PrepTest 123, Section 4, Question 1
For decades, there has been a deep rift(452 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(9 more words not shown)
- ARita Dove's work(16 more words not shown)
- BRita Dove's lyric(24 more words not shown)
- CWorking against a(27 more words not shown)
- DUnlike many of(17 more words not shown)
- ERita Dove's successful(26 more words not shown)
Reading the passage
We already predicted the main point when we finished reading: the rigid divide between poetry and fiction is weakening, and Dove's work illustrates that change. She writes in both genres and brings elements of each into the other.
What we’re looking for
Now we're looking for an answer that says that in different words. Dove takes up a lot of space because she demonstrates the broader change; a true detail about her technique could still miss the main point.
Working the answers
- A
The question here isn't why Dove became acclaimed. Her acclaim helps establish that a writer can be respected in both genres; the text doesn't identify lyrical fiction as the main cause of her reputation.
- B
This describes how the narrative develops in her poems, but a true description of one technique isn't enough for this question. The technique illustrates crossing genre boundaries; the main point concerns the broader movement away from rigid separation.
- C
This initially looks promising: it has the American bias and writers challenging it. But it goes only from poetry into fiction. Dove also brings narrative elements into poetry. As a main point, this leaves out half of the boundary-crossing her work illustrates.
- D
She uses traditional techniques from both genres. Bringing poetic rhythms into fiction and narrative into poetry is different from writing without those techniques.
- ECorrect
This is a version of our prediction: Dove's example illustrates the broader trend away from rigid separation. The ending emphasizes combining poetry and fiction in the same piece (paragraph 4), so her achievement isn't merely publishing a book of poems and a separate novel. Her writing also challenges the boundary inside the works themselves.
More Main Point questions
Learn the LSAT our way
Our platform drills Main Point questions at your level and adjusts as you improve.