PrepTest 146

[lcid:3683] Prep Test 146 LSAT — Reading Comp — S4 Reading comp

Passage

 .       Most sociohistorical interpretations of art view a  . body of work as the production of a class, generally a Remaining source text redacted.
Passage walkthrough
Passage SummaryTopic: Humanities

Paragraph 1
  • Paragraph note
    • A view is presented along with a shortcoming in it
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Most interpretations (e.g., Taruskin) - Art produced for ruling class, reflecting their ideals
    • Shortcoming - Two different ways that happens
Paragraph 2
  • Paragraph note
    • The two ways are described
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Way 1 - Rich person pays well-known artist to make a display piece (e.g., a house)
    • Way 2 - Rich person pays for work that expresses ideals (e.g., Pope hiring Raphael for apartment pieces)
Paragraph 3
  • Paragraph note
    • The interpretations go with one way, showing assumptions
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Taruskin et al focus on Way 2
    • Assumptions - The elite have a consensus set of values; the artists don't subvert these values
Paragraph 4
  • Paragraph note
    • Breakdown of social classes and the implications for art (Assumption 1 is bad)
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Upper class (Arnold) - Ruling and middle class (philistines)
    • Implication for art - Talented artists found room at margins (e.g., rich eccentric person)
Paragraph 5
  • Paragraph note
    • How artists subverted ideals of elite (Assumption 2 is bad)
  • Views, minor Meta-Structures, and the author's attitude
    • Artists went against elite values, and some survived
    • Author - Taruskin bends over backwards to explain this unconvincingly ("hidden ways", "unaware," work of which they overtly disapproved")
Main Point:
Taruskin's and most sociohistorical analysis of art focuses on just one way that art was made, and it rests on two assumptions that don't reflect the full reality of the situation.

Key Lines:
Lines 1-3 - The opposing point is introduced
Lines 7-10 - A shortcoming of that point is introduced
Lines 8-9 - Upcoming structure is introduced
Lines 11-19 - The structure plays out
Lines 20-21 - The shortcoming is put in context
Lines 24-30 - Two assumptions of the view are noted
Lines 37-41 - Assumption 1 is undermined
Lines 41-44 - An implication of that is noted
Lines 45-47 - Assumption 2 is undermined

Meta-Structure:
View/Criticism - The Author presents the view of "[m]ost sociohistorical" interpretations of art (Lines 1-3), but she then pivots to showing how it neglects one of two ways that art was created (Lines 20-21), and even that rests on assumptions (Lines 24-30) that are wrong (Lines 37-41; Lines 45-47).

Undermining Assumptions - The Author notes two assumptions of the opposing point—two things that "must be" (and "must also be") true for the argument to hold together. When presenting assumptions—especially to a view that she clearly disagrees with—it's likely that the Author will go on to undermine or offer evidence against those assumptions. Here, even though it doesn't explicitly say that that's what it's doing, being primed to look for it makes it a lot easier for us to spot that the next two paragraphs each tackle one of them. The first assumption was that "the elite had...some type of consensus about the world" (Lines 26-27) and the following paragraph talks about how the elite were split, with neither group particularly interested in saying something important with art (Lines 39-41). And The second assumption was that artists didn't subvert the ideals of their patrons (Lines 29-30), which Paragraph 5 undermines by bringing up the art that in fact did cut against these values and were made "unwillingly and with misgivings" by the establishment (Lines 45-47).

Extended Example - The passage is about most sociohistorical interpretations of art, but it uses one person/example to "put a face" to this argument—Taruskin. Since he's an example of this type of analysis, he's not necessary in any main point or big picture questions, as the passage is about more than just his analysis.

Last Thoughts:
The two local structures here (two ways in Paragraph 1 and 2; two assumptions in Paragraphs 3-5) will likely help us work through the questions. Be sure to note such defined structures when they show up!

Question prompt

In using the phrase 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
    allowed the patron to Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice A is not credited
    Incorrect. (Lines 18-20) The first method of commissioning "something for display" is contrasted with having something made to make a statement about one's ideals. The latter is much closer to making a political statement, so this meaning doesn't reflect the meaning in the passage.
  2. B
    could be used to Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice B is not credited
    Incorrect. (Lines 14-15; Lines 31-34) Commissioning "something for display" is tied to demonstrating that one has good taste, not that people should buy from the patron's business. Patrons with businesses aren't even brought up until Paragraph 4, and even then it mentions that there are other patrons who are members of the aristocracy—not people who would have businesses!
  3. C
    was meant to create Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice C matches the stem
    Correct. Question Type:
    Meaning in Context

    Strategy Overview:
    Review the role of the paragraph including the phrase in question, then use that to help define it in the immediate context

    Answer Anticipation/Relevant Lines:
    Lines 12-13 show up in Paragraph 2. We said that that paragraph was meant to describe the two ways that the elite commissioned art, and this was in service of showing that the opposing view ignored one of them.

    The phrase in question shows up as a description of one way that art was commissioned—as "something for display." The passage even gives an example of this—hiring an architect to design a house to make you look like you have good taste, even if it's unlivable. This is in contrast to the second way that art is commissioned—to "express[] and mirror[] one's ideals and way of life."

    So the former case isn't to express your values, but rather just for display—to reflect on your taste, not your ideals. Let's find an answer lining up with that.

    Answer Explanation:
    (Lines 14-15) The example given of commissioning "something for display" is hiring a famous architect to build a house that may "reflect great credit on one's taste." This answer lines up perfectly with the description in this example, so it's correct.

    Key Takeaway:
    There are certain types of context that can be very helpful in defining the meaning of a phrase in these Meaning in Context questions, and we see two of them here. First, examples can help clarify what is meant by a phrase, so be sure to consider them when defining it. Here, an example is given right after the phrase in question. Second, comparisons can be helpful—whether they're similarities or differences. Here, there was a contrast drawn between what we were asked to define and another situation, and having a clear view of the different situation could help us define the one we were interested in.
  4. D
    was representative of the Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice D is not credited
    Incorrect. (Line 15) The passage notes that having "something for display" would reflect something about the patron, not something about the artist.
  5. E
    provided the patron with Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice E is not credited
    Incorrect. (Lines 15-16) The example involves a cool house that "one finds...impossible to line in," which suggests at least a certain level of personal dissatisfaction.

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