Question 33·Hard·Transitions
Art historians once believed that Vincent van Gogh completed his famous painting The Night Café in just one night. Further pigment analysis has shown that the artist actually revisited the canvas several times over a two-week period. ______ these findings have reshaped scholars’ understanding of van Gogh’s working methods, suggesting a more deliberate approach than previously assumed.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
For transition questions, first ignore the answer choices and decide how the ideas before and after the blank relate: are they showing contrast, cause-and-effect, similarity, or just adding information? Once you’ve labeled the relationship, quickly scan the options and eliminate any that signal the wrong type of connection (for example, throwing out contrast words when the relationship is cause-and-effect). Always reread the sentence with your chosen transition to confirm it sounds logical and consistent in context.
Hints
Identify what changes between the two sentences
Look at how the second sentence talks about “these findings” and what they do to scholars’ understanding. Ask yourself: what is happening to that understanding?
Think about the relationship, not just the word meanings
Is the second sentence mainly showing an opposite idea, a similar idea, or an outcome that follows from the first sentence’s information?
Check which option fits cause, effect, contrast, or similarity
Label the relationship you see (cause-and-effect, contrast, or similarity), then pick the transition that matches that relationship and reject the others.
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand what the first sentence says
The first sentence explains an old belief: art historians once believed van Gogh painted The Night Café in one night. This sets up a prior assumption or understanding about his working method (very fast, in a single session).
Understand what the second sentence says
The second sentence gives new information: pigment analysis shows van Gogh actually worked on the painting over two weeks, revisiting the canvas several times. Then it states that these findings have reshaped scholars’ understanding, suggesting he worked in a more deliberate way than they thought before.
Decide the logical relationship between the two sentences
The new analysis directly changes (updates) scholars’ earlier belief. The second sentence is not just contrasting randomly or offering a similar example; it is describing what happens to scholars’ views because of the new findings. That is a cause-and-effect relationship: new evidence → changed understanding.
Match the relationship to the best transition
We need a transition that shows the change in scholars’ understanding is a result of the pigment analysis. Among the options, only “Consequently,” expresses this cause-and-effect relationship, so the correct answer is B) Consequently,.