PrepTest 142

[lcid:3666] Prep Test 142 LSAT — Reading Comp — S3 Reading comp

Passage

Questions 9-16  .        "Stealing thunder" is a courtroom strategy that  . consists in a lawyer's revealing negative information  . Remaining source text redacted.
Passage walkthrough
Passage SummaryTopic: Legal Studies

Paragraph 1
  • Paragraph note
    • A legal strategy used by lawyers is described, and the rationale behind it explained
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • "Stealing Thunder" (ST)
    • Strategy - Revealing damaging information about yourself before your opponent can
    • Use (Lawyers) - Only when that damaging info will come out/opponent knows
    • Rationale - Less damaging if you're the one to reveal it
Paragraph 2
  • Paragraph note
    • Reasons why ST is effective
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • No research, but lawyers believe, and it's backed up
    • Psychological reason - Revealing damaging info increases your credibility
    • Psychological reason - Previewing the opposition's argument gets people primed to be critical of it/resist persuasion
    • "Economic" reason - Scarcer resources are seen as more valuable, and if both sides bring up a piece of info, it's less valuable (unless it's REALLY big)
Paragraph 3
  • Paragraph note
    • Another reason for ST is presented, and then a limitation
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Last reason - Lawyer can frame evidence to downplay it, or present it positively
    • Analogy - Like a politician spinning
    • Jurors - "Eager" to solidify their view
    • Limitation - If it can't be presented positively, it might poison the jurors and cause them to see everything negatively
Main Point:
Despite there being no research, limited trials and psychological explanations back up the effectiveness of stealing thunder, though it may have some limitations.

Key Lines:
Lines 1-4 - A strategy is described Lines 13-20 - The strategy's effectiveness is backed up
Line 20 - A first reason is introduced
Lines 25-26 - A second reason is introduced
Line 33 - A third reason is introduced
Line 41 - A limitation is introduced on the third reason
Line 44 - A fourth reason is introduced
Lines 48-50 - A limitation on the fourth reason is introduced

Meta-Structure:
List of Reasons - This passage heavily relies on working through a list of different reasons that a certain strategy works. When such a list dominates a passage, it's important to know what the list is of, where each element on it starts, and what each element generally says.

Last Thoughts:
The limitations placed on certain reasons presented in the list will definitely feature in some questions, and we should be sure that those limitations are reflected in any big-picture question, such as the Main Point question.

Question prompt

The author's attitude regarding 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

Legal

Answer choices

  1. A
    concerned that the technique Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice A is not credited
    Incorrect. This answer is too negative, and there's no concern expressed in the passage about the prevalence of its use.
  2. B
    favorable toward its use Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice B is not credited
    Incorrect. The Author does bring up reasons for stealing thunder's effectiveness that rely on information being presented early, but in stating that it's useful only during opening statements, this answer is too limiting.
  3. C
    concerned that research results Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice C is not credited
    Incorrect. Similar to (A), this answer is too negative in expressing concern, when the Author was largely positive towards stealing thunder in most cases, with only a couple exceptions.
  4. D
    approving of its use Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice D matches the stem
    Correct. Question Type:
    Author's Attitude

    Strategy Overview:
    Review the main point, since this question is asking about the central topic of the passage, and then use that to infer the Author's attitude towards that topic

    Answer Anticipation/Relevant Lines:
    We've been over the main point a few times now, having thought of it before heading to the questions and tackling a main point question. In all of those cases, we said that the Author believes stealing thunder "is, in fact, effective" (Line 14), though it has some limitations (Lines 41-42; Lines 54-56). Thus, we should look for an answer reflecting a qualified positive view of stealing thunder.

    Answer Explanation:
    (Lines 11-20) The Author does believe that stealing thunder is effective, and that's based on "experimental findings" and "psychological explanations." As such, this answer reflects her attitude towards stealing thunder, making it the correct answer.

    Key Takeaway:
    For these Author's Attitude questions, always have a high-level view of whether you want a positive or negative word to lead off the answer. This should help you cut down what you need to consider, usually by about half.
  5. E
    skeptical of its suitability Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice E is not credited
    Incorrect. As with other answers, this one is too negative in characterizing the Author's attitude in a negative light, when she was largely positive on stealing thunder's effectiveness, outside of a few limitations.

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