Reasoning Within the Text | Critical Analysis & Reasoning Skills for MCAT PDF Download

Reasoning Within the Text - Introduction

Questions that evaluate Reasoning Within the Text differ from those that assess Foundations of Comprehension in terms of their approach. Reasoning Within the Text questions require you to integrate various components of the passage to form a more comprehensive and complex understanding of its meaning. These questions focus on specific aspects, such as the logical consistency, plausibility of arguments, reasonableness of conclusions, appropriateness of generalizations, and credibility of the author and their cited sources. They necessitate a deeper examination of the evidence, biases, flawed causal reasoning, irrelevant information, and the significance and relationships between different parts of the passage. Some questions may also require analysis of the author's language, viewpoint, and purpose, as seemingly plausible transitional phrases may be deceptive and their connections may disintegrate upon closer scrutiny.

• While the list of critical and analytical skills required for these questions may seem extensive, they are likely skills you already possess and employ in your everyday life. Similar to how you react when someone tries to persuade or convince you of something, these questions encourage you to doubt and evaluate the author's intentions and credibility. Questioning the author is a valid and essential analytical strategy when dealing with complex text. Answering such questions involves going beyond contradictions or omissions and identifying clues like vague or evasive terms, self-aggrandizing language, or suspect statements within the passage's context. Credible sources, such as essayists, scientists, lecturers, and pundits, should demonstrate expertise, objectivity, and authority. While it may be easy to spot overtly one-sided arguments and rigid viewpoints, some authors may present biased ideas in a more nuanced manner while appearing objective. Identifying bias requires analyzing and evaluating different aspects of the passage, such as the author's treatment of ideas, to uncover their stance.
• It is essential to note that Reasoning Within the Text questions do not require you to provide your personal opinion. Even if you disagree with the author's overall conclusion, you may find that it is a reasonable inference based on the limited information presented in the passage. Irrelevant outside knowledge or anecdotes that could invalidate the author's conclusion should be disregarded. Your responses should solely rely on the content of the passage and any new information introduced by the questions. Your success in the Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills section depends on adhering to this approach.

Sample Skills Passage and Questions

The exhibition titled "The Garry Winogrand Game of Photography" served as a powerful reminder of why Garry Winogrand is regarded as one of the most significant American photographers of the twentieth century. Despite the passage of time, his street photographs, particularly those taken in Midtown Manhattan during the 1950s and 1960s, have retained their dynamic immediacy. Furthermore, his captivating animal photographs offer astute insights into the human condition, while his images capturing the essence of American road trips deviate from the path laid out by Walker Evans and Robert Frank, taking the genre on an unexpected trajectory. Moreover, Winogrand's documentation of various public events, including antiwar demonstrations, art-world parties, and political press conferences, has contributed significantly to the visual record of midcentury United States history. While his initially unconventional compositions and trademark tilted-frame effect were initially dismissed for their apparent lack of formal strength, we now recognize the subtlety and unpredictability of his framing, as well as the intricate interplay he often achieves between narrative and form.

In organizing the exhibition, one of the curators, Richard Misrach, decided to shed light on an aspect of Winogrand's work that had received little attention: his color slides. Winogrand began experimenting with color photography in the 1950s and continued to do so until the late 1960s. The reasons behind his decision to stop shooting in color remain unknown, but it is possible that the difficulties and expenses associated with producing color prints, as well as their instability, played a role.

Misrach was particularly drawn to Winogrand's photographs taken at boxing matches in the 1950s, selecting eighteen such shots for the exhibition. In these images, the boxers' bodies are isolated against dark backgrounds, often fragmented by out-of-focus ropes that create a quasi-abstract effect across the frame. One particularly striking shot captures a boxer recoiling from a body blow, seemingly ascending into the surrounding void with an off-center composition that adds to its bizarre allure.

This small but captivating selection left viewers eager to see more of Winogrand's color work. However, it was the presentation of the color slides that sparked heated debates among the curators. Bill Jay expressed objections to showcasing the slides in any format due to the fact that they had never been edited by Winogrand himself. Unlike the prints in the archive, which had been selected for enlargement by the photographer from contact sheets, the slides had undergone no such process. Jay insisted that the archive's extensive collection of slides and unproofed negatives should be exclusively used for research purposes and should never be published or exhibited.

Misrach defended his decision by arguing that adhering strictly to "curatorial laws" would prevent the public from accessing the true hidden treasures within the archive. He also pointed out that Winogrand had given his photographs, slides, and negatives to the Center for Creative Photography without any conditions, implying consent for their display and publication. Misrach noted that if Winogrand had intended to keep his archive private, he could have simply chosen to destroy it. Indeed, as others noted, some photographers have deliberately destroyed their negatives to exert control over the fate of their work.

Furthermore, some curators emphasized the significance of posthumous discoveries of an artist's work. Taking the discussion to a broader context, one curator argued that artists are not always the best judges of their own work, citing the example of Franz Kafka requesting Max Brod to destroy his manuscripts, a request that Brod ignored to the benefit of the world's literary heritage.
Q.1. The curator who used the example of Max Brod refusing to destroy the manuscripts of Franz Kafka (final sentence) was most likely implying that:
(a) the individual rights of an artist are sometimes outweighed by the greater public and artistic good.
(b) the destruction of an artist’s work is never warranted.
(c) once a work of art is created, its destruction is almost a crime against humanity.
(d) great artists will always attempt to keep their works from being seen and must be prevented from doing so.

Correct Answer is Option (a)
The curator's use of the example of Max Brod refusing to destroy Franz Kafka's manuscripts suggests that there can be instances where an artist's personal wishes or intentions regarding the fate of their work may not take precedence over the potential value and significance of the work to the broader public and the artistic community. By highlighting Brod's decision to disregard Kafka's request for manuscript destruction, the curator implies that there are situations where preserving and sharing an artist's work can serve a greater purpose and benefit society or the art world as a whole. This aligns with option (a), which suggests that the individual rights of an artist can be outweighed by the greater public and artistic good.

Q.2. Someone who agreed with Misrach’s defense of his choice to show the color slides would be most likely to also approve of:
(a) exhibiting works that an artist had donated to a museum for scholarly purposes only.
(b) examining the rest of Winogrand’s unprinted photographs and selecting some for display.
(c) requiring that artists clearly state their intentions for display and publication when donating works to a museum.
(d) organizing an exhibition that included all of Winogrand’s work whether previously shown and published or not.

Correct Answer is Option (b)
Someone who agrees with Misrach's defense of showing the color slides would likely also approve of examining the rest of Winogrand's unprinted photographs and choosing certain ones for exhibition. Misrach argues that the "real hidden treasures" of the archive would never be seen if curatorial restrictions were strictly followed. This suggests a belief in the importance of exploring and showcasing previously unseen or lesser-known works of an artist. Option (b) aligns with this perspective by suggesting the examination and selection of unprinted photographs for display, which corresponds to Misrach's argument in favor of displaying the color slides.