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Whether the long decades the itinerant composer
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21 Sep 2026, 16:34
21 Sep 2026, 16:34
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Question Stats:
14% (01:49) correct
85% (02:04) wrong based on 7 sessions
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Whether the long decades the itinerant composer spent in crushing, neartotal penury ever actually (i) ______ his creative powers remains, on close examination, a genuinely uncertain question; what seems far clearer, however, is that those same powers were, in some wholly inexplicable fashion, (ii) ______ precisely because of the privation he so stoically endured.
| Blank (i) | Blank (ii) |
|---|---|
| A. attenuated | D. rationalized |
| B. adjudicated | E. intensified |
| C. dictated | F. obfuscated |
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Whether the long decades the itinerant composer
[#permalink]
01 Oct 2026, 12:02
01 Oct 2026, 12:02
Expert Reply
Structural Analysis & Logic Breakdown
1. Identifying the Clues & Pivots
The Pivot "however": The semicolon followed by "what seems far clearer, however, is that..." sets up a direct contrast between the two clauses.
The Core Paradox:
The first clause asks whether extreme poverty (penury) weakened or reduced (Blank (i)) his creative output. This remains uncertain. PNG
The second clause presents the contrasting, clearer idea: those same creative powers were actually heightened or boosted (Blank (ii)) precisely because of that hardship (privation). PNG
2. Solving Blank (i)
Context: Extreme poverty (crushing, neartotal penury) is expected to harm or weaken artistic ability. We need a verb meaning to weaken, reduce, or diminish. PNG
Options:
A. attenuated (weakened, reduced in force or value): Correct. Fits the expected negative impact of poverty on creativity.
B. adjudicated (judged or formally decided): Irrelevant; poverty does not act as a judge over creativity.
C. dictated (commanded or strictly determined): Too strong and logically off; penury doesn't order or prescribe creative output.
3. Solving Blank (ii)
Context: Because of the contrast marker "however", Blank (ii) must express the opposite effect of Blank (i). If Blank (i) is "weakened," Blank (ii) must mean "strengthened" or "heightened"-making it "inexplicable" that hardship actually fueled his creative power.
Options:
D. rationalized (explained away or justified logically): Contradicts "inexplicable," which means it cannot be explained. PNG
E. intensified (made stronger, heightened, or boosted): Correct. Creates the sharp contrast with attenuated and explains why it seems so paradoxically "inexplicable" that extreme hardship boosted his gifts. PNG
F. obfuscated (rendered unclear or obscure): Doesn't fit the relationship between poverty and the creative powers themselves.
1. Identifying the Clues & Pivots
The Pivot "however": The semicolon followed by "what seems far clearer, however, is that..." sets up a direct contrast between the two clauses.
The Core Paradox:
The first clause asks whether extreme poverty (penury) weakened or reduced (Blank (i)) his creative output. This remains uncertain. PNG
The second clause presents the contrasting, clearer idea: those same creative powers were actually heightened or boosted (Blank (ii)) precisely because of that hardship (privation). PNG
2. Solving Blank (i)
Context: Extreme poverty (crushing, neartotal penury) is expected to harm or weaken artistic ability. We need a verb meaning to weaken, reduce, or diminish. PNG
Options:
A. attenuated (weakened, reduced in force or value): Correct. Fits the expected negative impact of poverty on creativity.
B. adjudicated (judged or formally decided): Irrelevant; poverty does not act as a judge over creativity.
C. dictated (commanded or strictly determined): Too strong and logically off; penury doesn't order or prescribe creative output.
3. Solving Blank (ii)
Context: Because of the contrast marker "however", Blank (ii) must express the opposite effect of Blank (i). If Blank (i) is "weakened," Blank (ii) must mean "strengthened" or "heightened"-making it "inexplicable" that hardship actually fueled his creative power.
Options:
D. rationalized (explained away or justified logically): Contradicts "inexplicable," which means it cannot be explained. PNG
E. intensified (made stronger, heightened, or boosted): Correct. Creates the sharp contrast with attenuated and explains why it seems so paradoxically "inexplicable" that extreme hardship boosted his gifts. PNG
F. obfuscated (rendered unclear or obscure): Doesn't fit the relationship between poverty and the creative powers themselves.
gmatclubot
Whether the long decades the itinerant composer [#permalink]
01 Oct 2026, 12:02
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