TEST PREP SERIES

GRE
®

READING COMPREHENSION
DETAILED SOLUTIONS TO 325 QUESTIONS

2022

325 solved Reading

Comprehension questions

Comprehensive
test-taking strategies

Passage summaries
and Answer keys

Elaborate answer
explanations

Fifth Edition
 ®
GRE Reading Comprehension:
Detailed Solutions to 325 Questions
Fifth Edition

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 Table of Contents
1 Overview of the GRE revised General Test 7
Format of the GRE General Test 8
Outline of the GRE General Test 9
Registering for the GRE 12
How the GRE General Test is Scored 12
General Strategies for Taking the GRE 13
Preparing for Test Day and Taking the GRE 13
Frequently Asked Questions 15

2 Reading Comprehension 19
What does a Reading Comprehension question look like? 20
What skills do Reading Comprehension questions test? 21
Key Facts about Reading Comprehension questions 22
Strategies for Reading Comprehension questions 22
Types of Questions 25
General Tips for answering Reading Comprehension questions 28

3 Practice Set 1: Arts and Humanities 31

4 Practice Set 2: Biological Sciences 57

5 Practice Set 3: Business 83

6 Practice Set 4: Everyday Topics 109

7 Practice Set 5: Physical Sciences 133

8 Practice Set 6: Social Sciences 159

9 Explanatory Answers 187

 Chapter 1
Overview of the GRE General Test
8 GRE Reading Comprehension: Detailed Solutions to 325 Questions

T
he Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) General Test is required for admission to most graduate
programs. The most competitive programs tend to require comparatively higher scores. This
book is designed to prepare students for the GRE General Test. The GRE revised General Test was
renamed in 2016 and is now known as the GRE General Test, but the content and scoring of the test remain
the same. Note that some graduate programs require applicants to take specialized GRE Subject Tests which
will not be covered in this book. Before preparing to take the GRE, please review the admissions criteria for
the programs you are interested in applying to so that you know whether you need to take subject tests in
addition to the GRE General Test. To learn more about subject tests, visit the Subject Tests section at ets.org.

The GRE General Test is not designed to measure your knowledge of specific fields. It does not measure
your ability to be successful in your career or even in school. It does, however, give a reasonably accurate
indication of your capabilities in certain key areas for graduate level work, such as your ability to understand
complex written material, your understanding of basic mathematics, your ability to interpret data, and your
capacity for reasoning and critical thinking. By using this book to prepare for the GRE General Test, you
will not only improve your chances of scoring well on the test, but you will also help to prepare yourself for
graduate level study.

Format of the GRE General Test

The GRE General Test is offered as a computer-delivered test throughout the year. Post Covid, ETS
provides test-takers with the option to take the test from home.

Whether you are taking the GRE General Test at the testing centre or at home, the format of the test will
essentially be the same. The GRE General Test At Home follows the same format as the computer-delivered
version of the GRE General Test. The test consists of three main components: Analytical Writing, Verbal
Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning. The total time for the test will be about 3 hours 45 minutes.

The first section of the test is always the Analytical Writing component which is broken down into two
sections. In the first section, you will be asked to write an argumentative essay that takes a position on an
issue of general interest. In the second section, you will be asked to analyze an argument for logical validity
and soundness. You will be given 30 minutes for each section.

The remainder of the test will be split between sections devoted to Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative
Reasoning. There will be two sections devoted to Verbal Reasoning and another two devoted to Quantitative
Reasoning. You will be given 30 minutes to complete each section of Verbal Reasoning and 35 minutes to
complete each section of Quantitative Reasoning. Each section will contain 20 questions. At any point during
the test, you may be given an unscored section on either Verbal or Quantitative Reasoning; since this section
will not be identified, it is important that you try your best at all times. Also, it is possible you will be asked
to complete a research section that will allow ETS to test the efficacy of new questions. If you are given a
research section, it will appear at the end of your General Test. Unscored and research sections may vary in
number of questions and time allotted.

