#14 - Global Reference, Main Point

[Administrator]

Complete Question Explanation

The correct answer choice is (A).

Answer choice (A): This is the correct answer choice.

Answer choice (B):

Answer choice (C):

Answer choice (D):

Answer choice (E):


This explanation is still in progress. Please post any questions below!

[lolaSur]

Hi!

Could you please go over question 14 of this passage?

Question 14: "which one of the following best expresses the main idea of the passage?" I can see how Answer A is in line with the passage because in the second and third paragraph the passage provides examples which point to the composers' imagining higher keys that they could not play with the instruments available to them at the time they composed their music.

However, I don't understand why answer C is wrong. Could you please explain why answer C is wrong? Does answer C take the argument too far by stating by stating "perfectly tailored? or is there something else wrong with C? " Answer C states: "the early music approach to performance often assumes that composers write music that is perfectly tailored to the limitations of the instruments on which it will be performed during their lifetimes" In paragraph two I see the line "early music advocates assume that composers write only for the instruments available to them."

I understood the author took the position that although early music advocates believed in the importance of playing music as originally composed, we should play music as the composers intended the music to be played. I think I viewed the main point of this passage as a recommendation. But the author is not making a recommendation right?

How do I go about paraphrasing a main point after I read the passage? Are there any strategies? I have been using the VIEWSTAMP method and have found it very challenging to accurately summarize passages' main points. Am I confusing the main point with the author's point of view? Please help!

Thank you!

[Paul Marsh]

Hi Lola! Nice work seeing how Answer Choice (A) makes sense. In a Reading Comprehension passage, the Main Point can be thought of like a current that runs through the entire passage. The idea that (A) is talking about - that the movement has some questions it needs to address - is driving every portion of the passage. For Main Point questions, we are focused on the big picture, the passage as a whole. A huge help in not getting distracted by incorrect Main Point answer choices is the ability to see the forest through the trees. So while it's true that the author briefly touches on some of what Answer Choice (C) is talking about in the second paragraph, this is not the Main Point because it is only a small part of the passage.

Pre-Phrasing is very helpful for Main Point questions. Since nearly every passage has one, take a second to think about the Main Point before you even move on to the questions. What is the passage as a whole discussing? Does the author have a conclusion? What are the main areas he or she focuses on in reaching that conclusion? If an answer choice only focuses on a small part of the passage, or ignores another important part of the passage, it is likely incorrect.

(Also, you are right that the author is not really making a recommendation here. Instead, he is just pointing out problems with the early music advocate movement).

Hope that helps!

[Noodles93]

Can you explain why D is incorrect?

[Dana D]

Hey Noodles,

As Paul said, we want the correct answer choice here to be the underlying main idea of the entire passage, carried throughout each paragraph. Instruments are discussed in the last two paragraphs, for sure, but in the context of other questions. Additionally, the passage doesn't focus much information missing from how performances have changed between the time of writing and now. In fact, the author discusses these differences with ease, comparing historical applause breaks versus modern applause (lines 50-55) for example. Answer (D) simply doesn't capture the main focus of the passage the way answer choice (A) does, and in fact incorrectly characterizes the passage a bit with the last half of the answer choice ' they lack information regarding how the style of such performances has changed since such music was written.'

Hope that helps!