To some scholars, the European baroque is not merely an aesthetic

Question

New Project RC Butler 2019  -  Practice 2 RC Passages Everyday   
Passage # 234, Date : 28-Jul-2019
 This post is a part of New Project RC Butler 2019 .  Click here for Details

To some scholars, the European baroque is not merely an aesthetic style characterized by extravagant forms and elaborate ornamentation, but also a political, social, and cultural mentality prevalent in Europe from approximately 1600 to 1680. This larger view was held by the late Spanish historian Jose Antonio Maravall, whose writings trace aspects of the modern world—especially the principle of individual liberty in opposition to the state's power—back to the baroque era as it unfolded in Spain.

Maravall argues that the baroque period was characterized by "monarchical absolutism": monarchs, having suppressed the worst excesses of aristocratic disorder, could now ally themselves with their nobilities to defend traditional order and values in societies unsettled by the Renaissance's liberating forces of criticism and opposition. These forces appeared especially threatening because deteriorating economic conditions heightened conflict among different elements of society. For Maravall, baroque culture was the response of the ruling class (including crown, Church, and nobility) to the European social and economic crisis, although that crisis was more acute, and the social structure more frozen, in imperial Spain than elsewhere. Maravall regards the baroque as a culture of control and containment, or, more dynamically, as a  directive  culture, designed to reintegrate and unite a society living under the shadow of social and intellectual disruption.

Maravall suggests that even though all the political controls were centralized in the monarchical system, this system of authority was not simply repressive. It was also enticing, promoting a public delight in grandiose artifice by means of devices that ranged from fireworks displays to theater to religious festivals. Operating upon an urban culture that already possessed characteristics of modem mass culture, these enticements deflected the desire for novelty into areas of life where it represented no challenge to the political order. Maravall concludes that every aspect of the baroque emerged from the necessity, as public opinion grew increasingly important, of manipulating opinions and feelings on a broad public scale.

Perhaps, however, Maravall's interpretation is overly influenced by his quest for baroque foreshadowings of "modernity" and by his experience of living under the Spanish dictator Franco. He tends to exaggerate the capacity of those in authority to manipulate a society for their own ideological ends. A look at the seventeenth-century courts of Charles I in England or Philip IV in Spain suggests that efforts at manipulation were at times wholly counterproductive. In England and Spain during the 1630s, the rulers themselves, not the subjects, succumbed to the illusions carefully sustained by ceremony, theater, and symbol. The result was that members of the ruling class became dangerously isolated from the outside world, and as the gulf between illusion and reality widened, the monarchy and aristocracy fell headlong into a credibility gap of their own creation..   1 
 B 
 1. Which one of the following best expresses the main idea of the passage?

(A) Until recently, the baroque has been regarded simply as an aesthetic style; however, Maravall has shown that it was a cultural mentality serving to reinforce monarchical absolutism. 
(B) Maravall views baroque culture as a strategy for dissipating opposition and managing public 
opinion; however, he overestimates the strategy's success. 
(C) Maravall interprets European baroque culture as an expansion of the social and intellectual 
developments of the Renaissance; however, his view of the seventeenth century is colored by his focus on Spain. 
(D) Maravall's theory about the intent of the ruling class to control society via baroque culture is refuted by the examples of specific baroque-era monarchies. 
(E) According to the historian Maravall, baroque culture was a political construct designed essentially to control society and repress dissent 
 2 
 D 
 2. Which one of the following words best expresses the meaning of "directive" as that word is used in line 27 of the passage?

(A) straightforward 
(B) evolving 
(C) codified 
(D) guiding 
(E) compelling
 3 
 D 
 3. It can be inferred from the passage that Maravall regarded monarchs of the baroque era as

(A) increasingly indifferent to unfavorable public opinion 
(B) concerned with the political threat posed by the aristocracy 
(C) captivated by the cultural devices designed to control their subjects 
(D) somewhat successful in countering the disruptive legacy of the Renaissance 
(E) preoccupied with the goal of attaining cultural preeminence for their respective countries
 4 
 C 
 4. In Maravall's view, baroque theater was intended to

(A) spur economic growth 
(B) echo the consensus of public opinion 
(C) entertain and divert the urban population 
(D) express the emerging principle of individual liberty 
(E) terrify the citizenry with the threat of monarchical repression
 5 
 C 
 5. The main purpose of the passage is to

