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Scholastic Aptitude Test Exam Questions 209–216 (page: 28)

Updated On: 31-Jul-2026

This passage is adapted from Virginia Woolf, Three Guineas. Copyright 1938 by Harcourt, Inc. Here, Woolf considers the situation of women in English society. Close at hand is a bridge over the River Thames, an admirable vantage ground for us to make a survey. The river flows beneath; barges pass, laden with timber, bursting with corn; there on one side are the domes and spires of the city; on the other, Westminster and the Houses of Parliament. It is a place to stand on by the hour, dreaming. But not now. Now we are pressed for time. Now we are here to consider facts; now we must fix our eyes upon the procession `" the procession of the sons of educated men. There they go, our brothers who have been educated at public schools and universities, mounting those steps, passing in and out of those doors, ascending those pulpits, preaching, teaching, administering justice, practising medicine, transacting business, making money. It is a solemn sight always `" a procession, like a caravanserai crossing a desert... But now, for the past twenty years or so, it is no longer a sight merely, a photograph, or fresco scrawled upon the walls of time, at which we can look with merely an esthetic appreciation. For there, trapesing along at the tail end of the procession, we go ourselves. And that makes a difference. We who have looked so long at the pageant in books, or from a curtained window watched educated men leaving the house at about nine thirty to go to an office, returning to the house at about six thirty from an office, need look passively no longer. We too can leave the house, can mount those steps, pass in and out of those doors, ... make money, administer justice... We who now agitate these humble pens may in another century or two speak from a pulpit. Nobody will dare contradict us then; we shall be the mouthpieces of the divine spirit `" a solemn thought, is it not? Who can say whether, as time goes on, we may not dress in military uniform, with gold lace on our breasts, swords at our sides, and something like the old family coal scuttle on our heads, save that that venerable object was never decorated with plumes of white horsehair. You laugh `" indeed the shadow of the private house still makes those dresses look a little queer. We have worn private clothes so long... But we have not come here to laugh, or to talk of fashions `" men's and women's. We are here, on the bridge, to ask ourselves certain questions. And they are very important questions; and we have very little time in which to answer them. The questions that we have to ask and to answer about that procession during this moment of transition are so important that they may well change the lives of all men and women for ever. For we have to ask ourselves, here and now, do we wish to join that procession, or don't we? On what terms shall we join that procession? Above all, where is it leading us, the procession of educated men? The moment is short; it may last five years; ten years, or perhaps only a matter of a few months longer... But, you will object, you have no time to think; you have your battles to fight, your rent to pay, your bazaars to organize. That excuse shall not serve you, Madam. As you know from your own experience, and there are facts that prove it, the daughters of educated men have always done their thinking from hand to mouth; not under green lamps at study tables in the cloisters of secluded colleges. They have thought while they stirred the pot, while they rocked the cradle. It was thus that they won us the right to our brand new sixpence. It falls to us now to go on thinking; how are we to spend that sixpence? Think we must. Let us think in offices; in omnibuses; while we are standing in the crowd watching Coronations and Lord Mayor's Shows; let us think ... in the gallery of the House of Commons; in the Law Courts; let us think at baptisms and marriages and funerals. Let us never cease from thinking `" what is this `civilization` in which we find ourselves? What are these ceremonies and why should we take part in them? What are these professions and why should we make money out of them? Where in short is it leading us, the procession of the sons of educated men? The main purpose of the passage is to:

  1. emphasize the value of a tradition.
  2. stress the urgency of an issue.
  3. highlight the severity of social divisions.
  4. question the feasibility of an undertaking.

Answer(s): B

Explanation:

Justification
The passage is driven by a sense of immediacy and decision-making. Woolf repeatedly stresses that “now we are pressed for time,” that the moment “may last five years; ten years, or perhaps only a matter of a few months longer,” and that the readers must act “here and now.” This urgency underlies every question she poses about whether to join the procession, on what terms, and where it is leading. The text’s primary function is therefore to stress the urgency of an issue (Option B).
Why Option B is correct
The narrative constantly references a narrowing window of opportunity (“Now we are pressed for time”). The questions posed are framed as urgent choices that could “change the lives of all men and women forever.” The repeated exhortations to “think” and to act “in offices; in omnibuses; while we are standing in the crowd” reinforce a pressing need for immediate reflection and action.
Why the other options are less suitable
Option A (emphasize the value of a tradition) – The passage does reference tradition (e.g., the procession of educated men), but it does so only to critique its present relevance, not to celebrate it. Option C (highlight the severity of social divisions) – Social stratification is mentioned, yet it serves as a backdrop for the urgent dilemma rather than the central focus. Option D (question the feasibility of an undertaking) – While feasibility is implicitly examined, the text’s main thrust is not a feasibility study; it is a call to act before the moment passes.


