Reading Comprehension

Women's grassroots activism and their vision of a new civic consciousness lay at the heart of social reform in the United States throughout the Progressive Era, the period between the depression of 1893 and America's entry into the Second World War.Though largely disenfranchised except for school elections, white middle-class women reformers won a variety of victories, notably in the improvement of working conditions, especially for women and children. Ironically, though, child labor legislation
pitted women of different classes against one another. To the reformers, child labor and industrial home work were equally inhumane practices that should be outlawed, but, as a number of women historians have recently observed, working-class mothers did not always share this view. Given the precarious finances of working-class families and the necessity of pooling the wages of as many family members as possible, working-class families viewed the passage and enforcement of stringent child labor statutes as a personal economic disaster and made strenuous efforts to circumvent child labor laws. Yet reformers rarely understood this resistance in terms of the desperate economic situation of working-class families, interpreting it instead as evidence of poor parenting. This is not to dispute women reformers' perception of child labor as a terribly exploitative practice,
but their understanding of child labor and their legislative solutions for ending it failed to take account of the economic needs of working-class families.

The primary purpose of the passage is to
A. explain why women reformers of the Progressive Era failed to achieve their goals
B. discuss the origins of child labor laws in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries
C. compare the living conditions of working-class and middle-class women in the Progressive Era
D. discuss an oversight on the part of women reformers of the Progressive Era
E. revise a traditional view of the role played by women reformers in enacting Progressive Era reforms.
OA is D but I had chosen A.Why is it wrong? Is it because ehe end of the passage does say that women failed in understanding the economic needs and not the overall goals as suggested in A?

I dont beleive there is anywhere in the para which says that eliminating child labor was reformers goal. So A cannot be right.

We should understand the passages properly to get the right answer. The GMAT passages are designed so that if we understand the passage, we get the right answer easily. In contrast, The LSAT passages are different. The passages can be easy to understand but many questions are very hard. Many LSAT passages I find easy are accompanied by hard questions which the practice can not make you overcome . I guess LSAT requires higher level of inferring to answer questions than GMAT.

Women's grassroots activism and their vision of a new civic consciousness lay at the heart of social reform in the United States throughout the Progressive Era, the period between the depression of 1893 and America's entry into the Second World War.Though largely disenfranchised except for school elections, white middle-class women reformers won a variety of victories, notably in the improvement of working conditions, especially for women and children.

Summary - some victories by women reformers and Improvement in working condition of women and children in progressive era.

Ironically, though, child labor legislation pitted women of different classes against one another. To the reformers, child labor and industrial home work were equally inhumane practices that should be outlawed, but, as a number of women historians have recently observed, working-class mothers did not always share this view.

Summary - Reformers and Working class women have different views on child labor.

Given the precarious finances of working-class families and the necessity of pooling the wages of as many family members as possible, working-class families viewed the passage and enforcement of stringent child labor statutes as a personal economic disaster and made strenuous efforts to circumvent child labor laws.

Summary - View of working class women.

Yet reformers rarely understood this resistance in terms of the desperate economic situation of working-class families, interpreting it instead as evidence of poor parenting.

Summary - View of Reformers.

This is not to dispute women reformers' perception of child labor as a terribly exploitative practice, but their understanding of child labor and their legislative solutions for ending it failed to take account of the economic needs of working-class families.

Summary - I (author) am not against reformers perception of child labour but their solution to solve the issue lags proper understanding.

Overall - Author used following style-

1) Provided historical context of problem.
2) Two parties related directly to problem.
3) Understanding of two parties on the problem.
4) Author views on actions taken by one of the parties.

A. explain why women reformers of the Progressive Era failed to achieve their goals
( This is a very strong contender)
B. discuss the origins of child labor laws in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries
Author is not discussing about origin of child labor laws.
C. compare the living conditions of working-class and middle-class women in the Progressive Era
Author is not discussing about middle class women.
D. discuss an oversight on the part of women reformers of the Progressive Era
( This is a very strong contender)
E. revise a traditional view of the role played by women reformers in enacting Progressive Era reforms.
Although Author gave his/her views on reformers understanding on issue, but he did not revise anything. Also "in enacting Progressive Era reforms." has increased the scope of points discussed in paragraph.

Honestly both A and D are very strong. A is slightly loosing race because it uses term 'Failed' whereas author did not say that reformers failed to achieve their goals. Also author did say that women reformers got some victories in first paragraph.