#12 - Weaken

[biskam]

Confused as to why C isn't correct and D is? I didn't see the author commenting on pop artists' emotional (or lack thereof) work... I only saw the author do so with abstract expressionists.

Thanks!

[Matt Griffiths]

Good question biskam. The evidence for this question is found in the 2nd paragraph. First, in the sentence beginning in line 21: "Pop art painters weren't quarreling with the powerful early abstract expressionist work of the late 1940s but with a second generation of abstract expressionists..." Also, the sentence beginning in line 27 states that "Lichtenstein's work was part of a general rebellion against the fading emotional power of abstract expressionism..." (italics added).

According to the passage, Lichtenstein, as a pop artist himself, had no beef with early abstract expressionists. So answer choice (C), which states that Lichtenstein praised an early abstract expressionist for emotional paintings, doesn't weaken or challenge the author's argument at all. In fact, it strengthens the argument!

Answer choice (D), on the other hand, directly goes against the second sentence I quoted. Lichtenstein was rebelling against "fading emotional power"; in other words, he wanted to bring emotion back into paintings. (See also the sentence in the last paragraph beginning with line 48, which explains that he filled his paintings with "nostalgia" and "sweetness".) So to say that he would criticize another pop artist for producing emotional paintings wouldn't make much sense. Therefore (D) weakens the author's characterization and is the correct answer.

Hope that helps.

[ashpine17]

Ok, so L is NOT against emotion? I am confused. I thought he didn't like Abstract expressionism.

[Adam Tyson]

Correct, ashpine17! Lichtenstein is, according to our author, all about expressing emotion in his paintings. He conveys sweetness and nostalgia, and he is part of a movement that rebels against the "fading emotional power" of the second wave of abstract expressionists. That means pop artists, including Lichtenstein, are unhappy at the LACK of emotional power in those later abstract expressionist works, which means they want MORE emotion in their art. But if Lichtenstein were to criticize another pop artist for incorporating emotion into their art, that would weaken the author's position, suggesting that L was NOT all that interested in an emotional element in art.

[ashpine17]

When the author states that L is going against overly sophisticated art, are we still talking about abstract expressionism? or is "overly sophisticated art" a broader category of art that includes AE?

[evelineliu]

Hi Ash,

The author says in lines 43-48: "In contrast to some pop art, Lichtenstein's work exuded not a jaded cynicism about consumer culture, but a kind of deliberate naïveté, intended as a repose to the excess of sophistication he observed not only in the later abstract expressionists but in some other pop artists."

Hope that helps!
Eveline

[rjhyman]

Hi! I was wondering if someone could explain why A is not correct? It seems to weaken the sentence "The truth is that by the time pop art first appeared in the early 1960s, abstract expressionism had already lost much of its force." I am really bad at weaken questions but I think that A might be wrong because it is not weakening the conclusion the author is making?

[katehos]

Hi rjhyman!

You've got it! The reason why (A) is incorrect is because it does not weaken the conclusion the author is making. Whether or not Lichtenstein attended exhibitions by abstract expressionist painters in the 1960s makes no part of the author's characterization of Lichtenstein more or less likely!

Additionally, the assertion that Lichtenstein attended exhibitions by abstract expressionists does not necessarily weaken the statement that "abstract expressionism had lost much of its force." Perhaps there were only 5 abstract expressionism exhibitions per year (compared to something like 100 in prior years). Well, even if Lichtenstein attended all/some of those exhibitions, it does not change the fact that abstract expressionism lost force (which, in this example, is exemplified by the vast reduction in exhibitions).

Now, whether or not (A) weakens the statement about abstract expressionism losing its force is ultimately irrelevant to the question being asked here, since we're looking to weaken "the author's characterization of Lichtenstein", not abstract expressionism! So, (A) is out of the scope and we can eliminate this answer choice.

I hope this helps
Kate

[ashpine17]

So RL is not against emotions in artwork but just doesn’t like overly emotional artwork? Is that correct?

[Adam Tyson]

Not quite. Roy likes emotion, and doesn't like that later abstract expressionist painting was losing its emotional impact and becoming too fancy and full of itself (lyrical, high minded, etc.) What would weaken that position is anything that suggests Roy did NOT like emotion in paintings.