Although science ﬁction was dominated mostly by white male authors when Octavia Butler, a Black woman, began writing,
she did not view the genre as ______: Butler broke into the ﬁeld with the publication of several short stories and her 1976
novel Patternmaster, and she later became the ﬁrst science ﬁction writer to win a prestigious MacArthur Fellowship.
legitimate
impenetrable
compelling
indecipherable
Choice B is the best answer because it most logically completes the discussion of Octavia Butler’s career. In this context,
“impenetrable” means impossible to enter. The text indicates that the ﬁeld of science ﬁction was dominated by white males
when Butler, a Black woman, started writing, but she published several science ﬁction short stories and a novel and later won
a prestigious award; that is, Butler pursued science ﬁction writing and had success. This context suggests that Butler didn’t
view the genre as impossible to enter.
Choice A is incorrect. In this context, “legitimate” would mean genuinely good or valid. Nothing in the text suggests that
Butler didn’t think the science ﬁction genre was good or valid; in fact, it indicates that she pursued and made a successful
career of publishing work in that ﬁeld. Choice C is incorrect. In this context, “compelling” would mean attracting or
demanding attention. The text indicates that Butler chose to write science ﬁction, so it wouldn’t make sense to say that she
didn’t see the ﬁeld as drawing her attention. Choice D is incorrect. To say that Butler didn’t consider science ﬁction
“indecipherable,” or impossible to understand, would suggest that Butler did understand it. However, the text doesn’t address
Butler’s ability to interpret works in the genre; rather, it focuses on Butler’s successful pursuit of writing science ﬁction.