Which one of the following best summarizes the main idea of the passage?
halesAugust 28, 2019
Main Point - C vs. E
On this passage I debated for a bit between C and E before finally selecting E. I felt that C could be seen to support E, and so C would be a minor point, and therefore E would be better suited to be the main point of the passage.
This is a common problem that I am having, so any clarification on how to approach main point questions/what to look for in general/ and this question in particular would be very much appreciated.
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Thanks for the question! Main Point questions can definitely be tricky sometimes, even though they may seem deceptively simple. Let me start off by discussing this one in particular. The first paragraph gives us background about the Dawes Act. The next paragraph gives us stated government rationales for the Act. The third paragraph rejects those government rationales, and the fourth paragraph offers an alternative proposal. We can see that everything kind of builds up to the fourth paragraph, and so its content will definitely have to be in a correct answer choice. As such, the correct answer choice will likely have to do with the true rationale behind the Dawes Act. This is what (C) gives us. (C) tells us that the restriction may have been implemented primarily to serve the interests of politicians and bureaucrats. (E), on the other hand, lacks the entire fourth paragraph, which is a huge part of this passage. It focuses on a policy outcome of the Dawes Act, whereas the passage focuses on rationales behind the Dawes Act.
In general, it might be helpful to write down a brief summary of each passage like I did, and keep in mind what functions each of the passages serve. Main Point questions will generally include the majority, if not all, of the passage within the scope. Writing down the summaries will help you get a bird’s eye view of the passage, which is pretty much what the Main Point is asking for. Here, for example, (C) focuses on the last paragraph, but also encompasses the first three. This passage also has a structure where everything builds up to the last paragraph (background, reasons, shuts down reasons, offers other reasons), so watch out for that kind of structure. Also look out for answer choices that have language that’s too extreme or far in scope. Hope this helps! Feel free to ask any further questions you might have.
