Given below are six sentences taken from a paragraph. The first and the last sentences are numbered S1 and S2 and are placed in the first and last positions respectively and are fixed in their positions. The other four sentences between the first and last sentences are jumbled up and are numbered A, B, C, and D. Rearrange the jumbled sentences in a logical sequence keeping the unity and coherence of the paragraph intact. Choose the correct alternative that best describes the sequence.
S1. But in college Ralph's goals were still hazy and undefined.
A. Though he continued to take classes here and there in the sciences and in the Department of Business, he also took some lower-division classes in history and philosophy and English.
B. He first thought he wanted to be a doctor, or a lawyer, and he took pre-medical courses and courses in history of jurisprudence and business-law before he decided he had neither the emotional detachment necessary for medicine, nor the ability for sustained reading and memorization in the Corpus luris Civilis, as well as the more modern texts on property and inheritance.
C.But it never came.
D. He continuously felt he was on the brink of some kind of momentary discovery about himself.
S2. It was during this time, his lowest ebb, as he jokingly referred back to it later, that he believed he almost became an alcoholic; he was in a fraternity and he used to get drunk every night.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: B
Explanation
The correct sequence to form a logical and coherent paragraph is BADC.
Sentence Breakdown and Logical Flow:
S1 (Fixed): But in college Ralph's goals were still hazy and undefined.
This introduces the theme of Ralph's lack of direction.
B: He first thought he wanted to be a doctor, or a lawyer...
This is the natural next step, illustrating his "hazy" goals by showing his initial, failed attempts at specific career paths (medicine and law).
A: Though he continued to take classes here and there in the sciences and in the Department of Business, he also took some lower-division classes in history and philosophy and English.
After giving up on medicine/law (mentioned in B), this describes his subsequent academic wandering ("here and there").
D: He continually felt he was on the brink of some kind of momentous discovery about himself.
This transitions from his external actions (taking classes) to his internal state of mind—the feeling that something important was about to happen.
C: But it never came.
The "it" refers directly to the "momentous discovery" mentioned in sentence D. This creates a strong "D-C" link.
S2 (Fixed): It was during this time, his lowest ebb... that he believed he almost became an alcoholic...
This concludes the narrative by describing the low point resulting from the lack of discovery and direction described in C.