One reason why European music has had such a strong influence throughout the world, and why it is a sophisticated ach...

Naz July 10, 2013

Thanks for your message. As you've noted, answer choices (A), (B), (C), and (E) are all "compatible" with the passage because they do not go against it. However, answer choice (D) is not compatible. Answer choice (D) uses the word "sophisticated," as does the passage (i.e. "...why it is a sophisticated achievement...").

And though it is true that answer choice (D) mentions "unintelligible" music, while the passage never used the word "unintelligible," the passage does explain that this independence and internal coherence of European music that is separate from its original function is the reason why European music has such strong influence throughout the world and why it is a sophisticated achievement.

Something that is unintelligible is something that is incomprehensible or obscure, which obviously, according to the passage, European music is not (or else it wouldn't have such strong influence, nor would it have internal coherence). Thus, if music that is unintelligible or incomprehensible independent of its original function tends to be the most sophisticated, then European music wouldn't be such a sophisticated achievement because it is intelligible independent of its original function. Therefore, answer choice (D) is not compatible with the passage.

Hope this helps! Please let us know if you have any other questions.

stormbeeler September 8, 2015

I completely see why D is correct. Would you mind explaining why E is incorrect. Is it because it only says some works of art. If it would have said music instead of art would it still be wrong because being independent is only "one reason" Thanks.

Naz September 15, 2015

Yes, exactly, we do not know which works of art answer choice (E) is referring to. Therefore, it doesn't have to refer to music. Since, we have no information about other forms of art, there is no reason why this couldn't be true.

If it said "music" instead of "art' then it would still be wrong since we do not know anything about music that has a function different from its original function. We discussed original functions no longer being defining forces and merely aspects of style, but never changing functions.

Hope that helps! Please let us know if you have any other questions.

slew November 19, 2017

I do not understand why E is not the correct answer? To me, E is saying that for example, dance music can be independent of dance and that just because it isn't being used for it's original function, it is still appealing, which is being stated in the passage. Help?

Mehran November 20, 2017

@slew Naz's response directly above yours explains why (E) is incorrect.

Remember, you are looking for the answer choice that CANNOT BE TRUE.

Hope that helps! Please let us know if you have any other questions.

Ian-Drazkowski June 23, 2020

I am still confused about why D is not a compatible answer. The passage claims that European music is sophisticated, but it is still possible that the MOST sophisticated is not at all like European music? Just because intelligible music is sophisticated does not mean that unintelligible music is not more sophisticated.

Is my understanding flawed, or just too nit-picky?

shunhe July 3, 2020

Hi @Ian-Drazkowski,

Thanks for the question! So remember, the stimulus tells us that a reason European music is a sophisticated achievement (as well as had a strong influence throughout the world) is because the music evolved beyond its original function to do other things. Like listening to dance music without dancing, as an example. Now we’re looking for something incompatible with the stimulus. And (D) tells us that music that’s unintelligible when it’s presented independently of its original function tends to be the most sophisticated. Is this compatible with the stimulus? We know that one of the reasons European music is so sophisticated is because it is intelligible when presented independently of its original function. So how could music unintelligible outside of the original function be the most sophisticated? The argument doesn’t claim that European music is sophisticated; it claims that the CAUSE for its sophistication has to do with this intelligibility. It’s not just a correlation, it’s causation. And that’s why (D) is the correct answer.

This question, just like all the questions assigned in the LSATMax course, now have detailed forward facing explanations that you can access when you “Review” your session. You will find unrivaled explanations written by our 99th-percentile instructors that include: (1) Argument or Facts, (2) Valid or Flawed, (3) Question Type, (4) Stimulus Summary, (5) Answer Anticipation, (6) Correct & Incorrect Answer Choice Explanations and (7) Key Takeaways. To ensure the optimal prep experience, please make sure you are taking advantage of these existing explanations before seeking further clarification on the message boards. 

Hope this helps! Feel free to ask any other questions that you might have.

JerryYu January 8, 2022

Hi @Shunhe,

Many thanks for your detailed explanation. However, I believe this is a badly written and thought-out question from the very beginning. Even if we are taking your argument as a fact, that "the CAUSE for its sophistication has to do with this intelligibility" and it is a causal relationship, rather than a mere correlation, it is possible that European music is somewhat sophisticated music thanks to the independent nature of its original function. However, this does not prevent another possibility that the MOST sophisticated music CANNOT be decoupled from its original function (i.e., dependent on its original function). When evaluating the level of sophistication, the evaluating factors might be changed, altered, added, or modified. The statement about the MOST sophisticated could be true, and it could be wrong. That's off the point, however, since we are looking for an answer that "CANNOT BE TRUE". Therefore, I believe this LSAT question from the get-go is poorly written and less defendable than the other. Of course, we can use the elimination method to say that answer D could be the most likely one (question mark), but I really don't think this question itself is a well-written one.

Ravi February 4, 2022

The thing with these questions is that "compatible" on the LSAT just means not contradictory. Since we're able to definitively rule out the others since they aren't directly contradictory to the stimulus, we can arrive at D, as it's not compatible with the stimulus.