LSAT 120 | Section 4 | Logical Reasoning: Q18

LR Question 18 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: It has been a staple of drama to feature an innocent young…

QUESTION TYPE: Most Helps to Explain

CONCLUSION: Historians think that plays with a young protagonist eager to make a mark on the world do not accurately reflect the societies they were written in.

REASONING: The playwrights of such works wished the audience to empathize with the protagonist.

ANALYSIS: We know that fiction is often not an accurate portrayal of the real world. Can we use that to help justify the historians’ point of view?

___________

1. Are the dramas in question about the playwrights’ own societies, or foreign societies? Further, why are playwrights more critical of their own societies? Perhaps they know their own societies better…Are the criticisms true? This tells us nothing about how accurate their plays are.
2. CORRECT. This does it. Accuracy is sacrificed for narrative.
3. This doesn’t explain why historians nonetheless believe the plays are not serious revelations of the true nature of those societies. (Note that a play could provide useful information while still being broadly inaccurate.)
4. This is the exact opposite of the conclusion and certainly doesn’t explain it.
5. The stimulus doesn’t say that the plays in question aren’t also the most popular plays. The technique is a staple of drama, so it stands to reason that popular plays use it too. Yet they aren’t viewed as being insightful.

Recap: The question begins with “It has been a staple of drama to feature an innocent young”. It is a Paradox question. Learn more about LSAT Paradox questions in our guide to LSAT Logical Reasoning question types.