#18 - Must Be True, Author's Perspective

[lizk89]

Hi there,

Q. 18 reads; "the author would likely agree with which of the following statements about Walker's significance in the history of the Cakewalk?"

The answer is A.
However, I seem to be able to find evidence in support of C.
I.e.; lines 53-54. Key words: "won over this audience by refining the cakewalk."
Lines 59-62. Key words: "Walker's success with this audience derived from HER distillation..."
Lines 64-65. Key words: "...gain the admiration of...HER VERSION of the cakewalk..."

[Steve Stein]

That's a good question. Although Walker's dance was appealing to many different groups,there is no evidence that every alternative interpretation was tailored to the interests of a different group.

Answer choice A, on the other hand, is confirmed by lines 59 - 60: "...much of Walker's success derived from her distillations of what was widely acclaimed as the most authentic cakewalk."

I hope that's helpful--let me know.

Thanks!

~Steve

[lizk89]

Yes, it does!

Thanks, Steve.

[bd622]

If you don't mind me jumping in on this, I'm still quite confused!

It seems to me that answer choice C is a direct rephrase from the passage, lines 45-50, "Walker's remarkable success at popularizing the cakewalk across otherwise relatively rigid racial boundaries rested on her ability to address within her interpretation of it the varying and sometimes conflicting demands placed on the dance...". Paragraph 4 then goes on to explain different ways in which Walker refined the cakewalk to emphasize different parts of it for the purposes of catering to different groups.

I don't understand how choice A is the correct answer, even given lines 59-60 ("much of Walker's success with this audience derived from her distillation of what was widely acclaimed as the most authentic cakewalk")

C still seems like a much stronger choice to me.

Thank you for the help!!

[Steve Stein]

Hi,

Thanks for your comments. Answer choice A is pretty easy to defend--the author definitely believed that Walker broadened the appeal of the cakewalk by varying her interpretations of a dance that was around even prior to the Civil War.

Answer choice C provides a much more specific claim, and is thus more difficult to defend. Would the author go so far as to say that each and every interpretation of the dance was tailored to a different group's interest?

As you point out, the author does provide specific examples of different interpretations tailored to different groups. But this is not enough the justify the very specific and expansive claim that each interpretation is tailored to a different group.

I hope that's helpful! let me know--thanks!

~Steve

[wchavez]

Could someone please offer an explanation to #18? I would greatly appreciate it.

-Wendy

[Jason Schultz]

Hi wchavez,

Question 18 asks about the Author's perspective on the subject. Understanding the various viewpoints presented is crucial to understanding the passage as a whole, which is why we include it in the VIEWSTAMP process. In passages which are flattering to a specific person, as in this one, it can be easy to confuse the author's viewpoint with the subject's so be mindful.

In this problem, as in the next question, the answer must be found within the passage. The stem is quite specific in this by starting out "The passage most strongly suggests." So, resist the temptation to extend the authors opinion beyond the four corners of the passage. Of those answer choices, the only one which fits is answer choice A. It is discussed in lines 50-65 that many separate groups began to enjoy the cakewalk because Walker brought forward pieces of it which already existed.

Does that help?

[hfsports429]

I understand why C is not the correct answer, however, I picked E thinking that Walker was able to distill the Cakewalk into elements that were uniquely compelling to each group. Can someone explain why E is wrong?

[Adam Tyson]

Thanks for asking, hf. Let me start by asking you a question in return - where do you find support in the passage for answer E? That's the key to selecting the best answer to a Must Be True question about the author's perspective like this one. The answer must come from the text itself.

Around line 60 we learn that Walker distilled the most authentic version of the cakewalk, and I see you mentioned that idea of "distilled" in your question, but what would be the connection between "the most authentic cakewalk" and the "disentangling" idea in answer E? We learned earlier in the passage that what makes the cakewalk authentic is its layering of African and European influences, initially to parody elements of the latter, and that this element of parody became an essential and multi-layered part of the cakewalk. It seems that disentangling the African and European elements would actually make any resulting product less authentic, in opposition to what Walker did.

Focus on the text itself, and be sure you always find support there (and there alone) for your answer choice, if it is in this "Must Be True" category (and something like 75% or more of all RC questions are in this category).

Give it another look and let us know if we can be of further help to you.

[hfsports429]

Hi Adam,

Ok, that makes sense. I believe that I did a couple things in my selection of E. First, I did try to extrapolate my answer beyond what was actually written in the text. Answer A is provable ("highlighting elements that were already present in the dance"="distillation of what was widely acclaimed as the most authentic cakewalk). I just didn't readily see the link between authenticity and "elements that were already present."

Second, I was using the structure of the third paragraph itself to justify for E. The paragraph breaks down how Walker appealed to each group, which in my head I thought sounded like she was in fact separating ("disentangling") the groups. But the end of the answer uses an important word ("elements") that would make this answer wrong.

So I see now what I did, but those two things were what got me to the wrong answer.

Thanks for your help