Question

Which of the following best states the main idea of the passage?

• A. In their definitions of the nature of ethnicity, sociologists have underestimated the power of the primordial human need to belong
• B. Ethnicity is best defined as a dynamic process that combines cultural components with shared political and economic interests
• C. In the United States in the twentieth century, ethnic groups have begun to organize in order to further their political and economic interests
• D. Ethnicity in the United States has been significantly changed by the Civil Rights movement

Answer 1

The correct option is B

Ethnicity is best defined as a dynamic process that combines cultural components with shared political and economic interests

This is a main theme question, the answer to which can be found in one of the following places-1st para 1st line, 1st para last line, 2nd para 1st line or the last para last line. As the geography of the 1st para matches that of the last paragraph, the 1st paragraph stands out as the most important paragraph in the passage.
If we look at the last two lines of the 1st paragraph, the author has stated that “While both of these...” He has further gone to state that “Rather, ethnicity is more satisfactorily conceived...” From these lines, it is evident that the author has described ethnicity as a dynamic process that combines cultural components with shared interests. This certainly is the main theme of the passage and is best expressed by answer option (b), thus making it the correct answer choice.