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805+ Level|   Non-Math Related|            
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Can any expert help? I chose option A and E. The correct answers are EC. I think the boldface does not criticize, it rather encourages historians not to approach a particular historical event from too narrow a perspective.
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Bold Face: arguments that focus only on those figures’ conflicts with landless people ignore the fact that political figures are not only representatives of socioeconomic interests but also political actors embedded in particular contexts that shape whether they support democratic reforms
Notice how they are saying "arguments that focus only on ... ignore the fact that political figures are not only representatives of ... but also".
This is the author criticizing the basing argument saying that there is more and the current argument is NOT good. He explicitly mentions the "arguments" and then follows it with negative thought (criticizing it).

Passage: Before the boldface, they mention the argument, then they go about why that argument is not sufficient and it needs more (since it is ignoring some things), then the most important part comes in the last sentence when they say "Historians must take such contexts into account if they hope to explain what transpired in Prussia during this period."
This is telling us the historians must take everything into account, and NOT have a narrow perspective. It is literally telling us to take more contexts into account, because if we do not (that is, remain narrow visioned), we are missing a big piece of the picture.
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Hello, professionals, can someone confirm that answers are E / C respectively?

I had a prep test recently with the new GMAT official prep system, which has opened recently, and the answers are written as C / B there.
I was a bit confused.


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celan
Hello, professionals, can someone confirm that answers are E / C respectively?

I had a prep test recently with the new GMAT official prep system, which has opened recently, and the answers are written as C / B there.
I was a bit confused.


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The listed answers are correct: (E) describes the purpose of the passage as a whole, and (C) describes the role of the portion in boldface. There is a screenshot verifying these answers.

It's possible that you saw a slightly different version of the question (a different boldface portion, answer choices moved around, etc). Sometimes that happens!

I hope that helps!
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Hi avigutman - regarding best describing the purpose of the boldface specifically - how does one eliminate (A) ?

I thought (A) & (C) were both ok.

The part in red below is an alternative explananation to the standard explanation (in the green) per my understanding

Below are some reasons why others have eliminated (A) regarding the bold face.

Quote:

Some studies of how it was that Prussia resisted the wave of European democratization in the nineteenth century point to Prussia’s unequal distribution of land ownership as the principal explanation. And political figures from areas in Prussia with high inequality in land ownership tended to be the staunchest opponents of democratic reforms. However, arguments that focus only on those figures’ conflicts with landless people ignore the fact that political figures are not only representatives of socioeconomic interests but also political actors embedded in particular contexts that shape whether they support democratic reforms. Historians must take such contexts into account if they hope to explain what transpired in Prussia during this period.

Select Passage for the statement that best describes the purpose of the passage as a whole, and select Portion in Boldface for the statement that best describes the purpose of the portion in boldface. Make only two selections, one in each column.

A. To offer an alternative to the standard explanation of a particular historical event
C. To criticize a certain type of argument about a particular historical event
E. To encourage historians not to approach a particular historical event from too narrow a perspective


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^^ avigutman
Quote:
(i) Is (A) wrong because -- perhaps the green is NOT the standard explanation ? umm i dont think thats the best way to eliminate (A)


Quote:
(ii) Is (A) wrong because -- perhaps the red is NOT an alternative explanation ? The term alternative explanation implies -- rejecting the green explanation and supporting the red explanation

IS that definition of 'alternative explanation' NOT TRUE ? I am not 100 % sure.

I know the author supports BOTH explanations


Quote:
(iii) Is (A) wrong because -- while (A) is accurate if you just read the bold face word for word but the primary purpose of the bold face is to criticize.

Upon criticizing, then the author makes a suggestion to historians (last sentence)

The words in the bold face are an alternative explanation but the primary purpose of the bold face -- is to criticize the argument rather than just to offer an explanation.

In fact if the bold face did not criticise but if the bold face just offered an alternative explanation -- the last line i am not sure makes sense.

