#6 - Commentator: In many countries the influence of fringe

[asuper]

Hello,
I was wondering If someone could post explanations for the incorrect and correct answers. The part of the argument I was trying to weaken was the fact the commentator's conclusion that modern culture (which I assume is meant to be diverse from the spinning off of fashions, ideologies etc.) threatens national identities now existing in the world. I threw out A because its talking about new national IDs which I deemed irrelevant. B i threw out as well, although the correct answer, because of the word "Stable". I dont really understand what stable identities has to do with anything. C and D I threw out because I didnt think it weakened the conclusion whatsoever. I ended up choosing E. The word "solidified" caught my eye (in comparison with the diversified modern culture) and the fact that it causing more social problems then one without (more threatening). Would this answer be incorrect because it doesnt specify the other identity? Where did I go wrong in addressing this question? Thanks

[Sky Brooks]

Hi asuper,

You correctly identified the conclusion of the argument, that modern culture (and its nature, as described in the stimulus) is threatening the national identities that now exist in the world.

Now we must identify which statement most weakens the conclusion.

A is incorrect. This brings in the creation of new national identities, which is irrelevant.

B is correct. It states that a stable national identity is typically a composite of a staggering number of subcultures. If this is the case, the whole is not like the parts. A national identity can be stable, but also have facets of its culture that are constantly changing. Therefore, even if modern culture changes things such as fashion or music, shifts in these subcultures will not go on to threaten the national identity, thus attacking the argument.

C is incorrect. The statement does not address the idea of modern culture. It's out of scope and doesn't attack the conclusion.

D is incorrect. This answer is also out of scope and doesn't attack the conclusion.

E is incorrect. This is a Shell Game answer, notice how it is the last option and was made to be appealing by using the key terms. However, this statement is about how many social problems cultures tend to have and how that relates to their national identity. Whether or not a solidified national identity leads to social problems is irrelevant to whether current national identities will cease to exist because of changes in culture. This answer does not directly attack the argument.

I hope this helps,

Sky Brooks
PowerScore

[lanereuden]

Is A also wrong because conflicts among groups is not mentioned (I.e. the passage itself refers only to take radical changes within a given sphere—e.g. fashion, religion, etc?)

[Adam Tyson]

I'm not sure that not mentioning conflict is a real problem here. After all, in Weaken answers we are looking for new information, so something not mentioned in the stimulus is frequently key to a good answer. I'd say that answer A might strengthen the argument - all that diversity of cults and religions and theories would fairly naturally lead to at least some degree of conflict, and if that forges new national identities then that threatens the existing identities. In other words, conflict changes us.

But you're also not entirely wrong. The stimulus is about diversity, not conflict, and it's possible that all that diversity leads to a reduction of conflict rather than an increase. Maybe conflict just isn't relevant to this argument?

One thing's for sure - answer A does NOT hurt the argument, so however we get there it is surely not the right answer.