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Question

Difficulty: HardMeeting Specific Rhetorical Goals

Passage Excerpt:

For over fifty years, Bernie Krause has traveled the globe recording the sounds of wild habitats. He coined the term *biophony* to describe the collective sound that vocalizing organisms produce in a given ecosystem. [1] In doing so, he has documented how habitat fragmentation disrupts these delicate natural symphonies.

The writer wants to insert a sentence at point [1] that emphasizes the arduous physical effort and remote isolation Krause experienced during his recording expeditions. Which choice best fulfills this goal?

  1. He has spent months alone in remote regions, hauling sixty pounds of recording gear through swamps and across glaciers.Answer
  2. B
    His recordings, which utilize state-of-the-art microphones and digital storage devices, capture audio frequencies that are often imperceptible to the human ear.
  3. C
    Before dedicating himself to ecology, he worked as a professional musician, composing soundtracks for major motion pictures and collaborating with popular bands.
  4. D
    He hauled sixty pounds of recording gear through swamps and glaciers, he worked alone in remote regions for months at a time.

Answer

The correct answer is the option stating that Krause spent months alone in remote regions carrying heavy gear, as it directly emphasizes his isolation and physical struggle.
The correct answer describes both Krause's isolation ('spent months alone in remote regions') and his intense physical labor ('hauling sixty pounds of recording gear through swamps and across glaciers'). It is also grammatically correct, successfully fulfilling the writer's rhetorical goals.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the rhetorical goal specified in the prompt.
The goal is to find a choice that emphasizes two specific elements: 'arduous physical effort' and 'remote isolation'.
Understanding the precise criteria of the prompt is necessary to evaluate the options.
2
Evaluate each option against the rhetorical goal.
The option about spending months alone and hauling gear meets both criteria. The options about state-of-the-art microphones and a music career fail to address these criteria. The option with a comma splice attempts to meet the goal but is grammatically incorrect.
Identifying which options satisfy the semantic requirements allows you to narrow down the choices.
3
Verify the grammatical correctness of the remaining option that meets the goal.
The option detailing spending months alone and hauling gear is grammatically correct, whereas the similar option is a comma splice.
ACT English requires the correct answer to be both rhetorically appropriate and grammatically correct.

Key Concept

Meeting Specific Rhetorical Goals
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Topics

Meeting Specific Rhetorical Goals

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