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Overview of the GRE General Test 9

Outline of the GRE General Test

The Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning sections of the GRE General Test are section-level
adaptive. This means that the computer will adapt the test to your performance. Since there are two sections
each of Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning, the difficulty of the second section will depend upon
how well you did on the first section. The overall format of the GRE General Test will be as follows:

Component Number of Questions Time Allowed

Analytical Writing 1 Analyze an Issue 30 minutes
(2 sections) 1 Analyze an Argumen 30 minutes

Verbal Reasoning
20 questions per section 30 minutes per section
(2 sections)

Quantitative Reasoning
20 questions per section 35 minutes per section
(2 sections)

Unscored Section Variable Variable

Research Section Variable Variable

Total Time: 3 hours 45 minutes

Note that the GRE General Test At Home follows the same format as the computer-delivered version of the
GRE General Test.
While taking the GRE General Test, here are some things to remember:
• You can review and preview questions within a section, allowing you to budget your time to deal
with the questions you find most difficult.
• You will be able to mark questions within a section and return to them later. This means that if you
find a question especially difficult, you will be able to move on to other questions and return to the
one you had trouble with, provided you stay within the time limit for the section.
• You will be able to change or edit your answers within a section. This means that if you realize you
made a mistake, you can go back and correct yourself provided you stay within the time limit for the
section.
• You will have an onscreen calculator during the Quantitative Reasoning portions of the test, allowing
you to quickly complete any necessary computations.

The following will briefly introduce the three main components of the GRE General Test.

Analytical Writing Assessment

The first section of the GRE General Test is the Analytical Writing assessment. This component of the GRE
is designed to test your ability to use basic logic and critical reasoning to make and assess arguments. The
Analytical Writing assessment is broken into two assignments, each of which must be completed within 30

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10 GRE Reading Comprehension: Detailed Solutions to 325 Questions

minutes. In the first assignment, you will be asked to develop a position on an issue of general interest. You
will be given an issue and a prompt with some specific instructions on how to approach the assigned issue.
You will be expected to take a position on the issue and then write a clear, persuasive and logically sound
essay defending your position in correct English. You will be assessed based on your ability to effectively
defend your position with supporting evidence and valid reasoning, your skill in organizing your thoughts,
and your command of English. In the second assignment, you will be presented with a passage in which the
author sketches an argument for their position on an issue. Here, you will be expected to write an essay that
critically evaluates their argument in terms of the evidence used and the logical validity of their reasoning.
You will be assessed based on your ability to parse the author’s argument and effectively point out the
strengths and weaknesses of their reasoning, using good organization and correct English.

Task Time Allowed Answer Format

Short essay on an issue of general
Analyze an Issue 30 minutes interest that clearly and carefully
addresses the prompt
Short essay that analyzes another
Analyze an Argument 30 minutes person’s argument for validity,
soundness and supporting evidence

The Analytical Writing assessment tests your ability to:

• Coherently develop complex ideas

• Write in a focused, organized manner

• Identify relevant evidence and use it to support your claims

• Critically evaluate another person’s argument for clarity and effectiveness

• Command the elements of standard written English

Verbal Reasoning
The Verbal Reasoning portion of the GRE assesses your reading comprehension, your ability to draw
inferences to fill in missing information, and your vocabulary. You will be given two sections on Verbal
Reasoning, each consisting of 20 questions and lasting 30 minutes. Verbal Reasoning questions on the
GRE General Test are mostly multiple-choice and will be drawn from the following three types: Reading
Comprehension, Text Completion, and Sentence Equivalence. Reading Comprehension questions will ask
you to read a short passage several paragraphs long and then answer questions about the passage. Text
Completion questions will have a short passage with 1-3 blanks which you will need to fill in by choosing
the best of several multiple-choice options. The Sentence Equivalence section will ask you to fill in the blank
in a passage, using the two words that will complete the sentence in such a way that the meaning will be as
similar as possible.

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Overview of the GRE General Test 11

Time Question Type Answer Format

Multiple choice: select one answer choice
Reading Multiple choice: select one or more answer
You will have 30 Comprehension choices
minutes to complete Highlight a section of text
the entire section,
Multiple choice: fill in one or more blanks
which will include a Text Completion
to complete the text
mixture of different
question types Multiple choice: select the two options
Sentence Equivalence that produce two sentences with the most
similar meanings

The Verbal Reasoning section measures your ability to:

• comprehend, interpret and analyze complex passages in standard written English

• apply sophisticated vocabulary in context

• draw inferences about meaning and authorial intent based on written material

Quantitative Reasoning
The Quantitative Reasoning section of the GRE evaluates your ability to use basic mathematics, read
and interpret graphs and figures and engage in basic reasoning involving math and numbers. You will be
given two sections on Quantitative Reasoning with 20 questions in each section. You will have 35 minutes
to complete each section. There are two basic question types: multiple-choice and numerical entry. For
multiple-choice questions, you will be asked to choose the best answer or answers from several possibilities;
for numerical entry questions, you will be asked to enter a numerical answer from your own calculations.
Some questions will be designed to test your knowledge of basic algebra and geometry while others will be
designed to test your ability to read and interpret different presentations of data.

