#3 - Must Be True, Author's Perspective

[Administrator]

Complete Question Explanation
(See the complete passage discussion here: lsat/viewtopic.php?t=10821)

The correct answer choice is (A)

This question asks what the author would think of a physicist’s book based on the scientist’s own memories. In the passage the author makes a point of discussing the challenges of doing a biographical study on a living subject, including the inherent bias of firsthand accounts, so the author would probably be skeptical about the reliability of a work like the one in this question.

Answer choice (A): This is the correct answer choice. As prephrased, the author of the passage would likely be concerned about the danger for bias in the physicist’s firsthand memories.

Answer choice (B): Nothing in the passage suggests that the author would support the assertion in this choice. Since this answer fails the Fact Test, it should be ruled ouf of contention.

Answer choice (C): The author would be concerned about the reliability of a firsthand, uncorroborated perspective, but does not comment on the prospects for such a work to be used as a source for scholarly history writing.

Answer choice (D): The author would view such a work as being somewhat questionable, or in need of further corroboration, but would not assert that the book would make a more appropriate source for an entertainer’s biography.

Answer choice (E): This is an Opposite Answer; the author would see the firsthand account described here as needing further verification, so this choice can be ruled out with certainty.

[jlliu9368@gmail.com]

I chose answer D on this one--I just found it hard to appreciate answer A as the correct answer. I thought the first paragraph is about the author giving reasons why he chooses Tucker as a subject matter for research and this last point adds to the earlier points about Tucker's professional experiences as his other interests. But yes, I recognize the word "non-professional" used in answer D struck me as weird but I chose it nonetheless...but how is this memorabilia a source of research indicated by the author? --the second paragraph lists all sources of research but this memorabilia is not there

[Jonathan Evans]

Hi, jlliu, Let's take a look at what's going on here. First, we have to consider the task the question instructs us to do. In this case, we are asked to parallel two sets of circumstances. In the question, we are provided a hypothetical: a physicist has written about historical events surrounding his own work. We are then asked what the author would conclude about such a situation.

It is important not to get hung up on the particular details of any given analogy. The key is to identify the key components and their parallels in the passage. Second, we must consider the author's viewpoint. Apply the author's view to these circumstances.

In this case, we can break the question down as follows: "What would the author think about someone who has written about events she has experienced in her own life?"

Now using this understanding of the question task, we look for evidence in the passage. First, where do we need to look for information about the author using primary source testimony as a source. This occurs in paragraph 3. With regard to primary source testimony, the passage asserts (line 37): "Yet this testimony must be approached with caution, since each person recounting his or her version of events for the historical record has a vested interest in the project f."

Thence we can conclude that the author views primary source testimony with skepticism, proving answer choice (A). Notice the word "prove." That is our job here. We have to provide explicit evidence to back up our answer. In the first lesson you learned that the nuts and bolts of the LSAT involve the concept of Must Be True. Answer choice (D) has no evidence in the passage, therefore it is necessarily incorrect.

You must be careful and extremely particular on Reading Comprehension. There is little to no ambiguity in these questions. Treat them like a detective seeking evidence. Cross out the answers that are not backed up directly by the passage.

[geeeegz]

I got this question wrong since I ruled out A, as the second half of paragraph 3 references the drawbacks of only firsthand oral traditions, which I did not think implied written traditions as the question makes clear. I ended up picking D, which upon further reflection, isn't supported too much by the passage either, but I guess I thought the testmakers were trying to trick us by delineating oral vs written. Can you provide some additional clarification?

[Adam Tyson]

The issue here isn't so much about oral vs written, geeeegz, but about how much you can trust any individual's assessment of themselves. In this question, the physicist is writing their own story, rather than telling it to someone else, and that raises concerns because "no matter how fair-minded and objective one intends to be, the fact is that people often remember the events they want to remember in the version they prefer. " When someone recounts their story to a biographer, the biographer has to be careful to verify as much as they can about that story. When someone sits down to write their own story, there is no safety net of a disinterested party double-checking the facts to ensure that they are accurate! Thus, we can infer that our author would be concerned about the accuracy of the information provided in the book.