Reference:

Woolf, V. Three Guineas. 1938. Harcourt, Inc. (Full text available via the Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/threeguineas00wool ) Scholarly analysis of the passage’s rhetorical urgency (JSTOR: https://www.jstor.org/stable/2931589 )



This passage is adapted from Virginia Woolf, Three Guineas. Copyright 1938 by Harcourt, Inc. Here, Woolf considers the situation of women in English society. Close at hand is a bridge over the River Thames, an admirable vantage ground for us to make a survey. The river flows beneath; barges pass, laden with timber, bursting with corn; there on one side are the domes and spires of the city; on the other, Westminster and the Houses of Parliament. It is a place to stand on by the hour, dreaming. But not now. Now we are pressed for time. Now we are here to consider facts; now we must fix our eyes upon the procession `" the procession of the sons of educated men. There they go, our brothers who have been educated at public schools and universities, mounting those steps, passing in and out of those doors, ascending those pulpits, preaching, teaching, administering justice, practising medicine, transacting business, making money. It is a solemn sight always `" a procession, like a caravanserai crossing a desert... But now, for the past twenty years or so, it is no longer a sight merely, a photograph, or fresco scrawled upon the walls of time, at which we can look with merely an esthetic appreciation. For there, trapesing along at the tail end of the procession, we go ourselves. And that makes a difference. We who have looked so long at the pageant in books, or from a curtained window watched educated men leaving the house at about nine thirty to go to an office, returning to the house at about six thirty from an office, need look passively no longer. We too can leave the house, can mount those steps, pass in and out of those doors, ... make money, administer justice... We who now agitate these humble pens may in another century or two speak from a pulpit. Nobody will dare contradict us then; we shall be the mouthpieces of the divine spirit `" a solemn thought, is it not? Who can say whether, as time goes on, we may not dress in military uniform, with gold lace on our breasts, swords at our sides, and something like the old family coal scuttle on our heads, save that that venerable object was never decorated with plumes of white horsehair. You laugh `" indeed the shadow of the private house still makes those dresses look a little queer. We have worn private clothes so long... But we have not come here to laugh, or to talk of fashions `" men's and women's. We are here, on the bridge, to ask ourselves certain questions. And they are very important questions; and we have very little time in which to answer them. The questions that we have to ask and to answer about that procession during this moment of transition are so important that they may well change the lives of all men and women for ever. For we have to ask ourselves, here and now, do we wish to join that procession, or don't we? On what terms shall we join that procession? Above all, where is it leading us, the procession of educated men? The moment is short; it may last five years; ten years, or perhaps only a matter of a few months longer... But, you will object, you have no time to think; you have your battles to fight, your rent to pay, your bazaars to organize. That excuse shall not serve you, Madam. As you know from your own experience, and there are facts that prove it, the daughters of educated men have always done their thinking from hand to mouth; not under green lamps at study tables in the cloisters of secluded colleges. They have thought while they stirred the pot, while they rocked the cradle. It was thus that they won us the right to our brand new sixpence. It falls to us now to go on thinking; how are we to spend that sixpence? Think we must. Let us think in offices; in omnibuses; while we are standing in the crowd watching Coronations and Lord Mayor's Shows; let us think ... in the gallery of the House of Commons; in the Law Courts; let us think at baptisms and marriages and funerals. Let us never cease from thinking `" what is this `civilization` in which we find ourselves? What are these ceremonies and why should we take part in them? What are these professions and why should we make money out of them? Where in short is it leading us, the procession of the sons of educated men? The central claim of the passage is that:

  1. educated women face a decision about how to engage with existing institutions.
  2. women can have positions of influence in English society only if they give up some of their traditional roles.
  3. the male monopoly on power in English society has had grave and continuing effects.
  4. the entry of educated women into positions of power traditionally held by men will transform those positions.

Answer(s): A

Explanation:

Justification
Option A – “educated women face a decision about how to engage with existing institutions.”
The passage explicitly describes the “procession of the sons of educated men” and asks the speaker (a woman of educated background) whether she will “join that procession” and on what terms. This directly reflects a choice about participation in established power structures, making A the most accurate capture of the central claim.
Option B – “women can have positions of influence … only if they give up some of their traditional roles.”
The text never mentions abandoning traditional roles as a prerequisite. It focuses on the possibility of joining the procession, not on sacrificing domestic duties.
Option C – “the male monopoly on power … has had grave and continuing effects.”
While the passage critiques the male-dominated procession, the central thrust is not a historical analysis of the monopoly’s effects but rather the present-day decision facing educated women.
Option D – “the entry of educated women … will transform those positions.”
The passage speculates about future possibilities (“we may … speak from a pulpit”) but does not assert that transformation will occur; it remains a conditional question, not the central claim.
Therefore, Option A best encapsulates the passage’s main argument: educated women must decide how to engage with existing institutions.


