Which one of the following best describes the function of the second paragraph within the passage as a whole?

elawrencehenderson May 28, 2020

General thesis explanation

Hello! Can someone explain the thought process behind arriving at the correct answer choice here in more detail? I had a bit of trouble unearthing the author's general thesis in this passage as well as how this paragraph relates to it

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shunhe May 28, 2020

Hi @elawrencehenderson,

Thanks for the question! So in this passage, the general thesis is that by studying the language and terminology of deconstruction, we can learn about it. And so in the second paragraph, we’re given examples of “neologisms” (words) that the author looks at to do this. The terms “signifier” and “signified” thus end up being examples of the author’s general thesis, developed in the second paragraph. The general thesis is somewhat introduced in the first paragraph, and expanded upon as the passage goes on. We can tell that the author is examining different terms (including deconstruction itself) and pulling out meanings based on the old meanings of those words.

Hope this helps! Feel free to ask any other questions that you might have.