Carcass wrote:
Perhaps then the greatest failing of this deluge of positive psychology books is not that they (i) ______ the complexity typical of psychology in general— and in this case replace it with a breezy glibness— but that they dispense advice that is so (ii) ______ and littered with platitudes as to be bereft of the very succor the public requires during our (iii) ______ times.
Blank (i) | Blank (ii) | Blank (iii) |
(A) invoke | (D) pat | (G) heady |
(B) address | (E) evocative | (H) trying |
(C) eschew | (F) convoluted | (I) halcyon |
They are talking about the failing of the deluge of positive psychology books. And in this case, it has got something to do with the "complexity typical of psychology books". Therefore, the only possible choice is
eschew. For if they
address it, or
invoke it, it would be appropriate and correct, because the complexity is typical of psychology books. The fact that they
replace the complexity with a glibness further tells us that the original complexity was dispensed with (eschewed).
Next the real failing is described - "they dispense advice that is so ______
and littered with platitudes....". We need a word that is a synonym or related to platitudes.
Pat (glib and unconvincing) is the only correct choice, as it is related to platitudes (cliches which have lost their force and meaning) and is also a synonym of glib - and we know that the book contains breezy glibness.
And next - "as to be so bereft of the very succor that the public requires during our ____ times". Only during difficult times that the public requires help, so the word for the blank can only be
trying.
Halcyon refers to golden period and
heady means intoxicating or exhilarating, not the right word.