anceer wrote:
Some political observers believe that the only reason members of the state’s largest union supported Senator Hughes in his recent re-election campaign was that the union’s leaders must have been assured by Hughes that, if elected, he would stay out of their coming negotiations with the union’s national leadership, whose members have been financial backers of several close associates of Hughes. More likely, the union’s members believed that Hughes deserved to serve another term in office.
Which of the following best parallels the method of argument used by the author?
A The popularity of Deap, a powerful carpet cleaning system that can be used by the homeowner is, some industry observers say, due to an agreement made by a leading professional carpet cleaning company to supply Deap with the chemicals that are sold as accessories. This does not, however, fully explain the sudden popularity of the product in the last three months.
B After a rocky start, Shade, a new cosmetics line, is now selling briskly. The reason for the turnaround is almost certainly that Shade is now being marketed to women in their twenties, not just to teens. This has helped the product achieve a more sophisticated appeal, which has translated into greater sales in every age group.
C The Shakelight, a small flashlight that can be powered for several minutes by a shaking motion, has once again proven a popular gift item this holiday season. Other similar devices are available, but none has been as successful, and the reason is simple: the cost of The Shakelight has fluctuated so that it has always been at least one dollar less than that of any competitor. The manufacturers’ claim that they have a better product is nonsense.
D The continued success of the Daddo line of toys is due to the simple appeal that these toys have for kids between three years of age and six. Others disagree. One industry journal ascribed the brand’s popularity to a deal made with a major toy retailer guaranteeing that the retailer would carry the coming line of Daddo products exclusively for three months.
E As with last year, this year’s best selling foreign policy journal is World Opinion. It may be that the content in World Opinion is simply more exhaustive and better presented than that of similar publications, or it may be that the journal’s publishers have the substantial support of their parent company, which has been a good friend to bookstores and other outlets
VERITAS PREP OFFICIAL SOLUTION:
Explanation: The author rejects the complex behind-the-scenes explanation for Hughes’ support by the union in favor of a simpler reason: Hughes was perceived as the better candidate. Likewise, choice D rejects the complicated behind-the-scenes making-a-deal explanation for the continued success of the Daddo line of toys in favor of the simpler reason: kids liked the toys.
(A) The author rejects the complex behind-the-scenes explanation for Hughes’ support by the union in favor of a simpler reason: Hughes was perceived as the better candidate. This choice does describe a complicated explanation for Deap’s popularity, but does not propose a simpler one.
(B) The author rejects the complex behind-the-scenes explanation for Hughes’ support by the union in favor of a simpler reason: Hughes was perceived as the better candidate. Only one explanation is given for Shade’s popularity, which -- unlike that of Hughes, as far as we know – came after an initially rocky period.
(C) The author rejects the complex behind-the-scenes explanation for Hughes’ support by the union in favor of a simpler reason: Hughes was perceived as the better candidate. In this choice, the author rejects a simple explanation – The Shakelight is a better product – in favor of a similarly simple explanation – it’s cheaper.
(E) The author rejects the complex behind-the-scenes explanation for Hughes’ support by the union in favor of a simpler reason: Hughes was perceived as the better candidate. For this choice, the author presents a simple explanation – World Opinion is a superior product – and a more complicated one – the influence of the parent company, but does not state that one explanation is the more likely one.
source Veritas prep
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20 Jul 2014, 04:29
59%
(02:59)
wrong 
