Question

Read the excerpt from Jan’s rhetorical analysis of Hillary Clinton’s address to the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women. Jan is analyzing Clinton’s use of parallelism to highlight how women’s rights affect communities.

Clinton states, "If women are healthy and educated, their families will flourish. If women are free from violence, their families will flourish. If women have a chance to work and earn as full and equal partners in society, their families will flourish. And when families flourish, communities and nations do as well.” Here, Clinton uses parallelism to achieve her purpose of bringing "dignity and respect to women.”

Which revision of the final sentence best achieves Jan’s purpose?

Repeating the word “flourish” creates a positive tone and achieves the purpose of bringing “dignity and respect to women.”
Mentioning families and communities conveys inclusivity and achieves the purpose of bringing “dignity and respect to women.”
By repeating the phrases “if women” and “families will flourish,” Clinton uses parallelism to clarify whom she wants to help.
Clinton’s use of parallelism and repetition of the word “flourish” underscores the power of women’s rights to build a better world for everyone.

Answer 1

"Clinton’s use of parallelism and repetition of the word “flourish” underscores the power of women’s rights to build a better world for everyone."

This option explicitly links the rhetorical devices (parallelism and repetition) to the effect Jan highlights — showing women’s rights as powerful and beneficial — which best supports Jan’s aim of portraying women with dignity and respect. The other choices either ignore the parallel structure, focus on the wrong element, or don’t connect the devices to the stated purpose.