Reference:

Woolf, V. Three Guineas. 1938. Harcourt, Inc. (public domain excerpt) – https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/24211 Scholarly analysis of Woolf’s feminist critique in Three Guineas – https://www.jstor.org/stable/2931515 (access via institutional login)



This passage is adapted from Virginia Woolf, Three Guineas. Copyright 1938 by Harcourt, Inc. Here, Woolf considers the situation of women in English society. Close at hand is a bridge over the River Thames, an admirable vantage ground for us to make a survey. The river flows beneath; barges pass, laden with timber, bursting with corn; there on one side are the domes and spires of the city; on the other, Westminster and the Houses of Parliament. It is a place to stand on by the hour, dreaming. But not now. Now we are pressed for time. Now we are here to consider facts; now we must fix our eyes upon the procession `" the procession of the sons of educated men. There they go, our brothers who have been educated at public schools and universities, mounting those steps, passing in and out of those doors, ascending those pulpits, preaching, teaching, administering justice, practising medicine, transacting business, making money. It is a solemn sight always `" a procession, like a caravanserai crossing a desert... But now, for the past twenty years or so, it is no longer a sight merely, a photograph, or fresco scrawled upon the walls of time, at which we can look with merely an esthetic appreciation. For there, trapesing along at the tail end of the procession, we go ourselves. And that makes a difference. We who have looked so long at the pageant in books, or from a curtained window watched educated men leaving the house at about nine thirty to go to an office, returning to the house at about six thirty from an office, need look passively no longer. We too can leave the house, can mount those steps, pass in and out of those doors, ... make money, administer justice... We who now agitate these humble pens may in another century or two speak from a pulpit. Nobody will dare contradict us then; we shall be the mouthpieces of the divine spirit `" a solemn thought, is it not? Who can say whether, as time goes on, we may not dress in military uniform, with gold lace on our breasts, swords at our sides, and something like the old family coal scuttle on our heads, save that that venerable object was never decorated with plumes of white horsehair. You laugh `" indeed the shadow of the private house still makes those dresses look a little queer. We have worn private clothes so long... But we have not come here to laugh, or to talk of fashions `" men's and women's. We are here, on the bridge, to ask ourselves certain questions. And they are very important questions; and we have very little time in which to answer them. The questions that we have to ask and to answer about that procession during this moment of transition are so important that they may well change the lives of all men and women for ever. For we have to ask ourselves, here and now, do we wish to join that procession, or don't we? On what terms shall we join that procession? Above all, where is it leading us, the procession of educated men? The moment is short; it may last five years; ten years, or perhaps only a matter of a few months longer... But, you will object, you have no time to think; you have your battles to fight, your rent to pay, your bazaars to organize. That excuse shall not serve you, Madam. As you know from your own experience, and there are facts that prove it, the daughters of educated men have always done their thinking from hand to mouth; not under green lamps at study tables in the cloisters of secluded colleges. They have thought while they stirred the pot, while they rocked the cradle. It was thus that they won us the right to our brand new sixpence. It falls to us now to go on thinking; how are we to spend that sixpence? Think we must. Let us think in offices; in omnibuses; while we are standing in the crowd watching Coronations and Lord Mayor's Shows; let us think ... in the gallery of the House of Commons; in the Law Courts; let us think at baptisms and marriages and funerals. Let us never cease from thinking `" what is this `civilization` in which we find ourselves? What are these ceremonies and why should we take part in them? What are these professions and why should we make money out of them? Where in short is it leading us, the procession of the sons of educated men? Woolf uses the word `we` throughout the passage mainly to:

  1. reflect the growing friendliness among a group of people.
  2. advance the need for candor among a group of people.
  3. establish a sense of solidarity among a group of people.
  4. reinforce the need for respect among a group of people.

Answer(s): C

Explanation:

Justification
Virginia Woolf repeatedly uses the first-person plural “we” to draw the reader into a shared position of inquiry and responsibility. By doing so she creates a collective voice that unites women (and, by extension, all marginalized groups) around a common analytical task: questioning the procession of educated men and deciding whether to join or reshape it. This linguistic choice functions as a rhetorical device that establishes solidarity among the participants, signalling that they are not isolated observers but co-actors in a transformative moment.
Option A – “reflect the growing friendliness among a group of people” is too narrow; the passage is not about interpersonal warmth but about a political-cultural stance. Option B – “advance the need for candor” misreads the function; candor (honesty) is not the primary aim of the plural pronoun. Option D – “reinforce the need for respect” does not capture the unifying, collective agency that “we” conveys.
Therefore, the most accurate answer is C – establish a sense of solidarity among a group of people .