Quote:

analogy -
The British empire colonized for economic interests. Actually the british empire colonized for national security interests.
Historians must take such contexts into account if they hope to explain why the British empire colonized countries == this suggestion then doesnt make sense


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jabhatta2
regarding best describing the purpose of the boldface specifically - how does one eliminate (A) ?

I thought (A) & (C) were both ok.

The part in red below is an alternative explananation to the standard explanation (in the green) per my understanding

Some studies point to A as the principal explanation. However, arguments that focus only on A ignore the fact that it's not only A, but also B.

This argument doesn't have a standard explanation vs. an alternative explanation. This argument is commanding historians to take particular contexts into account (B), in addition to A. That's why I eliminate A without hesitation, jabhatta2.
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avigutman
jabhatta2
regarding best describing the purpose of the boldface specifically - how does one eliminate (A) ?

I thought (A) & (C) were both ok.

The part in red below is an alternative explananation to the standard explanation (in the green) per my understanding

Some studies point to A as the principal explanation. However, arguments that focus only on A ignore the fact that it's not only A, but also B.

This argument doesn't have a standard explanation vs. an alternative explanation. This argument is commanding historians to take particular contexts into account (B), in addition to A. That's why I eliminate A without hesitation, jabhatta2.

avigutman - So you are saying (B) is not even an explanation ? (B) is just 'more context' and (B) is not an even an explanation ?
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^^avigutman - i thought this kind of 'needle threading' was not what the GMAT tests (like in SC, where commas are placed as a way to eliminate)

This kind of micro-needling (difference between an explanation vs additional context) is not easy to decipher in 3.5 minutes

I suppose the last statement does have the word 'context' (yellow highlight) but i dont know -- to eliminate (A) based on the difference between 'additional context' and 'explanations' seem to be 'needle threading' -- too subtle ..

Quote:

Some studies of how it was that Prussia resisted the wave of European democratization in the nineteenth century point to Prussia’s unequal distribution of land ownership as the principal explanation. And political figures from areas in Prussia with high inequality in land ownership tended to be the staunchest opponents of democratic reforms. However, arguments that focus only on those figures’ conflicts with landless people ignore the fact that political figures are not only representatives of socioeconomic interests but also political actors embedded in particular contexts that shape whether they support democratic reforms. Historians must take such contexts into account if they hope to explain what transpired in Prussia during this period.

Select Passage for the statement that best describes the purpose of the passage as a whole, and select Portion in Boldface for the statement that best describes the purpose of the portion in boldface. Make only two selections, one in each column.

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jabhatta2
i thought this kind of 'needle threading' was not what the GMAT tests (like in SC, where commas are placed as a way to eliminate)

This kind of micro-needling (difference between an explanation vs additional context) is not easy to decipher in 3.5 minutes

I suppose the last statement does have the word 'context' (yellow highlight) but i dont know -- to eliminate (A) based on the difference between 'additional context' and 'explanations' seem to be 'needle threading' -- too subtle ..

No, jabhatta2, B is not an explanation that is offered as an alternative to A. B is an explanation that the author believes should be incorporated into A. This is not micro-needling, it's an important distinction that you do need to be able to make very quickly, both on the GMAT and in real life. In fact, as an exercise, I suggest that you try to write the structure of a sentence whose purpose is to offer an alternative to the standard explanation - so that you can compare and contrast to the original sentence's structure:
Quote:
However, arguments that focus only on A ignore the fact that not only A but also B.
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avigutman - As requested, here is my attempt of the original structure and the variation of the structure

(i) Regarding the structure of the bold face - i thought this was a more anlaogous structure

Quote:
However, arguments that focus only on JD’s actions ignore the fact that JD is not only (A) but also (B). Historians must take such contexts into account if they hope to explain JD did what he did

I agree that (B) doesnt seem to be explanation (not an alternative explanation nor a supplemental explanation)

(B) seems to be just more FYI information explaining with JD did what he did.



