Reading comp PrepTest 145 · Section 1 · Question 4
Passage
. The Federal Theater Project (FTP) was . established in the late 1930s by the United States . government. Although
Remaining source text redacted.
Passage walkthrough
Passage SummaryTopic: Humanities
Paragraph 1
The "Negro Units" of the FTP provided for a wide network of actors, writers, and producers to put on a variety of shows representing the diversity within the African American community and coming close to establishing a Black national theater.
Key Lines:
Lines 7-11 - The topic of the passage is introduced, with a note that it wasn't studied much until recently
Lines 14-20 - The main thesis of the passage is noted
Lines 24-27 - Historical context is provided
Lines 27-29 - A question is introduced (content/types of plays)
Lines 35-36 - Another question is introduced (goals)
Lines 42-44 - The force behind the diversity central to the Author's argument is highlighted
Line 45 - An example is introduced
Lines 55-59 - The Author reiterates the diversity of programming
Meta-Structure:
Important recently discovered historical event/trend—The LSAT will frequently feature passages about something that happened in the past—an event, a trend, a phenomenon, etc . . . —that, until recently, wasn't understood or wasn't studied. The "recent discovery" of this phenomenon will feature in some answers, so it's important to note.
Question/Answer - This passage poses two sets of questions. The first is about the content these units should have produced, and the second is about their goals. It'd be important to note where in the passage these showed up so that they could be quickly found, but it wouldn't be necessary to note each one or memorize them. Interestingly, there's not a definitive answer to either set of questions. Rather, it's noted that the program was large enough to "reflect[] the genuine diversity of African American artists and their audiences" (Lines 56-58)—in other words, the answer to which content and goal should be produced was, "Yes."
Last Thoughts:
There were a lot of little details in this passage, but they all fell into common categories—historical context, examples, etc . . . So using our normal notes for those elements will help us get through this question set!
Paragraph 1
- Paragraph note
- History of a program-within-a-program and its historical importance
- Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
- Federal Theater Project - Short-lived but wide ranging
- Legacy (no study until recently) - African American sub-groups/units; arguably close to founding national Black theater
- Paragraph note
- The context, content, and goals of these units is discussed, and an example is given
- Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
- Context - Harlem Renaissance - Already thought on function of art in African American community
- Content - Question as to three types (rural, urban, or adapt plays by white playwrights)
- Goal - Question as to three goals (go mainstream/be different; target white/African American audience; instruct/entertain)
- Diverse output - Ex. The Swing Mikado (adaptation with Black actors as traditionally white characters)
- Paragraph note
- Wrap it up
- Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
- Doesn't say much new
- Reflected diversity of African American audience
The "Negro Units" of the FTP provided for a wide network of actors, writers, and producers to put on a variety of shows representing the diversity within the African American community and coming close to establishing a Black national theater.
Key Lines:
Lines 7-11 - The topic of the passage is introduced, with a note that it wasn't studied much until recently
Lines 14-20 - The main thesis of the passage is noted
Lines 24-27 - Historical context is provided
Lines 27-29 - A question is introduced (content/types of plays)
Lines 35-36 - Another question is introduced (goals)
Lines 42-44 - The force behind the diversity central to the Author's argument is highlighted
Line 45 - An example is introduced
Lines 55-59 - The Author reiterates the diversity of programming
Meta-Structure:
Important recently discovered historical event/trend—The LSAT will frequently feature passages about something that happened in the past—an event, a trend, a phenomenon, etc . . . —that, until recently, wasn't understood or wasn't studied. The "recent discovery" of this phenomenon will feature in some answers, so it's important to note.
Question/Answer - This passage poses two sets of questions. The first is about the content these units should have produced, and the second is about their goals. It'd be important to note where in the passage these showed up so that they could be quickly found, but it wouldn't be necessary to note each one or memorize them. Interestingly, there's not a definitive answer to either set of questions. Rather, it's noted that the program was large enough to "reflect[] the genuine diversity of African American artists and their audiences" (Lines 56-58)—in other words, the answer to which content and goal should be produced was, "Yes."
Last Thoughts:
There were a lot of little details in this passage, but they all fell into common categories—historical context, examples, etc . . . So using our normal notes for those elements will help us get through this question set!
Question prompt
The author refers to
Remaining source text redacted.
Why the credited answer is right
Credited answer: D
The notes below walk through why it fits the stem and how to eliminate the rest.
Question Type
Humanities
Answer choices
-
Agive an example of Remaining source text redacted.
Why choice A is not credited
Incorrect. (Lines 22-24) The Author does describe the Harlem Renaissance in terms that makes it clear she believes it was successful. However, the purpose of this section isn't to highlight another successful African American artistic movement, as the section is used to form an argument ("Thus" in Line 24) about what "already existed" at the time of the FTP's formation. -
Bemphasize the contribution made Remaining source text redacted.
Why choice B is not credited
Incorrect. There's no discussion of political advancement in this section of the passage, so this answer is out of scope. -
Cprovide a historical explanation Remaining source text redacted.
Why choice C is not credited
Incorrect. (Lines 7-8) The Author does mention that the "Negro Units" were little-studied until recently, suggesting that they fell into obscurity. But the Harlem Renaissance isn't connected to any reasons why that happened. -
Destablish a historical context Remaining source text redacted.
Why choice D matches the stem
Correct. Question Type:
Argument Structure
Strategy Overview:
Review the purpose of Paragraph 2, then consider the role of the specific section this question is asking about
Answer Anticipation/Relevant Lines:
Looking at our notes, Paragraph 2 was about the context, content, and goals of the "Negro Unit" in order to show that they produced a diverse output of material.
At the beginning of Paragraph 2, the Harlem Renaissance is used to talk about the historical context surrounding the formation of the FTP. Because of the Harlem Renaissance, there was a "diverse body of thought" on the social context of art within the African American community (Lines 24-27). This reflects the Author's overall point that the "Negro Units" reflected the genuine diversity of African American artists and audiences.
So the Harlem Renaissance is used to provide historical context as to the diversity of thought in the art realm in the African American community at the time of the FTP's formation. Let's find an answer reflecting that purpose.
Answer Explanation:
(Lines 24-27) The Harlem Renaissance is discussed to establish that, when the FTP was created, the African American art community had a "diverse body of thought" on the social function of art. This diversity builds directly into questions about what content and goals the "Negro Units" should have, as explored in the rest of Paragraph 2, and reflects the Author's overall viewpoint that the "Negro Units" had diverse output. Since this answer reflects the role of the discussion of the Harlem Renaissance, Paragraph 2, and the passage as a whole, it's the correct answer.
Key Takeaway:
Always keep the context of the entire passage and the paragraph containing the section in question in mind when dealing with an Argument Structure question. In general, these will all align in some way. -
Eprove a point about Remaining source text redacted.
Why choice E is not credited
Incorrect. (Line 23) In discussing the Harlem Renaissance, the Author speaks about conversations "within" the African American arts community, which doesn't suggest a relationship between it and mainstream U.S. culture.
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