#7 - Global Reference, Main Point

[Administrator]

Please post below with any questions!

[brcibake]

I was under the impression that C was the answer. C is true and was discusses so why is E a better answer? When did the passage mention other factors were needed to explain the duration. The passage to me explained the history of great migration, why it started, issues with migration then crushed the typical issues of migration. Thank you!

[Adam Tyson]

To start with, brcibake, it's very important on a Main Point question to not be distracted by what we sometimes call "True But Wrong" answers. The authors love to throw answer choices at us that are true statements, supported by the passage (maybe even direct quotes from the passage) that nevertheless fail to answer the question we were asked. They do this on most Main Point questions but also on many others, so be on the lookout always and be sure to hold your prephrase in mind the whole time you are sorting answers into losers and contenders (and if you aren't prephrasing, start doing so immediately to avoid these trap answers!). Just because an answer is true doesn't make it a good choice for a Main Point question! Instead, look for an answer that fully captures what the passage was all about, a big picture look at all the important ideas that were advanced by the author.

The passage is all about why the Great Migration continued after the income gap closed. See line 19, where the author begins to set up that discussion by telling us that the reasons are "less clear" than the reasons the migration began in the first place. The rest of the passage is all about exploring those other factors, factors that go beyond the demand for labor in the north, the active recruitment by northern agents, and the boll weevil infestation. Those other factors include the reduction of uncertainty faced by migrants, the lowered costs of migrating, and the increased flow of information from earlier migrants to later ones.

Answer E captures the bulk of the passage, what it's all about, which is making it a little more clear why the migration continued despite the closing of the income gap.

Take another look and see if that makes sense to you, and let us know if we can be of any further help.

[German.Steel]

Great explanation as always. One question on (C) - is it also noteworthy that (C) refers to "African American migration to the North," which seems overly general, whereas (E) specifically refers to the "Great Migration," which is more precise? That lack of precision on (C) jumped out at me, in addition to the issues already discussed.

Thanks!

[atierney]

Hi German,

Yes, that is certainly one way of looking at it; another would be that essentially C doesn't capture the point about duration; this whole idea of the train being hard to stop, and that I think is really the main idea that's proposed in the passage, or the main idea, which the passage's main point is to explain and develop. Generally, looking at the concepts referenced, especially title concepts referenced is a good way to choose between contenders though.

Let me know if you have further questions.