PrepTest 101

[lcid:3503] Prep Test 101 LSAT — Reading Comp — S4 Reading comp

Passage

Questions 1-8  .        Wherever the crime novels of P. D. James are  . discussed by critics, there is a Remaining source text redacted.
Passage walkthrough
Passage Summary

Topic: Humanities


Paragraph 1

  • Paragraph note
    • Debate on the quality of James' crime novels
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • The first side of the debate:
      • Critics who over-exaggerate James's merits as a writer (first sentence)
    • The second side of the debate:
      • Critics who find James's writing overly pretentious (first sentence)
    • Cause-and-effect relationship, according to the author:
      • The general dichotomy between slightly dull "highbrow" novels and enjoyable "lowbrow" literature is at the root of the debate surrounding James's detective novels (last sentence)
    • Author’s attitude: “exaggerate” (first sentence); "familiar, false opposition” (second sentence); "somehow" (second sentence)

Paragraph 2

  • Paragraph note
    • Elaborates on both sides of the debate
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • The first side of the debate (James's work is "high literature" ):
      • James uses meticulous character constructions, elaborate settings, and lots of abstractions (first sentence)
    • The second side of the debate (James's work is overly pretentious):
      • James creates tiresome works that abandon the conventions of the detective genre (second sentence)
    • Examples to support the second viewpoint:
      • Harriet Waugh and Philip Oakes' critiques (last sentence)
    • Author's attitude: "inverted snobbery" (second sentence)

Paragraph 3

  • Paragraph note
    • Author: Recognizes the merits of each side of the debate
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Author's view:
      • James's descriptive writing and characterization add "dignity and weight" to her works (first through third sentences)
      • But these narrative devices strongly distract from the plot and aren't always successfully deployed (fourth through fifth sentences)
    • Comparison of James's interests, according to the author:
      • James dedicates more attention to describing the patinas and aromas of a country kitchen than the plot (fourth sentence)
      • James is less interested in the detective elements of her novels than in describing her characters (last sentence)
    • Author's attitude: "certainly capable of strikingly good writing" (first sentence); "convincing histories and passions" (second sentence); "part of the pleasure of her books" (third sentence); "dignity and weight" (third sentence); "equally true" (fourth sentence); "frequently interfere" (fourth sentence); "can be shameless and thin" (fifth sentence), "often impossible" (fifth sentence)

Paragraph 4

  • Paragraph note
    • Author: James may be losing interest in the detective novel and should abandon it
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Author's view:
      • Since James seems to feel increasingly constrained by the conventions of the detective genre, she should perhaps switch to general fiction writing (first through last sentence)
    • Author's attitude: "However…" (first sentence) "there is no reason why" (first sentence); "conscious rebellion" (third sentence); "fashionable" (fourth sentence), "reprehensible" (fourth sentence), "perhaps the time has come" (last sentence)

Main Point: Because P.D. James's narrative style is constrained by the traditional conventions of the detective genre, she should migrate to writing general fiction.

Key Lines?

Paragraph 1, Sentence 1 (P1, S1) - Introduction of both sides of the debate

P2, S1 - Rationale for the first side of the debate

P2, S1 - Rationale for the second side of the debate

P3, S3-4 - Author's stance

P4, S5:- Author's recommendation

Meta-Structure?

Resolving a Debate: In this passage, the author describes two opposing viewpoints before expressing their own opinion on the matter. The debate at hand involves P. D. James's unique approach to the detective genre. In the first paragraph, the author introduces the rival opinions: those who strongly believe in James's merits as an author of crime fiction and those who think that she strays too far from the genre's conventions (P1, S1). In the second paragraph, the author elaborates on each side's rationale for their points of view. Finally, in the third and fourth paragraphs, the author offers their opinion, suggesting a compromise between the two previously discussed points of view. This explanation — and subsequent resolution — of two opposing viewpoints strongly suggests a Resolving a Debate Meta-Structure.

In a Resolving a Debate Meta-Structure, the main point will be the author's opinion or mediation/reconciliation of the debate. The author helpfully offers the reconciliation in the fourth paragraph. We summarized this resolution as follows, "Because P.D. James's narrative style is constrained by the traditional conventions of the detective genre, she should migrate to writing general fiction."

Examples: The author uses examples at two different points in the passage to illustrate a specific viewpoint:

  • The author mentions the critics Harriet Waugh and Philip Oakes (P2, S3). These examples demonstrate the view that James's detective novels are overly pretentious and stray from the genre's conventions.
  • The author references the "patinas and aromas of a country kitchen [that] receive more loving attention than does the plot itself" and that James often makes it impossible to see how the detective arrives at the truth in her novels (P3, S4-5). These examples support the author's claim that James's descriptive, philosophical style interferes with the story in detective fiction.

