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\nThe author’s primary purpose in describing Herve\u2019s personal journey (second sentence of the fourth paragraph) is to
\n(A) imply that the habit of combining personal and professional interests is characteristic of French-speaking intellectuals but not others
\n(B) point to an experience that illustrated Herve\u2019s belief in copywright protection
\n(C) show that Herve\u2019s abilities as a writer came in large part from the international character of his world experience
\n(D) depict a meaningful biographical item about Herve in an attempt to create more human interest in the discussion
\n(E) describe what Herve believes to be the foundation for his success as a writer
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\nOther function questions might ask for the author\u2019s primary purpose or concerns, or state that the author or a particular paragraph or passage refers to X in order to Y.
\nWrong answers to function questions can reiterate detail from the passage without delving into its or the author\u2019s purpose, which can admittedly be difficult to spot!
\nRemember that you are looking for purpose rather than facts. Other incorrect answers\u00a0might oppose rather than support the author\u2019s views or incorrectly state that the author presents a statement for an unconnected purpose.
\nPassage Organization<\/h3><\/div><\/div><\/div>
\nOrganization LSAT questions on the LSAT Reading Comprehension section will ask you to understand how the passage is laid out, structurally, as opposed to the ideas contained within the passage\u2019s details. For example, a question may be worded:
Which one of the following best describes the <\/i>organization<\/i><\/b> of the passage?<\/i> This is clearly a \u201cgist\u201d or a \u201cmain idea\u201d question since it asks about the big picture. T
\nFor this type of question, you don\u2019t need to look back to the actual information in the passage, just focus on identifying the topic of each paragraph, and any relevant punctuation and transitions phrases. Start by reading the first sentence of each paragraph. The topic of a paragraph is usually contained in the first sentence (look for the general noun). The topic sentences act as short summaries of each paragraph and introduce you to the next direction the author is taking the topic. Even just skimming for these structural phrases give us big clues into how the argument is laid out.
\nRemember these helpful clues as you are skimming:
\nThe first sentence of the first paragraph usually introduces the topic.
\nThe second paragraph could explain a viewpoint on that topic, then reveal flaws in the first theory.
\nThe third paragraph could potentially describe a secondary viewpoint.
\nThe final paragraph of our hypothetical passage might ultimately give evidence in support of it.
\nWe can tell all of that even without focusing on the details! The TOPIC SENTENCES are all you\u2019ll need!
\nAdditionally, you might want to review common transition words and chains to increase your confidence in sensing these organization clues.
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