Logical reasoning PrepTest 131 · Section 3 · Question 17

Correct. Argument or Facts:
Facts

Question Type:
Bizarro Paradox

Stimulus Summary:
Despite movies reusing the same plots over and over again, people enjoy watching new movies.

Answer Anticipation:
In Paradox questions, it's important to identify the paradox as your starting point so you know what you're trying to explain. Here, the question is why do people enjoy watching the same movie (as far as the plot goes) over and over again? Since this is a Bizarro Paradox question, there are going to be a lot of ways to resolve the weird situation, so having this question clearly laid out is going to be more important than anticipating 4+ different explanations. Let's head into the answer choices and see which ones answer the question.

Answer Explanation:
While this answer aligns with the stimulus (after all, movies that are financially successful were almost certainly enjoyed by more people), it doesn't explain why people are going to and enjoying movies that are retreads of the same plot. Paradox questions are about answering the why, so this answer doesn't resolve the weird situation and is correct.

Key Takeaway:
Bizarro Paradox questions, by their very nature, will have at least 4 ways to resolve the weird situation in the stimulus. As such, it's usually best to frame the paradox as a question and head straight to the answer choices to see which ones answer that question instead of anticipating specific answers.

Also, in analyzing answers, make sure that the ones you determine resolve the paradox answer the why? Common trap answers will align with the scenario without explaining it.

Incorrect. This answer establishes that movies with the same plots can still seem different to people if the details are different, thus explaining how someone could enjoy a movie with basically the same plot as another—they don't view it as having the same plot.

Incorrect. If it takes 5 years for someone to see a movie with a repeated plot, then that might be enough time for it to feel fresh for them, thus explaining how they could enjoy it.

Incorrect. This answer directly states that people enjoy seeing movies with the same basic plot, thus resolving the paradox.

Incorrect. If the repeated plots haven't been used since the middle of the 20th century, then it's likely that the majority of the movie-going public haven't seen those old movies, and thus the repeated plots would still be fresh for them.