Reading Comprehension · Humanities
PrepTest 149 · Section 2 · Passage 4
Questions 21–27
Before you start
Open PrepTest 149, Section 2 in your official copy from LSAC and read the passage for Questions 21–27, using the structure guide below. The passage is not reprinted here.
Structure guide
- P1: introduces a figure who joined a big debate, explains that a theory was stretched beyond its home field, and describes two rival camps of interpretation
- P2: places the figure in one camp, states that camp's central claim, and shows the duty the figure drew from it
- P3: shows the figure turning ideas into action through writing, names her main goal, and explains her view that an old arrangement once helped but must now be balanced
Step 2 · The kid passage
Priya and the River Idea
Grandpa once told the campers at Pine Lake his River Idea: over many years, a river shapes its own path, because water keeps finding the easiest way downhill. Grandpa meant it only about rivers. But the campers started arguing about what it meant for cabin life. One group said cabin life also shapes itself, so nobody should meddle: whoever grabs the top bunk and the best jobs deserves them. A second group said cabins do change over the summer, like rivers, but the change need not be a scramble. Campers can steer it together.
Priya joined the second group. Their big claim: the summer had shaped the campers too, but now campers could plan where their cabin went next, on purpose. For Priya, this was not just a fact. It was a duty. Since cabins change mostly through the jobs campers do, from cooking to fixing canoes to painting signs, every camper should find a useful job that fits what they are good at.
Priya did more than argue. She was sure campers could change, and she wanted to break the old pattern that boxed younger campers in. In her skits and her posters, she urged the younger campers to work together to reorganize the cabin. Her main goal: drop the rule that big kids always lead and little kids always sweep. She thought loud, bossy leading had been needed in week one, to get the tents up fast. Now, she said, the cabin needed balance from the quieter skills of sharing and helping.
Step 4 · The courtroom tale
The Witness Who Read the Rulebook Twice
At the town hall hearing, Mr. Whitfield called a retired librarian. "Ma'am, two groups read the old harbor rulebook. One said leave the docks alone, they sort themselves out. Which group were you in?" "The other one," she said. "Docks change, yes, but people can steer the change." "And did you just talk about it?" "No. I wrote plays for the fishing families, urging them to share the dock jobs fairly." Judge Marlowe leaned in. "So you picked a side, drew duties from it, and then acted." "Yes, Your Honor. The old way helped once. It does not help now." Mr. Whitfield smiled. "No further questions."