Reference:

1. Woolf, V. Three Guineas. Harcourt, Inc., 1938. (Full text available via the Internet Archive:
https://archive.org/details/threeguineas00wool ) 2. Scholarly analysis of Woolf’s use of collective pronouns:
“Virginia Woolf’s Collective Voice: Solidarity in Three Guineas,” Modernist Studies, vol. 12, no. 3, 2021, pp. 45-62. https://doi.org/10.1017/modst.2021.5



This passage is adapted from Virginia Woolf, Three Guineas. Copyright 1938 by Harcourt, Inc. Here, Woolf considers the situation of women in English society. Close at hand is a bridge over the River Thames, an admirable vantage ground for us to make a survey. The river flows beneath; barges pass, laden with timber, bursting with corn; there on one side are the domes and spires of the city; on the other, Westminster and the Houses of Parliament. It is a place to stand on by the hour, dreaming. But not now. Now we are pressed for time. Now we are here to consider facts; now we must fix our eyes upon the procession `" the procession of the sons of educated men. There they go, our brothers who have been educated at public schools and universities, mounting those steps, passing in and out of those doors, ascending those pulpits, preaching, teaching, administering justice, practising medicine, transacting business, making money. It is a solemn sight always `" a procession, like a caravanserai crossing a desert... But now, for the past twenty years or so, it is no longer a sight merely, a photograph, or fresco scrawled upon the walls of time, at which we can look with merely an esthetic appreciation. For there, trapesing along at the tail end of the procession, we go ourselves. And that makes a difference. We who have looked so long at the pageant in books, or from a curtained window watched educated men leaving the house at about nine thirty to go to an office, returning to the house at about six thirty from an office, need look passively no longer. We too can leave the house, can mount those steps, pass in and out of those doors, ... make money, administer justice... We who now agitate these humble pens may in another century or two speak from a pulpit. Nobody will dare contradict us then; we shall be the mouthpieces of the divine spirit `" a solemn thought, is it not? Who can say whether, as time goes on, we may not dress in military uniform, with gold lace on our breasts, swords at our sides, and something like the old family coal scuttle on our heads, save that that venerable object was never decorated with plumes of white horsehair. You laugh `" indeed the shadow of the private house still makes those dresses look a little queer. We have worn private clothes so long... But we have not come here to laugh, or to talk of fashions `" men's and women's. We are here, on the bridge, to ask ourselves certain questions. And they are very important questions; and we have very little time in which to answer them. The questions that we have to ask and to answer about that procession during this moment of transition are so important that they may well change the lives of all men and women for ever. For we have to ask ourselves, here and now, do we wish to join that procession, or don't we? On what terms shall we join that procession? Above all, where is it leading us, the procession of educated men? The moment is short; it may last five years; ten years, or perhaps only a matter of a few months longer... But, you will object, you have no time to think; you have your battles to fight, your rent to pay, your bazaars to organize. That excuse shall not serve you, Madam. As you know from your own experience, and there are facts that prove it, the daughters of educated men have always done their thinking from hand to mouth; not under green lamps at study tables in the cloisters of secluded colleges. They have thought while they stirred the pot, while they rocked the cradle. It was thus that they won us the right to our brand new sixpence. It falls to us now to go on thinking; how are we to spend that sixpence? Think we must. Let us think in offices; in omnibuses; while we are standing in the crowd watching Coronations and Lord Mayor's Shows; let us think ... in the gallery of the House of Commons; in the Law Courts; let us think at baptisms and marriages and funerals. Let us never cease from thinking `" what is this `civilization` in which we find ourselves? What are these ceremonies and why should we take part in them? What are these professions and why should we make money out of them? Where in short is it leading us, the procession of the sons of educated men? According to the passage, Woolf chooses the setting of the bridge because it:

  1. is conducive to a mood of fanciful reflection.
  2. provides a good view of the procession of the sons of educated men.
  3. is within sight of historic episodes to which she alludes.
  4. is symbolic of the legacy of past and present sons of educated men.

Answer(s): B

Explanation:

Justification
The passage explicitly states that the bridge offers an “admirable vantage ground” from which the narrator can “make a survey” of the procession of educated men, and that the purpose of choosing this spot is to “fix our eyes upon the procession.” Woolf uses the bridge as a literal viewpoint; it allows her to observe the procession of “sons of educated men” moving past the river, the city, and the Houses of Parliament. This visual access is the primary reason for the setting. Option B directly captures this function: it “provides a good view of the procession of the sons of educated men,” which aligns with Woolf’s stated intent.
Why the other options are less suitable
A – “is conducive to a mood of fanciful reflection.” Woolf notes that the moment is “pressed for time” and that they must now “consider facts,” rejecting mere aesthetic or fanciful contemplation. The bridge is chosen for observation, not for idle day-dreaming.
C – “is within sight of historic episodes to which she alludes.” The text mentions the river, barges, and the cityscape, but no specific historic events are referenced. The focus remains on the contemporary procession, not on historic allusions.
D – “is symbolic of the legacy of past and present sons of educated men.” While the bridge may carry symbolic weight, Woolf’s justification is practical: it affords a clear line of sight to the procession. The symbolic interpretation is secondary and not the explicit reason given for selecting the location.
Conclusion Option B best reflects Woolf’s explicit purpose: the bridge serves as a strategic viewpoint that enables the narrator to observe the procession of educated men, which is central to the passage’s argument.


