The 1967 release of Harold Cruse's book The Crisis of the Negro Intellectual isolated him from almost all other scholars...
GMAT Craft and Structure : (Structure) Questions
The 1967 release of Harold Cruse's book The Crisis of the Negro Intellectual isolated him from almost all other scholars and activists of the American Civil Rights Movement—though many of those thinkers disagreed with each other, he nonetheless found ways to disagree with them all. He thought that activists who believed that Black people such as himself should culturally assimilate were naïve. But he also sharply criticized Black nationalists such as Marcus Garvey who wanted to establish independent, self-contained Black economies and societies, even though Cruse himself identified as a Black nationalist.
Which choice best describes the function of the underlined sentence in the text as a whole?
It describes a direction that Cruse felt the Civil Rights Movement ought to take.
It indicates that Cruse's reputation as a persistent antagonist of other scholars is undeserved.
It describes a controversy that Cruse's work caused within the Black nationalist movement.
It helps explain Cruse's position with respect to the community of civil rights thinkers.
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Part A: Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| 'The 1967 release of Harold Cruse's book The Crisis of the Negro Intellectual isolated him from almost all other scholars and activists of the American Civil Rights Movement' |
|
| 'though many of those thinkers disagreed with each other, he nonetheless found ways to disagree with them all.' |
|
| 'He thought that activists who believed that Black people such as himself should culturally assimilate were naive.' |
|
| 'But he also sharply criticized Black nationalists such as Marcus Garvey who wanted to establish independent, self-contained Black economies and societies,' |
|
| 'even though Cruse himself identified as a Black nationalist.' |
|
Main Point: Harold Cruse managed to alienate himself from every faction within the Civil Rights Movement by finding fault with both assimilationists and Black nationalists, even though he identified with the latter group.
Step 2: Interpret the Question Precisely
- What's being asked? The question asks about the function of the underlined sentence within the entire text. This is asking how that specific sentence serves the passage's overall purpose.
- What type of answer do we need? A functional analysis that explains the role of the specific sentence
- Any limiting keywords? 'within the entire text' - must consider the sentence's role in the broader context
Step 3: Prethink the Answer
- The underlined sentence establishes Cruse's unique position relative to other civil rights thinkers - specifically, his isolation from all of them despite being part of the movement himself
- The rest of the passage explains HOW this isolation happened
It describes a direction that Cruse felt the Civil Rights Movement ought to take.
- This suggests the sentence describes what Cruse wanted the movement to do
- But the sentence is about his isolation, not his prescriptions
It indicates that Cruse's reputation as a persistent antagonist of other scholars is undeserved.
- This claims the sentence shows Cruse's reputation as an antagonist is undeserved
- But the sentence actually confirms he WAS an antagonist
It describes a controversy that Cruse's work caused within the Black nationalist movement.
- This focuses only on controversy within the Black nationalist movement
- But the sentence is about his isolation from ALL scholars and activists
It helps explain Cruse's position with respect to the community of civil rights thinkers.
- This accurately captures what the sentence does - it explains Cruse's relationship to the broader community of civil rights thinkers