Examkin

Question

Difficulty: MediumCollocation and Idiomatic Fit

Although the musicologist maintained that her subject's late-period symphonic compositions represented an unedited, radical departure from established classical norms, contemporary theorists counter that the composer's harmonic structures were actually __________ the prevailing motifs of nineteenth-century Romanticism, drawing extensively on traditional cadence patterns and orchestral textures. Which of the following words or idiomatic phrases best completes the sentence?

  1. redolent ofAnswer
  2. B
    redolent to
  3. C
    antithetical to
  4. D
    incommensurate with
  5. E
    subversive of

Answer

The phrase 'redolent of' correctly completes the sentence by providing the proper idiomatic prepositional complement and satisfying the structural contrast.
The correct answer 'redolent of' means strongly suggestive or reminiscent of something. The sentence structure contrasts the musicologist's claim of a 'radical departure' with contemporary theorists' counterargument that the music actually draws heavily on older Romantic traditions. Furthermore, 'redolent' idiomatically requires the preposition 'of'.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze structural contrast clues in the sentence stem.
The opening concession 'Although... radical departure' paired with the main clause transition 'contemporary theorists counter that' indicates that the blank must express alignment, similarity, or evocative reliance on Romanticism rather than departure from it.
The sentence sets up an opposition between the musicologist's belief in novelty and the theorists' claim of traditional reliance.
2
Evaluate semantic and contextual fit of candidate concepts.
The phrase must mean 'reminiscent of' or 'suggestive of' to complement 'drawing extensively on traditional cadence patterns'.
The elaboration clause at the end of the sentence explains how the compositions relate to nineteenth-century Romanticism.
3
Verify standard idiomatic collocation and prepositional complementation.
The adjective 'redolent' requires the fixed preposition 'of' when signifying evocative resemblance ('redolent of'). Options pairing 'redolent' with other prepositions or choosing opposing terms violate standard usage or sentence polarity.
Standard academic English requires specific fixed prepositional pairings for adjectives of association.

Key Concept

Collocation and Idiomatic Fit
Rate this question

Topics

Collocation and Idiomatic Fit

More questions from this topic