Craft and StructureVery hardFunction of a sentence
Craft and Structure practice question
Historians long portrayed the medieval guilds as rigid barriers to trade. Recent account books tell a subtler story. In several towns, guilds funded shared workshops and trained newcomers, functions that could just as easily have encouraged commerce as restrained it.
Which choice best describes the function of the underlined final sentence in the text as a whole?
- A. It restates the traditional view described in the first sentence.
- B. It provides evidence that complicates the traditional view.Correct
- C. It concedes that the traditional view was entirely correct.
- D. It calls for historians to abandon account books as sources.
Answer: B. It provides evidence that complicates the traditional view.
The final sentence gives concrete examples (shared workshops, training newcomers) showing guilds may have helped trade, offering evidence for the 'subtler story' that complicates the old view. It does not restate that view (A) or affirm it as correct (C), and it relies on account books rather than rejecting them (D).
Why the other answers are wrong
- A. It restates the traditional view described in the first sentence.
- The traditional view is that guilds blocked trade; the final sentence says the opposite — that guilds could have encouraged commerce — so it revises rather than restates it.
- C. It concedes that the traditional view was entirely correct.
- The sentence says guilds' functions 'could just as easily have encouraged commerce,' which pushes back on the old view rather than confirming it.
- D. It calls for historians to abandon account books as sources.
- The account books are the source of this new evidence — the text relies on them, and never suggests historians should stop using them.
More Craft and Structure questions
- Very hard
Based on the texts, how would the author of Text 2 most likely respond to the claim in Text 1? - Very hard
Based on the texts, how would the author of Text 2 most likely respond to the claim in Text 1 that tests let o… - Very hard
Which choice best describes the function of the sentence "Okonkwo herself has been more circumspect" in the te… - Very hard
Which choice best describes a difference in how the two authors discuss the pollinator diversity of vacant lot… - Very hard
As used in the text, what does the word "economy" most nearly mean? - Very hard
Which choice best describes the function of the second paragraph in the text as a whole?
Not affiliated with the College Board. SAT is a trademark of the College Board.