Kaplan GRE Practice Question of the Day

GRE Practice Question for December 30th

In his best-selling book Hiroshima, John Hersey does not overtly moralize on the use of atomic weapons by the United States during World War II; rather, he tells a straightforward account of the Hiroshima bombing and its immediate aftermath, as a journalist would describe any natural calamity. But by their very nature, the people and scenes he describes are so powerful, so compelling, and so fraught with moral implications that the reader cannot escape confronting fundamental issues of how human beings treat one another, during time of war and otherwise. Many critics regard as the greatest single piece of journalism produced in the 20th century for the specific reason that its story so effectively demands moral engagement even as it astounds with its objectivity. Today's journalists need not assign their stories a heavy load of moral baggage in order to strike a significant blow for the betterment of the world. They need only to recognize the universal elements contained in any story of consequence and to describe those elements in a style that is vivid, truthful and within the bounds of objectivity.

The author of the passage would probably consider which of the following stories to be most similar in style to the story Hersey wrote in Hiroshima?

An author pleads for a prisoner's freedom by condemning his imprisonment from a religious standpoint.

An author conveys the ferocity of a battle through firsthand accounts of what soldiers heard, said, saw, felt, tasted, and smelled during the fighting.

An author inspires donations to fund a wildlife preserve by attributing charismatic personalities to animals.

An author endorses a course of political action by satirizing opponents as blundering imbeciles.

An author recounts a personal tragedy by repeatedly blaming others for the misfortune.

Analyze the question stem

This question asks for the story most similar to Hersey's Hiroshima, as it is described in the passage. Your task is to discern the approach of Hiroshima to its subject and identify another work with that takes the same approach.

Research

The first sentence in the passage summarizes Hersey's writing in Hiroshima: he doesn't "overtly moralize" but "tells a straightforward account." In the third sentence, he uses the emphasis keyword "astounds" in saying the book "astounds with its objectivity," and again he concludes by implying the book is an example of journalism "within the bounds of objectivity."

Make a prediction

The correct answer will be, like Hersey's piece, a story that provides an objective, straightforward account of an event.

Evaluate the answer choices

(B) is analogous to Hersey's writing. The author reports as a neutral observer, recording the experiences of those who were there and letting readers draw their own conclusions. (A) moralizes, using a religious viewpoint, which is the opposite of what Hersey is praised for doing. (C) defies objectivity by assigning personalities to the animals. (D) clearly takes a side, which removes it, too, from the bounds of objectivity. (E) assigns blame, so also cannot be said to be written objectively.

TAKEAWAY: Occasionally, you may see a "weird" version of a familiar question type. A Parallelism question such as this one can be treated like an Inference question. The correct answer will have different details, but the idea will be based directly on what's said in the passage. Don't let it flummox you - the same strategies as always will lead to the correct answer.

Topic: Journalism

Scope: Objectivity in journalism

Purpose: To show the value of objectivity in journalism, using Hersey's Hiroshima as a central example

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GRE Practice Question for December 30th

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GRE Practice Question for December 30th

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