Text 1Although food writing is one of the most widely read genres in the United States, literary scholars have long...
GMAT Craft and Structure : (Structure) Questions
Although food writing is one of the most widely read genres in the United States, literary scholars have long neglected it. And within this genre, cookbooks attract the least scholarly attention of all, regardless of how well written they may be. This is especially true of works dedicated to regional US cuisines, whose complexity and historical significance are often overlooked.
Text 2
With her 1976 cookbook The Taste of Country Cooking, Edna Lewis popularized the refined Southern cooking she had grown up with in Freetown, an all-Black community in Virginia. She also set a new standard for cookbook writing: the recipes and memoir passages interspersing them are written in prose more elegant than that of most novels. Yet despite its inarguable value as a piece of writing, Lewis's masterpiece has received almost no attention from literary scholars.
Based on the two texts, how would the author of Text 1 most likely regard the situation presented in the underlined sentence in Text 2?
As typical, because scholars are dismissive of literary works that achieve popularity with the general public
As unsurprising, because scholars tend to overlook the literary value of food writing in general and of regional cookbooks in particular
As justifiable, because Lewis incorporated memoir into The Taste of Country Cooking, thus undermining its status as a cookbook
As inevitable, because The Taste of Country Cooking was marketed to readers of food writing and not to readers of other genres
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Part A: Create Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| Text 1: 'Although food writing is one of the most widely read genres in the United States, literary scholars have long neglected it.' |
|
| 'And within this genre, cookbooks attract the least scholarly attention of all, regardless of how well written they may be.' |
|
| 'This is especially true of works dedicated to regional US cuisines, whose complexity and historical significance are often overlooked.' |
|
| Text 2: 'With her 1976 cookbook The Taste of Country Cooking, Edna Lewis popularized the refined Southern cooking she had grown up with in Freetown, an all-Black community in Virginia.' |
|
| 'She also set a new standard for cookbook writing: the recipes and memoir passages interspersing them are written in prose more elegant than that of most novels.' |
|
| 'Yet despite its inarguable value as a piece of writing, Lewis's masterpiece has received almost no attention from literary scholars.' |
|
Part B: Provide Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: Literary scholars systematically neglect food writing, with this neglect being most severe for regional cookbooks, as demonstrated by the lack of attention to Edna Lewis's acclaimed work.
Argument Flow: Text 1 establishes a hierarchy of scholarly neglect in food writing, moving from general neglect to the specific overlooking of regional cookbooks. Text 2 provides a concrete example that perfectly illustrates this pattern.
Step 2: Interpret the Question Precisely
What's being asked? How would the author of Text 1 view the situation described in the underlined sentence of Text 2 (Lewis's book receiving no scholarly attention).
What type of answer do we need? The Text 1 author's likely reaction or assessment of this situation.
Any limiting keywords? None specified
Step 3: Prethink the Answer
- The author of Text 1 has laid out a clear hierarchy: literary scholars neglect food writing generally, cookbooks specifically, and regional cookbooks most of all
- Lewis's situation fits this pattern perfectly
- The Text 1 author would likely see Lewis's lack of scholarly recognition as completely predictable given the established pattern of neglect
As typical, because scholars are dismissive of literary works that achieve popularity with the general public
✗ Incorrect
- This focuses on popularity with the general public as the reason for scholarly dismissal
- Text 1 doesn't suggest scholars avoid popular works
As unsurprising, because scholars tend to overlook the literary value of food writing in general and of regional cookbooks in particular
✓ Correct
- This directly matches Text 1's hierarchy: scholars overlook 'food writing in general and regional cookbooks in particular'
- Lewis's Southern cookbook fits perfectly into this established pattern of neglect
As justifiable, because Lewis incorporated memoir into The Taste of Country Cooking, thus undermining its status as a cookbook
✗ Incorrect
- This suggests the memoir elements disqualify it as a cookbook
- Text 1 doesn't indicate that mixing genres undermines scholarly consideration
As inevitable, because The Taste of Country Cooking was marketed to readers of food writing and not to readers of other genres
✗ Incorrect
- This focuses on marketing categories as the determining factor
- Text 1 doesn't mention marketing as reasons for scholarly neglect