The question is asking us in what way is passage A not similar to passage B.
Passage A criticizes the formulaic structure of historical literature. "They assign books with formulaic arguments that transform history into an abstract debate that would have been unfathomable to those who lived in the past." (Lines 8-11). It then gives specific examples of attempts of some historians to try and "Rediscover stories," (Lines 15-16) : presenting papers on "'Oral History and the Narrative of Class Identity,' and 'Meaning and Time: The Problem of Historical Narrative.'" (lines 20-25).
On the other hand, Passage B is about the influence that those who teach the law have on how lawyers write, (29-31), and how due to the emphasis on conformity and deemphasis on voice and creativity, legal writing is often poorly written (37-42). Though general examples are given: "Lawyers write as they see others lawyers write, and, influenced by education, profession, economic constraints, and perceived self-interests, they too often write badly," (39-42), nothing specific is ever pointed out. There are no memos or cases cited, as in Passage A.
So, Passage A describes specific examples of a phenomenon that it criticizes, whereas passage B does not give specific examples. That is how they are not parallel, i.e. how they are not similar.
Hope that helped! Let us know if you have any other questions.
Ashley-TienJuly 20, 2018
The wording of this question threw me off. Could you explain why the other answer choices are wrong? If the answer choices are stating that Passage A is doing something and passage B isn't, wouldn't that be the same as showing how the passages are NOT parallel?
AnitaJuly 20, 2018
@Ashley-Tien The question is essentially asking what makes the passages different. This means all of the answers will be stating what one does that the other doesn't. Does that help?
Ashley-TienJuly 20, 2018
Does that mean A is wrong because Passage A and B both do not do what the answer choice states? For B and C, BOTH passages make evaluative claims, and for E, I don't think either of them outline theories?
KrisKrisDecember 17, 2018
Can you please explain why E is not the correct answer?
RaviDecember 17, 2018
@KrisKris
Answer choice (E) does not correctly describe the ways in which the passages are NOT parallel. It states that "Passage B outlines a theory, whereas passage A does not."
This answer choice is correct in stating that passage A does not outline a theory; however, it is incorrect in stating that passage B outlines a theory. Passage B outlines a problem (that lawyers are writing badly) and a solution (even more awareness of the value of narrative) but it does not outline a theory.
Hope this helps. If you have any other questions, please let me know.
SarahAMay 1, 2019
Ok I love these passages, especially Passage B because it's actually pretty funny..., but I'm still stuck on this one. Both passages give examples illustrating the factors attributing to bad writing in their respective professions (i.e. lack of narrative). So...that means that (c) can't be the correct answer. Please tell me why I am wrong.
Jacob-RMay 1, 2019
Hi @msaber
While I agree with you that both passages describe the factors that lead to bad writing in each profession, we have to be really specific in understanding the correct answer choice:
Answer C says more than describing factors, it says describing “specific examples of a phenomenon.†What is the specific example of the phenomenon described in passage A (namely, leaving little to the imagination/sapping the vitality of history?) We get specific examples in that very first paragraph: “scholarly monographs†and “books with formulaic arguments.â€
Passage B, on the other hand, is describing a different phenomenon: a lack of narrative in legal writing. But where in that passage do we get “specific examples†of that phenomenon? We don’t, and that is why answer C is correct.
I hope that helps! Please let us know if you have further questions.
SarahAMay 6, 2019
Great explanation, thank you!
RaviMay 6, 2019
@msaber, let us know if you have any more questions—we're here to help!
