributions to aesthetic theory
Answer: C
Explanation: We can see in the second paragraph "was certainly the most amusing" of the Harlem Renaissance artists, "full of side-splitting anecdotes, humorous tales, and tragicomic stories." These all describe her humor. Hence, C is the correct answer.
- On which of the following grounds does the author dismiss previous critical work on the Harlem Renaissance?
(A) It is based on a faulty assumption about the homogeneity of Black experience.
(B) It has failed to acknowledge the work of the most talented writers of the Harlem Renaissance.
(C) It has failed to explain the consequences of the Harlem Renaissance for Black life.
(D) It has taken a sociological and historical approach rather than an aesthetic one.
(E) It has concentrated on the personalities of the writers of the Harlem Renaissance rather than on their work.
Answer: A
Explanation: The passage states that generalizations about the Harlem Renaissance and its writers are either too hard or too easy. They have come easily enough to a whole generation of critics. However, their pithy summaries seldom reflect the wide divisions between Blacks and Whites. The difference between the Black intelligentsia and Black workers, Black writers and their middle- class audience. In the beginning of the passage we’re told that generalizations did not paint a complete picture of what occurred during the Harlem Renaissance. So the assumption was faulty. A is the correct answer.
- Which of the following statements is best supported by information in the passage?
(A) Black workers were not the primary audience for works produced by Black writers during the Harlem Renaissance.
(B) The number of works produced by Black writers has continued to increase annually since 1919.
(C) Langston Hughes created an unintentionally misleading portrait of Zora Neale Hurston in The Big Sea.
(D) Zora Neale Hurston is better known for her anthropological work than for her literary work.
(E) There was almost no market for works produced by Black writers during the Harlem Renaissance.
Answer: A
Explanation: The passage states that “Black writers and their middle-class audience, that marked the era." It says that the audience were middle class and not black workers. Hence, A is the correct answer.
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