Events & Promotions
|
|
GMAT Club Daily Prep
Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.
Customized
for You
Track
Your Progress
Practice
Pays
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
Nov 1811:00 AM PST
-12:00 PM PST
Join us in a live GMAT practice session and solve 30 challenging GMAT questions with other test takers in timed conditions, covering GMAT Quant, Data Sufficiency, Data Insights, Reading Comprehension, and Critical Reasoning questions.
Nov 2211:00 AM IST
-01:00 PM IST
Do RC/MSR passages scare you? e-GMAT is conducting a masterclass to help you learn – Learn effective reading strategies Tackle difficult RC & MSR with confidence Excel in timed test environment- Nov 23
11:00 AM IST
-01:00 PM IST
Attend this free GMAT Algebra Webinar and learn how to master the most challenging Inequalities and Absolute Value problems with ease. 
Nov 2510:00 AM EST
-11:00 AM EST
Prefer video-based learning? The Target Test Prep OnDemand course is a one-of-a-kind video masterclass featuring 400 hours of lecture-style teaching by Scott Woodbury-Stewart, founder of Target Test Prep and one of the most accomplished GMAT instructors.
16 Apr 2020, 02:12
Kudos
Bookmarks
B
Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!
Difficulty:
45%
(medium)
Question Stats:
70% (02:19) correct
30%
(02:25)
wrong
based on 679
sessions
History
Date
Time
Result
Not Attempted Yet
One researcher writes, “Human beings are innately aggressive.” As evidence, the researcher cites the prevalence of warfare in history and then discounts any current disinclination to fight: “The most peaceable peoples of today were often ravagers of yesteryear and will probably fight again in the future.” But if some peoples are peaceable now, then aggression itself cannot be coded in our genes, only the potential for it. If “innate” only means possible, or even likely in certain environments, then everything we do is innate and the word has no meaning.
Which one of the following most accurately describes the technique used in the passage to weaken the argument for the claim that aggressiveness is innate to human beings?
(A) The accuracy of the historical data cited in the argument for innate aggressiveness is called into question.
(B) The force of the concept of innateness used in the argument for innate aggressiveness is called into question.
(C) An attempt is made to undermine the argument for innate aggressiveness by arguing that there are no genetically based traits.
(D) An attempt is made to undermine the argument for innate aggressiveness by suggesting that it appeals to emotional considerations rather than to reason.
(E) An attempt is made to undermine the argument for innate aggressiveness by arguing that all peoples are peaceable.
Bunuel
I typically start a CR question by focusing on the question so that I know how to approach reading the passage.
Bunuel
This is an interesting one. We are not looking to weaken the argument ourselves, but instead, we need to outline how the passage turns against the claim that aggressiveness is innate to human beings. What does the passage tell us?
Bunuel
Sentence 1 is simply a quotation from what one researcher has written. The line establishes the claim in question.
Sentence 2 starts with what the researcher cites as evidence, prefacing the quote with a summary: in short, people used to fight one another a lot, but now they do not.
Sentence 3 starts with "but," so we know a counter is coming. That counterclaim is based on a conditional statement, namely that even if some people are peaceable now, it would prove that aggression itself cannot be coded in our genes. These people stand as a testament against the earlier hypothesis that "Human beings are innately aggressive."
Sentence 4 provides a semantic analysis, suggesting that the word innate cannot be diminished to mean possible or likely.
With our breakdown of the passage complete, again, we need to find an answer choice that agrees with the position the passage outlines in sentences 3 and 4.
Bunuel
Did I miss something? Where does the passage point out the problematic nature of the historical data the researcher uses to back up the claim about human beings being innately aggressive? In fact, the word cite as it is used in the passage is not telling us that the researcher is referencing any specific work about the aggressive tendencies of humans throughout history; rather, it is used in place of a more generic points out or something similar. In short, the passage never broaches the topic of these historical data in sentences 3 and 4, where the rebuttal takes place.
Bunuel
This is the entire point of sentence 4, the semantic sentence, as I referred to it above. Now, I know the force of the concept of is not easy to follow, but concept of innateness is straightforward, and sentence 4 makes it clear that this concept, the way it is being used by the researcher, is being distorted to fit the claim. The passage takes the stance that for something to be innate, it must be coded in our genes, rather than being tucked away as a potential characteristic.
Bunuel
I like the first part, but the second makes no sense. The passage does not focus on any traits other than aggression (line 3). It does not get into eye color or allele combinations to examine any other genetic traits. Thus, we cannot get behind this overstated answer choice.
Bunuel
That could be true of an entirely different argument, but not the one presented by the researcher. Again, lines 3 and 4 take issue with the manner in which innate is bandied about to refer to the potential for aggression. There is nothing in the same lines to support this "emotional consideration" argument.
Bunuel
Another classic overstatement--notice the definitive language in all. The passage only points out that the way in which this one researcher has made a claim about innate human aggression is misguided.
I hope that helps. If anyone has further questions, I would be happy to discuss them.
- Andrew
General Discussion
29 Jun 2025, 02:02
Kudos
Bookmarks
Hi can anyone post a better explanation as to why B is the correct answer and not C?
