Laetitia Ky's hair is her art. Inspired by hairstyles from various African tribes, the Ivorian artist uses wire and thread...
GMAT Expression of Ideas : (Expression) Questions
Laetitia Ky's hair is her art. Inspired by hairstyles from various African tribes, the Ivorian artist uses wire and thread to sculpt her hair into all kinds of shapes. ______ she once made her hair into the shape of the continent of Africa—including the island of Madagascar!
Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
Soon,
Elsewhere,
For example,
However,
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Part A: Create Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| "Laetitia Ky's hair is her art." |
|
| "Inspired by hairstyles from various African tribes, the Ivorian artist uses wire and thread to sculpt her hair into all kinds of shapes." |
|
| [MISSING TRANSITION] |
|
| "she once made her hair into the shape of the continent of Africa—including the island of Madagascar!" |
|
Part B: Provide Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: Laetitia Ky is an Ivorian artist who transforms her hair into sculptural art pieces using wire and thread.
Argument Flow: The passage introduces Ky's unique art form, explains her general technique and range of shapes, then moves to illustrate this with a specific, impressive example of her work.
Step 2: Interpret the Question Precisely
This is a fill-in-the-blank question asking us to choose the best logical connector. The answer must create the right relationship between what comes before and after the blank.
Step 3: Prethink the Answer
- Looking at our table, we see that before the blank, we learn about Ky's general practice of sculpting her hair into "all kinds of shapes."
- After the blank, we get a very specific instance where "she once made her hair into the shape of the continent of Africa."
- The logical relationship here is moving from general to specific—from "all kinds of shapes" to one particular, detailed example.
- We need a transition that signals "here's a concrete instance of what I just told you about."
- So the right answer should introduce a specific example that demonstrates the general concept we just learned about.
Soon,
- Creates a time relationship
- Suggests this Africa example happened after other examples in chronological order
- The passage isn't organizing examples by timeline—it's moving from general concept to specific illustration
Elsewhere,
- Indicates a different location
- Doesn't make logical sense since there's no previous location mentioned to contrast with
- The passage is focused on Ky's work, not comparing different places
For example,
- Signals that what follows is a specific instance of what was just described
- Perfectly connects "all kinds of shapes" (general) with the Africa continent shape (specific)
- Creates the logical flow from broad concept to concrete illustration
However,
- Indicates contrast or opposition
- The Africa example doesn't contradict the idea of making "all kinds of shapes"—it supports it