16Hit1600
Craft and StructureVery hardOverall structure: claim, complication, reframing

Craft and Structure practice question

The received view is that the canal failed because the railway arrived. The dates do not fit: the canal's tolls fell by half in the decade before the first train, when a new turnpike road took the lighter goods. The railway did not kill the canal; it buried a canal the road had already wounded.

Which choice best describes the overall structure of the text?

  1. A. It states a common explanation, shows that the timing contradicts it, and offers a revised account.Correct
  2. B. It describes how canals were built.
  3. C. It argues that railways should not have been built.
  4. D. It lists the goods carried on the canal.

Answer: A. It states a common explanation, shows that the timing contradicts it, and offers a revised account.

Received view, mismatched dates, and a new account with the road as the real cause.

Why the other answers are wrong

B. It describes how canals were built.
Construction is not described.
C. It argues that railways should not have been built.
No such argument.
D. It lists the goods carried on the canal.
'Lighter goods' is a passing mention, not a list.

More Craft and Structure questions

Not affiliated with the College Board. SAT is a trademark of the College Board.