Commemorative plaques cast from brass are a characteristic art form of the Benin culture of West Africa. Some scholars, noting that the oldest surviving plaques date to the 1400s, hypothesize that brass-casting techniques were introduced by the Portuguese, who came to Benin in 1485 A.D. But Portuguese records of that expedition mention cast-brass jewelry sent to Benin's king from neighboring Ife. So it is unlikely that Benin's knowledge of brass casting derived from the Portuguese.
Which of the following, if true, most strengthens the argument?
A. The Portuguese records do not indicate whether their expedition of 1485 included metalworkers.
B. The Portuguese had no contact with Ife until the 1500s.
C. In the 1400s the Portuguese did not use cast brass for commemorative plaques.
D. As early as 1500 A.D., Benin artists were making brass plaques incorporating depictions of Europeans.
E. Copper, which is required for making brass, can be found throughout Benin territory.
Please explain
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Commemorative plaques cast from brass are a characteristic a
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AbdurRakib
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Jake@ThePrincetonReview
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The answer here is B.
As is common with many difficult "strengthen" questions, the correct answer strengthens by removing a possible weakness, as opposed to strengthening by adding some piece of information.
This argument concludes that it is unlikely that Benin's knowledge of brass casting derived from the Portuguese, based on the premises that 1) The Portuguese came to Benin in 1485 and 2) At that point, records indicate that cast brass had already been sent to Benin by neighboring Ife.
So the argument is trying to make the connection that Benin's knowledge of brass casting came from Ife,
But does that REALLY mean that the knowledge of brass casting could not have been DERIVED from the Portuguese? What if neighboring Ife gained its knowledge from the Portuguese? In that case, the knowledge of brass casting from Ife was, in fact, derived from the Portuguese!
But answer choice B removes that possibility by telling us that the Portuguese had no contact with Ife before 1500. So it technically strengthens the argument by removing the possibility that Ife learned about brass casting from the Portuguese.
As is common with many difficult "strengthen" questions, the correct answer strengthens by removing a possible weakness, as opposed to strengthening by adding some piece of information.
This argument concludes that it is unlikely that Benin's knowledge of brass casting derived from the Portuguese, based on the premises that 1) The Portuguese came to Benin in 1485 and 2) At that point, records indicate that cast brass had already been sent to Benin by neighboring Ife.
So the argument is trying to make the connection that Benin's knowledge of brass casting came from Ife,
But does that REALLY mean that the knowledge of brass casting could not have been DERIVED from the Portuguese? What if neighboring Ife gained its knowledge from the Portuguese? In that case, the knowledge of brass casting from Ife was, in fact, derived from the Portuguese!
But answer choice B removes that possibility by telling us that the Portuguese had no contact with Ife before 1500. So it technically strengthens the argument by removing the possibility that Ife learned about brass casting from the Portuguese.
Jake Schiff
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