#19- Even those who believe that the art of each age and

[ronnieronnie]

Hey Guys,

So I am reviewing my last practice test, wrong and right answers, as per Nikki advice, and already I am finding I need the explanations for multiple problems. Can I find these online somewhere? Or should I just list them here and you guys can help me out? If I can find them online it would be great if you guys could tell me where. But just in case they aren't on here, here are the problems I re-picked wrong answers for or didn't quite understand:

And #19...I can't seem to figure this one out either

Thanks in advance guys!
Ronnie

[Nikki Siclunov]

To help you better, please describe in greater detail the logical steps you undertook to solve this problem. Based on your understanding of the premises and the conclusion, did you prephrase the function of the argument part mentioned in the question stem? If yes, which answer choices seemed attractive, and why?

[ronnieronnie]

Hi Nikki,

Sorry for the delay...I've been studying a lot of course! But I just came back to this question and I am still stumped.

I think the problem is I don't really understand how the argument comes together. I thought the conclusion was: "while some painters are superior to others in the execution of their artistic visions, this superiority must be measured in light of the artist's purpose". I do not understand how Jose's Toledo's work acts as an example of this conclusion, because I thought that this artist just illustrated the first sentence of the stimulus, that some artists are superior to others in the execution of their artistic vision". Since this is how I interpreted the stimulus I selected answer choice (E)

Thanks,
Ronnie

[Nikki Siclunov]

Ronnie,

The conclusion of the argument is that "this superiority must be measured in light of the artist's purposes". As evidence of that conclusion, the author brings up the work of Jose Rey Toledo: a painter whose paintings do not resemble what they represent, but is nevertheless an extraordinary artist. The word "since" after the first clause in the second sentence should remind you that the second clause supports the first. Therefore, the first clause is the conclusion, whereas the second is an illustration of that conclusion.

The claim "some painters are simply superior to others" is a generalization introduced in the first sentence of the argument. The conclusion, however, specifies exactly what the author means by "superior": it's not how much your painting resembles what it represents, but how close you get to fulfilling your artistic purpose. In other words, it is a claim that the author argues must be understood in a manner specified by the conclusion.

Answer choice (E) is half-right, half-wrong. Yes, it's a generalization. However, the generalization is not used to justify the relevance of the specific example. Rather, the specific example is used to illustrate the conclusion, which clarifies the generalization.

Hope this helps!

[eober]

Hi,

Is the conclusion in this question "this superiority must be... artist's purposes" and the other two sentences are premises? And what is the "manner specified" in the conclusion?

Thanks for the clarification!

[David Boyle]

Hi,

Is the conclusion in this question "this superiority must be... artist's purposes" and the other two sentences are premises? And what is the "manner specified" in the conclusion?

Thanks for the clarification!

Hello,

Yes, that looks like the conclusion. And the others seem to function as premises.
The "manner specified" is "superiority must be measured in light of the artist's purposes".

David

[anatobar06]

Hello, I had a question.

I was confused by what was meant by "one sort of objection to which the argument illustrates". I was in between B and C for this reason. Mostly because I wasn't sure what it meant so I went with D, but I'd like to be sure for further questions.

Thank you!

[Luke Haqq]

Hi anatobar06!

Regarding the claim that "some painters are simply superior to others in the execution of their artistic visions," answer (B) states, "(B) It is a generalization, one sort of objection to which the argument illustrates by giving an example."

To explain what that means, if (B) were the right answer, then the stimulus would be taking aim at--or registering an objection to--the language at issue. If (B) were right, the stimulus would go on to show that it is not the case that "some painters are simply superior to others in the execution of their artistic visions," showing this is not the case by way of an illustrative example.

Rather than (B), answer (C) correctly describes that language--"It is a claim that, according to the argument, is to be understood in a manner specified by the conclusion." More specifically, artistic superiority is to be understood "in light of the artist's purposes."