ShmoopTube

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All we are saying... is give Shmoop a chance...

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Which words could fill in the blanks so that

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the sentence below makes sense?

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It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a reader of Jane Austen's novels will either

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love the author blank or blank her with equal force.

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And here are the potential answers...

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This isn't as much a truth universally acknowledged

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as it is a Pride and Prejudice shout-out.

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Snooty allusions aside, "or" and "with" let us know that the first blank deals with "force"

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while the second is an antonym for "love." We can eliminate (A) and (B) because moderation

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and indifference aren't exactly... forceful.

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Both of the words in (D) and (E) express nothing but positive feelings.

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That's all well and good... but one of these words needs to be hateful.

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"Despise" means to hate, and it's in direct conflict with the idea of somebody "passionately"

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loving Jane Austen.

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So (C) is the correct answer. As in "Chick Flick."

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For her sake, we hope the ghost of Jane Austen never overhears her modern haters.

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That would be awkward.

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