PrepTest 154, Section 4, Question 20
Critic: The more a novel appeals to the(32 more words not shown)
The conclusion of the critic's(11 more words not shown)
- ANo novel written(11 more words not shown)
- BNo novelist who(13 more words not shown)
- CNo novelist whose(14 more words not shown)
- DAny novelist who(19 more words not shown)
- EAny novel that(20 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
Why can't a novelist care about style and care even more about making money?
The critic gives us a fact about sales: greater appeal to the public means more money for the author. Then comes a different claim. Serious novelists care about literary style, so they supposedly aren't motivated primarily by money. The concern for style hasn't established that priority.
A novelist could want elegant writing and a large paycheck. Caring about the writing doesn't, by itself, tell us which goal matters most.
Notice the word primarily: the conclusion needn't exclude every interest in money. It must exclude money as the leading motivation.
What we’re looking for
To make that conclusion follow, we need a rule saying that a novelist who cares about literary style cannot be motivated primarily by money. Then the fact about serious novelists would fit the rule and establish the conclusion. We don't need to ban multiple goals altogether; we need the particular combination the argument assumes is impossible.
Working the answers
- A
Even if no serious novelist's work actually appealed to the public, that wouldn't establish what motivated the authors. Someone could try hard to make money and fail to attract readers. A concerns the result, while the conclusion concerns the leading motive. It doesn't connect caring about style with a lower priority for money.
- BCorrect
Every serious novelist cares about literary style. B tells us that anyone with that concern is not motivated primarily by the desire to make money. Put the two statements together and every serious novelist falls into the group excluded from a primarily financial motive.
This still permits a serious novelist to care about money to some extent. The rule only denies that money is the primary motivation, which is exactly what the conclusion needs.
- C
Caring about literary style isn't the same as actually writing with good literary style. A novelist could care deeply about it and still write badly. The premise places serious novelists among those who care; C supplies a rule about those whose novels achieve a certain quality. We haven't established that the serious novelists meet C's condition.
- D
This connects a primarily financial motive with successful public appeal. It doesn't tell us whether serious novelists have that motive. We have no premise ruling out public appeal for serious novelists, so the rule can't exclude them from the money-motivated group. The style connection is still missing.
- E
This runs from a novel's actual public appeal to the author's financial motive. Again, nothing tells us how that rule applies to all serious novelists or to their concern for style. Knowing what motivates authors of popular novels doesn't establish that serious novelists lack a primarily financial motive.
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