Reading comp PrepTest 153 · Section 1 · Question 6

Passage

 Most writings on the subject of motion pictures, including those scrutinizing the structural characteristics, aesthetic qualities, and effects of motion Remaining source text redacted.
Passage walkthrough
Passage SummaryTopic: Humanities

Paragraph 1
  • Paragraph note
    • A problem for movies is introduced
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Critics - Don't consider what the film's audiences see
    • Problem - External factors get in the way of the director's intent reaching audiences (We'll probably see some of those factors in upcoming paragraphs)
Paragraph 2
  • Paragraph note
    • Some of the factors mentioned above are discussed
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • There are several ways a film can be "mutilated"
      • Subtitles, which may be of poor quality
      • Dubbing, which can be more damaging
      • Reediting or new titles to make them more understandable
Paragraph 3
  • Paragraph note
    • Some more factors are discussed (specific to TV/video)
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • "Most extensive" deformations
      • Loss of image size/definition
      • Ads, spoken interruptions to soundtrack, and station identifications added in
      • Increase in speed to increase time for ads
Paragraph 4
  • Paragraph note
    • Why this is accepted/overlooked, and what problems it creates
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Why is it accepted/overlooked?
      • Difference - Film can be exactly duplicated
    • Problems with alterations:
      • Criticism may be unfair when it's based on an edited version
      • Criticism of original version might set up bad expectations for audiences who see edited version
Main Point:
The heavy alterations made to movies when they're prepared for different audiences (language) and mediums create a problem for critics, audiences, and directors, in that they can set up unfair criticism and false expectations.

Key Lines:
Lines 6-10 - Set up the problem in the passage and preview what is going to be discussed
Paragraphs 2-3 - Sprinkled throughout, each factor that was mentioned in Lines 6-10 will be important to be able to find quickly
Lines 38-44 - Why the problem is accepted and overlooked
Lines 46-48 - One implication of the problem
Lines 50-57 - Second implication of the problem

Meta-Structure:
ID a Problem. While problems are generally coupled with solutions, there are passages that focus solely on the problem. For these passages, it's important to focus on the Author's exploration of the problem—especially causes and implications of it. Here, the factors throughout Paragraphs 2 and 3 as well as the cause for acceptance at the beginning of Paragraph 4 will be important. And the implications that start in Line 44 will also be.

Last Thoughts:
Paragraphs 2-3 included essentially a list of factors that played into this problem, so we should be able to quickly find any specific one of them for detail-based questions. And we shouldn't forget the superlative language in Line 23 ("most extensive")—such language usually shows up in a correct answer (though not always).

Question prompt

Suppose that a Russian Remaining source text redacted.
Why the credited answer is right

Credited answer: C

The notes below walk through why it fits the stem and how to eliminate the rest.

Question Type

Humanities

Answer choices

  1. A
    The company should attempt Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice A is not credited
    Incorrect. (Lines 17-21) The Author definitely thinks that changing the title instead of directly translating it is a bad alteration, but she doesn't say anything about providing explanatory materials, so this answer is unsupported.
  2. B
    The company should first Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice B is not credited
    Incorrect. (Paragraph 2) The Author doesn't discuss releasing these films to critics first, so this answer is incorrect.
  3. C
    The film should be Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice C matches the stem
    Correct. Question Type:
    Parallel Reasoning/Must Be True (Principle)

    Strategy Overview:
    Head back to the section of the passage that talks about translations and use that to anticipate an answer

    Answer Anticipation/Relevant Lines:
    The question stem asks us to take information from the stimulus and then apply it to a specific situation. You could view this as a Parallel Reasoning question, or a Must Be True (Principle) question, as long as you understand the basic task!

    This question focuses on an Italian film being made for a Russian-speaking audience. We have a notation that the second paragraph deals with translation issues, and so we should head there to see what the Author would recommend.

    There, the Author notes that such translations can either be done with subtitles or dubs. The Author calls a dub a ""significantly more profound intervention"" (Lines 15-16), so between the two options, the Author would recommend going with subtitles.

    What pitfalls are there when subtitling a work? It can be incompetent, full of mistakes, or used for censorship. So the Author would recommend ensuring that your subtitles are competent, accurate, and not used for censorship. Let's find an answer reflecting that.

    The paragraph also discusses reediting the films to make them more understandable to the new audience and new titles rather than direct translations, so we should be on the lookout for answers about that, as well.

    Answer Explanation:
    (Lines 14-16) The Author says that dubbing is a bigger alteration than subtitles, so she would recommend subtitles over dubs. However, she notes that there are issues when the subtitles are inaccurate or full of mistakes, so she'd only recommend going this route if these pitfalls can be avoided. This answer reflects her views on subtitles, so it's the correct answer.

    Key Takeaway:
    When a question is asking you what an Author would think about a specific situation, the answer has to be grounded in the text itself. As such, identify the key elements of the situation and find where the Author talks about those elements.
  4. D
    The version of the Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice D is not credited
    Incorrect. (Lines 15-16) The film is being released for a Russian-speaking audience, so something will have to be done to make it comprehensible to this group since the film is in Italian. And since the options are limited to subtitling it or dubbing it (what else could be done?), the Author thinks that subtitles are a better option since dubbing is ""a significantly more profound intervention."" As such, there are likely situations where the Author would agree that the film should be subbed, as long as the pitfalls of that method can be avoided.
  5. E
    The film should be Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice E is not credited
    Incorrect. (Lines 16-18) The Author notes such reedits as being a type of ""mutilat[ion],"" so she wouldn't recommend using this option.

What this tests

Question analytics

Based on historical answer selection rates for this question.

Answer choice distribution

  1. A 8%
  2. B 5%
  3. C Credited 53%
  4. D 9%
  5. E 25%

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