256. During an era when interracial tensions in the United States have run high, Rosa Parks became a quiet, unassuming symbol of the continued struggle for human dignity.

(A) have run high
(B) ran high
(C) had run highly
(D) run high
(E) were running highly

Solution:

Tense*

Use present perfect tense when an action started in the past and the action or its result still continues till date. For example: I have been to France. In the given sentence, with the use ‘became’ in the second half of the sentence, we know that the perfect tense is not needed and thus, A can be eliminated.
Also, the two actions (interracial tensions and Rosa’s becoming a symbol) are not happening in different time frames. Thus, use of ‘had’ (past perfect tense) is not correct. Therefore, C can be eliminated.
D can be eliminated for the use of simple present tense.
C and E are awkward in the use of ‘highly’.
B, aptly and concisely using the simple past tense, is the best choice.

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