varotkorn wrote:
After reading the official explanation for this question, I still do not understand the logic behind it. Plus, although it is 95% hard question, no experts have given any explanations yet.
The reason this question is rated 95% and the reason that no experts have commented on it is that this question doesn't really work. While one could argue that (B) is the best choice, really there are multiple choices that would answer the question asked. So, this question is broken and does not accurately represent GMAT Critical Reasoning questions.
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Q1. Why is choice A. wrong?
A) In evaluating legislation that would impinge on a basic freedom, we should consider the consequences of not passing the legislation
Here the consequences of not passing the legislation are reflected in this part in the passage: the damage done by violent programs. If the legislation is not passed, the violent programs exist and hence its damage.
And if we consider the (BAD) consequences of not passing the legislation, we should support the legislation!
Your argument makes sense, and choice (A) is a viable answer.
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Q2. Why is choice D. wrong? (*** many students, including me, choose this one ***)
D) If the exercise of a basic freedom leads to some harm, then the exercise of that freedom should be restricted.
If choice D. is valid, which is already given in the question stem, this choice strongly justifies the reasoning.
If the exercise of a basic freedom leads to some harm -> We know from the passage that this part in choice D. is true: the damage done by violent programs is more harmful
then the exercise of that freedom should be restricted. -> We know that this part in choice D. supports passing the legislation, which restrict the freedom.
Taking choice D. together, we can conclude that supporting both freedom of speech and legislation is indeed consistent.
If we assume that freedom of speech is a "basic freedom," as most people do, then (D) is a viable choice.
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Q3. Why is choice E. wrong?
E) In some circumstances, we should tolerate regulations that impinge on a basic freedom.
I am not very convinced by the official explanation, which gives the ONLY reason why choice E. is wrong as follows: "Raymond is focused solely on a small limitation on free speech, while answer choice "E" applies to any "basic freedom", not just freedom of speech"
Reading choice E. in the context of the passage, we can interpret that "a basic freedom" in choice E. could refer to "freedom of speech" in the passage. I think we should allow some flexibility on the wording, as long as it conveys the same meaning. Otherwise, we would fixate on any word verbatim. Moreover, I often see that in many questions, correct answer choices do not normally use the exact same words given in the passage. Please also kindly note that choice A. and choice D. also use the phrase "a basic freedom". Should we all eliminate these 3 choices solely on the basis of just one phrase?
Apart from the detail on the wording, what is wrong with the logic in choice E.?
If we should tolerate the regulations that impinge on a basic freedom, that would support passing the legislation!
Once again, your argument is valid. Choice (E) is another viable answer to the question.
So, it appear that this question has four viable answers.
Is (B) the best answer? Perhaps. (B) is focused on freedom of speech and directly addresses why one might both support freedom of speech and agree to a limit on it.
At the same time, GMAT Critical Reasoning questions generally don't have multiple answers that work, one of which is slightly better than the others. They generally have only one choice that works at all, along with other choices that appear to work but don't work at all. So, this question is not really like any that you will see on the actual GMAT.
At the same time, we can learn something from this question. We can learn a little bit about dealing with weaknesses in verbal questions by considering what the author's intent may have been. In this case, it's a good bet that, of the viable choices, (B) is the one that the question author considered the best one. Yes, others work, but the wording and concepts of (B) seem more directly related to the argument presented than those in the other viable choices. While you won't run into a question with four viable answers on the GMAT, you may run into a question that requires your considering what the author of the question thought to be the correct answer, because the question is not as well written as it ideally would be. So, there's something to keep in mind.
On another note, whenever you see a question rated 95% on GMAT Club, even if it is an official question, and especially if it is a verbal question, it's good to be a bit skeptical of the quality of the question, because it may be that the question is that difficult to answer "correctly" because there's something wrong with the question.
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Updated on: 14 Jan 2020, 23:23
