Greek Inscriptions

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Greek Inscriptions

by amirhakimi » Wed Nov 13, 2013 8:38 am
Although the earliest surviving Greek inscriptions written in an alphabet date from the eighth century B.C., the fact that the text of these Greek inscriptions sometimes runs from right to left and sometimes from left to right indicates that the Greeks adopted alphabetic writing at least two centuries before these inscriptions were produced. After all, the Greeks learned alphabetic writing from the Phoenicians, and presumably, along with the alphabet, they also adopted the then-current Phoenician practice with respect to the direction of text. And although Phoenician writing was originally inconsistent in direction, by the eighth century B.C. Phoenician was consistently written from right to left and had been for about two centuries.

In the argument given, the two portions in boldface play which of the following roles?

(A) The first and the second each describe evidence that has been used to challenge the position that the argument seeks to establish.

(B) The first is evidence that forms the basis for an objection to the position that the argument seeks to establish; the second is that position.

(C) The first is evidence that forms the basis for an objection to the position that the argument seeks to establish; the second is a consideration that is introduced to counter the force of that evidence.

(D) The first and the second each provide evidence in support of the position that the argument seeks to establish.

(E) The first provides evidence in support of the position that the argument seeks to establish; the second is that position.

Answer is D
Sincerely,
Amir,

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by Brandon@VeritasPrep » Sun Nov 17, 2013 1:15 pm
Let's break this argument down to size!

Conclusion: Greeks adopted alphabetic writing at least two centuries prior to 8th century B.C., when the earliest surviving Greek inscriptions were produced

Premise: Text runs left to right and right to left
Premise: Greeks learned from Phoenicians
Premise: Phoenician writing originally inconsistent in direction
Premise: By 8th century BC, Phoenician writing was consistently right to left, and had been for 2 centuries

The two bold faced statements serve as premises to the conclusion, and are thus evidence. Veritas does a great job of teaching how to discover conclusions with something called the "why" test. You ask "why" to a statement, and if you can find support for that statement then it is a conclusion. Here if you ask "why" to the conclusion, it is supported by both bold faced statements, making them each pieces of evidence in support of the conclusion.

I hope this helps!!!

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by David@VeritasPrep » Sun Nov 17, 2013 5:15 pm
This question is from the Official Guide. It is question 76 in OG 13 and Question 77 in OG 12. There are many versions of this question but this is the one from the official guide.

As a bold -faced question two of the main things you want to look for are: 1) What is the function of the statement? if there is an obvious function (as Brandon points out in this case both portions are definitely evidence). 2) What is the relationship between the bold portion and the conclusion? In this case the evidence supports the conclusion.

Brandon has explained this question very well. Take those same points with you to future bold faced questions.
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