LSAT 134 | Section 4 | Reading Comprehension: Q15

RC Question 15 Explanation

DISCUSSION: Lines 60-65 show that the author is skeptical that desire to spread our genes is what causes us to help our children.

The author is also indirectly skeptical of evolutionary psychologists’ explanation for monogamy. His second paragraph explains their arguments, but lines 53-54 and the rest of the third paragraph show he doesn’t think much of this explanation. The author first says that evolutionary psychologists might be wrong (i.e. their explanation is questionable), and he goes on to say that they’re generally never right.

___________

1. The author of Passage B never mentions this. It’s only mentioned on lines 27-28, in passage A.
2. Lines 46-47 show that human kids mature slowly. But neither author explains why. The fact that kids grow slowly is used by evolutionary psychologists to explain why humans are monogamous.
3. CORRECT. The second paragraph mentions that evolutionary psychologists say we form monogamous families because we want to spread our genes. Lines 53-54 show the author’s skepticism, and the third paragraph expands on this: evolutionary psychologists rarely show that their theory is the only explanation. So the author likely thinks the evolutionary psychologists’ explanation of monogamy is bunk.
4. The author of passage B criticizes evolutionary psychologists for misinterpreting motives. But the question asks us which explanation the author of passage B criticizes.
5. The evolutionary psychologists ignore this possibility. This isn’t one of their explanations. The author of passage B criticizes them for not realizing this, see lines 64-66.