PrepTest 144

[lcid:3672] Prep Test 144 LSAT — Reading Comp — S1 Reading comp

Passage

 .       "Never was anything as incoherent, shrill, chaotic  . and ear-splitting produced in music. The most piercing  . dissonances clash Remaining source text redacted.
Passage walkthrough
Passage SummaryTopic: Humanities

Paragraph 1
  • Paragraph note
    • A quote
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Some music was . . . really bad
Paragraph 2
  • Paragraph note
    • Details on the quote are given, along with a comparison
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Quote - 1806, about a Beethoven piece
    • Similar to reactions to Schoenberg
Paragraph 3
  • Paragraph note
    • A similarity between the composers, and more on Beethoven
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Similarity - Altered language, expressive range of music
    • Beethoven - Wasn't appreciated right away; required repeated listenings (phonograph)
Paragraph 4
  • Paragraph note
    • A similarity, with more on Schoenberg
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Similar - Constantly changing/evolving
    • Schoenberg - Went through 3 styles (first late-Romantic - shifting harmonies)
    • Similar - First style and Brahms
Paragraph 5
  • Paragraph note
    • Schoenberg's second style is discussed (no tonal basis)
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Second style - Unstable harmonies to no tonality
    • Why? Inevitable future, and needed to for expression
Paragraph 6
  • Paragraph note
    • Schoenberg's third style (12-tone technique); All styles compared
  • Brought stability to nontonal music
  • Similarities in all - Schoenberg had technical mastery
  • Growth - More condensed, violent in contrast, harder to follow
Paragraph 7
  • Paragraph note
    • Schoenberg's importance
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Important because of what he said, not how he made music
    • 12-tone system previewed by Mozart - not most important
    • Essential element - Captured disquieting emotions for first time (disturbing)
Main Point:
Schoenberg was similar in some ways to earlier composers, and he wasn't immediately appreciated, but through his evolving career, he developed new technical and emotional approaches to music that make him essential

Key Lines:
Lines 6-10 - Two composers are compared as initially unpopular
Lines 11-13 - The importance of the two composers is noted
Lines 20-23 - The composer who serves as the main topic of the passage is described
Lines 23-25 - The structure of the following paragraphs is noted
Lines 47-53 - Schoenberg's importance is described

Meta-Structure:
Importance of an Artist - Focusing on an artist and how they changed the form in which they worked is a common passage structure. When it's the case, it's important to have a solid grasp on the different styles presented—especially what was different about the artist in question. Additionally, it's important to know exactly why the Author believes the artist in question was so important.

Here, we know that Schoenberg's styles are looked at from Lines 25-45, so we should have noted a brief description of each step on his evolution. We also know that the last paragraph describes the Author's view on his importance. We can head to the questions feeling pretty comfortable that we can quickly locate any information we need to.

Last Thoughts:
Note that the passage shifts from comparing Schoenberg to Beethoven to comparing him to Mozart. It would be easy to lump Beethoven and Mozart together if you just read them as "other composer," but there might be a question that tries to trip us up on that front.

Question prompt

Which one of the 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
    Though Schoenberg's music is Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice A is not credited
    Incorrect. (Lines 53-56) The Author believes that Schoenberg's music isn't shrill and incoherent, so this answer captures an opposing viewpoint.
  2. B
    Because of his accomplishments Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice B is not credited
    Incorrect. (Lines 50-56) The Author believes that Schoenberg is an essential part of the evolution of music, and that opinion isn't grounded in a comparison to Beethoven. Additionally, this answer doesn't speak to what those accomplishments are. The correct answer doesn't have to, but it'd be better if it did, and with the comparison in here, we can rule this answer out.
  3. C
    Though Schoenberg's music has Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice C matches the stem
    Correct. Question Type:
    Main Point

    Strategy Overview:
    Reiterate the main point as we anticipated it after reading the passage

    Answer Anticipation/Relevant Lines:
    The Author starts with a quote (what is this, middle school?) before noting that the negative view stated in it could reflect the response to either Beethoven or Schoenberg (Lines 6-10). It then compares those two composers (Lines 11-13) over shared characteristics—they altered and extended music. After a brief discussion of Beethoven, it then focuses on Schoenberg through the rest of the passage. It describes the three steps of his musical evolution (Lines 23-25), and then it dives into what made him such an essential composer (Lines 47-53).

    From this, we summed up the main point as:

    Schoenberg was similar in some ways to earlier composers, and he wasn't immediately appreciated, but through his evolving career, he developed new technical and emotional approaches to music that make him essential

    Answer Explanation:
    (Lines 6-7; Lines 50-56) The Author starts the passage by describing the negative initial reaction to Schoenberg's music. However, it then traces its evolution in service of highlighting what made it so admirable—the technical developments, yes, but also its ability to capture disquieting emotions that had not been recorded before. This answer reflects the Author's view as to why Schoenberg was important, and so it's the correct answer. (Note that it glosses over his development, but those paragraphs are still captured in this answer as that evolution discussed in service of showing his technical and expressive innovations.)

    Key Takeaway:
    This passage was a relatively straightforward example of a common type of passage—the exploration of what made an artist important. Different types of passages tend to have the same type of main point, and in this passage type, the main point is almost always what the Author thinks makes the artist in question special or different.
  4. D
    Schoenberg is most important Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice D is not credited
    Incorrect. (Line 49) The Author ends the passage by saying that the 12-tone system is not what makes Schoenberg essential—it was his expansion of the emotions that music could capture. So the main point can't be that the 12-tone system is Schoenberg's most important contribution to music.
  5. E
    Despite the fact that Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice E is not credited
    Incorrect. (Lines 47-53) This answer doesn't say anything about what the Author thinks of Schoenberg and his music, so it misses the point of the passage.

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