(ii) Alternative structure

Quote:
(version 1) However, arguments that focus only on JD’s actions ignore the fact that JD is not only (A) but also (B). Historians must take such contexts into account if they hope to explain JD did what he did
(version 2) However, arguments that focus only on JD’s actions ignore the fact that JD is not A but also (B). Historians must take such contexts into account if they hope to explain JD did what he did

I think in these contexts, this strucuture is saying (B) is an alternative explanation
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avigutman

when some one says (A) is an alternative explanation to (B) - does that mean, (A) and (B) are both viable explanations OR (B) is the ONLY option ? I think the first case.

For example - in order to reach Avi's house, Highway 401 is alternative route to the standard Highway 403 route. I think this means, BOTH routes are possible.
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jabhatta2

(ii) Alternative structure

(version 1) However, arguments that focus only on JD’s actions ignore the fact that JD is not only (A) but also (B). Historians must take such contexts into account if they hope to explain JD did what he did
(version 2) However, arguments that focus only on JD’s actions ignore the fact that JD is not A but also (B). Historians must take such contexts into account if they hope to explain JD did what he did

I think in these contexts, this strucuture is saying (B) is an alternative explanation
jabhatta2, You're staying way too close to the original structure, so your versions 1 and 2 still read like a criticism of the arguments being too narrowly focused. In order to turn this into a sentence whose purpose is to offer an alternative to the standard explanation, you'll have to completely change the structural words of the sentence (I boldfaced them in your quote for your convenience).
Here's an example of an argument whose purpose is to offer an alternative to the standard explanation:
Quote:
Musical composers have generally made their most significant contributions to the musical canon before they reached the age of thirty. It is commonly believed that this is the case because aging brings about a loss of cognitive ability and creative capacity. However, a study pointed out that a disproportionately large number of those composers who made their most significant contributions to the canon after the age of thirty became musicians at an older age than is generally the case. Since by the age of thirty many composers have been engaged as musicians for a decade or more, these findings suggest that the real reason why musicians over thirty rarely make significant contributions to the musical canon is not that they have aged but rather that they have spent too much time as musicians.

Source: https://gmatclub.com/forum/musical-comp ... 85884.html
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jabhatta2
avigutman

when some one says (A) is an alternative explanation to (B) - does that mean, (A) and (B) are both viable explanations OR (B) is the ONLY option ? I think the first case.

For example - in order to reach Avi's house, Highway 401 is alternative route to the standard Highway 403 route. I think this means, BOTH routes are possible.

Yes, jabhatta2, offering an alternative explanation doesn't necessarily kill the original explanation.
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avigutman
Here's an example of an argument whose purpose is to offer an alternative to the standard explanation:
Quote:
Musical composers have generally made their most significant contributions to the musical canon before they reached the age of thirty. It is commonly believed that this is the case because aging brings about a loss of cognitive ability and creative capacity. However, a study pointed out that a disproportionately large number of those composers who made their most significant contributions to the canon after the age of thirty became musicians at an older age than is generally the case. Since by the age of thirty many composers have been engaged as musicians for a decade or more, these findings suggest that the real reason why musicians over thirty rarely make significant contributions to the musical canon is not that they have aged but rather that they have spent too much time as musicians.

Source: https://gmatclub.com/forum/musical-comp ... 85884.html

Hi Avi - while I agree the green is an alternative explanation - i will note, this alternative explanation (in the green) KILLS OFF the explanation that is commonly believed (old age - in the red) , does it not ? I think this is why i was asking if an alternative explanation HAS TO KILL OFF another explanation

In the highway route example -- alternative routes DO NOT KILL OFF another route

I suppose you can have arugments - where an alternative explanation KILLS OFF the common belief and other arguments in which an alternative explanation DOES NOT KILL OFF the common belief.
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I found the passage of this question quite challenging for me. In the video below, I explain how I went about it (and how I generally go about reading difficult texts)

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So this passage is very interesting in it's construction and option A and option E seem close using the process of elimination. Also, by the way this question is tagged as "Easy" on the OG 2023-24 version so not sure where the disconnect is this definitely seems like a medium from the way the passage is constructed...
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