Ugandan American professor Peter Nazareth believed that Elvis Presley's music is best understood not as a homogeneous collection but as...
GMAT Expression of Ideas : (Expression) Questions
Ugandan American professor Peter Nazareth believed that Elvis Presley's music is best understood not as a homogeneous collection but as an anthology (because Elvis showcased the contributions of a wide range of gospel, blues, and rock artists). ______ Nazareth entitled his college course on Elvis and his music, which focused on Elvis's many musical influences, 'Elvis as Anthology.'
Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
To that end,
In sum,
That is,
In addition,
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Part A: Create Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| "Ugandan American professor Peter Nazareth believed that Elvis Presley's music is best understood not as a homogeneous collection but as an anthology" |
|
| "(because Elvis showcased the contributions of a wide range of gospel, blues, and rock artists)" |
|
| "Nazareth entitled his college course on Elvis and his music, which focused on Elvis's many musical influences, 'Elvis as Anthology.'" |
|
Part B: Provide Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: Peter Nazareth viewed Elvis's music as an anthology of different musical contributions and applied this perspective in his academic work.
Argument Flow: The passage establishes Nazareth's theoretical position about Elvis's music being an anthology rather than a uniform collection, provides evidence for why this makes sense, then shows how he put this theory into practice by naming his course accordingly.
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 first part establishes Nazareth's belief/theory about Elvis's music as anthology, and the second part shows him taking a concrete action (naming his course)
- The logical relationship here is purpose or implementation - he named his course that way in order to reflect his theoretical belief
- The right transition should signal "for this purpose" or "to achieve this goal"
To that end,
- "To that end" means "for that purpose" or "to achieve that goal"
- Perfect fit because the course title directly serves the purpose of his anthology belief
- Creates logical flow: he believed Elvis's music was anthology so he named his course to reflect this view
In sum,
- "In sum" signals a summary or conclusion
- Wrong relationship - we're not summarizing the anthology theory, we're showing how he applied it
That is,
- "That is" means "in other words" and introduces a restatement or clarification
- Wrong because naming the course isn't restating the anthology theory - it's applying it
In addition,
- "In addition" signals additional, separate information
- Wrong because the course title isn't separate from his anthology belief - it directly stems from it