Q9

[erikwoodward10]

Can anyone offer clarification as to what makes C incorrect? I think that the ironic amusement is definitely captured in the first lines of paragraph 3. The techniques are also described as obsolete in paragraph 4.

[ManhattanPrepLSAT1]

Let's start with the correct answer to this question which asks for an attitude most clearly displayed by the author towards the artists' uses of old photographic techniques. The author displays a positive view towards the artists' aesthetic goals in the final paragraph, which is best paraphrased in answer choice (B).

Incorrect Answers
(A) is contradicted as the author displays a positive attitude towards the use of old photographic techniques.
(C) is unsupported. The author isn't amused by the use of old photographic techniques, but rather sees them as beneficial to achieving their goals. While one might find support for irony in the first few lines of the fourth paragraph, amusement does not accurately reflect the author's attitude.
(D) is too strong. To call the author's attitude an enthusiastic endorsement goes too far.
(E) is unsupported. The author doesn't display curiosity, but rather an understanding of the artists' goals and techniques.

#officialexplanation

[kdaddymax]

I chose D, and I did not feel that "enthusiastic endorsement" was too strong. In the last sentence of the passage the author seems to express discontent with mass media and their inability to obtain intimacy with photos. This is placed in contrast to the old methods, which gives me the impression that the author is endorsing these old methods. Another example of endorsement would be that photography is "moving forward into its past." To me, an endorsement of these old methods against "modern photographic technology" feels appropriate. I can understand why B is the better answer, but I do not see how you could eliminate D because of "enthusiastic endorsement."

In my review I was struggling to eliminate one over the other, but I ended up eliminating D because of "implicit critique." The artists the author discusses display a desire for old methods but not a disdain for new ones. Estabrook is "attracted" to old process but says nothing about newer ones. Bidaut was "struck" by effects of old processes but says nothing about effects of new technology.

[ohthatpatrick]

Yeah, I think you're spot on.

I would have said, "there's no critique of modern photo technology".

The author's endorsement at the end is saying, "I see how these funky photos are an oasis of personal photographic experimentation, in a world of mass media video exposures."

But again, the author is not criticizing modern photo technology, just pointing out that mass media is done by professionals, at a distance, with glossy, perfect images streaming into our lives.

Making your own photos by painting egg slime onto a piece of paper is more intimate.

I can say that "cooking my own meals from scratch offered me the possibility of recovering an intimacy with culinary preparation that eating out has all but overwhelmed".

And I'm not CRITIQUING eating out.