Time Question Type Answer Format

• Select one answer choice
Multiple Choice
• Select one or more answer choices
• Solve the problem through calculation and
Numeric Entry
You will have 35 enter a numeric value
minutes to complete • Evaluate two quantities to decide whether
the entire section, one is greater than the other, whether they
which will include a Quantitative Comparison are equal, or whether a relationship cannot
mixture of different be determined
question types
• Multiple choice: choose the best answer or
Data Interpretation answers
• Numeric entry: enter a value

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12 GRE Reading Comprehension: Detailed Solutions to 325 Questions

The Quantitative Reasoning section tests your ability to:

• use mathematical tools such as basic arithmetic, geometry, algebra and statistics

• understand, interpret and analyze quantitative information

• apply basic mathematical and data interpretation skills to real-world information and problems

Registering for the GRE

Before you register to take the GRE, be sure to consider your schedule and any special accommodations
you may need. Be aware that the availability of testing dates may vary according to your location. Be sure to
give yourself plenty of time to prepare for the GRE and be sure you know the deadlines for score reporting
and application deadlines for all the schools you are applying to. For general information about deadlines
and the GRE, visit GRE section at ets.org. For more information on how to register for the GRE, visit the
Register for GRE section at ets.org. For information on special accommodations for disabled students, visit
the Disabilities or Health-related Needs section on ets.org.

If you are taking the GRE General Test At Home, there are certain equipment, environment, and testing
space requirements you need to fulfill before you can start the registration process. For more information on
these requirements, read the At Home Testing section on ets.org.

How the GRE General Test is Scored

Scoring for the Analytical Writing Section

In the Analytical Writing section, you will be scored on a scale of 0-6 in increments of 0.5. The Analytical
Writing measure emphasizes your ability to engage in reasoning and critical thinking over your facility
with the finer points of grammar. The highest scores of 5.5-6.0 are given to work generally superior in every
respect - sustained analysis of complex issues, coherent argumentation and excellent command of the English
language. The lowest scores of 0.0-0.5 are given to work that is completely off topic or so poorly composed as
to be incoherent.

Scoring for the Verbal and Quantitative Reasoning Sections

The Verbal and Quantitative Reasoning sections are now scored on a scale of 130-170 in 1-point
increments.

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Overview of the GRE General Test 13

General Strategies for Taking the GRE

There are strategies you can apply that will greatly increase your odds of performing well on the GRE. The
following is a list of strategies that will help to improve your chances of performing well on the GRE:

• Review basic concepts in math, logic and writing.

• Work through the test-taking strategies offered in this book.

• Work through mock GRE tests until you feel thoroughly comfortable with the types of questions you
will see.

• As you are studying for the GRE, focus your energy on the types of questions that give you the most
difficulty.

• Learn to guess wisely. For many of the questions on the Verbal and Quantitative Reasoning Sections,
the correct answer is in front of you - you only need to correctly identify it. Especially for questions that
you find difficult, you should hone your ability to dismiss the options that are clearly wrong and make
an educated guess about which one is right.

• Answer every question. You won’t lose any points for choosing the wrong answer, so even a wild
guess that might or might not be right is better than no answer at all.

Preparing for Test Day and Taking the GRE

How you prepare for the test is completely up to you and will depend upon your own test-taking
preferences and the amount of time you can devote to studying for the test. At the very least, before you
take the test, you should know the basics of what is covered on the test along with the general guidelines for
taking the GRE. This book is designed to provide you with the basic information you need and give you the
opportunity to prepare thoroughly for the GRE General Test.

Although there is no set way to prepare for the GRE, as a general rule you will want to:

• Learn the basics about the test - what is being tested, the format, and how the test is administered.

• Familiarize yourself with the specific types of questions that you will see on the GRE General Test.

• Review skills such as basic math, reading comprehension, and writing.

• Learn about test-taking strategies.

