Question

Read the passage from A Room of One’s Own.

The indifference of the world which Keats and Flaubert and other men of genius have found so hard to bear was in her case not indifference but hostility. The world did not say to her as it said to them, Write if you choose; it makes no difference to me. The world said with a guffaw, Write? What's the good of your writing? Here the psychologists of Newnham and Girton might come to our help, I thought, looking again at the blank spaces on the shelves.

How does the structure of this passage help develop the text’s main idea?

The cause-effect structure emphasizes that the struggle of gifted women resulted from the struggles of gifted men.
The problem-solution structure emphasizes that women should look to men of genius for an example of how to succeed.
The compare-contrast structure emphasizes that the challenges faced by women were greater than those faced by men.
The compare-contrast structure emphasizes that Keats and Flaubert faced different challenges, even though they were both men.

Answer 1

The compare-contrast structure emphasizes that the challenges faced by women were greater than those faced by men.

Explanation: The passage contrasts the world's indifferent attitude toward male geniuses (Keats, Flaubert) with the hostile, dismissive attitude toward the female writer, showing women faced stronger opposition.