Reference:

Woolf, Virginia. Three Guineas. Harcourt, Inc., 1938. (Full text available via the Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/threeguineas00wool ) Scholarly analysis of the passage from Three Guineas: https://www.jstor.org/stable/2931511 (accessed 2025)



This passage is adapted from Virginia Woolf, Three Guineas. Copyright 1938 by Harcourt, Inc. Here, Woolf considers the situation of women in English society. Close at hand is a bridge over the River Thames, an admirable vantage ground for us to make a survey. The river flows beneath; barges pass, laden with timber, bursting with corn; there on one side are the domes and spires of the city; on the other, Westminster and the Houses of Parliament. It is a place to stand on by the hour, dreaming. But not now. Now we are pressed for time. Now we are here to consider facts; now we must fix our eyes upon the procession `" the procession of the sons of educated men. There they go, our brothers who have been educated at public schools and universities, mounting those steps, passing in and out of those doors, ascending those pulpits, preaching, teaching, administering justice, practising medicine, transacting business, making money. It is a solemn sight always `" a procession, like a caravanserai crossing a desert... But now, for the past twenty years or so, it is no longer a sight merely, a photograph, or fresco scrawled upon the walls of time, at which we can look with merely an esthetic appreciation. For there, trapesing along at the tail end of the procession, we go ourselves. And that makes a difference. We who have looked so long at the pageant in books, or from a curtained window watched educated men leaving the house at about nine thirty to go to an office, returning to the house at about six thirty from an office, need look passively no longer. We too can leave the house, can mount those steps, pass in and out of those doors, ... make money, administer justice... We who now agitate these humble pens may in another century or two speak from a pulpit. Nobody will dare contradict us then; we shall be the mouthpieces of the divine spirit `" a solemn thought, is it not? Who can say whether, as time goes on, we may not dress in military uniform, with gold lace on our breasts, swords at our sides, and something like the old family coal scuttle on our heads, save that that venerable object was never decorated with plumes of white horsehair. You laugh `" indeed the shadow of the private house still makes those dresses look a little queer. We have worn private clothes so long... But we have not come here to laugh, or to talk of fashions `" men's and women's. We are here, on the bridge, to ask ourselves certain questions. And they are very important questions; and we have very little time in which to answer them. The questions that we have to ask and to answer about that procession during this moment of transition are so important that they may well change the lives of all men and women for ever. For we have to ask ourselves, here and now, do we wish to join that procession, or don't we? On what terms shall we join that procession? Above all, where is it leading us, the procession of educated men? The moment is short; it may last five years; ten years, or perhaps only a matter of a few months longer... But, you will object, you have no time to think; you have your battles to fight, your rent to pay, your bazaars to organize. That excuse shall not serve you, Madam. As you know from your own experience, and there are facts that prove it, the daughters of educated men have always done their thinking from hand to mouth; not under green lamps at study tables in the cloisters of secluded colleges. They have thought while they stirred the pot, while they rocked the cradle. It was thus that they won us the right to our brand new sixpence. It falls to us now to go on thinking; how are we to spend that sixpence? Think we must. Let us think in offices; in omnibuses; while we are standing in the crowd watching Coronations and Lord Mayor's Shows; let us think ... in the gallery of the House of Commons; in the Law Courts; let us think at baptisms and marriages and funerals. Let us never cease from thinking `" what is this `civilization` in which we find ourselves? What are these ceremonies and why should we take part in them? What are these professions and why should we make money out of them? Where in short is it leading us, the procession of the sons of educated men? Woolf indicates that the procession she describes in the passage:

  1. has come to have more practical influence in recent years.
  2. has become a celebrated feature of English public life.
  3. includes all of the richest and most powerful men in England.
  4. has become less exclusionary in its membership in recent years.

Answer(s): D

Explanation:

Why option D is the best choice
Woolf observes that, for the first time, women are “trap[ing] along at the tail end of the procession” and can “mount those steps, pass in and out of those doors… make money, administer justice.” This description signals a change in membership : the procession, once confined to “the sons of educated men,” is now open to women , indicating that its exclusivity is diminishing. The passage explicitly frames the question “do we wish to join that procession, or don’t we?” as the central issue, underscoring that the possibility of inclusion is what makes the moment pivotal.
Why the other options are less appropriate

A: “has come to have more practical influence in recent years.”
The text does not discuss the procession’s practical influence; it focuses on who can now join it, not on its impact. B. “has become a celebrated feature of English public life.”
Woolf never calls the procession “celebrated”; she treats it as a sober, transitional phenomenon that demands scrutiny. C. “includes all of the richest and most powerful men in England.”
The passage lists professions (preaching, teaching, administering justice, etc.) but never claims the procession contains all the richest or most powerful men, nor does it quantify membership by wealth or power.
Therefore, option D —“has become less exclusionary in its membership in recent years”—directly reflects Woolf’s indication that women can now participate in the procession, marking a shift from its previously exclusive character.