• Take a mock GRE test to practice applying your test-taking skills to an actual test.

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 Chapter 2
Reading Comprehension
20 GRE Reading Comprehension: Detailed Solutions to 325 Questions

R
eading Comprehension questions are designed to test your ability to understand, interpret
and analyze what you read. You will be asked to read a short passage between one or more
paragraphs long and then answer several questions about the passage. To answer them you will
need to recognize what the passage explicitly states, and be able to draw inferences about the implications of
the passage.

The passages used for Reading Comprehension questions will be drawn from a variety of topics, including
the physical, biological and social sciences, the arts and the humanities, business and everyday life. To answer
the questions on these passages, you do not need to be an expert on the topic covered; you only need to
read the passage attentively enough to answer basic questions about it. You will not be asked to evaluate the
passage for truth or falsity; you will only need to understand what the author said, and what implications can
be drawn from what the author said.

The Verbal Reasoning portion of the revised GRE will generally have about 10 passages that you will need
to read. Some will be several paragraphs in length, others will be just one paragraph long. You will be asked
to answer 1-6 questions per passage, with longer passages generally corresponding to more questions. The
questions will appear in three formats: two types of multiple choice and highlighting a section of the passage.
The first type of multiple choice will ask you to choose the single best answer from several options. The
second type of multiple choice will ask you to choose one or more answers from several options. For select-in
passage, you will be asked to highlight the section of text that best addresses the question.

What does a Reading Comprehension question look like?

Reading Comprehension questions will always be based onoff a short passage of one or more paragraphs.
You will be asked to read the passage and then answer 1-6 questions about it.

Below is an example of what a Reading Comprehension question will look like on the GRE revised
General Test:

Questions 1 to 3 are based on the following reading passage.

Sometimes hype can create impossible expectations. Nowhere is this phenomenon more pronounced than
in the world of popular music. Two bands that came to prominence in the first years of the 2000’s exemplify
this. New York’s ‘The Strokes’ and England’s ‘Arctic Monkeys’ were both hailed by critics as the leaders of
a garage rock revival, and more grandiosely, as saviors of rock music. Despite successes and considerable
popularity, neither band has entirely lived up to these overblown expectations. Although both bands helped
to bring greater awareness to the burgeoning indie music scene, rock music still struggles to compete with
other genres of popular music. And although both bands have gained considerable popularity, they still don’t
have the ability to fill stadiums and arenas the way that some of their older and less heralded peers do.

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Reading Comprehension 21

Select only one answer choice.

1. Which of the following statements best characterizes the main idea of the passage?

A Popular music is more diverse than many people realize

B The Strokes and Arctic Monkeys are both highly successful bands

C A single band can revolutionize popular music

D Critics of popular music sometimes create exaggerated expectations for bands

E Older bands draw bigger crowds than newer bands

Consider each of the three choices separately and select all that apply.

2. The author most likely uses the phrase “saviors of rock music” to:

A characterize the strokes

B make a plea for the future of the genre

C indicate the hyperbolic expectations created by music critics

3. Select the sentence that suggests rock music’s struggles competing with other types of popular music.

Answer Key

The correct answers to the questions are:

1. D. Critics of popular music sometimes create exaggerated expectations for bands

2. C. indicate the hyperbolic expectations created by music critics

3. Although both bands helped to bring greater awareness to the burgeoning indie music scene, rock
music still struggles to compete with other genres of popular music.

What skills do Reading Comprehension questions test?

Reading Comprehension questions test your ability to understand, interpret and analyze complex
passages of the kind you will encounter in graduate school. Some key skills that are tested include your
ability to

• understand a text holistically and be able to determine the meaning of individual components

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22 GRE Reading Comprehension: Detailed Solutions to 325 Questions

• distinguish major and minor points

• succinctly summarize the meaning of an entire passage

• use inference to draw conclusions about implied meaning and intent

• understand how individual parts of a text support the key points

• identify an authors assumptions, biases and perspective

• determine the potential strengths and weaknesses of the author’s position

Key Facts about Reading Comprehension questions

• Questions will be based off short passages of one or more paragraphs

• There will be approximately 10 passages on the Verbal Reasoning portion of the test; you will be
required to answer 1-6 questions per passage

• Passages will be on a variety of topics including the physical, biological and social sciences, the arts and
the humanities, business and everyday life

