GRE阅读题的选项中经常会出现一些“抽象表达”，看起来都“认识”，但是很多同学一选就会错。错了之后还百思不得其解…
这是因为很多同学只是知道这些表达的“字面意思”，而不知道它们所代表的“逻辑含义”。这种层面的“认识”对解GRE题目来说是完全不够的。
之前就分享过几次阅读中经常出现的“看似简单实则有坑”的抽象表达。今天我们继续这个话题，再来分享一个“一看就会，一选就错”的词：inconsistency
这个词肯定任何同学都认识，表示“不一致”。在GRE阅读的题目选项中很经常会见到它，常见的语境是：
inconsistencies in a view
很多同学对它想表达出来的逻辑有误解从而会非常想当然地选到错误选项。举个简单的例子进行个小测试：
文章：
很多人觉得GRE的唯一难点就是词汇量要求太高。
但是最近的研究走访了很多考生，却发现很多单词过关的同学也没有取得理想的成绩。
出一道True/False题：
The primary purpose of the passage is to
· point out an inconsistency in a popular view （ T/F ）
相信会有不少同学觉得这个选项没什么问题：“因为文章的结构就是作者指出了一个对主流观点不利的证据，符合选项里说的 inconsistency。”
这个想法就大错特错了！
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an inconsistency “in” a popular view指的是这个观点自己“自相矛盾”！
“有别的证据跟这个观点不一样”不能被概括成an inconsistency “in” a popular view。所以大家不要看到文章有“不一致”就盲目选到类似的选项。要对整个表达有准确的逻辑理解！
下面我们做一道题巩固一下！
Much recent work has examined the claim that women encounter increasing obstacles relative to men as they move up the organizational ladder in business. This proposition, which we term the increasing-disadvantage model, is a core element of the popular glass ceiling metaphor. Despite continued widespread public acceptance of the glass ceiling idea and some consistent findings, most research to date has failed to support the increasing-disadvantage model. Indeed, several studies based on private-sector firms find that women’s mobility prospects improve, rather than decline, as they climb upward in corporate hierarchies. In the public sector, researchers have found either no sex differences in mobility or a larger female disadvantage in lower grades.
Comparing cross-sectional national samples of workers, Baxter and Wright found no evidence in the United States, and only limited evidence in Sweden and Australia, that women’s probability of being located in a higher versus a lower hierarchical level declined relative to men’s at higher levels. Taken together, these findings suggest that the glass ceiling may be a myth. Women’s scarcity in top organizational ranks may simply represent the cumulative effect of a constant-or even decreasing-disadvantage at successive hierarchical levels.
The primary purpose of the passage is to
A. compare two explanations for a recurring problem
B. summarize evidence relevant to a hypothesis
C. point out inconsistencies in a set of findings
D. account for the persistence of a point of view
E. reconsider the origins an ongoing issue
答案
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B
这篇文章的结构大部分同学都能看得出来：
先给出一个观点（the increasing-disadvantage model），然后作者给出了一堆对这个观点不利的证据表明这个观点其实是错的。
这道题我被问到过无数次，很多同学会结合这个“质疑”的文章结构，直接误选到 C. point out inconsistencies in a set of findings。因为看到了“inconsistency”，觉得和这篇文章的逻辑非常符合。
但是注意，选项说的是“inconsistencies in a set of findings”，这个选项真正表达的是“一些发现自身自相矛盾”！而文章的逻辑是想把那些发现作为一个“整体”，跟刚开始的那个观点矛盾（而不是说那些发现自己自相矛盾）。
这题正确选项应该是B。其中，注意对“relevant”的理解，很多同学会默认“relevant”就是一种正向的、支持的关系，就会觉得B选项和文章“反了”。但其实“relevant”是个很模糊的关系，“支持”或者“反对”都属于一种“相关”的关系。
作者就是指出一堆和那个观点相反的证据来说明那个观点是错的。那么主旨说：summarize evidence relevant to a hypothesis是完全没有问题的。（其他三个选项都过于无厘头了，不再做过多说明）
好啦，今天的分享就到这里啦。GRE阅读题中真的是N多次出现过inconsistencies in a view类似的表达，希望同学们之后刷题再碰到不要再理解错误啦！