As is the case with all our minor Meta-Structures, we should have these highlighted or underlined to help us locate them in the likely event that we get a question about them.

Last Thoughts?

Question prompt

The author characterizes the 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

Strategy Overview

Consult your notes or passage to recall the author's attitude about the topic in question, and find the answer that best reflects your understanding of the author's opinion on that topic

Answer Anticipation

This question asks us to find the answer choice that identifies why the author accused some critics of possessing an "inverted snobbery." We're told that this accusation occurred in the second paragraph. Therefore, we can start by reviewing this part of the passage to anticipate what the correct answer will likely say.In the second paragraph, the author reviews both types of criticisms levied at James's detective fiction. The critics accused of "inverted snobbery" argue that James has abandoned "the time-honored conventions of the detective genre in favor of a highbrow literary style" (P2, S2). So, why might this belief warrant the accusation of "inverted snobbery"? Did the author discuss literary snobbery or highbrow literary style anywhere else in the passage?If we highlighted the cause-and-effect relationship described toward the end of the first paragraph, it might be easier to connect the dots on this question. The author argues that the general dichotomy between slightly dull "highbrow" novels and enjoyable "lowbrow" literature is at the root of the criticisms levied against James's fiction (P1, S2). We would typically accuse those who champion the slightly dull "highbrow" novels as "snobs." However, those who slight James for abandoning the conventions of more enjoyable detective novels argue that the "highbrow" elements in her works are "pretentious and tiresome" (P2, S2). The author must call them "inverted" snobs because they argue that James's ambitions make her novels less enjoyable than the typical detective novel. Rather than look down on "lowbrow" literature like the typical snob, they're looking down at the "highbrow" literature (a perspective that would require them to be, quite literally, inverted). So, let's look for an answer choice that says the author accuses these critics of inverted snobbery because these critics do not think James's detective novels should pursue "highbrow" literary characteristics.

Answer choices

  1. A
    Critics of literature must Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice A is not credited

    (A) Does this answer choice claim that the author accuses critics of "inverted snobbery" because these critics do not think James's detective novels should pursue "highbrow" literary characteristics?

    Nope. For that reason, expert test-takers would quickly shunt (A) to the side. There's no reason to review the passage to see if some critics think they must acknowledge that they are less talented than creators.

    Besides, the author never made such a claim. So we wouldn't find support for (A) if we reviewed the entire passage.

  2. B
    Critics should hesitate to Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice B is not credited

    (B) Does this answer choice claim that the author accuses critics of "inverted snobbery" because these critics do not think James's detective novels should pursue "highbrow" literary characteristics?

    No. Experienced test-takers would cross (B) off once they saw it didn't match their anticipation. They wouldn't waste time checking the passage to see if these critics implied they should hesitate to disparage popular authors.

    And we wouldn't find any support (B) if we reviewed the entire passage. Additionally, the critics accused of "inverted snobbery" denigrate James. So if James is a popular author, these critics clearly have no issue with disparaging a popular author.

  3. C
    P. D. James's novels Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice C is not credited

    (C) Does this answer choice claim that the author accuses critics of "inverted snobbery" because these critics do not think James's detective novels should pursue "highbrow" literary characteristics?

    Not at all. Decisive test-takers would eliminate (C) as soon they recognized it wasn't a match for their anticipation. They wouldn't review the passage to see if critics think James shouldn't include so many characters from the "English landed gentry."

    Besides, the author never says that James's novels feature characters from the English landed gentry. So this answer choice is entirely unsupported.

  4. D
    Detective fiction should be Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice D matches the stem

    (D) Does this answer choice claim that the author accuses critics of "inverted snobbery" because these critics do not think James's detective novels should pursue "highbrow" literary characteristics?

    Yes, this gets very close to our anticipation. The author says these critics think that James's ambitions to transcend detective-novel conventions are "pretentious and tiresome" (P2, S2). Clearly, these critics do not believe detective novels should have these ambitions. As discussed in the Answer Anticipation section, this is an "inverted snobbery" because these critics look down on supposedly highbrow literary characteristics rather than the supposedly lowbrow literary characteristics a right-side-up snob would look down at. Because this answer choice matches our anticipation, we could justifiably select it and move on to the final question.

  5. E
    P. D. James should Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice E is not credited

    (E) Does this answer choice claim that the author accuses critics of "inverted snobbery" because these critics do not think James's detective novels should pursue "highbrow" literary characteristics?

    Nope. Time-savvy test-takers would eliminate (E) simply because it does not match their anticipation. Besides, the author never said James fastidiously (carefully) portrays violence in her novels, so (E) is unsupported.

What this tests

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