• Questions will be answerable based on the passage alone - you will not need any prior knowledge of
the subject matter being discussed

• Questions will ask you to select one or more correct answers from several, or highlight a relevant
portion of the passage

Strategies for Reading Comprehension questions

You will have 30 minutes to complete each Verbal Reasoning section. To complete a section successfully,
you will need to budget your time well, and this is especially important with Reading Comprehension
questions. It is essential that you not lose too much time reading passages too carefully. Remember, to do well
on Reading Comprehension questions, you do not need to have a mastery of the material covered in a given
passage - you just need to be able to answer a few highly directed questions about the passage. If you are able
to read the passage both thoroughly and quickly, so much the better; however, if you find yourself taking
too much time over a passage, it is better to gather key information quickly than to grasp everything and lose
too much time. As you read passages for Reading Comprehension questions, your reading should be goal-
oriented: read quickly and “loosely” and focus only on information that is important. Remember, you won’t
need to remember anything about the passage after the test, and you only need to grasp key points while
taking the test.

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 Chapter 3
Practice Set 1: Arts and Humanities
32 GRE Reading Comprehension: Detailed Solutions to 325 Questions

T
his chapter is devoted to helping you develop your skill with Reading Comprehension questions
using concrete examples. You will find passages related to Arts and Humanities that are similar to
the sorts of passages you will encounter on an actual GRE test. Each passage has a set of questions
and a detailed explanation of the solution to each question. The questions and their solutions will be
presented as follows:

In this chapter:

• A passage related to Arts and Humanities similar to what you can expect on an actual GRE test

• Several questions about the passage similar to those you will encounter on an actual GRE test

In Explanatory Answers for Practice Set 1: Arts and Humanities:

• A quick summary that paraphrases the main issues of the passage and points out important words or
phrases that indicate the meaning or intent of the passage. Being able to answer a few basic questions
about Reading Comprehension passages before you even see any of the questions is a key skill that will
help you answer questions more quickly and more accurately. The summaries provided here will give
you some sense of how to approach summarizing when looking at actual questions.

• Detailed solutions that explain what the correct answer is, and what strategy of strategies you could
use to determine the correct answer. Explanatory answers will usually refer back to the summary.

Passage 1

Questions 1 to 4 are based on the following passage.

Dmitry Shostakovich’s first visit to the United States was an appearance at the Cultural and Scientific
Conference for World Peace in New York City in March 1949. He was serving as one of five delegates from
the Soviet Union, and as a delegate he listened as his translators read a prepared speech, mumbled brief
answers to a few awkward questions, played on the piano once, attended a few concerts, and then left with
cartons of cigarettes under his arm. The conference was described in the popular press as pro-Communist
propaganda, and protestors picketed the streets outside the Waldorf. Many Americans, however, were
familiar with Shostakovich’s music, and many knew about the recent banning of his works in the Soviet
Union.

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Practice Set 1: Arts and Humanities 33

For Questions 1 and 2, select only one answer choice.

1. Which of the following best describes the author’s assessment of Shostakovich’s first trip to the United
States?

A The Cultural and Scientific Conference for World Peace was essentially pro-Communist
propaganda and Shostakovich viewed it as such.

B The Cultural and Scientific Conference for World Peace was designed to present Shostakovich’s
works to the world for the first time, but his debut was overshadowed by the controversy
surrounding the event.

C The Cultural and Scientific Conference for World Peace proved to be an inauspicious U.S debut
for Shostakovich.

D Shostakovich’s visit focused public attention on his music and the recent banning of his works in
the Soviet Union.

E Despite several problems, Shostakovich’s visit boosted his popularity in the United States.

2. What is the author’s purpose in closing this passage with the sentence, “Many Americans, however,
were familiar with Shostakovich’s music, and many knew about the recent banning of his works in the
Soviet Union?”

A To note that despite the lack of attention and exposure given to Shostakovich at the Conference
and despite the perception of the Conference as propaganda, the composer’s work and political
plight were already known in the United States.

B To note that the presence of Shostakovich, whose work and political plight were known in the
U.S., lent credence to the popular perception of the Conference as propaganda.

C To suggest that those Americans familiar with Shostakovich’s work and political plight did not
share the view that the Conference was pro-Communist propaganda

D To suggest that the knowledge of Shostakovich and his political plight led to the protests against
the Conference

E To suggest that Shostakovich’s political troubles were the primary reason for his fame in the
United States

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34 GRE Reading Comprehension: Detailed Solutions to 325 Questions

Consider each of the three choices separately and select all that apply.

