Craft and StructureEasy–MediumTwo views on fiction and empathy
Craft and Structure practice question
Text 1
Several studies have found that people who read a short piece of literary fiction score higher on tests of empathy than people who read nonfiction. Reading fiction, it seems, makes us better at understanding others.
Text 2
The empathy tests in these studies are given minutes after the reading. Whether the effect lasts a day, let alone a lifetime, has not been measured.
The author of Text 2 would most likely describe the studies mentioned in Text 1 as
- A. suggestive but limited in what they show about lasting effects.Correct
- B. fraudulent.
- C. proof that fiction improves empathy permanently.
- D. irrelevant to the question of empathy.
Answer: A. suggestive but limited in what they show about lasting effects.
Text 2 does not reject the studies; it limits their reach.
Why the other answers are wrong
- B. fraudulent.
- No accusation of fraud.
- C. proof that fiction improves empathy permanently.
- Text 2 says lasting effects were not measured.
- D. irrelevant to the question of empathy.
- The studies are about empathy.
More Craft and Structure questions
- Easy–Medium
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word? - Easy–Medium
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word? - Easy–Medium
As used in the text, what does the word "command" most nearly mean? - Easy–Medium
Which choice best describes the function of the second paragraph in the text as a whole? - Easy–Medium
Which choice best describes a difference in how the two texts discuss volunteer-collected observations? - Easy–Medium
Which choice best describes the function of the phrase "a nursery with a thousand doorways" in the text as a w…
Not affiliated with the College Board. SAT is a trademark of the College Board.