|
|
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.
B
Be sure to select an answer first to save it in the Error Log before revealing the correct answer (OA)!
Difficulty:
25%
(medium)
Question Stats:
75% (01:48) correct
25%
(02:03)
wrong
based on 986
sessions
History
Date
Time
Result
Not Attempted Yet
The use of money causes a civilization to decline. That this is true is shown by the way the troubles of Western civilization began with the invention of money. While real money (gold and silver) is bad enough, imitation money (paper money) is a horror. The decline of Western civilization exactly parallels the increasing use of money—both real money and worthless paper money—as a substitute for things of intrinsic value.
Which one of the following, if true, could contribute most to a refutation of the argument?
(A) People prefer using money to having a system in which goods are bartered for other goods of equal intrinsic value.
(B) Eastern cultures have used money, and Eastern civilizations have not declined.
(C) The use of paper money encourages disregard for the value of work because the money itself has no intrinsic value.
(D) The rate of exchange between gold and paper money has fluctuated greatly in Western civilization.
(E) Some employers exchange goods for their employees’ services in order to avoid the exchange of money
Which one of the following, if true, could contribute most to a refutation of the argument?
(A) People prefer using money to having a system in which goods are bartered for other goods of equal intrinsic value.
(B) Eastern cultures have used money, and Eastern civilizations have not declined.
(C) The use of paper money encourages disregard for the value of work because the money itself has no intrinsic value.
(D) The rate of exchange between gold and paper money has fluctuated greatly in Western civilization.
(E) Some employers exchange goods for their employees’ services in order to avoid the exchange of money
05 Jul 2017, 21:16
Kudos
Bookmarks
chesstitans
If you aren't sure about the conclusion, ask yourself, "Why is this passage here? What is the author trying to do?" Is the author's main point that "the troubles of Western civilization began with the invention of money" or that imitation money is worse than real money? As a test, try putting the word "therefore" in front of the part you believe to be the conclusion. Does the rest of the passage form an argument supporting that conclusion?
Does the author tell us that "the use of money causes a civilization to decline" as evidence to support that "the decline of Western civilization exactly parallels the increasing use of money as a substitute for things of intrinsic value"? No, in fact, it is the opposite. Everything in the passage after the first sentence forms an argument that logically leads to the conclusion that, "[therefore], the use of money causes a civilization to decline." The phrase, "that this is true is shown by..." is a hint that the previous sentence was your conclusion. The author starts with a statement and then explicitly says that what follows will support that first statement.
Once you've arrived at the conclusion or purpose of a passage, make sure you understand how the author arrives at that conclusion or purpose:
- "the troubles of Western civilization began with the invention of money" - If this is true, it would be evidence supporting (not proving) the author's conclusion.
- "The decline of Western civilization exactly parallels the increasing use of money—both real money and worthless paper money—as a substitute for things of intrinsic value." - Okay, if the decline of Western civilization exactly parallels the increasing use of money, then, again, this would be evidence supporting the author's conclusion. But why is money bad for a civilization? We aren't told why specifically, but we can infer that using money as a substitute for things of intrinsic value is bad for a civilization.
- "While real money (gold and silver) is bad enough, imitation money (paper money) is a horror." - This statement supports the inference that using money as a substitute for things of intrinsic value is bad for civilization. In other words, "real" money (gold and silver) is bad enough because it is a substitute for things of intrinsic value. "Imitation" money is even worse because it is a substitute for "real" money (a substitute for a substitute!).
I hope that helps!
General Discussion
20 Mar 2017, 13:28
Kudos
Bookmarks
The use of money causes a civilization to decline.
That this is true is shown by the way the troubles of
Western civilization began with the invention of
money. While real money (gold and silver) is bad
enough, imitation money (paper money) is a horror.
The decline of Western civilization exactly parallels
the increasing use of money—both real money and
worthless paper money—as a substitute for things of
intrinsic value.
Which one of the following, if true, could contribute
most to a refutation of the argument?
(A) People prefer using money to having a system
in which goods are bartered for other goods
of equal intrinsic value.
(B) Eastern cultures have used money, and Eastern
civilizations have not declined.
MY LOGIC - required... how to refute the argument... A says that people prefer money to barter system.. does this not refute the argument.. oa is B.. can not understand some one help
That this is true is shown by the way the troubles of
Western civilization began with the invention of
money. While real money (gold and silver) is bad
enough, imitation money (paper money) is a horror.
The decline of Western civilization exactly parallels
the increasing use of money—both real money and
worthless paper money—as a substitute for things of
intrinsic value.
Which one of the following, if true, could contribute
most to a refutation of the argument?
(A) People prefer using money to having a system
in which goods are bartered for other goods
of equal intrinsic value.
(B) Eastern cultures have used money, and Eastern
civilizations have not declined.
MY LOGIC - required... how to refute the argument... A says that people prefer money to barter system.. does this not refute the argument.. oa is B.. can not understand some one help
