Luciano wrote:
GMATNinja could you please explain how to go about answering question 4?
Question 4
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4. Which of the following, if true, provides the LEAST support for the author's argument about commerce and political parties during Jackson's presidency?
To answer question 4, we need to understand the author's argument about commerce and political parties during Jackson's presidency.
In the paragraph 1, we learn that, according to a historian named Ketcham,
the first six presidents condemned political parties. The early presidents hated parties so much because they held a "classical conception of virtuous leadership," and thought that party politics prevent leaders from selflessly embodying this ideal.
Then Jackson comes along as president #7, and this is what the author says about his presidency:
"[Ketcham] does rightly see Jackson's tenure (the seventh presidency) as the culmination of the acceptance of party, commerce, and individualism. For the Jacksonians, nonpartisanship lost its relevance, and under the direction of Van Buren, party gained a new legitimacy."
So, the author argues that there is a
contrast between the first six presidents (under whom party politics were discouraged), and Jackson (under whom political parties and commerce were accepted).
In answering the question, we're looking for a piece of information that DOES NOT support this argument. Let's go through the answer choices:
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(A) Many supporters of Jackson resisted the commercialization that could result from participation in a national economy.
(A) tells us that Jackson supporters RESISTED commercialization. That goes completely against the author's claim that, under Jackson, commerce became ACCEPTED.
(A) doesn't support the author's argument, so keep it for now.
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(B) Protest against the corrupt and partisan nature of political parties in the United States subsided during Jackson's presidency.
If protest against political parties
subsided, it seems like people grew more favorable toward political parties. This supports the claim that political parties were more accepted during Jackson's presidency.
Because (B) supports the author's claim, we can eliminate it.
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(C) During Jackson's presidency the use of money became more common than bartering of goods and services.
From (C), we can gather that commercial activity was on the rise during Jackson's presidency. This supports the author's claim that commerce became more accepted during this time.
(C) is out.
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(D) More northerners than southerners supported Jackson because southerners were opposed to the development of a commercial economy.
This tells us a bit more about Jackson's supporters -- they were northerners who were more open to the idea of developing a commercial economy. This supports the author's claim that Jacksonianism and commercialism go hand-in-hand.
(D) supports the author's argument, so get rid of (D).
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(E) Andrew Jackson did not feel as strongly committed to the classical ideals of leadership as George Washington had felt.
This supports the author's claim that, under Jackson, there was a shift away from classical ideals of leadership and toward commerce/political parties.
Eliminate (E).
(A) is the correct answer to question #4.
I hope that helps!