Introduction / Context:
The sentence appears in a critical passage about political representatives and their attitude to the history of their societies. The author says that history cannot be disremembered, meaning it cannot truly be forgotten, because it continues to influence the present. The blank must be filled with a verb that expresses the mental act that representatives fail to perform when dealing with this history.
Given Data / Assumptions:
- Sentence fragment: But they fail to ________________ that history cannot be disremembered.
- Options: forget, memorize, recall, by heart.
- The phrase fail to suggests that the verb should describe something they ought to do but do not.
Concept / Approach:
The key contrast in the sentence is between disremembered and the mental act that should prevent forgetting. If history cannot be disremembered, then the correct verb is one that means remember or call back to mind. Recall fits this perfectly: to recall something is to remember it. The verb forget would contradict the structure fail to, because failing to forget means they actually remember, which is not the intended meaning. Memorize and by heart do not fit the logical relationship either.
Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Understand the meaning: the author says that representatives do not succeed in remembering that history cannot be erased.
Step 2: Test recall. To recall that history cannot be disremembered means to bring this fact to mind, which matches the intended meaning.
Step 3: Insert recall into the sentence: But they fail to recall that history cannot be disremembered. This is coherent and natural.
Step 4: Test forget. But they fail to forget that history cannot be disremembered would mean they actually remember it, which contradicts the criticism being made.
Step 5: Test memorize. Memorize usually refers to learning something by rote, especially for the first time, not to remembering a general truth, so it does not fit well with the idea of historical awareness.
Step 6: Test by heart. By heart is not a verb but part of the phrase learn by heart, and cannot stand alone as the verb in this structure.
Verification / Alternative check:
Think of the pattern fail to recall that followed by a clause; this is widely used in formal writing to criticise people for not remembering important facts. For example, They fail to recall that such policies have failed in the past. Applying the same structure to this passage gives a clear and accurate sentence. This confirms that recall is the best choice and keeps the contrast with disremembered intact.
Why Other Options Are Wrong:
- forget: Fail to forget would imply continued memory, which is the opposite of what the author is criticising.
- memorize: Implies rote learning, not the act of recognising and remembering an already known historical fact.
- by heart: Is not a standalone verb and therefore cannot fill the blank in this grammatical structure.
Common Pitfalls:
A frequent mistake is to choose forget because it is directly linked to disremember. However, the phrase fail to forget is a logical trap. It results in the meaning they still remember, which would contradict the author's complaint. Another pitfall is not noticing that the blank must be filled with a single verb, not a phrase starting with a preposition. Carefully considering the logical flow of the sentence is essential in cloze tests.
Final Answer:
The correct verb is
recall, giving But they fail to recall that history cannot be disremembered.
Discussion & Comments