Q15

[LSAT-Chang]

Could someone go over this question for me? I chose (E) because I thought the modifications to cakewalk by introducing European dances (couples, high-kicking walk) was what gave rise to European Americans appreciating the dance (although it was introduced with satiric intent).

[ohthatpatrick]

You made a good case for (E), but we can make a better case for (C).

We're trying to find an analogy for this story:
cakewalk became more popular with Europeans because it included European features (as you said, "high kicks, couples") ... but ironically Africans had added these features to make fun of Europeans (not to appeal to Europeans)

(C) matches up on several levels,
popular music lovers started liking something more
(cakewalk becomes more popular with Europeans)
because it included popular music features,
(high kicks, couples)
even though those features were added to make fun of popular music
(Africans had added those features to satirize Europeans)

(E) you could actually assign these two different ways, but neither works

if (popular = cakewalk, and traditional = European)
then ("after the cakewalk started using European styles, interest in EUROPEAN music increased"? That's backwards. We'd want to say that after the cakewalk started using European styles, interest in CAKEWALK increased)

if (popular = European, and traditional = cakewalk)
then ("after European music started using Cakewalk features, interest in Cakewalk increased". Here, the first half would be backwards.Cakewalk used more European stuff, not the other way around.

Also, (E) doesn't contain any part of the fact that the European features were put in there originally for the purpose of mocking European music.

Let me know if it doesn't makes sense why (C) would be a stronger match.

[yhyuna]

Can you explain why (b) doesn't work? Thanks!

[al2568]

also, why not b?

My attempt to explain why not b....

Difference between young listeners and older listeners.

If it grew in popularity among older listeners while parodying them, bingo, correct answer, analogous.

But it grows in popularity for younger listeners.

[shirleyx]

I'm going to try break it down for the rest of the choices

(A) is incorrect because there is a comparison that is being made in this choice, but not in the actual passage. It is like saying cakewalk is popular because it is a satirical version of the original dance... but there is no original dance, its all a satire...

(B) is incorrect because this choice requires assumptions to be made for it to be true. We can't say they cakewalk became popular because it parodies the older version, there may or may not be other reasons for this popularity

(D) is incorrect because the cakewalk was never "once popular" and then lost its popularity only to reclaim it,
as this choice claims

(E) described above by another poster