LSAT 111 | Section 2 | Reading Comprehension: Q7

RC Question 7 Explanation

DISCUSSION: The main idea is that Bearden was innovative in two ways. He created new artistic styles, and he portrayed African Americans in all of their subtleties.

Many of the wrong answers aren’t even true.

___________

1. It’s true that Bearden was relatively unique in painting joyful scenes of African-Americans during the depression. But other painters may have painted happy scenes of non-African-Americans.
2. CORRECT. This captures Bearden’s two successes, mentioned in the first paragraph: he was stylistically innovative (lines 4-5), and he showed many sides of the African-American experience (lines 5-7). Paragraph 2 details his stylistic innovations, and paragraphs 3-4 show the variety of his art. 
3. Not quite. Bearden worked hard to show the realities of African American life. There was no competition between his stylistic innovations and painting reality. Lines 34-38 give an example where stylistic innovations helped Bearden show reality through a new use of color. 
4. This ignores half of Bearden’s importance: he also tried to show the varied reality of African-American life. 
5. We’re not told whether Bearden is famous, or why.