LSAT 146 | Section 4 | Reading Comprehension: Q8

RC Question 8 Explanation

DISCUSSION: This question asks about lines 12-13. To fully understand the meaning of “something for display”, you should read on to lines 15-16: “even if one finds it [the house] impossible to live in.”

This implies that the patrons were creating art purely because it created a favorable impression – the patrons themselves disliked the art. (If you were making a house purely for yourself, you’d make one you could live in.)

The phrase “may reflect great credit on one’s taste” (line 14-15) shows that the display was to impress others.

___________

1. Unlikely. This sounds more like the second type of art (lines 15-19), where the patron expressed their values to the world.
2. The author never specified whether the patrons were businessmen. This type of patronage might have been more common among noblemen.
3. CORRECT. Indeed. If patrons commissioned houses they personally found uncomfortable (lines 15-16), then “on display” must refer to being on display for others. The line “reflect great credit on one’s taste” (lines 14-15) shows the commission was for enhancing the patron’s prestige.
4. This might be true, but it doesn’t need to be, and it wasn’t why the author used the words “on display”.
5. “Even if one finds the house impossible to live in” suggests that patrons did not necessarily get satisfaction from what they commissioned.