#13 - Main Point

[Administrator]

Complete Question Explanation
(See the complete passage discussion here: lsat/viewtopic.php?t=10965)

The correct answer choice is (C)

The answer to this question is prephrased in the VIEWSTAMP analysis above.

Answer choice (A): This answer choice alludes to Yolanda Broyles-Gonzalez’s criticism, and can easily be proven by reference to the third paragraph of the passage. However, the passage focuses on Valdez’s contributions to the Teatro Campesino, not on the fact that historians such as Gonzalez challenge the extent of these contributions.

Answer choice (B): Hopefully you were able to eliminate this answer choice relatively quickly, as the author merely mentions Chavez in the first paragraph of the passage. His contributions are not extensively discussed.

Answer choice (C): This is the correct answer choice. The author discusses Valdez’s contributions to the Teatro Campesino in the first two paragraphs, and argues that the creation of actos was a collective accomplishment in the third paragraph (lines 54-56).

Answer choice (D): This answer choice is validated by the discussion in the second paragraph, but does not capture the main point of the passage.

Answer choice (E): This is a classic half-right, half-wrong answer choice. While Valdez appears to have had political and academic connections (he was able to approach Chavez, and was also a member of the San Francisco Mime Troupe), the author never argues that it was these connections that brought recognition to the Teatro Campesino. The central focus of the passage is Valdez’s artistic contributions and their significance.

[allisonellen7]

Hi there!
I was just wondering why D couldn't be correct. I was between C and D and chose D. Is it because it focuses too much on the role of the amateur performers instead of Luis Valdez? Thank you!

[Nikki Siclunov]

Hi allisonellen7,

Thanks for your question.

The main point of the passage can be found in lines 54-60: the Teatro Campesino is a collective accomplishment, but Valdez’s contributions are still crucial. As you mention, answer choice (D) is tempting because it is validated by the discussion in the second paragraph. However, it does not capture the main point of the passage. By comparison, answer choice (C) covers a lot more textual ground: the author discusses Valdez’s contributions to the Teatro Campesino in the first two paragraphs, and argues that the creation of actos was a collective accomplishment in the third paragraph (lines 54-56).

Hope this helps!

[andy789]

By comparison, answer choice (C) covers a lot more textual ground: the author discusses Valdez’s contributions to the Teatro Campesino in the first two paragraphs, and argues that the creation of actos was a collective accomplishment in the third paragraph (lines 54-56).???




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GuL

[Emily Haney-Caron]

Hi Andy,

I wasn't sure if you had a particular question about this reading passage or question 13 in particular, but if there's something we can help answer, definitely let us know!

[lanereuden]

Please elaborate further as to why A is wrong in light of the fact that, as you conceded, it is true. Is it solely because it only occupies 1 paragraph while the other two occupy 2 paragraphs? Is it that cut and dry, or are there cases in which there are a total of 3 paragraphs, two paragraphs emphasize one thing and the third emphasizes another, and the third is nonetheless the main point?

[Adam Tyson]

"True but wrong" is a common type of wrong answer to Main Point questions, lanereuden. Most Main Point questions will be followed by at least a few answer choices that restate something true from the passage that nevertheless fails to capture the main point. Maybe it's the main point of a single paragraph, or maybe it is one of several positions taken in the passage. Maybe it captures a key detail, but leaves out the big picture. It's not as straightforward as how much time is devoted to a subject - sometimes the Main Point becomes clear only in the final paragraph of the passage, and everything that came before it was just a preamble to that "thesis statement" moment. One that comes to mind from our course is the passage about the healthful effects of moderate wine consumption from PT 32, October 2000, where the Main Point is about a special compound found only in grapes that may be the key. That compound, and grapes, are only mentioned in the last paragraph, and only at the very end of the paragraph, but they are a crucial part of what the author wants to convey.

The key is to ask yourself what the passage was all about, as a whole. What was the author trying to prove, or demonstrate, or say? Prephrase it, and don't be distracted by incomplete pieces of the puzzle, even if they are accurate pieces.