(A) contrast two competing theories and offer an evaluation 
(B) challenge a widely accepted viewpoint by means of a counterexample 
(C) explicate an interpretation and introduce a qualification 
(D) articulate opposing arguments and propose a reconciliation 
(E) explain the unprecedented consequences of a political construct
 6 
 D 
 6. Which one of the following pieces of evidence, if it existed, would most weaken Maravall's interpretation of baroque culture?  
(A) confirmation that Maravall himself participated in opposing Franco's authoritarian regime 
(B) the discovery that baroque-era nobility commissioned far more works of art than did the monarchs 
(C) an analysis of baroque art that emphasizes its idealized depiction of the monarchy and aristocracy 
(D) documents indicating that many baroque-era works of art expressed opposition to the monarchy 
(E) documents indicating a conscious attempt on the part of Franco to control Spanish society by cultural means

Source:   LSAT Official PrepTest A   
 Difficulty Level:   700

ayushkumar22941 · Answer

took 10 minute , got 5 right and 1 wrong . how much time allotted during practice is considered good for such passage ?

generis · Answer

ayushkumar22941  - impressive accuracy!

Well, the general guideline is 8 minutes for a long passage with 4 questions (you could go to 8:30), and this one has 6 questions (four of which are hard)—so your timing is spot on.

(I will provide an official explanation in a couple of days.
I would rather see people post a question about or an explanation of one of the answers before i post an OE.)

Nice work!

zoezhuyan · Answer

Although I spend 2 min and picked up B, but I did not get the Maravall views the baroque culture as a strategy for dissipating, 
From the last sentence of second paragraph,  Maravall regards the baroque as a culture of control and containment, or, more dynamically, as a directiveculture, designed to reintegrate and unite a society living under the shadow of social and intellectual disruption 
This implies Maravall thought the baroque culture as a directive meaning. does it imply " dissipating "

I changed my choices from D to B, 
At first I thought D ??? guiding ??? is correct because of ??? a culture of control and containment , but when I read ??? reintegrate and unite ???, then I think ??? evolving ??? will be better.

My problem of Q4 is my localization, wrong location and time waster. This kind of issues happen again and again, please guide how to localize correctly.
Usually, when read passage, I sometime will skip something words I thought they are evidence that support/against some position, 
 
Here, I skip ???  by means of devices that ranged from fireworks displays to theater to religious festivals. ??? A later part of second part of third paragraph. 
So, when I approach Q4, I think I need to search ???baroque theater???, looks like a kind culture of baroque , looks like second paragraph is a good place, at the end, I did get any result , 
 Of course I didn???t get result because the location should be third paragraph, 
Even though I know location, I still get wrong answer choice, I picked up B because I think B express as ??? promoting a public delight ???

Skywalker18 · Answer

All correct except Q2 in 11 mins, including almost 5 mins to read
Para 1- European baroque- larger view held by some, including Maravall
Para 2- monarchical absolutism, baroque as a culture of control and containment
Para 3- every aspect of the baroque emerged from the necessity, as public opinion grew increasingly important, of manipulating opinions and feelings on a broad public scale. 
Para 4- Maravall tends to exaggerate the capacity of those in authority to manipulate society for their own ideological ends

1. Which one of the following best expresses the main idea of the passage?  
(B) Maravall views baroque culture as a strategy for dissipating opposition and managing public opinion; however, he overestimates the strategy's success. - Correct

2. Which one of the following words best expresses the meaning of "directive" as that word is used in line 27 of the passage? 
 Maravall regards the baroque as a culture of control and containment, or, more dynamically, as a directive culture, designed to reintegrate and unite a society living under the shadow of social and intellectual disruption.
(A) straightforward - incorrect
(B) evolving - incorrect, it did not evolve
(C) codified - incorrect
(D) guiding 
(E) compelling
I was down to options D and E and chose the option E

AjiteshArun  ,  GMATNinja  ,  MagooshExpert  ,  GMATGuruNY  ,  VeritasPrepBrian  ,  MartyTargetTestPrep  ,  DmitryFarber  ,  VeritasKarishma  ,  generis  ,  jennpt  ,  VeritasPrepErika  , other experts - please provide your views on Q2.

3. It can be inferred from the passage that Maravall regarded monarchs of the baroque era as 
monarchs, having suppressed the worst excesses of aristocratic disorder, could now ally themselves with their nobilities to defend traditional order and values in societies unsettled by the Renaissance's liberating forces of criticism and opposition
(D) somewhat successful in countering the disruptive legacy of the Renaissance - Correct

4. In Maravall's view, baroque theater was intended to 
(C) entertain and divert the urban population 
 It was also enticing, promoting a public delight in grandiose artifice by means of devices that ranged from fireworks displays to theater to religious festivals. 
Maravall concludes that every aspect of the baroque emerged from the necessity, as public opinion grew increasingly important, of manipulating opinions and feelings on a broad public scale.

