Question 156·Hard·Text Structure and Purpose
The following text is adapted from an 1878 travel diary by a geologist visiting a mining town in the American West.
The street sloped like the inside of a tipped tray, sluicing the day’s dust into the creek. In the saloons the talk ran rich: veins that ran deeper than memory, a mill that would outlast winter. I took notes too quickly, impressible as any traveler. Yet before I fix in my report that this place is inexhaustible, I must admit how little a single pair of eyes can judge in three days. The next morning, among tailings pale as bone, I mapped the ledges and found the quartz pinching thin; at the assay office a ledger opened to a tidy column of forfeitures. I revised my notes.
Which choice best describes the function of the underlined portion in the text as a whole?
For function/purpose questions, always read a few sentences before and after the highlighted portion to see how the passage’s direction or tone changes. Identify what the sentence does (introduces a contrast, adds an example, signals a turning point, etc.), not just what it says. Then test each answer against the actual events and attitudes in the passage; quickly eliminate any option that depends on something that never happens or that contradicts the narrator’s actions or tone. Focus on the answer that best matches how the highlighted text connects the earlier and later parts of the passage.
Hints
Look at what comes just before the bolded sentence
Reread the sentences about the saloons and the narrator taking notes. How is he feeling and behaving before the bolded sentence appears?
Pay close attention to the word "Yet"
The bolded sentence begins with "Yet." What does that word usually signal about the relationship between this sentence and the one(s) before it?
Check what changes after the bolded sentence
What does the narrator do the next morning? How are these actions different from the quick notes he took earlier?
Eliminate answers that add attitudes or claims the sentence doesn’t make
Ask yourself: Is the narrator mainly expressing distrust of the townspeople, claiming he is ready to confirm “inexhaustible,” or arguing that impressions beat official records? Cross out any answer that depends on an attitude or claim that isn’t actually expressed in the bolded sentence.
Step-by-step Explanation
Identify the narrator’s attitude before the bolded sentence
Look at the first part of the passage:
- The street is described vividly: "sluicing the day’s dust into the creek."
- In the saloons, "the talk ran rich" about great mineral wealth.
- The narrator says, "I took notes too quickly, impressible as any traveler."
This shows that at first he is easily impressed and somewhat swept up by the optimism and rumors in town.
Analyze what the bolded sentence itself is saying
The bolded sentence reads:
"Yet before I fix in my report that this place is inexhaustible, I must admit how little a single pair of eyes can judge in three days."
Key parts:
- "Yet" signals contrast with what came just before (his quick, enthusiastic note-taking).
- "before I fix in my report" shows he is pausing before making a firm claim.
- "I must admit how little a single pair of eyes can judge in three days" shows self‑doubt and recognition of limited evidence.
So this sentence pulls back from his initial enthusiasm and introduces caution.
See what happens immediately after the bolded sentence
After the bolded sentence, the narrator does more concrete investigation:
- He goes out "the next morning" and physically examines the area: "among tailings pale as bone, I mapped the ledges and found the quartz pinching thin."
- He checks formal records: "at the assay office a ledger opened to a tidy column of forfeitures."
- Then: "I revised my notes."
This shows he moves from being "impressible" and relying on talk to using evidence (field mapping and the ledger) and then changing his conclusions.
Connect the bolded sentence to the structure of the whole passage
Taken together:
- Before: quick, impressionable note-taking, based on rich talk.
- Bolded: a pause and acknowledgment of limited knowledge.
- After: systematic observation and use of records, leading to revised notes.
So the bolded sentence functions as a turning point from initial impressions to a more careful, evidence-based assessment of the town’s mining prospects.
Match this understanding to the answer choices
Now compare this understanding with each answer:
- One choice describes the sentence as moderating his early impressions and marking a transition to more cautious, evidence-based evaluation, exactly what we traced in the passage.
- The other choices misstate the sentence’s role by claiming it (1) centers on distrust of locals and avoidance of the mines, (2) suggests he is ready to confirm “inexhaustible,” or (3) elevates impressions over official records.
The choice that correctly captures this role in the passage is It tempers the narrator’s initial impressions and marks a transition to a more cautious, evidence-based assessment.