单选题 Traditional critical scholarship has considered a literary work the product of one focused mind, along with its social influences, struggling to achieve self-expression. In such a context, the author's intended meaning, especially as it may be inferred by the circumstances surrounding his life and the work, is extremely important: the author's intention should be taken as the gold standard in determining what constitutes an accurate and valid reading of the text. A natural outgrowth of measuring the validity of readings by this standard is the rejection of those readings that do not fit what the author intended, or what the surrounding culture expected the author to intend.

In the passage, "gold standard" most nearly means
A. monetary normalcy
B. natural outgrowth
C. financial custom
D. cultural expectation
E. best practice