5. The main purpose of the passage is to 
(A) contrast two competing theories and offer an evaluation - incorrect, two competing theories have not been contrasted here and no evaluation has been provided
(B) challenge a widely accepted viewpoint by means of a counterexample - incorrect, no widely accepted viewp has been challenged
(C) explicate an interpretation and introduce a qualification - Correct- the interpretation is of the larger view of European baroque held by some scholars; in the final para that view has been qualified
(D) articulate opposing arguments and propose a reconciliation - incorrect, no reconciliation has been done
(E) explain the unprecedented consequences of a political construct- incorrect

6. Which one of the following pieces of evidence, if it existed, would most weaken Maravall's interpretation of baroque culture?  
(A) confirmation that Maravall himself participated in opposing Franco's authoritarian regime - incorrect
(B) the discovery that baroque-era nobility commissioned far more works of art than did the monarchs - incorrect, monarchs, having suppressed the worst excesses of aristocratic disorder, could now ally themselves with their nobilities to defend traditional order and values in societies unsettled by the Renaissance's liberating forces of criticism and opposition.
The passage never claims that monarchs commissioned more works of art than nobility
(C) an analysis of baroque art that emphasizes its idealized depiction of the monarchy and aristocracy - incorrect
(D) documents indicating that many baroque-era works of art expressed opposition to the monarchy - Correct, this goes against the one of important purpose of Baroque stated by Maravall
These forces appeared especially threatening because deteriorating economic conditions heightened conflict among different elements of society. For Maravall, baroque culture was the response of the ruling class (including crown, Church, and nobility) to the European social and economic crisis
(E) documents indicating a conscious attempt on the part of Franco to control Spanish society by cultural means- incorrect, this logic is in line with the Baroque view held by Maravall

MartyTargetTestPrep · Answer

The author says "Maraval suggested that ...  this system of authority was not simply repressive . It was also enticing, promoting a public delight in grandiose artifice by means of devices that ranged from fireworks displays to theater to religious festivals. Operating upon an urban culture that already possessed characteristics of modem mass culture,  these enticements deflected the desire for novelty into areas of life where it represented no challenge to the political order . Maravall concludes that every aspect of the baroque emerged from the necessity, as public opinion grew increasingly important, of  manipulating opinions and feelings on a broad public scale ."

The foregoing does not describe a process of compelling. It describes how Baroque culture was used to guide society. So, (D) fits well.

Diya52 · Answer

Can someone please explain Q6? Is D the correct answer because of these lines : "Maravall regards the baroque as a culture of control and containment, or, more dynamically, as a directive culture, designed to reintegrate and unite a society living under the shadow of social and intellectual disruption." So if Maravall regards baroque as a culture of control and containment, then opposition to monarchy would weaken Maravall`s interpretation?

auradediligodo · Answer

Hi everyone,
Got 5/6 correct in 12:20 minutes, including 6 minutes to read.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

P1

In paragraph one we are given that some people believe the baroque movement to be something more than just an artistic movement, as some critics believe. They think the Baroque movement involved also social and political aspects. One of them is JM, who lived the Baroque movement in Spain.

Purpose : The purpose of this paragraph is to highlight the presence of some thinkers who believe the Baroque movement to be more than some scholars think of it.

P2

In paragraph 2 we are given what JM thinks of Baroque. According to such view the Baroque movement aims at contrasting the European social crisis, it is associated with monarchies and it aims at manipulating the society.

Purpose:  The purpose of this paragraph is to present JM views of the Baroque movement.

P3

Here again we are given JM's point of view on the Baroque movement. We are told that people were given many possibilities to amuse themselves but in a way that was not harmful to the political order.

Purpose:  To highlight an aspect of the Baroque movement

P4

In this last paragraph we are given the limits of JM's interpretation of the Baroque movement. First his reasoning is flawed as he overestimated the certain aspects and as he lived under a dictator. In fat many times attempts at controlling people failed and the monarchs trying to manipulate people did not even realize it.

Purpose:  To highlight the limits of JM's interpretation

Main point

The main point is to evaluate the opinion of certain thinkers with relation to the Baroque movement through JM's interpretation

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1. Which one of the following best expresses the main idea of the passage?

Pre-thinking

Main point question

The main point is to evaluate the opinion of certain thinkers with relation to the Baroque movement through JM's interpretation

(A) Until  recently , the baroque has been regarded simply as an aesthetic style; however, Maravall has shown that it was a cultural mentality serving to reinforce monarchical absolutism. 
 We miss the part in which the limits of JM are presented

(B)   Maravall views baroque culture as a strategy for dissipating opposition and managing public 
opinion; however, he overestimates the strategy's success. 
 In line with pre-thinking

(C) Maravall interprets European baroque culture as an expansion of the social and intellectual 
developments of the Renaissance; however, his view of the seventeenth century is colored by his focus on Spain. 
 Opposite on some level

(D) Maravall's theory about the intent of the ruling class to control society via baroque culture is refuted by the examples of specific baroque-era monarchies. 
 out of scope

(E) According to the historian Maravall, baroque culture was a political construct designed essentially to control society and repress dissent 
 Partial scope

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2. Which one of the following words best expresses the meaning of "directive" as that word is used in line 27 of the passage?

