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. One day, we had a discussion in class.
A. And they said, is death that which gives meaning to life?
B. And they said, who knows? and I said, nobody knows.
C. They asked me, where did they go? The trees, the salamander, the tropical fish, Edgar, the poppas and mommas, Matthew and Tony, where did they go?
D. And I said, I don't know, I don't know.
S2. And I said no, life is that which gives meaning to life.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: D
Explanation
Correct Answer
CDBA
Explanation
This passage is an excerpt from Donald Barthelme's famous short story, "The School." The sequence follows a logical, step-by-step dialogue between the students ("they") and the teacher ("I") about death and life.
S1 establishes the baseline event: "One day, we had a discussion in class."
C naturally follows S1 as the students initiate the discussion with a big question about all the things that died earlier in the story: "They asked me, where did they go?..."
D is the teacher's direct response to that initial question: "And I said, I don't know, I don't know."
B continues the back-and-forth dialogue on that same question: "And they said, who knows? and I said, nobody knows."
A shifts the students' questioning to a deeper, philosophical level: "And they said, is death that which gives meaning to life?"
S2 perfectly concludes the thought by directly answering the philosophical question posed in A: "And I said no, life is that which gives meaning to life."
This creates a seamless conversational loop: Question (C) Answer (D) Follow-up Question/Answer (B) New Philosophical Question (A) Final Conclusion (S2).
Key Points
When solving jumbled sentences that feature a conversation or dialogue, look for the natural question-and-answer pairs. A question must always be introduced before a character can respond with phrases like "I don't know" or "nobody knows." Linking these pairs will immediately reveal the correct chronological flow.