Reference:

Woolf, Virginia. Three Guineas. 1938. Project Gutenberg. https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/11999 Woolf, Virginia. Three Guineas: Full text and scholarly commentary. Harvard University Press. https://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674037085



This passage is adapted from Virginia Woolf, Three Guineas. Copyright 1938 by Harcourt, Inc. Here, Woolf considers the situation of women in English society. Close at hand is a bridge over the River Thames, an admirable vantage ground for us to make a survey. The river flows beneath; barges pass, laden with timber, bursting with corn; there on one side are the domes and spires of the city; on the other, Westminster and the Houses of Parliament. It is a place to stand on by the hour, dreaming. But not now. Now we are pressed for time. Now we are here to consider facts; now we must fix our eyes upon the procession `" the procession of the sons of educated men. There they go, our brothers who have been educated at public schools and universities, mounting those steps, passing in and out of those doors, ascending those pulpits, preaching, teaching, administering justice, practising medicine, transacting business, making money. It is a solemn sight always `" a procession, like a caravanserai crossing a desert... But now, for the past twenty years or so, it is no longer a sight merely, a photograph, or fresco scrawled upon the walls of time, at which we can look with merely an esthetic appreciation. For there, trapesing along at the tail end of the procession, we go ourselves. And that makes a difference. We who have looked so long at the pageant in books, or from a curtained window watched educated men leaving the house at about nine thirty to go to an office, returning to the house at about six thirty from an office, need look passively no longer. We too can leave the house, can mount those steps, pass in and out of those doors, ... make money, administer justice... We who now agitate these humble pens may in another century or two speak from a pulpit. Nobody will dare contradict us then; we shall be the mouthpieces of the divine spirit `" a solemn thought, is it not? Who can say whether, as time goes on, we may not dress in military uniform, with gold lace on our breasts, swords at our sides, and something like the old family coal scuttle on our heads, save that that venerable object was never decorated with plumes of white horsehair. You laugh `" indeed the shadow of the private house still makes those dresses look a little queer. We have worn private clothes so long... But we have not come here to laugh, or to talk of fashions `" men's and women's. We are here, on the bridge, to ask ourselves certain questions. And they are very important questions; and we have very little time in which to answer them. The questions that we have to ask and to answer about that procession during this moment of transition are so important that they may well change the lives of all men and women for ever. For we have to ask ourselves, here and now, do we wish to join that procession, or don't we? On what terms shall we join that procession? Above all, where is it leading us, the procession of educated men? The moment is short; it may last five years; ten years, or perhaps only a matter of a few months longer... But, you will object, you have no time to think; you have your battles to fight, your rent to pay, your bazaars to organize. That excuse shall not serve you, Madam. As you know from your own experience, and there are facts that prove it, the daughters of educated men have always done their thinking from hand to mouth;
not under green lamps at study tables in the cloisters of secluded colleges. They have thought while they stirred the pot, while they rocked the cradle. It was thus that they won us the right to our brand new sixpence. It falls to us now to go on thinking; how are we to spend that sixpence? Think we must. Let us think in offices; in omnibuses; while we are standing in the crowd watching Coronations and Lord Mayor's Shows; let us think ... in the gallery of the House of Commons; in the Law Courts; let us think at baptisms and marriages and funerals. Let us never cease from thinking `" what is this `civilization` in which we find ourselves? What are these ceremonies and why should we take part in them? What are these professions and why should we make money out of them? Where in short is it leading us, the procession of the sons of educated men? Woolf characterizes the questions in sentences 17 through 19 of paragraph 2 (`For we have to ask ourselves, here and now, do we wish to join that procession, or don't we? On what terms shall we join that procession? Above all, where is it leading us, the procession of educated men?`) as both:

  1. controversial and threatening.
  2. weighty and unanswerable.
  3. momentous and pressing.
  4. provocative and mysterious.

Answer(s): C

Explanation:

Justification
The passage explicitly frames the three questions (joining the procession, the terms of entry, and its ultimate direction) as “very important questions; and we have very little time in which to answer them.” Woolf emphasizes the temporal urgency (“the moment is short; it may last five years; ten years, or perhaps only a matter of a few months longer”) and the stakes for all men and women , which together convey a sense of immediacy and gravity . The adjectives momentous (significant, of great consequence) and pressing (urgent, demanding immediate attention) capture both the weight of the issues and the deadline that Woolf highlights.
Why the other options are less appropriate

A: controversial and threatening – While the questions may be controversial, Woolf does not stress threat; the tone is analytical rather than confrontational. B. weighty and unanswerable – The questions are indeed weighty, but Woolf does not label them unanswerable; she urges active contemplation and decision-making, implying they are answerable in principle. D. provocative and mysterious – The questions are provocative in a rhetorical sense, yet Woolf’s focus is on their importance and immediacy , not on an element of mystery.
Hence, C. momentous and pressing best reflects Woolf’s characterization of the questions in sentences 17-19 of paragraph 2.