3. Which of the following statements about Shostakovich’s first visit to the U.S. are implied by the
passage?

A The performance of Shostakovich’s music was not given priority at the Conference.

B Shostakovich participated in the conference reluctantly.

C Shostakovich was a smoker.

4. Select the sentence which provides the most information about Shostakovich’s musical compositions.

Passage 2

Questions 5 to 8 are based on the following passage.

In the Americas, paganism provided a convenient initial excuse for conquest and enslavement of
indigenous people. However, as Indians were gradually Christianized, race replaced paganism as a
justification for Spanish domination. Furthermore, gender functioned as a facilitator of political negotiation
and inter-ethnic relations in the New World. Because more than 80 percent of Spanish immigrants to the
Indies between 1492 and 1580 were male, race and gender ideologies interacted to reinforce the political and
cultural hegemony of the Spanish in the New World.

For Questions 5 to 7, select only one answer choice.

5. The passage addresses which of the following issues related to the large percentage of male Spanish
immigrants during the 16th Century?

A The question of whether gender issues were more influential than racial ideologies upon the
relationship between Spanish immigrants and indigenous peoples

B The contention that the Spanish immigrants’ efforts at converting natives to Christianity were
inspired largely by gender ideology

C The implication that racial attitudes toward the native population might have been different had
there been a higher percentage of female Spanish immigrants.

D The contention that gender ideology, in combination with the Spaniards’ attitude toward race,
was a significant facilitator of the Spanish domination of the indigenous population.

E The suggestion that the Spaniard’s attitudes towards gender, as well as race, evolved from the
largely successful effort to convert the natives to Christianity

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 Chapter 9
Explanatory Answers
188 GRE Reading Comprehension: Detailed Solutions to 325 Questions

Practice Set 1: Arts and Humanities

Passage 1
Answer to Question 1:

The correct answer is C. A is incorrect because the passage describes this view as that of the popular press,
not as the author’s assessment and not of Shostakovich. B is incorrect because the passage does not describe
this as the Conference’s purpose nor does it describe the controversy as having an adverse effect on the
Conference. D is incorrect because Shostakovich is described as being far from the focus of attention of the
Conference and the public is said to have been already aware of these matters. E is incorrect because the
passage in no way suggests the composer’s popularity was increased by the Conference. C is the correct
answer. The passage lists several examples of the composer’s experiences at the conference that contribute
to the impression of a debut that was not particularly glorious. Shostakovich was one of five delegates.
He played piano only once. He mumbled and listened passively to translators. Finally, he is depicted as
concerned with stocking up on cigarettes.

Answer to Question 2:

The correct answer is A. B is incorrect because the sentence does not draw any connection between
Shostakovich and the overall public reception of the Conference. C is incorrect because the sentence does
not describe or imply the feelings of those aware of Shostakovich. D is incorrect because the sentence does
not describe or imply any causality between the two things. E is incorrect for the same reason. A is the
correct answer. The use of the word “however” indicates that the point stands in spite of the negative factors
described in the rest of the passage.

Answer to Question 3:

A and C are correct. A is clearly implied by the passage by the statement that he played the piano only once
and attended concerts by others. B is not justified. It is not clear whether the composer wanted to be there or
not. C is implied by the passage. It is technically possible that the cigarettes were for others, but the passage
clearly gives the impression he bought them for himself.

Answer to Question 4:

The correct answer is “Many Americans, however, were familiar with Shostakovich’s music, and many knew
about the recent banning of his works in the Soviet Union”.

The passage does not give much information at all about the composer’s works. The second sentence gives a
great deal of information about his experience at the Conference, but none at all about his compositions. The
final sentence, at least, tells us that they were banned in the Soviet Union and were known in America.

Passage 2
Answer to Question 5:

D is correct. The passage traces several influences which led to Spanish domination of the natives. Paganism
is mentioned as an initial excuse, but the passage then explains that attitudes about both gender and race gave
significant support to the Spaniards’ cultural domination of the natives. A is incorrect. The passage discusses
race and gender even-handedly and does not suggest that either was more influential. B is incorrect. The
passage discusses gender issues as a separate matter, not as a factor in conversion efforts. C is incorrect.

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