Digital PSAT Reading and Writing Practice Question 113: Answer and Explanation

Question: 113

I used to revel at my anxiety after turning in an assignment in my first years of my creative writing degree. One moment, I was quite sure that my work was genius. And another, I was the most dim-witted simpleton to ever put pen to paper. I had absolutely no idea whether my fiction would come back with an A or an F stamped on it-no clue how the professor might decide between the two. Often, I'd pull decent grades, but moan aloud when the instructor picked out my very favorite sentence-the one that was going to mark me the next Vonnegut or Kerouac-and crossed it out in red ink. Rethink this she'd scribble underneath. It took me two years and the onset of carpal tunnel to realize that there is no real way to know what's good, and that what's good is entirely subjective.

Which of the following, if true, would present the greatest challenge to the argument of the text?

• A. Some people adore Shakespeare, while others do not care for his work.
• B. Well-trained literary minds are able to use more sophisticated language to give their views on the quality of different texts.
• C. American book readership has steadily declined in the past three decades.
• D. The writer's academic evaluators graded in a hurried, haphazard way.

Correct Answer: D

Explanation:

(D) The author of Text 2 believes that the quality of writing is "entirely subjective," and bases this argument on inconsistent grading. So, choice (D) would rule out the evidence and undermine the author's argument. (A) would support the argument of the text. (B) and (C) don't affect the argument either way.