LSAT 142 – Section 4 – Question 16

LSAT 142 - Section 4 - Question 16

December 2014

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Question
QuickView		 Type Tags Answer
Choices		 Curve Question
Difficulty		 Psg/Game/S
Difficulty		 Explanation
PT142 S4 Q16
+LR
Sufficient assumption +SA
Link Assumption +LinkA
Eliminating Options +ElimOpt
A
2%
155
B
1%
152
C
1%
153
D
13%
161
E
82%
165
130
143
157
 +Medium 147.564 +SubsectionMedium

Most commentators on Baroque painting consider Caravaggio an early practitioner of that style, believing that his realism and novel use of the interplay of light and shadow broke sharply with current styles of Caravaggio’s time and significantly influenced seventeenth-century Baroque painting. One must therefore either abandon the opinion of this majority of commentators or reject Mather’s definition of Baroque painting, which says that for any painting to be considered Baroque, it must display opulence, heroic sweep, and extravagance.

Summary
The author concludes that either (1) Caravaggio is not an early practitioner of the Baroque style, or (2) we should reject Mather’s definition requiring “Baroque” painting to display opulence, heroic sweep, and extravagance.
This is based on the fact that Caravaggio’s realism and use of light and shadow broke with contemporary styles and influenced Baroque painting.

Missing Connection
The conclusion asserts at least one of these must be true: (1) Caravaggio’s paintings were not Baroque, or (2) Baroque paintings do not require the combination of opulance, heroic, sweep and extravagance.
To prove that at least one of these must be true, we must show that if (1) is NOT true, then (2) must be true. Or, that if (2) is NOT true, then (1) must be true.
Let’s say that (1) is NOT true — in other words, that Caravaggio’s paintings WERE Baroque. On the current premises, would we be allowed to infer that Mather’s definition of Baroque painting is wrong? Not necessarily — Mather says that Baroque paintings must have opulence, heroic sweep, and extravagance. Who’s to say that Caravaggio’s paintings don’t have these qualities? The author is *assuming* that Caravaggio’s paintings don’t have these qualities. This is why the author believes that if we accept Caravaggio’s paintings as Baroque, then Mather’s definition of Baroque must be wrong.

A
Paintings that belong to a single historical period typically share many of the same stylistic features.
(A) doesn’t establish any of qualities of Caravaggio’s paintings. So it doesn’t establish that if Caravaggio’s paintings are Baroque, that Mather’s definition of Baroque is wrong.
B
A painter who makes use of the interplay of light and shadow need not for that reason be considered a nonrealistic painter.
(B) doesn’t establish any of qualities of Caravaggio’s paintings. So it doesn’t establish that if Caravaggio’s paintings are Baroque, that Mather’s definition of Baroque is wrong.
C
Realism was not widely used by painters prior to the seventeenth century.
(C) doesn’t establish any of qualities of Caravaggio’s paintings. So it doesn’t establish that if Caravaggio’s paintings are Baroque, that Mather’s definition of Baroque is wrong.
D
A realistic painting usually does not depict the world as opulent, heroic, or extravagant.
(D) is close to something that would make the argument valid. But it doesn’t establish that Caravaggio’s paintings did not involve opulence, heroic sweep, or extravagance. (D) establishes that realistic paintings “usually” don’t have these things — but it leaves open the possibility that Caravaggio’s paintings did have these things.
E
Opulence, heroic sweep, and extravagance are not present in Caravaggio’s paintings.
If Caravaggio’s paintings didn’t have opulence, heroic sweep, or extravagance, then his paintings would not fit Mather’s definition of Baroque. So if Caravaggio’s paintings actually are Baroque, then Mather’s definition is wrong.

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LSAT PrepTest 142 Explanations

Section 1 - Logical Reasoning

Section 2 - Logical Reasoning

Section 3 - Reading Comprehension

Section 4 - Logical Reasoning

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