PrepTest 138, Section 2, Question 11
Cartographer: Maps are like language: they can be(53 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(22 more words not shown)
- AIt is offered(14 more words not shown)
- BIt is a(16 more words not shown)
- CIt is part(11 more words not shown)
- DIt is offered(13 more words not shown)
- EIt is the(5 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
Maps and words can both mislead us. That doesn't mean we're equally prepared to handle them.
The cartographer gives a reason for treating the two differently: people generally learn to interpret language cautiously, while sophisticated instruction in using maps is almost nonexistent. So the fact that most people usually avoid being misled by words doesn't establish that they are similarly resistant to misleading maps.
What we’re looking for
We might wonder whether people can be naturally skeptical of maps without formal instruction. But the task isn't to prove the argument sound. It's to identify the job done by the statement about learning to interpret language. Find the author's point first: don't transfer the conclusion about people's resistance to misleading words over to maps. The language-training statement helps support that point by setting up a contrast with the lack of map education.
Working the answers
- A
The statement isn't giving an analogous case to explain what the conclusion means. It's supplying one side of a difference: people receive instruction in interpreting language, but generally don't receive comparable instruction with maps. That difference supports the warning against treating the two situations alike.
- B
The author doesn't infer that language training exists because map training is scarce. Those are two separately stated facts. The argument puts them together to support a further claim about what we should infer from people's success with language.
- CCorrect
The distinction is between training in cautious language interpretation and the near absence of sophisticated map instruction. The targeted statement supplies the first half. Together, the two halves support the conclusion that resistance to misleading words should not make us assume resistance to misleading maps.
- D
The opening does identify a similarity: both maps and language can be manipulated to mislead. But the training statement supports a difference in people's preparation, not that initial similarity. D identifies it as support for the wrong claim.
- E
The main conclusion is the warning against assuming that most people aren't susceptible to misleading maps. The statement about language education helps explain why the cartographer gives that warning. It is a reason for the point, not the point itself.
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