PrepTest 115, Section 1, Question 22
Some philosophers find the traditional, subjective approach to(449 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(14 more words not shown)
- AIt cannot be(16 more words not shown)
- BIt is resolvable(18 more words not shown)
- CIt is unavoidable(16 more words not shown)
- DIt is based(14 more words not shown)
- EIt will prevent(13 more words not shown)
Reading the passage
Suppose I offer an introspective report and you refuse to count introspection as evidence. Giving you another report won't fix our disagreement. We need a shared basis for deciding what evidence is acceptable. That's the problem the third paragraph identifies and the ending tries to address.
Working the answers
- A
The writer proposes a way to work on the impasse. Saying it cannot be overcome ignores that proposal.
- BCorrect
The third paragraph says reasoned discussion requires “shared assumptions or beliefs.” Without some common ground for assessing evidence, the camps will keep talking past each other. That supports B's necessary condition for resolving the impasse; it doesn't guarantee that common ground will settle every disagreement.
- C
The writer doesn't decide that both types of evidence are necessary. Investigating their authority comes first; combining them isn't a conclusion we're told to accept in advance.
- D
They disagree about the foundations of knowledge, not just an easily corrected misunderstanding. Nothing suggests that clearing up what each side means would, by itself, make them accept the other's evidence.
- E
Alternative ways of knowing are something the writer asks about. Discovering one isn't established as a requirement for progress. Examining the existing approaches might itself help.
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