Although many 17th century broadsides, popular ballads

Question

Although many 17th century broadsides, popular ballads printed on a single sheet of paper and widely sold by street peddlers, were moralizing in nature, this is not evidence that most 17th century people were serious about moral values. While over half of surviving broadsides contain moralizing statements, and it is known that many people purchased such compositions, it is not widely known why they did so, nor is it known how their own beliefs related to what they read.

Which one of the following, if true, most strengthens the argument?

(A) like other forms of cheap 17th century popular literature, surviving broadsides seem mostly to have been rather low literary quality and to have been written by hack writers.

(B) In many moralizing ballads, the moral content was confined to a single stanza expressing a pious sentiment tacked onto a sensational account of crime and adultery

(C) Some 17th century ballad sellers also sold some sermons printed in pamphlet form

(D) The clergy occasionally stuck broadsides warning about the danger of strong drink on the doors of 17th century alehouses

(E) Well educated people of the 17th century held broadsides in contempt and considered broadside peddlers to be disreputable vagrants

shasadou · Accepted Answer

Veritas OA:

Solution: B

This is a Strengthen question, as evidenced by the phrase, “which of the following… most strengthens the argument.” Our first item of business is therefore to identify the conclusion of the author and then look for gaps between the conclusion and the premises. However, the Testmaker has made it difficult to identify the conclusion of the argument. Using the “why?” test to evaluate pieces of the argument help you to determine what the actual conclusion is. Normally, the last sentence in an argument is a prime candidate for the location of the conclusion (in fact, this is what the Testmaker wants you to believe for this particular problem.)

However, looking closer at the argument, it is obvious that the “why” of the last statement is to show that moral broadsides were not evidence most seventeenth-century people were serious about moral values. This is the logical gap: while the assumption exists that most seventeenth- century people purchased broadsides because the broadsides were moralizing, we actually don’t know why they were purchased. The answer choice should plug this logical gap.

Answer choice “A” is a distraction that fails to focus on the logical gap. Regardless of if the broadsides were of low quality, the body of the question indicates they were popular. Answer choice “A” still does not tell us why most seventeenth-century people purchased broadsides.

Answer choice “B” gives us an alternative people purchased reason for broadsides: why the most seventeenth-century moralizing aspect of the broadsides was rather minimal, and they actually “sensationalized” crime and adultery. This helps the author of the argument prove that we can’t assume most people purchased broadsides because the broadsides were moralizing. “B” helps strengthen the argument.

Answer choice “C” is at best irrelevant to the argument (since the original argument focuses on broadsides, not on pamphlet sermons.) At worst, answer choice “C” actually weakens the argument, since buying printed sermons would seem on its face to be evidence that the populace was serious about moral values.

Answer choice “D” focuses on the interests of the clergy, but fails to mind the logical gap. The argument in the body of the question makes a conclusion about “most seventeenth-century people.” Answer choice “D” makes no comment on “most seventeenth-century people,” and concentrates on a small group of people “occasionally” posting moral broadsides on alehouse doors. This cannot help explain the popularity of broadsides sold by street peddlers.

In like manner to answer choice “D”, answer choice “E” also focuses on the interests of a subgroup while failing to mind the logical gap. The argument in the body of the question makes a conclusion about “most seventeenth-century people.” Answer choice “E” makes no comment on “most seventeenth-century people,” and concentrates on only “well- educated people” who steered clear of both broadsides and street peddlers. Naturally, this cannot help explain the popularity of broadsides sold by street peddlers.

nitronori41 · Answer

My Reasoning:
Although many 17th century broadsides, popular ballads printed on a single sheet of paper and widely sold by street peddlers,..................

now why would anyone pay money to read some dreary boring and preachy stuff.
so what if the peddlers were baddies or if the stanzas carried warnings, were written by hacks etc....
scandalous material has a great chance of selling, eh? :lol:

so anyway, my answer is B.

so anyway, my answer is B.

zaarathelab · Answer

OA is B

Adultery and scandalous elements were attractive then as well

Ludacrispat26 · Answer

Yeah, OA should be B

If the moralizing sentiment was confined to a single stanza, then it is unlikely it would define the beliefs of the author/buyer of the piece.

foreverstrong · Answer

According to the book, the option B is "In many moralizing ballads, the moral content was confined to a single stanza expressing a pious sentiment  tacked  onto a sensational account of crime and adultery."
Hope i helped

b9n920 · Answer

I cud not understand option B because of 'lacked', a printing error, that made me comprehend the exact opposite meaning. Pls correct the error.

kornn · Answer

Dear VeritasPrepBrian VeritasKarishma AnthonyRitz IanStewart DmitryFarber MartyTargetTestPrep GMATNinja,

Q1. Why is choice E. wrong?

I think that the buyers if broadsides were well-educated. Otherwise, how can they read ballads?
In light of choice E., those well-educated people bought broadsides out of pity. They sympathized broadside peddlers and decided to buy their stuff to help the poor. Hence, choice E. offers an alternative reason: People were not serious about moral values in broadsides, but they bought them because they were just compassionate. Those buyers did not even care about the content in broadsides.

Q2. Why is choice B. right?

I think choice B. also reflects moral values in broadsides through the word "pious".
How does choice B. NOT reflect the moral values?

Thank you in advance!

IanStewart · Answer

E is wrong because it only tells you about "well-educated people", while the stem is about "most people". We have no reason to think that "most people" were well-educated, so learning about what a presumably small fraction of people thought doesn't tell us much about what most people thought. B is the only reasonable answer here, since it explains that the moralizing content was not a major feature of the broadsides, and there may have been many other reasons these songs attracted public interest.

KarishmaB · Answer

Responding to a pm:
In (E), you are confusing "well educated" with "literate". Well educated people may have been a small group out of all 17th century people but everyone may have been literate. What "well educated" people considered is irrelevant.

(B) tells us that the moralising content was little and the rest was sensational. So it looks like the "popular broadsides" were selling crime and adultery. Then it certainly makes us question how serious people were about morals.

unraveled · Answer

Although many 17th century broadsides, popular ballads printed on a single sheet of paper and widely sold by street peddlers, were moralizing in nature, this is not evidence that most 17th century people were serious about moral values. While over half of surviving broadsides contain moralizing statements, and it is known that many people purchased such compositions, it is not widely known why they did so, nor is it known how their own beliefs related to what they read.

Which one of the following, if true, most strengthens the argument?

(A) like other forms of cheap 17th century popular literature, surviving broadsides seem mostly to have been rather low literary quality and to have been written by hack writers. - WRONG. So what!! How does it lead to prove that most 17th century people were not serious about moral values? Whomsoever wrote broadsides is not at all concerning.

(B) In many moralizing ballads, the moral content was confined to a single stanza expressing a pious sentiment tacked onto a sensational account of crime and adultery - CORRECT. Moral values shot point blank by this option. But it still had the problem as in what "many" stands for. This is countered when we look to other choices. So, relatively B does a better job, rather it is the only one that does something to favour the conclusion.

(C)  Some  17th century ballad sellers also sold some sermons printed in  pamphlet form  - WRONG. Irrelevant.

(D) The clergy  occasionally  stuck broadsides warning about the danger of strong drink on the doors of 17th century alehouses - WRONG.

(E) Well educated people of the 17th century held broadsides in contempt and considered broadside peddlers to be disreputable vagrants - WRONG. Irrelevant.

Answer B.

VerbalBot · Answer

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Although many 17th century broadsides, popular ballads

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