Reading comp PrepTest 145 · Section 1 · Question 6

Incorrect. (Lines 49-51) "Challenging" the audience to think about what it means to assume Black roles on and off the stage in the 1930s hardly seems like the producers were trying to avoid controversial themes.

Incorrect. (Lines 49-51) Similar to (A), challenging the audience with an ironic adaptation and inversion of the minstrel . doesn't seem to be shying away from instructing as well as entertaining.

Incorrect. (Lines 30-35) There's no discussion of the content/topic of The Swing Mikado, so we can't infer if it was a rural or urban play. And since we know that it was an adaptation of a work by white playwrights, we know that it does fall into one of the other categories that were argued for, so there's even some evidence it isn't a folk drama exploring rural roots and culture.

Incorrect. (Lines 30-35) There's no discussion of the content/topic of The Swing Mikado, so we can't infer if it was a rural or urban play. And since we know that it was an adaptation of a work by white playwrights, we know that it does fall into one of the other categories that were argued for, so there's even some evidence it isn't an urban realistic drama with contemporary dilemmas.

Correct. Question Type:
Must Be True

Strategy Overview:
Review the information on The Swing Mikado to anticipate an answer about the producers of it

Answer Anticipation/Relevant Lines:
There are two ways to quickly find the section talking about The Swing Mikado. The first is to have taken a note so we could find it later, which we should have done because it's an example. The second is to look for italicized words in the passage. Either way, we're directed to the end of Paragraph 2—starting in Line 45.

The "Among them" tells us it's an example of what was just mentioned, so we should circle back to that, but let's first see what the passage says about the play itself. We can see that it "inverted the minstrel tradition" as an "ironic adaptation of a white classic."

Circling back, this is an example of how the disagreements between individuals within the "Negro Units" led to a wide range of productions representing diverse views (Lines 42-44). And these diverse views and disagreements were outlined right above—in the questions raised about what should be produced and what their goals should be.

Among that debate was the debate over whether the "Negro Units" should produce rural or urban plays, or adapt plays written by white playwrights. Based on what we just read about The Swing Mikado, it falls into the third category.

Let's find an answer reflecting any of these details.

Answer Explanation:
(Lines 30-35) The Author notes that, within the "Negro Units," there was a debate as to what types of plays should be the focus—rural plays, urban plays, or adaptations of plays by white playwrights. The Swing Mikado is "an ironic adaptation of a white classic," falling into the third category and supporting this answer.

Key Takeaway:
Note that answers (C), (D), and (E), as a set, reflect one of the sets of questions asked about in Paragraph 2. This makes sense, as The Swing Mikado is brought up as an example of what preceded it in the paragraph, and taking the time to tie it back into those ideas paid dividends in allowing us to fly through three answers, one of which was correct.