Explanation
This question asks about a little phrase which may have
slipped our attention, but which includes hints of commentary from the author,
who gives us a glimpse into what he considers unexpected and expected--and
possibly significant. Checking the line, we see that the "unexpected shift" was
in Associate Justice Roberts. His shift was critical to the outcome of West Coast Hotel. We also see that there
was a differing view and a bit of an accusation from Justice Sutherland, which
may or may not be important in this question. Let's go on the answer choices.
Choice (A) sounds accurate to the summary we just gave ourselves. Choice (B) is
out because the passage decides that the ruling was not based on strictly contemporary events. Choice (C) aligns
Roberts with Sutherland, so it's inaccurate. Choice (D) is unsupported and most
likely implausible, as he appeared to influence the court more than the other
way around, and for different reasons than women's rights. Choice (E) makes a
strong claim that is neither stated nor implied by the passage, which does not
make general and certainly not future-oriented statements about the degree of
agreement within the Court.
The correct answer is (A).
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