PT151 S3 Q14 ExplanationMusic historian: In the past, radio stations

Answer choices, explained

1. A

   Too Strong1% picked this

   Rock music is not a good outlet for creative musicians who have a

   Too Strong: not a good outlet Out of Scope: great many ideas This is a very strongly worded answer (red flag) because it's saying that for any creative musician with a great many ideas, rock music is not a good outlet. Ouch! For none of them? This author wasn't saying that rock music is incompatible with "creativity / having a great many ideas". This author was just saying that rock music isn't good at doing longer songs.

   1%
2. B

   Too Strong: must5% picked this

   Rock music must borrow from styles more conducive to songs of extended length if it

   This is a very strongly worded answer (red flag) because it's saying, "If rock music doesn't borrow from styles more conducive to long songs, then it will never become artistic". Our author never said that rock music isn't artistic. There were just some critics who argued that rock music didn't become artistic until rock musicians were allowed to make songs longer than 3 minutes. Our author might think that rock music is already artistic, whether it's under or over 3 minutes. Her only stance is that rock music has structural problems and focus problems when it's allowed to go more than 3 minutes. But something can still be artistic even if it has problems with structure and focus.

   5%
3. C

   Too Strong2% picked this

   Rock music requires more discipline than some other forms

   Too Strong: requires Out of Scope: discipline / other music Nothing in this paragraph allows us to compare rock music to any other genre, other than the fact that it's implied that, "at least some styles of music are better suited to songs of extended length than rock music is". We could better sign off on an answer that says, "Rock music is better suited to concision than are some other forms of music". But we can't say it requires more discipline.

   2%
4. D

   Correct92% picked this

   Rock music can sometimes benefit from the existence of commercial barriers rather than being

   Why this is right

   This is by far the most safely worded answer available ("sometimes" = only one data point of support needed). This reinforces the causal idea in our author's rebuttal. She was arguing that removing the commercial 3 minute barrier led to the song structures breaking down and the music becomes aimless. So we have at least one data point in which rock music benefits from a commercial barrier: the commercial barrier of 3 minute max length helps rock music to be more structurally stable and focused. We might call this a Flip the Causal Difference-Maker type answer. Since she told us that "removing the barrier made rock music worse in some ways", the correct answer says, "having the barrier made rock music better in some ways".

   Skill tested: Most Supported · how this choice captures the argument's function is the move to repeat next time.

   92%
5. E

   Too Strong0% picked this

   Rock music is best when it is made by musicians who do not think of themselves

   Too Strong: best Out of Scope: self-conscious The author never defines when rock music is at its best. She definitely believes that rock music was better in at least two ways when it was forced to stick within a 3 minute length, but that's all we know. And the passage never discusses whether musicians thought of themselves as self-conscious artists.

   0%