Passage (Edward Gibbon, *The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire*, 1776, Chapter I): "In the second century of the Christian Æra, the empire of Rome comprehended the fairest part of the earth, and the most civilized portion of mankind. The frontiers of that extensive monarchy were guarded by ancient renown and disciplined valor. The gentle but powerful influence of laws and manners had gradually cemented the union of the provinces. Their peaceful inhabitants enjoyed and abused the advantages of wealth and luxury. The image of a free constitution was preserved with decent reverence: the Roman senate appeared to possess the sovereign authority, and devolved on the emperors all the executive powers of government. During a happy period of more than fourscore years, the public administration was conducted by the virtue and abilities of Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, and the two Antonines. It is the design of this, and of the two succeeding chapters, to describe the prosperous condition of their empire; and afterwards, from the death of Marcus Antoninus, to deduce the most important circumstances of its decline and fall; a revolution which will ever be remembered, and is still felt by the nations of the earth." Which of the following best describes the **purpose** of this opening paragraph?
ATo argue that Rome's decline was inevitable from the start of the second century.
BTo describe the empire at its height and to announce the larger project of tracing its prosperity and subsequent decline.
CTo compare the Roman Empire's institutions to those of contemporary European nations.
DTo catalogue the military campaigns of Trajan and Hadrian.
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: B. To describe the empire at its height and to announce the larger project of tracing its prosperity and subsequent decline.
The paragraph divides cleanly into two parts. The first half is a portrait of the empire in the second century (geography, frontiers, laws, the senate, the four good emperors). The second half is the author's statement of intent: "It is the design of this, and of the two succeeding chapters, to describe the prosperous condition of their empire; and afterwards... to deduce the most important circumstances of its decline and fall."
- **A** is contradicted by the paragraph's celebration of the "prosperous condition" — Gibbon promises to *trace* the decline, not assert its inevitability here.
- **C** is unsupported; no comparison to modern nations appears.
- **D** is too narrow — military campaigns are not catalogued in this paragraph at all.
Related questions
An argument states 'the village bus service is unreliable, so it should be banned'. The unA 'strengthen' CR question asks which option, if true, would:In a GMAT Critical Reasoning question, the FIRST step to take is:In formal GMAT register, which idiom is correct? 'Her findings are _____ those of the earlWhich uses correct parallel structure? 'On weekends she enjoys _____.'Choose the option with correct subject-verb agreement: 'The collection of old coins _____ On GMAT Sentence Correction, the recommended elimination strategy is to:In a GMAT Sentence Correction question, option (A) ALWAYS represents: