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- tw4jp
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Vinny Gambini
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main point question
Hi, I constantly miss the main point question. Is the main point Q about the author's point, so author's opinion has to be in the answer choice? I am not sure. Sometimes I chose the wrong answer and it's wrong bc it only talks about the final passage and too narrow. Sometimes I ruled out one answer choice based on the same reason however it turns out to be the right answer. Not sure how to tackle these kind of questions. Can anyone give me a general advice?
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- ohthatpatrick
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Atticus Finch
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Re: main point question
They are pretty tricky on modern tests. On older tests, the correct answer sounded very similar to whatever sentence (or two sentences) in the passage best encapsulated the author's main point. Nowadays, the correct answer usually sounds more gist-y.
You always start by thinking to yourself, "What was the author's PURPOSE in writing this passage?"
The main point is always expressed in relation to the author's purpose.
If the passage spent 80% of its time describing a problem and the final 20% describing the author's proposed remedy, the REMEDY is the main point.
If the passage spends 70% of its time laying out other people's ideas and spends the final 30% with the author expressing her qualms about these ideas, the PUSHBACK AGAINST THE OTHER PEOPLE'S IDEAS is the main point.
Main Point sentences in the passage are most commonly found at
1. the end of the 1st Paragraph
2. the beginning of the 2nd paragraph
or
3. the beginning of the Last paragraph
Wrong answers are frequently killed by ONE-WORD being either too strong or out of scope, so read vigilantly to see if you can sign off on the accuracy of every single word.
Other wrong answers are often True, but too Narrow. If an answer choice is saying something from the middle paragraphs, it's almost always wrong. As we just said, the Main Point ideas are usually in the beginning or the end.
On older tests, a correct main point answer would usually have two clauses: a dependent clause that summarized the background/other people's views and a main clause that summarized the author's view.
On modern tests, it's more common for the correct answer to only give the main clause that summarizes the author's view.
So if an answer seems surprisingly abrupt, or seems to leave out much of what was discussed, but it still manages to correctly encapsulate the author's big takeaway, it could still be right.
In short ... when you READ the passage, make sure you can
1. articulate the PURPOSE
2. find the 1, 2, or 3 most valuable sentences that sound like the author delivering on that purpose.
When you check answers, prioritize eliminating ones that have any words that are
1. too strong
2. out of scope
Once you're down to the 'accurate' answers, beware ones that are too narrow, and pick the one that better aligns with the author's purpose.
You always start by thinking to yourself, "What was the author's PURPOSE in writing this passage?"
The main point is always expressed in relation to the author's purpose.
If the passage spent 80% of its time describing a problem and the final 20% describing the author's proposed remedy, the REMEDY is the main point.
If the passage spends 70% of its time laying out other people's ideas and spends the final 30% with the author expressing her qualms about these ideas, the PUSHBACK AGAINST THE OTHER PEOPLE'S IDEAS is the main point.
Main Point sentences in the passage are most commonly found at
1. the end of the 1st Paragraph
2. the beginning of the 2nd paragraph
or
3. the beginning of the Last paragraph
Wrong answers are frequently killed by ONE-WORD being either too strong or out of scope, so read vigilantly to see if you can sign off on the accuracy of every single word.
Other wrong answers are often True, but too Narrow. If an answer choice is saying something from the middle paragraphs, it's almost always wrong. As we just said, the Main Point ideas are usually in the beginning or the end.
On older tests, a correct main point answer would usually have two clauses: a dependent clause that summarized the background/other people's views and a main clause that summarized the author's view.
On modern tests, it's more common for the correct answer to only give the main clause that summarizes the author's view.
So if an answer seems surprisingly abrupt, or seems to leave out much of what was discussed, but it still manages to correctly encapsulate the author's big takeaway, it could still be right.
In short ... when you READ the passage, make sure you can
1. articulate the PURPOSE
2. find the 1, 2, or 3 most valuable sentences that sound like the author delivering on that purpose.
When you check answers, prioritize eliminating ones that have any words that are
1. too strong
2. out of scope
Once you're down to the 'accurate' answers, beware ones that are too narrow, and pick the one that better aligns with the author's purpose.
2 posts Page 1 of 1