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Question of the Day: GRE Verbal
Passage adapted from John Dewey's "The Need for a Recovery of Philosophy" (1915)
Intellectual advance occurs in two ways. At times increase of knowledge is organized about old conceptions, while these are expanded, elaborated and refined, but not seriously revised, much less abandoned. At other times, the increase of knowledge demands qualitative rather than quantitative change; alteration, not addition. Men's minds grow cold to their former intellectual concerns; ideas that were burning fade; interests that were urgent seem remote. Men face in another direction; their older perplexities are unreal; considerations passed over as negligible loom up. Former problems may not have been solved, but they no longer press for solutions.
Philosophy is no exception to the rule. But it is unusually conservative--not, necessarily, in proffering solutions, but in clinging to problems. It has been so allied with theology and theological morals as representatives of men's chief interests, that radical alteration has been shocking. Men's activities took a decidedly new turn, for example, in the seventeenth century, and it seems as if philosophy, under the lead of thinkers like Bacon and Descartes, was to execute an about-face. But, in spite of the ferment, it turned out that many of the older problems were but translated from Latin into the vernacular or into the new terminology furnished by science.
The association of philosophy with academic teaching has reinforced this intrinsic conservatism. Scholastic philosophy persisted in universities after men's thoughts outside of the walls of colleges had moved in other directions. In the last hundred years intellectual advances of science and politics have in like fashion been crystallized into material of instruction and now resist further change. I would not say that the spirit of teaching is hostile to that of liberal inquiry, but a philosophy which exists largely as something to be taught rather than wholly as something to be reflected upon is conducive to discussion of views held by others rather than to immediate response. Philosophy when taught inevitably magnifies the history of past thought, and leads professional philosophers to approach their subject-matter through its formulation in received systems. It tends, also, to emphasize points upon which men have divided into schools, for these lend themselves to retrospective definition and elaboration. Consequently, philosophical discussion is likely to be a dressing out of antithetical traditions, where criticism of one view is thought to afford proof of the truth of its opposite (as if formulation of views guaranteed logical exclusives). Direct preoccupation with contemporary difficulties is left to literature and politics.
Which of the following express Dewey's overall contention adequately?
A. Theology has exerted too much influence on the development of philosophy.
B. At certain rare moments in history, philosophy nearly made a radical break with its past forms of expression.
C. Philosophy is susceptible to its own particular impediments to development.
B
A
B and C
C
A, B, and C
In many ways, the GRE Verbal section can be approached completely from the aspect of time management. This is, perhaps, a simplification, but the remark does have truth to it. There really are two focal skills necessary for success in these sections: a mastery of vocabulary and a keen eye for reading and interpreting passages of writing. Each of these skills will greatly help throughout the examination questions found in these sections. Whether you need top GRE tutors in New York, GRE tutors in Chicago, or top GRE tutors in Los Angeles, working with a pro may take your studies to the next level.
In the Verbal sections’ Sentence Completion and Sentence Equivalence problems, it is almost impossible to finish your work efficiently without having the requisite vocabulary skills. When answering these questions, it is necessary to discern clues throughout the sentences that can help you choose appropriate words to complete their contents. Often, the whole answer in one of these questions will be indicated by a single word or turn of phrase. Without the requisite vocabulary, it can often be impossible to discern the general meaning needed for the question’s content. Varsity Tutors offers resources like free GRE Verbal flashcards to help with your self-paced study, or you may want to consider a GRE Verbal tutor.
Of course, it is equally crucial to have vocabulary skills to apply to the word choices given in each question. There is nothing more dreadful than facing down a list of three to six words and not knowing the meanings of several of them! While it is possible to use a process of elimination to limit your potential choices, if several words remain unknown, you will likely be faced with taking a guess with little clarity regarding the meaning of your choice. Vocabulary knowledge greatly helps you avoid such situations.
Likewise, a large vocabulary will help you quickly pass through these types of questions. You will have little need to puzzle over potential choices if you actually know most of the choices. You will be able to eliminate blatantly incorrect words and quickly focus on obviously correct ones. With celerity in your execution of these problems, you will gain for yourself extra time for working on the lengthy reading passages, which can take quite a bit of time to complete.
One can also benefit from good time management skills when considering the reading passages. Like the other questions in the verbal sections, the reading passages are well keyed to certain modes of reading—both skimming as well as interpreting with quick insight. With adequate preparation, you can pass through such sections with much greater ease than is often possible without such instruction. This can help you avoid the dreadful situation of having four minutes to complete ten minutes’ worth of work.
Like all good things, these skills take time to build, of course. Plan into your preparation adequate time to learn new vocabulary and to strengthen the reading skills needed to succeed. However, take heart as well, for the GRE verbal section is not an insuperable beast that cannot be slain. Like all other rigors, it merely requires devotion and time. With these, you will be well on your way to succeeding on these sections of the exam.
If you’d like to begin preparing for your GRE right now by augmenting your vocabulary and practicing requisite reading skills, you can do so by attempting our free GRE Verbal question of the day. We feature one GRE Verbal question every day; anyone who answers gets to see the answer as well as a complete explanation of how to solve the problem correctly. Even if you miss the question, it can help you pick up new vocabulary terms and avoid common missteps as you solidify your approach to various problem types through repeated practice. In addition to the GRE Verbal Question of the Day and GRE Verbal tutoring, you may also want to consider taking some of our GRE Verbal practice tests. Try out our GRE Verbal question of the day and other free GRE study resources to add more high-quality learning tools to your preparation!
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