Nico Frijda writes that emotions are governed by a psychological princ

Okay so here it goes -

Main Point / Summary - Nico Frijda (NF) has written about "law of apparent reality" - emotions are only felt for real situations ex. the rattlesnake induces fear. But two others -Gombrich says - ( emotional responses to art and other intangible or non-real situations are because of past experiences and Radford says people experience real joy or sorry based on art but these are irrational responses. finally, NF says vivid imagination results in illusory events being felt as if they were real to whichScruton argues that a person surely knows he or she is pretending. So NF cannot completely explain the emotional response to imaginary events by her theory. Phew!


central idea requires a main point understanding of the passage
1. Which one of the following best states the central idea of the passage?

(A) The law of apparent reality fails to account satisfactorily for the emotional nature of belief. TRAP - mix of words but this is not conveyed by the passage
(B) Theories of aesthetic response fail to account for how we distinguish unreasonable from reasonable responses to art. BS option
(C) The law of apparent reality fails to account satisfactorily for emotional responses to art. BINGO! - this is the main discussion point throughout the passage
(D) Psychologists have been unable to determine what accounts for the changeable nature of emotional responses to art. Changeable nature - BS Option
(E) Psychologists have been unable to determine what differentiates aesthetic from nonaesthetic emotional responses. [color=#ed1c24]Even though true this is too detailed to be central idea[/color]


detail question based on understanding NF's theory
2. According to the passage, Frijda’s law asserts that emotional responses to events are

(A) unpredictable because emotional responses depend on how aware the person is of the reality of an event Not true at all
(B) weaker if the person cannot distinguish illusion from reality This goes against the central point being discussed and NF never claims this
(C) more or less intense depending on the degree to which the person perceives the event to be real BINGO! - this is her theory
(D) more intense if the person perceives an event to be frightening REAL WORLD TRAP - though not what she says - just one example of this is used but any emotion is strong based on real world exp
(E) weaker if the person judges an event to be real but unthreatening BS extrapolation option

Based on the concluding paragraph
3. The author suggests that Frijda’s notion of the role of imagination in aesthetic response is problematic because it

(A) ignore the unselfconsciousness that is characteristic of emotional responses to art No it does not
(B) ignores the distinction between genuine emotion and ersatz emotion She does not define ersatz emotion so this is a mix up option to confuse
(C) ignores the fact that a person who is imagining knows that he or she is imagining CORRECT - this is exactly the point which Scruton makes to refute her claim
(D) makes irrelevant distinctions between vivid and weak imaginative capacities Nah
(E) suggests, in reference to the observation of art, that there is no distinction between real and illusory stimuli Nah - this is never mentioned or implied

EXCEPT questions on a long and tricky passage arevery important Here you need to find what those two gentlemen say and make conclusions - refer to main point above
4. The passage supports all of the following statements about the differences between Gombrich and Radford EXCEPT:

(A) Radfod’s argument relies on a notion of irrationality in a way that Gomgbrich’s argument does not. TRAP - this is trivially true BUT this is an EXCEPT question!
(B) Gombrich's position is closer to the position of the majority of psychologists than is Radford’s. CORRECT - slight mention of this at the start of para 3 - "Most psychologists, perplexed by the feelings..." and "On the other hand, Gombrich argues that ..." MEANS GOMBR does not believe what most psych do!
(C) Gombrich, unlike Radford, argues that we do not have true emotions in response to art. Yep - gombrich just says past experiences are responsible
(D) Gombrich’s argument rests on a notion of memory in a way that Radford’s argument does not.True
(E) Radford’s argument, unlike Gombrich’s, is not focused on the artificial quality of emotional responses to art. True - he says these responses are irrational

This is authors take on NFs theory
5. Which one of the following best captures the progression of the author’s argument in lines 9-31?

(A) The emotional responses to events ranging from the real to the depicted illustrate the irrationality of emotional response. Not true
(B) A series of events that range from the real to the depicted conveys the contrast between real events and cinematic depiction. Nah - there is no such distinction presented
(C) An intensification in emotional response to a series of events that range from the real to the depicted illustrates Frijda’s law.Opposite is true
(D) A progression of events that range from the real to the depicted examines the precise nature of panic in relation to feared object.Nah - this is not what author is trying to show
(E) The consistency of emotional responses to events that range from the real to the depicted challenges Frijda’s law. Bingo - author shows how NF's law does not hold by giving example

Another EXCEPT - this passage is taxing
6. Author’s assertions concerning movies about ghosts imply that all of the following statements are false EXCEPT:

(A) Movies about ghosts are terrifying in proportion to viewers’ beliefs in the phenomenon of ghosts. Not mentioned in the passage that response is based on belief
(B) Movies about imaginary phenomena like ghosts may be just as terrifying as movies about phenomena like the snake. CORRECT - this is the whole point of the passage
(C) Movies about ghosts and snakes are not terrifying because people know that what they viewing is not real. Opposite is true
(D) Movies about ghosts are terrifying to viewers who previously rejected the possibility of ghosts because movies permanently alter the viewer's sense of reality. NAH - BS Option?
(E) Movies about ghosts elicit a very different emotional response from viewers who do not believe in ghosts than movies about snakes elicit from viewers who are frightened by snakes. Nah - goes against the idea depicted here

What did Radford say? Go back and check summary
7. Which one of the following statements best exemplifies the position of Radford concerning the nature of emotional response to art?

(A) A person watching a movie about guerrilla warfare irrationally believes that he or she is present at the battle. TRAP option - we are looking for an irrational EMOTIONAL response
(B) A person watching a play about a kidnapping feels nothing because he or she rationally realizes it is not a real event. opposite
(C) A person gets particular enjoyment out of writing fictional narratives in which he or she figures as a main character. out of writing and not witnessing or reading - hence wrong
(D) A person irrationally bursts into tears while reading a novel about a destructive fire, even while realizing that he or she is reading about a fictional event. CORRECT - irrational emotional response
(E) A person who is afraid of snakes trips over a branch and irrationally panics. BS Option

Phew! That was one long post folks! Consider giving kudos for the effort Kidding.

Best,
Gladi