Question

The passage given below is followed by four summaries. Choose the option that best captures the essence of the passage.
In 1903, left-wing feminist Elizabeth Magie invented The Landlord’s Game, the original version of what became Monopoly. It was designed as a powerful teaching tool to illustrate the dangers of monopolies and how wealth could concentrate in the hands of a few. The game featured a circular path, properties, and a “Go to Jail” space. Magie created two rule sets: one “monopolist” version where players crushed opponents through accumulation, and another, more radical “Prosperity” version, where everyone shared in the wealth, promoting fairness and equity. Years later, unemployed Charles Darrow sold a simplified version to Parker Brothers. They paid Magie only 500 Dollar for her patent—without royalties—and credited Darrow as the sole inventor. For decades, his tale of inventing the game in his basement remained the official story, while Magie’s name and her original, anti-capitalist message were left in the shadows.

• A. Celebrated icons of the gaming industry, Charles Darrow and Parker Brothers, snatched the feminist icon Elizabeth Magie’s original design and transformed Monopoly into a worldwide phenomenon, while barely acknowledging her.
• B. Parker Brothers’ capitalist intent led to them acquiring from Charles Darrow a simplified version of Elizabeth Magie’s original game, transforming it into a widespread commercial success while providing her only minimal financial compensation and granting scant public recognition.
• C. It is ironic that a left-wing feminist lost credit for the Landlord’s Game to an unemployed man, who plagiarised and sold one version of the twin game to Parker Brothers for a meagre sum, denying her royalties.
• D. Only one version of Monopoly became famous because of Charles Darrow’s relentless basement work, carefully refining Elizabeth Magie’s original idea into an engaging and entertaining pastime that he successfully patented and sold, symbolizing what many regarded as the ultimate triumph of individual ingenuity.

Hint:

When summarizing a passage, focus on the main ideas and ensure that your summary highlights the core message without unnecessary details.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is A

Approach (tone-and-trap first): In summary questions, the fastest route is to spot the option that betrays the author’s attitude or sneaks in a fact the passage never endorsed, then choose the cleanest survivor.

Step 1 — Catch the tone-flip: The passage is clearly sympathetic to Magie and critical of how she was erased. Option 4 praises Darrow’s “relentless basement work” and “ultimate triumph of individual ingenuity” — the exact heroic-Darrow story the passage exposes as a myth. Reject on tone reversal.

Step 2 — Catch the over-claim: Option 3 calls it merely “ironic” and says Darrow “plagiarised” the game. The passage says Darrow sold a simplified version and was credited by others; “plagiarised” and the narrowing to a man-vs-woman irony flattens the bigger point about Parker Brothers and the game’s global reach. Reject.

Step 3 — Catch the mis-weighting: Option 2 is factually careful but front-loads “Parker Brothers’ capitalist intent” and the Darrow purchase. The passage’s spotlight is Magie — her invention and her erasure — not the corporate motive. A summary that buries the protagonist mis-weights the essence. Reject.

Step 4 — The survivor: Option 1 alone names all three pillars — the design was Magie’s, it became a worldwide phenomenon, and she was barely acknowledged — in the passage’s own critical tone.

Final answer: Option 1.