请教gwd-13-25，看了讨论也不明白，马上就要考试了~~~

Q24 to Q26:

      Anthropologists studying the

        Hopi people of the southwestern

        United States often characterize

Line Hopi society between 1680 and

  (5)        1880 as surprisingly stable, con-

sidering that it was a period of

diminution in population and

pressure from contact with out-

side groups, factors that might

(10)        be expected to cause signifi-

cant changes in Hopi social

arrangements.

      The Hopis’ retention of their

distinctive sociocultural system

(15)        has been attributed to the Hopi

religious elite’s determined

efforts to preserve their religion

and way of life, and also to a

geographical isolation greater

(20)        than that of many other Native

        American groups, an isolation

        that limited both cultural contact

and exposure to European

diseases.  But equally important

(25)        to Hopi cultural persistence may

have been an inherent flexibility

in their social system that may

have allowed preservation of

traditions even as the Hopis

(30)        accommodated themselves

to change.  For example, the

system of matrilineal clans was

        maintained throughout this per-

iod, even though some clans

(35)      merged to form larger groups

while others divided into smaller

descent groups.  Furthermore,

although traditionally members

       of particular Hopi clans appear

(40)       to have exclusively controlled

particular ceremonies, a clan’s

control of a ceremony might

shift to another clan if the first

became too small to manage

(45)        the responsibility.  Village

leadership positions tradition-

ally restricted to members of

one clan might be similarly

extended to members of other

(50)        clans, and women might assume

such positions under certain

unusual conditions.

Q25:

Which of the following can be inferred from the passage about the Hopis’ geographic situation between 1680 and 1880?

A.      It prevented the Hopis from experiencing a diminution in population.

2. It helped to promote flexibility within their social system.
   
3. It limited but did not eliminate contact with other cultural groups.
   
4. It reinforced the religious elite’s determination to resist cultural change.
   
5. It tended to limit contact between certain Hopi clans.

C确实是对的，但是我没办法排除A，看了讨论也不明白，请教~~

The Hopis’ retention ......

......and also to a

geographical isolation greater

(20)        than that of many other Native

        American groups, an isolation

        that limited both cultural contact

and exposure to European

diseases.  

我觉得阅读关键看定位，文中定位然后同意替换就是ETS出题的风格。geographical isolation 在19行出现。文中的diminution 在第7行出现，说的是Hopi的稳定令人惊讶，因为1680-1880是一个population diminution的时期。但并没有说geography就是原因。后面说了多个原因。A的感觉好像是只geography就prevent了diminution，如果说HELP to prevent可能还好一点。