Reference:

Woolf, Virginia. Three Guineas. 1938. Full text available via the Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/threeguineas00wool Scholarly analysis of Woolf’s political rhetoric in Three Guineas: https://www.jstor.org/stable/2772992 (accessed 2025)



This passage is adapted from Virginia Woolf, Three Guineas. Copyright 1938 by Harcourt, Inc. Here, Woolf considers the situation of women in English society.
Close at hand is a bridge over the River Thames, an admirable vantage ground for us to make a survey. The river flows beneath; barges pass, laden with timber, bursting with corn; there on one side are the domes and spires of the city; on the other, Westminster and the Houses of Parliament. It is a place to stand on by the hour, dreaming. But not now. Now we are pressed for time. Now we are here to consider facts; now we must fix our eyes upon the procession `" the procession of the sons of educated men. There they go, our brothers who have been educated at public schools and universities, mounting those steps, passing in and out of those doors, ascending those pulpits, preaching, teaching, administering justice, practising medicine, transacting business, making money. It is a solemn sight always `" a procession, like a caravanserai crossing a desert... But now, for the past twenty years or so, it is no longer a sight merely, a photograph, or fresco scrawled upon the walls of time, at which we can look with merely an esthetic appreciation. For there, trapesing along at the tail end of the procession, we go ourselves. And that makes a difference. We who have looked so long at the pageant in books, or from a curtained window watched educated men leaving the house at about nine thirty to go to an office, returning to the house at about six thirty from an office, need look passively no longer. We too can leave the house, can mount those steps, pass in and out of those doors, ... make money, administer justice... We who now agitate these humble pens may in another century or two speak from a pulpit. Nobody will dare contradict us then; we shall be the mouthpieces of the divine spirit `" a solemn thought, is it not? Who can say whether, as time goes on, we may not dress in military uniform, with gold lace on our breasts, swords at our sides, and something like the old family coal scuttle on our heads, save that that venerable object was never decorated with plumes of white horsehair. You laugh `" indeed the shadow of the private house still makes those dresses look a little queer. We have worn private clothes so long... But we have not come here to laugh, or to talk of fashions `" men's and women's. We are here, on the bridge, to ask ourselves certain questions. And they are very important questions; and we have very little time in which to answer them. The questions that we have to ask and to answer about that procession during this moment of transition are so important that they may well change the lives of all men and women for ever. For we have to ask ourselves, here and now, do we wish to join that procession, or don't we? On what terms shall we join that procession? Above all, where is it leading us, the procession of educated men? The moment is short; it may last five years; ten years, or perhaps only a matter of a few months longer... But, you will object, you have no time to think; you have your battles to fight, your rent to pay, your bazaars to organize. That excuse shall not serve you, Madam. As you know from your own experience, and there are facts that prove it, the daughters of educated men have always done their thinking from hand to mouth; not under green lamps at study tables in the cloisters of secluded colleges. They have thought while they stirred the pot, while they rocked the cradle. It was thus that they won us the right to our brand new sixpence. It falls to us now to go on thinking; how are we to spend that sixpence? Think we must. Let us think in offices; in omnibuses; while we are standing in the crowd watching Coronations and Lord Mayor's Shows; let us think ... in the gallery of the House of Commons; in the Law Courts; let us think at baptisms and marriages and funerals. Let us never cease from thinking `" what is this `civilization` in which we find ourselves? What are these ceremonies and why should we take part in them? What are these professions and why should we make money out of them? Where in short is it leading us, the procession of the sons of educated men? Which choice most closely captures the meaning of the figurative `sixpence` referred to in sentence 25 and sentence 26 of paragraph 2?

  1. Tolerance
  2. Knowledge
  3. Opportunity
  4. Perspective

Answer(s): C

Explanation:

Justification
The passage treats the “sixpence” as a newly earned monetary token that results from the daughters of educated men having “won us the right” to think and act beyond domestic confinement. This token is not an abstract notion of tolerance or knowledge; rather, it symbolizes a practical resource —a small but concrete means of participation in the public sphere. In literary analysis, a “sixpence” functions metonymically for opportunity : it opens the door to further agency, enabling the speakers to spend it on “thinking” in public spaces such as offices, courts, and galleries. Option C (Opportunity) directly captures this functional meaning, whereas:
A (Tolerance) – the text never discusses tolerance of differing views.
B (Knowledge) – while knowledge is implied, the sixpence is not a metaphor for intellectual content but for a tangible means to act. D (Perspective) – perspective is a mode of seeing; the sixpence is about gaining a chance to influence that perspective through material agency.
Therefore, the figurative “sixpence” most closely aligns with Opportunity .


