PrepTest 154, Section 3, Question 7
Passage A The path a historical novelist has(486 more words not shown)
Passage A(209 more words not shown)
Passage B(285 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(7 more words not shown)
- Athe obligation to(12 more words not shown)
- Bthe critical distinction(8 more words not shown)
- Cthe essential role(11 more words not shown)
- Dthe impossibility of(8 more words not shown)
- Ethe ethical problems(15 more words not shown)
Reading the passage
We've already identified the shared idea: telling a meaningful story about real lives can require adding or retaining things that aren't factually accurate. A applies that idea to historical fiction; B applies it to autobiography.
What we’re looking for
So we're looking for that common topic. Both writers discuss difficulties with accuracy, but those difficulties lead to their defense of invention. Don't stop at a problem they mention and miss what they do with it.
Working the answers
- A
Both writers defend a role for invention. Their focus isn't an obligation to suppress creativity for the sake of accuracy; they explain why complete fidelity to the facts can fail to serve these genres.
- B
A explicitly distinguishes purposeful lies from accidental mistakes. B discusses false memories, but doesn't organize its argument around that distinction. This isn't the central topic of both.
- CCorrect
A says a good narrative “requires the telling of lies”; B calls lying “all but inescapable” in a coherent autobiography. Both defend an essential role for falsehood in writing about real past events.
- D
Incomplete records and unreliable memories help explain why invention is needed. But neither discussion centers on proving that accurate representation is impossible. The shared point is what falsehood contributes, not simply the difficulty of getting the facts right.
- E
B explicitly acknowledges an ethical problem. A focuses on whether inaccuracies help or harm the story, rather than developing an ethical objection. The common topic is the need for invention, not the moral problems it raises.
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