PrepTest 124, Section 2, Question 14
The authorship of the Iliad and the Odyssey(60 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(9 more words not shown)
- AIf there is(17 more words not shown)
- BIf a hypothesis(12 more words not shown)
- CIf there is(12 more words not shown)
- DOne should accept(14 more words not shown)
- EOne should defer(13 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
If the evidence is evenly balanced, why pick Homer?
My first reaction is that we should admit we don't know. The passage says there is evidence on both sides and neither side has overwhelming support. But the author does pick a side: accept the traditional view that Homer was the principal author.
That tells us the rule this author is relying on. Tradition gets the benefit of the doubt. When the evidence doesn't decisively settle the dispute, stick with the familiar view rather than accept the challenge to it.
What we’re looking for
We're asked for the principle underlying the reasoning, so we need the author's rule, not the rule I would prefer. Look for something giving tradition priority when the evidence against it isn't overwhelming.
Working the answers
- A
Suspending judgment is what I initially wanted to do. It isn't what the author does. The conclusion tells us to accept Homer as principal author, so a principle telling us to withhold a verdict doesn't express the reasoning behind that conclusion.
- BCorrect
The hypothesis against tradition is that Homer had nothing to do with either work. B says not to accept that challenge without overwhelming evidence. Since the passage says the evidence isn't overwhelming, this rule expresses the author's preference for keeping the traditional view rather than accepting the challenge.
- C
Apply this rule to both sides. There is no overwhelming evidence that Homer wrote the works, and no overwhelming evidence that he didn't. C would have us believe both claims. It gives us no reason to choose the traditional one over its incompatible rival, which is exactly what the author does.
- D
This adds a requirement for nontraditional evidence before accepting tradition. The author doesn't establish that requirement or show that it has been met. Instead, the author treats the absence of overwhelming evidence as a reason to stick with tradition. D places a different condition on that decision.
- E
We have one opposing hypothesis: Homer had nothing to do with the works. We don't have two or more hypotheses against tradition. So E's condition doesn't match the situation the argument presents. The number of works doesn't turn one hypothesis about both into two competing hypotheses.
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