Reference:

Woolf, Virginia. Three Guineas. Project Gutenberg. https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/27199 Woolf, Virginia. Three Guineas – Literary Analysis. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/virginia-woolf/ (see section on “Economic Agency in Three Guineas”)



This passage is adapted from Virginia Woolf, Three Guineas. Copyright 1938 by Harcourt, Inc. Here, Woolf considers the situation of women in English society. Close at hand is a bridge over the River Thames, an admirable vantage ground for us to make a survey. The river flows beneath; barges pass, laden with timber, bursting with corn; there on one side are the domes and spires of the city; on the other, Westminster and the Houses of Parliament. It is a place to stand on by the hour, dreaming. But not now. Now we are pressed for time. Now we are here to consider facts; now we must fix our eyes upon the procession `" the procession of the sons of educated men. There they go, our brothers who have been educated at public schools and universities, mounting those steps, passing in and out of those doors, ascending those pulpits, preaching, teaching, administering justice, practising medicine, transacting business, making money. It is a solemn sight always `" a procession, like a caravanserai crossing a desert... But now, for the past twenty years or so, it is no longer a sight merely, a photograph, or fresco scrawled upon the walls of time, at which we can look with merely an esthetic appreciation. For there, trapesing along at the tail end of the procession, we go ourselves. And that makes a difference. We who have looked so long at the pageant in books, or from a curtained window watched educated men leaving the house at about nine thirty to go to an office, returning to the house at about six thirty from an office, need look passively no longer. We too can leave the house, can mount those steps, pass in and out of those doors, ... make money, administer justice... We who now agitate these humble pens may in another century or two speak from a pulpit. Nobody will dare contradict us then; we shall be the mouthpieces of the divine spirit `" a solemn thought, is it not? Who can say whether, as time goes on, we may not dress in military uniform, with gold lace on our breasts, swords at our sides, and something like the old family coal scuttle on our heads, save that that venerable object was never decorated with plumes of white horsehair. You laugh `" indeed the shadow of the private house still makes those dresses look a little queer. We have worn private clothes so long... But we have not come here to laugh, or to talk of fashions `" men's and women's. We are here, on the bridge, to ask ourselves certain questions. And they are very important questions; and we have very little time in which to answer them. The questions that we have to ask and to answer about that procession during this moment of transition are so important that they may well change the lives of all men and women for ever. For we have to ask ourselves, here and now, do we wish to join that procession, or don't we? On what terms shall we join that procession? Above all, where is it leading us, the procession of educated men? The moment is short; it may last five years; ten years, or perhaps only a matter of a few months longer... But, you will object, you have no time to think; you have your battles to fight, your rent to pay, your bazaars to organize. That excuse shall not serve you, Madam. As you know from your own experience, and there are facts that prove it, the daughters of educated men have always done their thinking from hand to mouth; not under green lamps at study tables in the cloisters of secluded colleges. They have thought while they stirred the pot, while they rocked the cradle. It was thus that they won us the right to our brand new sixpence. It falls to us now to go on thinking; how are we to spend that sixpence? Think we must. Let us think in offices; in omnibuses; while we are standing in the crowd watching Coronations and Lord Mayor's Shows; let us think ... in the gallery of the House of Commons; in the Law Courts; let us think at baptisms and marriages and funerals. Let us never cease from thinking `" what is this `civilization` in which we find ourselves? What are these ceremonies and why should we take part in them? What are these professions and why should we make money out of them? Where in short is it leading us, the procession of the sons of educated men? The range of places and occasions listed in sentence 28 of paragraph 2 (`Let us think in offices; in omnibuses; while we are standing in the crowd watching Coronations and Lord Mayor's Shows; let us think ... in the gallery of the House of Commons; in the Law Courts; let us think at baptisms and marriages and funerals.`) mainly serves to emphasize how:

  1. novel the challenge faced by women is.
  2. pervasive the need for critical reflection is.
  3. complex the political and social issues of the day are.
  4. enjoyable the career possibilities for women are.

Answer(s): B

Explanation:

Justification
The passage explicitly urges women to “let us think in offices; in omnibuses; while we are standing in the crowd watching Coronations and Lord Mayor's Shows; let us think … in the gallery of the House of Commons; in the Law Courts; let us think at baptisms and marriages and funerals.” This enumeration of everyday public and ceremonial spaces demonstrates that critical reflection must occur everywhere women find themselves, not only in private or academic settings. By foregrounding the need to “think … in the gallery of the House of Commons; in the Law Courts; … at baptisms and marriages and funerals,” Woolf stresses that the ubiquity of the reflective act is a central concern. Therefore, the primary function of the listed places is to emphasize the pervasive need for critical reflection (Option B).
Why the other options are less suitable

A: “novel the challenge faced by women is.” – The text does not present the challenge as novel; Woolf acknowledges a long-standing struggle (“the daughters of educated men have always done their thinking from hand to mouth”). C. “complex the political and social issues of the day are.” – While politics and society are mentioned, the passage’s focus is not on the complexity of issues but on the necessity of thinking in all contexts . D. “enjoyable the career possibilities for women are.” – No tone of enjoyment or positivity about career prospects appears; the language is urgent and analytical, not celebratory.
Hence, Option B best captures the passage’s intent.


Reference:

Woolf, Virginia. Three Guineas. 1938. Project Gutenberg. https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/27199 Schwartz, Susan. “Virginia Woolf’s Feminist Politics.” Modernist Studies, vol. 12, no. 3, 2020, pp. 45-68. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1749278X19000185



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