#14 - Concept Reference, Must Be True, Subject Perpective

[Administrator]

Complete Question Explanation

The correct answer choice is (D).

Answer choice (A):

Answer choice (B):

Answer choice (C):

Answer choice (D): This is the correct answer choice.

Answer choice (E):

This explanation is still in progress. Please post any questions below!

[davinsclin]

Dear Powerscore Staff and community,

Could you please explain why (C) is incorrect while (D) is correct?

My reasoning is entirely based on the last sentence of the passage, "a judge must essentially 're-constitute' that text by fashioning a new one, which is faithful to the old text but also responsive to and informed by the conditions, constraints, and aspirations of the world in which the new legal problem has arisen."

My interpretation of (and my prephrase for) the statement is that a judge should adjust the legal texts based on different contexts in different situations, or in short, they should be flexible in their interpretation based on the situation.

I find both (C) and (D) attractive but eventually ended up choosing the former.

Thank you and I hope this discussion may be helpful for you all.

Yours sincerely,
Davin

[Rachael Wilkenfeld]

Hi Davin,

Good question. This passage was difficult because there were so many different theories discussed in the passage. Answer choice (C) discusses the final theory in the last paragraph, which was where you noted the language of reconstituting texts. However, the question asks us to understand a different theory, the Law and Literature theory described in the second to last paragraph. This theory treats decisions as artistic expressions, which matches answer choice (D). If judicial opinions are artistic expression, judges wouldn't necessarily write the same ones when confronted with the same situation, just as two artists may paint the same rose in different ways.

Hope that helps!

[ashtonrel]

Hello Powerscore community,

I am having a bit of trouble identifying why D is correct and C is not in this case after reading this discussion thread.

I originally chose answer choice C due to the information in the last sentence of the passage. Once I realized I missed the question, I believed that at first the rationale was the strong language in answer choice c ("requires"). In contrast, answer choice D also makes sense to me based on information in the 4th paragraph as it talks about how judges act as "translators" must "re-constitute" legal text based on changing conditions, constraints, etc.

I think here, my confusion really revolves the prior discussion in this thread about there being a new theory in paragraph 4 and that being a reason as for why AC C is incorrect. I read the text in P4 as a continuation of the third paragraph in defining the Law and Lit Movement.

Much appreciation!

-Ashton

[Rachael Wilkenfeld]

Hi Ashton,

I would say that the final paragraph as a subsection of the Law as Literature theory. Law as Translation is a type of law as literature, where they could have different results. You are spot on that the word "requires" is too strong for what we know based on the passage.

Good work!