'Often Rebuked, Yet Always Back Returning' is an 1846 poem by Emily Brontë. The poem conveys the speaker's determination to...
GMAT Information and Ideas : (Ideas) Questions
'Often Rebuked, Yet Always Back Returning' is an 1846 poem by Emily Brontë. The poem conveys the speaker's determination to experience the countryside around her: ______
Which quotation from the poem most effectively illustrates the claim?
'Often rebuked, yet always back returning
To those first feelings that were born with me,
And leaving busy chase of wealth and learning
For idle dreams of things which cannot be.'
'I'll walk, but not in old heroic traces,
And not in paths of high morality,
And not among the half-distinguished faces,
The clouded forms of long-past history.'
'I'll walk where my own nature would be leading:
It vexes me to choose another guide:
Where the grey flocks in ferny glens are feeding;
Where the wild wind blows on the mountain side.'
'To-day, I will seek not the shadowy region;
Its unsustaining vastness waxes drear;
And visions rising, legion after legion,
Bring the unreal world too strangely near.'
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| 'Often Rebuked, Yet Always Back Returning' is an 1846 poem by Emily Brontë. |
|
| The poem conveys the speaker's determination to experience the countryside around her: |
|
Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: The poem demonstrates the speaker's determination to experience the natural countryside environment.
Argument Flow: We're given background about a Brontë poem, then presented with a specific interpretation of what that poem conveys—that the speaker is determined to experience countryside surroundings. This claim needs supporting evidence from the poem itself.
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
- The correct quotation needs to show two key elements working together:
- Clear evidence of the speaker's determination or strong will to do something
- Specific reference to countryside, nature, or outdoor environments that she wants to experience
- We should look for active language showing the speaker choosing or insisting on engaging with natural settings, rather than just describing nature or expressing general feelings
'Often rebuked, yet always back returning
To those first feelings that were born with me,
And leaving busy chase of wealth and learning
For idle dreams of things which cannot be.'
✗ Incorrect
- Shows the speaker returning to feelings and leaving 'busy chase of wealth and learning' but doesn't specifically reference countryside or determination to experience it
- More about abandoning worldly pursuits than actively pursuing nature
'I'll walk, but not in old heroic traces,
And not in paths of high morality,
And not among the half-distinguished faces,
The clouded forms of long-past history.'
✗ Incorrect
- States what the speaker will NOT do but doesn't specify countryside destinations
- Shows some determination but lacks the countryside experience element
'I'll walk where my own nature would be leading:
It vexes me to choose another guide:
Where the grey flocks in ferny glens are feeding;
Where the wild wind blows on the mountain side.'
✓ Correct
- 'I'll walk where my own nature would be leading' shows clear determination to follow her own path
- 'Where the grey flocks in ferny glens are feeding; Where the wild wind blows on the mountain side' provides vivid countryside imagery showing exactly what natural environments she's determined to experience
- Perfect combination of determination and specific countryside details
'To-day, I will seek not the shadowy region;
Its unsustaining vastness waxes drear;
And visions rising, legion after legion,
Bring the unreal world too strangely near.'
✗ Incorrect
- Focuses on what she's avoiding rather than pursuing
- Shows rejection of 'unreal world' rather than embracing countryside reality