Q1

[xinglipku]

Anyone please help to explain why (D) is incorrect?

[ohthatpatrick]

(D) is pretty tempting. Make sure you have a keen eye for trying to find the most loaded word in each answer choice, because often that is the ingredient that could be breaking the answer (or the ingredient you should be searching the passage for to see if you can justify it).

In (D), I initially reacted to 'radical departure' and 'accepted conventions'. I can support the latter with line 61, so that looks okay. But where can I support 'radical departure'? It never says in the passage that Marshall's techniques were radically different or that he adapted them.

Instead, his techniques are referred to in line 14 as "innovations". That makes it seem more like these are things he invested, rather than things he adapted. And just because something is new, it doesn't have to be radically different.

The other issue with (D) is that Marshall's innovations became accepted practice within the field of public interest law (lines 14-15 and 60-62), whereas (D) makes it sound like his techniques are common in the whole legal field.

If you compare the language in (B) to (D), you'll see that these minor linguistic tweaks are precisely what are being tested. Was it a 'radical departure he adapted' or 'a significant innovation'? Has it become 'standard tactics for public interest lawyers' or 'accepted conventions in the field of law'?

These are the moments, during a Main Point question, when you have to go back to the passage to look up specific wording.

Hope this helps.

[xinglipku]

(D) is pretty tempting. Make sure you have a keen eye for trying to find the most loaded word in each answer choice, because often that is the ingredient that could be breaking the answer (or the ingredient you should be searching the passage for to see if you can justify it).

In (D), I initially reacted to 'radical departure' and 'accepted conventions'. I can support the latter with line 61, so that looks okay. But where can I support 'radical departure'? It never says in the passage that Marshall's techniques were radically different or that he adapted them.

Instead, his techniques are referred to in line 14 as "innovations". That makes it seem more like these are things he invested, rather than things he adapted. And just because something is new, it doesn't have to be radically different.

The other issue with (D) is that Marshall's innovations became accepted practice within the field of public interest law (lines 14-15 and 60-62), whereas (D) makes it sound like his techniques are common in the whole legal field.

If you compare the language in (B) to (D), you'll see that these minor linguistic tweaks are precisely what are being tested. Was it a 'radical departure he adapted' or 'a significant innovation'? Has it become 'standard tactics for public interest lawyers' or 'accepted conventions in the field of law'?

These are the moments, during a Main Point question, when you have to go back to the passage to look up specific wording.

Hope this helps.

For "radical departure", I think line 60 did mention that by stating that "but the techniques that he honed-originally considered to be a radical departure from accepted conventions...". By the way, is the correct answer B or E? My book suggests it's (E)....@@@!!

[Djjustin818]

Could you please respond to Jackie's last reply?

I have the same exact questions and issues with this problem.

Thanks

[ohthatpatrick]

The answer is (B).

Good call on the line ref for "radical departure"! I can't believe I didn't see that.

Well then, let's get back to the differences between (B) and (D):

(D) says Marshall's techniques became accepted conventions in the field of law

(B) says his techniques have been adopted as standard tactics for public interest lawyers.

(B) wins that one, as line 62 says "public interest litigation", not "the field of law".

(D) says that Marshall adopted a set of radical tactics

(B) says that Marshall devised a set of strategies

The difference? Did Marshall just choose to use someone else's tactics or devise his own?

(B) wins that one, as "innovations" from line 14 and "techniques that he honed" from line 59 suggest that Marshall actually did some creative work, he didn't just grab someone else's tactics.

(D) actually says that Marshall took unconventional tactics and then turned them into ("adapted them") something conventional.

But the passage is saying that Marshall's techniques were the things considered a radical departure ... and the passage of time has turned them into something conventional.

Hope this helps.

[soyeonjeon]

Why would A be wrong?

[doug.feng]

Why would A be wrong?

I could be wrong but I think I see a couple of things that red flagged it for me.

1. "In his role as a lawyer for the NAACP" -- It just says that the organization was lead under his direction, nowhere do I see support that he was a lawyer. The passage only provides that he helped led the NAACP.

2. "Marshall developed a number of strategies for litigation" -- The passage states that it wasn't just Marshall, that it was "the NAACP and Marshall."

3. I think overall, if the two reasons above are not actually good enough for eliminating this answer choice, the answer itself is just too narrow for the MAIN POINT of the passage. There is no synthesis in this answer that includes the information about how these strategies helped pave the way for innovations in public interest law in the future.

[VickX462]

A is wrong because it neglects to address the far-reaching legacy of TM. The author's opinion is best demonstrated in line 9-10 ("strategic and methodological legacy to the field of public interest law."). A did not address TM's legacy for litigation in the field of "public interest law", which is the purpose of the last paragraph.

[DavidP715]

The answer is (B).

Good call on the line ref for "radical departure"! I can't believe I didn't see that.

Well then, let's get back to the differences between (B) and (D):

(D) says Marshall's techniques became accepted conventions in the field of law

(B) says his techniques have been adopted as standard tactics for public interest lawyers.

(B) wins that one, as line 62 says "public interest litigation", not "the field of law".

(D) says that Marshall adopted a set of radical tactics

(B) says that Marshall devised a set of strategies

The difference? Did Marshall just choose to use someone else's tactics or devise his own?

(B) wins that one, as "innovations" from line 14 and "techniques that he honed" from line 59 suggest that Marshall actually did some creative work, he didn't just grab someone else's tactics.

(D) actually says that Marshall took unconventional tactics and then turned them into ("adapted them") something conventional.

But the passage is saying that Marshall's techniques were the things considered a radical departure ... and the passage of time has turned them into something conventional.

Hope this helps.

I initially chose B and switched to D during BR because B seemed too narrow. As stated in the passage, it doesn't mention the "radical departure" which D does. It fails to mention the other areas of law that take advantage of his techniques, as stated in line 51-52 and surprisingly in the answer choice to question 6: "Marshall's techniques lend themselves to being used even for purposes that Marshall might not have intended" So although public interest lawyers have in fact adopted these tactics, it has stretched to other areas of the law. Or is that an assumption that is too far to make?

The only reason I'd rule out D now is because of your mention of "adopted tactics" which is clearly wrong, as he and the NAACP created these innovations. So, if it weren't for that one mishap, would D seem like a better choice as it seems to encompass more of the passage than that of B?