shanks2020
Hi
GMATNinja AndrewNIn option B, even if Ife derived the knowledge from Portuguese, who in turn taught Benin, this is in inline with the conclusion. It doesn't matter whether it came directly from Portuguese or not, per the conclusion. So having a contact or no contact should have no effect.
Can you plz. explain.
This would have been correct, if the conclusion would have mentioned that knowledge came "DIRECTLY" from Ife. As far as the conclusion is concerned here, coming directly or indirectly should not matter, all that it states - "To Benin it came from Ife".
If the option would have reduced the possibility of this knowledge going to Benin without involving Ife, then this option would have been correct.
What is wrong in my thinking?
Hello,
shanks2020. I think your approach here is overwrought, that Portuguese
influence is what needs to be considered here, and influence can be indirect. (Sorry, I could not help dropping in a metallurgical pun.) To be clear, the conclusion that Benin is unlikely to have derived its knowledge of brass casting from the Portuguese is based on the premise that Portuguese records from a 1485 expedition
mention cast-brass jewelry sent to Benin's king from neighboring Ife. Since we are tasked with
most strengthening the argument, we need to consider this premise. You might wonder why I underlined
most just now. I think it is important to consider that you are not looking for an ironclad truth (I am on a roll now, so why stop) to strengthen the argument, just some piece of information that increases the probability that the conclusion is accurate for the reason provided. Here, if the Portuguese had in some way
influenced the brass-casting knowledge of metalworkers from Ife, then the conclusion would fall apart. The correct answer, then, should best dispel this notion.
Looking at (B), if the Portuguese had no contact with Ife until the 1500s, then it would seem reasonable to suggest that Ife metalworkers had produced the cast-brass jewelry gifted to the king of Benin
in 1485 without techniques that were introduced by the Portuguese and, further, that Ife's knowledge of brass casting was a likely candidate for shaping
Benin's knowledge of brass casting. Is it possible that the people of Ife had come across Portuguese brass casting techniques in some other way, perhaps through indirect trade or through writings, prior to the 1485 Portuguese expedition to Benin? Sure, but it is less likely than the alternative, that that cast-brass jewelry was produced by
any other means, given the timeline, and that this knowledge was in turn passed on to Benin. Of the five answer choices presented, (B) is the only one that provides a satisfactory option. Was there something else that you thought sounded more reasonable?
Thank you for thinking to ask me about the question. I hope that helps.
- Andrew