In the Lycurgus passage, choose the correct past tense clause to complete To make his laws immutable, Lycurgus ____________.

Introduction / Context:
This item continues the mythological narrative about Lycurgus and his laws. The sentence explains what Lycurgus did in order to make his laws unchangeable. The passage treats the story as completed history. Therefore, the blank must be filled with a verb phrase in an appropriate past tense that matches the narrative style and fits logically with the idea of an unending promise tied to his return.

Given Data / Assumptions:

The fragment to be completed is To make his laws immutable, Lycurgus blank.

Options are did not return, never did return, never returns, and never returned.

Earlier in the passage, Lycurgus obtained a promise that his laws would remain unchanged until he returned from a journey.

The traditional version of the story is that he did not come back, so that the laws would remain fixed.

Concept / Approach:
The passage narrates past events, so the simple past tense is the most natural choice for describing what Lycurgus actually did. The key idea is that he never came back, which ensured that the condition in the promise was never fulfilled and his laws remained in force. Both did not return and never returned could express this idea, but never returned is smoother and more standard in narrative prose. Never did return is emphatic and possible, but it sounds slightly more colloquial. Never returns, in present simple, does not match the past tense narrative. Therefore, never returned is the best balance of grammatical correctness, narrative style, and clarity.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Note that the entire passage is told in past tense, describing what was said about Lycurgus and what he supposedly did. Step 2: Understand the logic that, to keep his laws unchangeable, he ensured the condition of his return was never fulfilled. Step 3: Examine never returned, the simple past form, which states plainly that Lycurgus did not come back. Step 4: Consider did not return and never did return, which are grammatically possible, but less elegant in this formal historical style. Step 5: Reject never returns because it shifts the narrative into present tense, which conflicts with the rest of the passage, and select never returned.

Verification / Alternative check:
Insert never returned into the sentence. To make his laws immutable, Lycurgus never returned creates a clear and concise explanation: his physical absence ensured that the promise tied to his return could never expire. With did not return, the sentence becomes To make his laws immutable, Lycurgus did not return, which is acceptable but slightly less smooth. Never did return adds unnecessary emphasis and may sound informal in an otherwise formal passage. Never returns would read To make his laws immutable, Lycurgus never returns, which incorrectly suggests an ongoing present situation rather than a completed historical action. The overall passage structure strongly supports the simple past narrative, and never returned is the most natural form.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option A did not return is grammatically correct but lacks the clarity of finality and narrative smoothness present in never returned, and the test expects the most idiomatic choice. Option B never did return is an emphatic structure more common in spoken or dramatic storytelling, which is less suitable for the sober constitutional comparison in the passage. Option C never returns is in present tense and clashes with the past tense frame introduced by it is said that Lycurgus and the rest of the historical narrative.

Common Pitfalls:
Students often treat did not and never as interchangeable without considering tone and emphasis. Another pitfall is not paying attention to overall tense consistency within a passage. When everything else is in past tense, switching to present for a key action often signals a wrong option. A good habit is to read surrounding sentences, identify the main narrative tense, and ensure that your answer fits that tense unless there is a clear reason for a shift, such as a general truth or commentary outside the historical storyline.

Final Answer:
never returned