16Hit1600
Information and IdeasVery hardEvidence for the authorship of an anonymous pamphlet

Information and Ideas practice question

A literary scholar argues that an anonymous pamphlet of 1790 was written by a known essayist of the period, referred to here as E.

Which finding, if true, would most directly support the claim?

  1. A. The pamphlet uses a rare spelling of three common words that appears in E's private letters but in no other printed work of the decade, and a printer's ledger records a payment to E in the month the pamphlet appeared.Correct
  2. B. E wrote on similar political topics in the same decade.
  3. C. The pamphlet was printed in the city where E lived.
  4. D. E publicly denied writing the pamphlet.

Answer: A. The pamphlet uses a rare spelling of three common words that appears in E's private letters but in no other printed work of the decade, and a printer's ledger records a payment to E in the month the pamphlet appeared.

A private habit in print, and a payment.

Why the other answers are wrong

B. E wrote on similar political topics in the same decade.
Many writers shared those topics.
C. The pamphlet was printed in the city where E lived.
Many writers lived in that city.
D. E publicly denied writing the pamphlet.
A denial, if anything, weighs against the claim.

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