Reading comp PrepTest 142 · Section 3 · Question 3
Passage
Questions 1-8 . Given the amount of time and effort that curators, . collectors, dealers, scholars, and critics spend
Remaining source text redacted.
Passage walkthrough
Passage SummaryTopic: Humanities
Paragraph 1
Great perfumes should be considered works of art, as are great paintings/music/literature/etc . . . , even if some have been coopted by corporate profit-seeking.
Key Lines:
Line 7 - A question is introduced Lines 13-18 - Similarities between perfumes and oil paintings are discussed
Lines 29-33 - The comparison is continued
Lines 44-47 - The question is answered
Meta-Structure:
Question/Answer - The Author asks a question in Paragraph 1 that is then answered in Paragraph 4. While the answer to a question is generally the main point of the passage, here, it takes a secondary seat to the comparison between great perfume and great works of art in other media, and the argument that great perfume should be regarded as a work of art. That makes up the bulk of the passage and also serves as a necessary part of the question. Even the answer to the question reflects on this argument.
Comparisons - The passage reaches a comparative conclusion (great perfume should be treated similarly to great works of art in other media), and it does so by bringing up similarities between the compared elements. As such, we should expect questions on these points of comparison.
Last Thoughts:
This passage is interesting in that it presents a Question/Answer structure, but the argument is more about a point that goes into setting that question up. One key way we can tell that that's the case is the certainty between the two parts of the argument.
The Author, without a doubt, believes that great perfume should be considered great art, and studied as such. That's a very certain conclusion. However, in answering the question of why it isn't, she says only that "[p]erhaps" the reason is that perfume is manufactured by corporations looking to make money, and they're messing with the formulas. The uncertainty presented in that answer suggests that it's a secondary point.
Paragraph 1
- Paragraph note
- A question/conundrum is presented and explored
- Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
- Art experts spend a lot of time on paintings/music/etc, but not on perfume - a mistake
- Similarity - They all stimulate senses
- Paragraph note
- Similarities between painting and perfume are discussed - focus on painting
- Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
- Similarity - Painters and perfumers combine chemical compounds (for paint and perfume, respectively)
- Painting process is described in detail
- Paragraph note
- The similarity is continued - focus on perfume
- Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
- Perfumers layer scents with different evaporation speeds to evoke images and memories
- Focus on perfumes
- Paragraph note
- A potential answer is presented
- Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
- Answer - Big companies have taken over perfumes and required cheap substitutes; can't split these from fine perfume
Great perfumes should be considered works of art, as are great paintings/music/literature/etc . . . , even if some have been coopted by corporate profit-seeking.
Key Lines:
Line 7 - A question is introduced Lines 13-18 - Similarities between perfumes and oil paintings are discussed
Lines 29-33 - The comparison is continued
Lines 44-47 - The question is answered
Meta-Structure:
Question/Answer - The Author asks a question in Paragraph 1 that is then answered in Paragraph 4. While the answer to a question is generally the main point of the passage, here, it takes a secondary seat to the comparison between great perfume and great works of art in other media, and the argument that great perfume should be regarded as a work of art. That makes up the bulk of the passage and also serves as a necessary part of the question. Even the answer to the question reflects on this argument.
Comparisons - The passage reaches a comparative conclusion (great perfume should be treated similarly to great works of art in other media), and it does so by bringing up similarities between the compared elements. As such, we should expect questions on these points of comparison.
Last Thoughts:
This passage is interesting in that it presents a Question/Answer structure, but the argument is more about a point that goes into setting that question up. One key way we can tell that that's the case is the certainty between the two parts of the argument.
The Author, without a doubt, believes that great perfume should be considered great art, and studied as such. That's a very certain conclusion. However, in answering the question of why it isn't, she says only that "[p]erhaps" the reason is that perfume is manufactured by corporations looking to make money, and they're messing with the formulas. The uncertainty presented in that answer suggests that it's a secondary point.
Question prompt
The word "noses" (line
Remaining source text redacted.
Why the credited answer is right
Credited answer: A
The notes below walk through why it fits the stem and how to eliminate the rest.
Question Type
Humanities
Answer choices
-
Aperfumers
Why choice A matches the stem
Correct. Question Type:
Meaning in Context
Strategy Overview:
Read the line in question in context, and consider how it plays into the paragraph it's included in and the passage as a whole
Answer Anticipation/Relevant Lines:
Line 29 kicks off Paragraph 3, which we noted continued the comparison between paintings and perfumes that was started in Paragraph 2—this time, focusing on perfumes.
Paragraph 2 talked about what painters did that qualified their works as great art, and so Paragraph 3 must talk about what perfumers do that qualifies their smells as great art.
With that in mind, we can take a look at the opening line here. It talks about "noses" as people who experiment and create smells that evoke emotions. So the "noses" here are the people creating the perfumes—the perfumers. Let's find an answer stating that.
Answer Explanation:
(Lines 29-33) The "noses" are set up as being similar to painters, and they're described as creating smells in Paragraph 3. Thus, they must be the perfumers, which makes this answer correct.
Key Takeaway:
When a Meaning in Context question is asking about a noun, check out the verb attached to it! That should help you determine what the word/phrase in question is doing and, thus, what it is. -
Bperfume collectors
Why choice B is not credited
Incorrect. (Lines 29-33) The "noses" are described as creating the smells, not collecting them. -
Cparticular perfumes
Why choice C is not credited
Incorrect. (Lines 29-33) The "noses" are described as creating the smells, so it can't be referring to the smells/perfumes themselves. -
Dpeople with expertise in Remaining source text redacted.
Why choice D is not credited
Incorrect. (Lines 29-33) The "noses" are described as creating the smells, not marketing them. -
Epeople with expertise in Remaining source text redacted.
Why choice E is not credited
Incorrect. (Lines 29-33) The "noses" are described as creating the smells, not pricing them.
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