Pre-thinking

Inference question

We know that the Baroque is manipulative, right? Directive----> something that gives direction----->  guiding

(A) straightforward 
 out of scope

(B) evolving 
 out of scope

(C) codified 
 out of scope

(D)   guiding 
 In line with pre-thinking

(E) compelling
 Monarchs don't compel people, they force people. Plus compelling does not reflect the context here

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3. It can be inferred from the passage that Maravall regarded monarchs of the baroque era as

Pre-thinking

Inference question

As we can make multiple inferences, let's evaluate the options.

(A) increasingly indifferent to unfavorable public opinion 
 For what we know, JM was not aware of this concern

(B) concerned with the political threat posed by the aristocracy 
 Although tempting, this choice cannot be inferred from the passage as we are told that what was repressed were the excesses of aristocrats. For all we know such excesses and disorder did not pose any threat to the monarchs and were regarded as inconveniences

(C) captivated by the cultural devices designed to control their subjects 
 out of scope

(D) somewhat successful in countering the disruptive legacy of the Renaissance 
 We can infer this statement from the last paragraph: "He tends to exaggerate the capacity of those in authority to manipulate a society for their own ideological ends."  JM clearly thinks that Monarchs are successful.

(E) preoccupied with the goal of attaining cultural preeminence for their respective countries
out of scope

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

4. In Maravall's view, baroque theater was intended to

Pre-thinking

Detail question

" this system of authority was not simply repressive. It was also enticing, promoting a public delight in grandiose artifice by means of devices that ranged from fireworks displays to theater to religious festivals."  From P3

(A) spur economic growth 
 Out of scope

(B) echo the consensus of public opinion 
 Out of scope

(C)   entertain and divert the urban population 
 In line with pre-thinking

(D) express the emerging principle of individual liberty 
 Out of scope

(E) terrify the citizenry with the threat of monarchical repression
 Out of scope

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

5. The main purpose of the passage is to

Pre-thinking

Main point question

The main point is to evaluate the opinion of certain thinkers with relation to the Baroque movement through JM's interpretation

(A) contrast two competing theories and offer an evaluation 
 There are no competing theories

(B) challenge a widely accepted viewpoint by means of a counterexample 
 We are not given that there is a widely accepted view

(C)   explicate an interpretation and introduce a qualification 
 correct, were are given JM interpretation of the baroque movement and then an evaluation is made

(D) articulate opposing arguments and propose a reconciliation 
 no reconciliation

(E) explain the unprecedented consequences of a political construct
 out of scope

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6. Which one of the following pieces of evidence, if it existed, would most weaken Maravall's interpretation of baroque culture?

Pre-thinking

Weaken question

So JM believes that the baroque movement serves monarchs because it helps them to restore traditional values. Monarchs manipulate people in order to get to their goal. 
What if in doing so monarchs are actually working agains their goal? 
Any such statement would weaken JM's argument

(A) confirmation that Maravall himself participated in opposing Franco's authoritarian regime 
 irrelevant

(B) the discovery that baroque-era nobility commissioned far more works of art than did the monarchs 
 irrelevant

(C) an analysis of baroque art that emphasizes its idealized depiction of the monarchy and aristocracy 
 opposite

(D)   documents indicating that many baroque-era works of art expressed opposition to the monarchy 
 This choice clearly states that on some level the Baroque movement undermined monarchs. Hence it does not make sense to claim that monarchs used the baroque movement at their own ends

(E) documents indicating a conscious attempt on the part of Franco to control Spanish society by cultural means
 Opposite

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It is a good day to be alive!

mimishyu · Answer

Hi DiyaDutta

Refer to para2

Maravall argues that the baroque period was characterized by "monarchical absolutism"

And it is only in para2 that it mention about “baroque culture”

For Maravall, “baroque culture” was the response of the ruling class (including crown, Church, and nobility) to the European social and economic crisis, although that crisis was more acute, and the social structure more frozen, in imperial Spain than elsewhere.

Maravall regards the “baroque as a culture” of control and containment, or, more dynamically, as a directive culture, designed to reintegrate and unite a society living under the shadow of social and intellectual disruption.

thus we can infer that baroque should be a culture inclined to “monarchy”/ruling class/control and containment

Mayankg97 · Answer

Took 18 minutes to get all questions right. What can I do to improve my speed??

Posted from my mobile device

To some scholars, the European baroque is not merely an aesthetic

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To some scholars, the European baroque is not merely an aesthetic

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