Question 100·Easy·Cross-Text Connections
Text 1
Photographers working for the Farm Security Administration, including Dorothea Lange, designed their images to be instruments of public policy. Their captions, routes, and subjects were coordinated with federal goals. For this reason, the most illuminating way to study Lange’s photographs is to place them squarely within their governmental purpose and to read them as visual reports shaped to persuade.
Text 2
Lange’s photographs may have emerged from a federal program, but approaching them chiefly as policy documents overlooks their carefully constructed form. The power of these images lies in their lighting, framing, and the dignity with which subjects are presented. Treating them as works of art—rather than mere evidence—reveals features that transcend their original commission.
Which choice best describes a difference in how the author of Text 1 and the author of Text 2 view the most appropriate approach to studying Lange’s photographs?
For cross-text questions about differences in viewpoint, start by reading the question stem so you know exactly which aspect of the views you must compare (here, the best approach to studying the photos). Then, for each text, underline or note the sentences that directly state how the author thinks the photos should be approached or understood. Summarize each view in a few words, such as ‘policy/documentary focus’ vs ‘artistic/form focus.’ Finally, use process of elimination: cross out any answer that introduces claims not in the texts or that only describes one text accurately. The remaining choice should cleanly capture both authors’ positions in a single contrasting statement.
Hints
Locate each author’s recommendation
Reread the final sentence of each text. What does each author say is the best or most revealing way to study or approach Lange’s photographs?
Summarize each text’s emphasis
In your own words, write one short phrase for Text 1 (for example, what the photos are mainly for) and one for Text 2 (what the author thinks gives the photos their power).
Check each answer for extra claims
As you test the answer choices, ask: Does this choice add claims (about Lange’s behavior, captions, hardships, or farmworkers) that are not actually stated in the texts?
Step-by-step Explanation
Identify what the question is asking
The question asks for a difference in how the two authors think Lange’s photographs should be studied or approached. That means you are looking for each author’s recommended way to interpret the photos, not just what the photos show or the history behind them.
Determine the view in Text 1
Look at the middle and last sentences of Text 1:
- The photos were designed to be instruments of public policy.
- Captions, routes, and subjects were coordinated with federal goals.
- Therefore, the author says the most illuminating way to study them is within their governmental purpose, as visual reports shaped to persuade. So Text 1 emphasizes their role as government-linked documentary or persuasive tools tied to policy.
Determine the view in Text 2
Now focus on what Text 2 says about how we should approach the photos:
- It warns that treating them chiefly as policy documents overlooks their carefully constructed form.
- It says their power lies in lighting, framing, and the dignity of the subjects.
- It recommends treating them as works of art, which reveals features that go beyond their original federal commission. So Text 2 emphasizes their artistic qualities that transcend the government program they came from.
Match the paired views to the answer choices
Now compare each answer choice with the two viewpoints you just identified:
- Eliminate any choice that claims something not mentioned in either text (for example, specific behavior by Lange, opinions about captions alone, or focus on personal hardships or farmworkers).
- Keep the choice that correctly contrasts Text 1’s focus on the photographs as government-shaped documentary evidence with Text 2’s focus on their artistic qualities that go beyond that context. The only choice that accurately captures this contrast is: While the author of Text 1 prioritizes the photographs’ documentary function tied to government aims, the author of Text 2 emphasizes their artistic qualities that extend beyond that context.