LSAT 105 – Section 1 – Question 01

LSAT 105 - Section 1 - Question 01

February 1999

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Question
QuickView		 Type Tags Answer
Choices		 Curve Question
Difficulty		 Psg/Game/S
Difficulty		 Explanation
PT105 S1 Q01
+LR
Main conclusion or main point +MC
A
3%
158
B
1%
149
C
1%
152
D
0%
161
E
96%
166
123
133
143
 +Easiest 147.243 +SubsectionMedium

Tennyson’s line of poetry “nature, red in tooth and claw” is misconstrued by many evolutionists as a reference to Darwin’s theory of evolution. The poem in which the line appears was published in 1850, but Darwin kept his theory closely held until publishing it in 1859. In addition, in view of the context provided by the rest of the poem, the line was clearly meant to refer to the dominant biological theory of the early nineteenth century, which was a creationist theory.

Summarize Argument: Counter-Position
Evolutionists who believe that a line of Tennyson’s poetry refers to Darwin’s theory of evolution are wrong. How do we know this? Firstly, the poem in question was published nine years before Darwin revealed his theory. This implies that Tennyson probaby didn’t know about Darwin’s theory when he wrote this poem. Secondly, looking at the poem as a whole, the line actually seems to refer to a creationist theory of biology. This gives us a different explanation for the line of poetry, totally independent of Darwin.

Identify Conclusion
The conclusion is where the author states that the evolutionists are incorrect: “Tennyson’s line of poetry … is misconstrued by many evolutionists as a reference to Darwin’s theory of evolution.”

A
The line of Tennyson’s poetry cannot now be construed as an apt description of Darwin’s theory of evolution.
The author never mentions whether the line of poetry could accurately describe Darwin’s theory. The argument is just concerned with demonstrating that Tennyson did not intend to refer to Darwin’s theory.
B
The dominant biological theory in the early nineteenth century was a creationist theory.
This statement is not supported by the rest of the argument. Instead, it is used to help explain that Tennyson was actually referring to a different theory, thus supporting the main conclusion that Tennyson was not referring to Darwin’s theory.
C
Tennyson’s line of poetry was written well before Darwin had published his theory of evolution.
This statement is not supported by the rest of the argument. Instead, it is used to support the main conclusion that the line of Tennyson’s poetry was not intended as a reference to Darwin’s theory, because Tennyson would not have known about Darwin’s theory.
D
Darwin’s theory of evolution was not the dominant biological theory in the early nineteenth century.
This is not a conclusion drawn by the argument. The author focuses on the relationship (or lack thereof) between a line of poetry and Darwin’s theory, not the overall status of Darwin’s theory during a certain period in history.
E
Tennyson’s line of poetry was not a reference to Darwin’s theory of evolution.
This is a good restatement of the main conclusion. When the author claims that the evolutionists are mistaken about Tennyson’s poem referring to Darwin’s theory, that’s just another way to say that the poem did not refer to Darwin’s theory.

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LSAT PrepTest 105 Explanations

Section 1 - Logical Reasoning

Section 2 - Logical Reasoning

Section 3 - Reading Comprehension

Section 4 - Logical Reasoning

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