PSAT Reading Question 463: Answer and Explanation

Question: 463

Which statement from Passage 1 is it reasonable to infer that Plato would have found most offensive?

• A. Line 3 ("Why should . . universe")
• B. Lines 8–9 ("There are . . . thoughts")
• C. Line 15 ("Let us . . . around us")
• D. Lines 19–20 ("speculative . . . frivolous")

Correct Answer: D

Explanation:

(D) Know what you are looking for by paraphrasing this question. We want to find what Emerson said that would explicitly offend Plato. Choice (D) is correct because here Emerson voices a common belief that "speculative men," or men like Plato who spend their time thinking, are "unsound and frivolous." Choices (A), (B), and (C) consist of Emerson's argument that the current generation should seek its own knowledge, an idea with which Plato would most likely agree.