16Hit1600
Craft and StructureHardMain purpose of a corrective account

Craft and Structure practice question

The popular story has Isaac Newton discovering gravity when an apple struck his head. Newton himself told a milder version: he was sitting in a garden, saw an apple fall, and wondered why it fell straight down rather than sideways. The blow to the head was added later by storytellers who found a falling apple too tame.

What is the main purpose of the text?

  1. A. To separate what Newton actually described from a later embellishment.Correct
  2. B. To argue that Newton did not discover gravity.
  3. C. To explain how gravity makes objects fall straight down.
  4. D. To praise the storytellers who made the story memorable.

Answer: A. To separate what Newton actually described from a later embellishment.

The text sets the popular version beside Newton's own and identifies which part was added later. Its purpose is to correct the record.

Why the other answers are wrong

B. To argue that Newton did not discover gravity.
The text accepts that Newton wondered about falling objects; it questions only the head-blow detail.
C. To explain how gravity makes objects fall straight down.
Newton's question is mentioned, but the physics is never explained.
D. To praise the storytellers who made the story memorable.
The storytellers are described as embellishing, not praised.

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