GRE Prep Club Daily Prep
Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.
Customized
for You
Track
Your Progress
Practice
Pays
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
Sep 28Live Online Class with Top GRE Expert Mike Butville
08:00 PM EDT
-10:00 PM EDT
Top scores are possible when you enroll in a powerful GRE course, taught live online + 6 months access to TTP GRE OnDemand video courses included! Class starts Mon/Wed Sept. 28, 2026 - Dec. 9, 2026, 8:00pm-10:00pm EST
Benjamin Franklin is portrayed in American history as the quintessenti
[#permalink]
18 May 2026, 01:05
18 May 2026, 01:05
Expert Reply
Question 1
00:00
Question Stats:
77% (01:25) correct
23% (01:45) wrong based on 22 sessions
Hide Show timer Statistics
Question 2
00:00
Question Stats:
53% (00:52) correct
47% (01:15) wrong based on 19 sessions
Hide Show timer Statistics
Benjamin Franklin is portrayed in American history as the quintessential self-made man. In "Self-reliance", Emerson asks, "Where is the master who could have instructed Franklin...?" In fact, Franklin took instruction widely, and his scientific work was highly collaborative. Friends in England sent equipment needed for his electrical experiments, others, in Philadelphia, helped him set up his workshop there. Philip Syng constructed a device for generating electrical charges, while Tomas Hopkinson demonstrated the potential of pointed conductors. Franklin, in addition to being the group's theoretician, wrote and published its results. His fame as an individual researcher is partly a consequence of the shorthand by which when one person writes about a group's discoveries, history sometimes grants singular credit for collective effort.
1. Which of the following best describes the function of the highlighted sentence?
A. It states a viewpoint about Franklin with which the author disagrees.
B. It introduces new evidence about Franklin's role in the collaborative process.
C. It explains Franklin's reputation in terms of a broad scholarly phenomenon.
D. It emphasizes the extent to which Franklin relied on others in his workshop.
E. It describes Franklin's approach to writing scientific results.
2. Emerson is mentioned in the passage primarily to
A. Identify the origin of a particular understanding of Franklin
B. Elaborate on a view of Franklin that the author takes issue with
C. Point to a controversial claim about Franklin's historical legacy
D. Introduce the question of who Franklin's main scientific influences were
E. Suggests that Franklin was resistant to collaboration with other scientists
- Part of the project: GRE Hard and Tricky Verbal Practice: NEW Questions Daily - Gain 20 Kudos & Get FREE Access to GRE Prep Club TESTS
- Also replying to the unanswered questions
GRE Prep Club Team Member
Joined: 20 Feb 2017
Posts: 2932
Given Kudos: 1259
GPA: 3.39
Re: Benjamin Franklin is portrayed in American history as the quintessenti
[#permalink]
20 May 2026, 10:20
20 May 2026, 10:20
1
Expert Reply
Explanation
1. Which of the following best describes the function of the highlighted sentence?
This sentence explains why Franklin came to be viewed as a lone genius, even though the passage argues that his work was collaborative. It connects Franklin’s reputation to a general historical tendency: giving one person credit for work done by many.
A: The disagreement is introduced earlier (“In fact...”), not in the highlighted sentence.
B: No new evidence is introduced; it’s an interpretation/explanation.
D: It’s not specifically about workshop reliance.
E: Writing is mentioned only as part of the explanation for his fame, not as the main focus.
Answer: C
1. Which of the following best describes the function of the highlighted sentence?
This sentence explains why Franklin came to be viewed as a lone genius, even though the passage argues that his work was collaborative. It connects Franklin’s reputation to a general historical tendency: giving one person credit for work done by many.
A: The disagreement is introduced earlier (“In fact...”), not in the highlighted sentence.
B: No new evidence is introduced; it’s an interpretation/explanation.
D: It’s not specifically about workshop reliance.
E: Writing is mentioned only as part of the explanation for his fame, not as the main focus.
Answer: C
GRE Prep Club Team Member
Joined: 20 Feb 2017
Posts: 2932
Given Kudos: 1259
GPA: 3.39
Re: Benjamin Franklin is portrayed in American history as the quintessenti
[#permalink]
20 May 2026, 10:37
20 May 2026, 10:37
1
Expert Reply
Explanation
2. Emerson is mentioned in the passage primarily to
The author introduces Emerson's quote to elaborate on (or give a famous example of) the widespread view of Franklin as a self-made man—a view that the author then immediately proceeds to take issue with and disprove in the rest of the passage.
A is incorrect: Emerson didn't originate this understanding; he is just a prominent figure who expressed it. The passage states Franklin is generally "portrayed in American history" this way.
C is incorrect: Emerson’s quote wasn't historically "controversial"-it reflected the standard, widely accepted American myth of Franklin at the time.
D is incorrect: Emerson's question is rhetorical and implies Franklin had no masters or influences. The author is the one who introduces the actual influences, not Emerson.
E is incorrect: The passage proves Franklin was not resistant to collaboration; furthermore, Emerson's quote doesn't suggest resistance, but rather an absence of anyone capable of instructing him.
Answer: B
2. Emerson is mentioned in the passage primarily to
The author introduces Emerson's quote to elaborate on (or give a famous example of) the widespread view of Franklin as a self-made man—a view that the author then immediately proceeds to take issue with and disprove in the rest of the passage.
A is incorrect: Emerson didn't originate this understanding; he is just a prominent figure who expressed it. The passage states Franklin is generally "portrayed in American history" this way.
C is incorrect: Emerson’s quote wasn't historically "controversial"-it reflected the standard, widely accepted American myth of Franklin at the time.
D is incorrect: Emerson's question is rhetorical and implies Franklin had no masters or influences. The author is the one who introduces the actual influences, not Emerson.
E is incorrect: The passage proves Franklin was not resistant to collaboration; furthermore, Emerson's quote doesn't suggest resistance, but rather an absence of anyone capable of instructing him.
Answer: B
