Scholars often fail to see that music played an important role in the

Very small and tidy passage. Got 3 out of 4 correct in 2 mins 38 secs. The last question can be tricky if you fail to understand what the author is asking.


To understand the primary purpose, read the first and last lines of the passage carefully and try to figure out the tone and conclusion in passage if there is one.
1. The primary purpose of the passage is to
(A) analyze the impact that slavery had on African political and economic systems Too specific to be the main point. The passage focusses on music.
(B) review the attempt of recent scholarship to study the influence of African music on other music The impact of African music on other music is out of scope.
(C) correct the failure of some scholars to appreciate the significance of music in African culture "correct the failure" may sound extreme but the first line of the passage suggests just this. Perfect.
(D) survey the ways by which people attempt to preserve their culture against the effects of oppression There is no survey. Discard.
(E) compare the relative importance of music with that of other art forms in culture Music is not compared to other art forms. Discard.

This reference is made when showing how African music is different from music in other cultures.
2. In the Passage “isolated social domain” refers to
(A) African music in relation to contemporary culture as a whole 180 opposite of what is being conveyed in the passage.
(B) music as it may be perceived in non-African cultures Perfect. This is exactly what we are looking for.
(C) a feature of African music that aided in transmitting African cultural values TRICKY - if we do not read the entire option properly as some expected words are present. However, this is 180 opposite of what is conveyed in the passage.
(D) an aspect of the African cultural legacy Again, same as above.
(E) the influence of music on contemporary culture Too broad - we are looking at music in other cultures.

Inference type question, we need to find that option which is 100% supported by the passage. Detail type as the options are pretty straightforward.
3. Which of the following statements concerning the function of African music can be inferred from the passage?
(A) It preserved cultural values because it was thoroughly integrated into the lives of the people. Perfect. Verbatim from the passage.
(B) It was more important in the development of African religious life than in other areas of culture. Wrong. It was equally important in all practices and not only religion.
(C) It was developed in response to the loss of political and economic systems. Correlation implies causation fallacy. The two happened together but one did not cause the other.
(D) Its pervasiveness in African culture hindered its effectiveness in minimizing the impact of slavery. 180 degree opposite to what is conveyed.
(E) Its isolation from the economic domains of life enabled it to survive the destructive impact of slavery. Not mentioned and hence cannot be inferred.

Tricky question as it is asking two things. Which conclusions the scholars have drawn and which of them are wrong. Need to keep both things in mind.
4. According to the author, scholars would err in drawing which of the following conclusions?

I. Slavery stripped the slaves of their political and economic systems. Conclusion drawn but it was not wrong.
II. African music was similar to all other traditions of music in that it originated in a total vision of life. African music is dissimilar is not concluded and hence they must have drawn this as a conclusion. Also, the author says the scholars erred in doing so. This is correct.
III. Music was a crucial part of the African cultural legacy. They did not draw this conclusion at all!
(A) I only
(B) II only TICK
(C) I and II only
(D) II and III only
(E) I, II, and III

Hope this helps.