PrepTest 155, Section 4, Question 19
McKee: Heckling the performer is a long-standing tradition(56 more words not shown)
McKee's and Chapman's statements indicate(10 more words not shown)
- AComedy venues should(6 more words not shown)
- BStand-up comedians' responses(11 more words not shown)
- CThe best stand-up(13 more words not shown)
- DMany audience members(10 more words not shown)
- EIt is unwise(10 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
McKee treats heckling and the comedian's response as part of the show. Chapman treats heckling as an interruption of the show. That's the broad disagreement, even though the speakers don't give us a neat list of opposite statements. McKee points to the tradition and to performers learning to respond entertainingly. Chapman replies that the tradition survives because people tolerate it, that usually only the heckler enjoys it, and that it generally distracts from the performance.
The fact that a tradition is tolerated doesn't by itself establish that it's bad. You could say a holiday tradition survives because people tolerate it without having shown any reason to abolish the holiday. Chapman's further claims about enjoyment and distraction supply the criticism here.
What we’re looking for
Now the question asks for the exception: four choices reflect disagreements, and one doesn't. That is a little harder than finding their broad difference. Some positions will be implied rather than stated word for word. We should keep reading if an early answer feels uncertain and compare how well each is tied to the exchange.
Working the answers
- A
I might hesitate because Chapman doesn't explicitly tell venues what policy to adopt. But the response criticizes tolerating heckling as something that preserves a distracting practice, while McKee explicitly says venues shouldn't prevent it. Their positions point in different directions on tolerance. A requires connecting the dots, but the dots concern the policy they are discussing.
- B
This can also give us pause: neither person says, 'Here is the official boundary of a performance.' Still, McKee presents entertaining responses as part of the expected comedy experience. Chapman calls heckling a distraction from the performance. That contrast supports a disagreement over whether this interaction belongs within the show or interferes with it.
- CCorrect
Who are the best comedians? Neither speaker ranks comedians or says that the most talented performers lack the ability to respond entertainingly. Chapman could accept that excellent comedians sometimes handle hecklers brilliantly and still think heckling is generally a distracting practice.
This is clearer than the uncertainties in A and B. Those choices concern the role and treatment of heckling, which the speakers actually discuss. C introduces a claim about the abilities of the best performers that neither speaker disputes. We don't need to establish that both speakers agree; we need the choice for which a disagreement isn't indicated.
- D
McKee's description of entertaining responses supports the idea that audience members enjoy that exchange. Chapman says heckling is usually fun only for the heckler. That supplies an opposing view of the audience's enjoyment. We don't have to read McKee as saying everyone always enjoys it or Chapman as saying no audience member ever does.
- E
McKee treats a long-standing tradition as a reason not to suppress heckling. Chapman challenges preserving the practice merely because it has been tolerated for a long time. In the context of this particular tradition, that is a disagreement about the weight venues should give the tradition. C, by contrast, takes us to a ranking of performers the exchange never addresses.
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