Question 144·Hard·Text Structure and Purpose
In a 2021 essay on conservation messaging, marine ecologist Lila Santos questions proposals to allocate funds strictly to programs that draw the most public attention. She argues that attendance and clicks often track spectacle rather than ecological need; slow, unglamorous projects (like building oyster reefs that filter water) can produce the greatest long-term benefit. Even so, Santos concedes, vivid outreach can matter: a viral reef-cleanup video may be many volunteers' first step toward supporting less photogenic work. Consequently, Santos concludes, agencies should pair attention-getting campaigns with sustained investment in quieter, habitat-focused efforts, rather than using popularity as a proxy for success.
Which choice best describes the function of the underlined portion in the text as a whole?
For function questions in SAT Reading & Writing, first identify the author’s main claim and the overall direction of the argument. Then focus on the sentence in question: note transition words (like "however," "even so," or "consequently") and quickly paraphrase the sentence in your own words. Ask how it connects to what comes immediately before and after—does it soften a claim, provide an example, define a term, or introduce an opposing view? Finally, eliminate answer choices that contradict the author’s overall stance or mislabel the sentence’s role (for example, calling a small qualification a "central reason"), and choose the one that accurately describes both the content and its effect on the argument.
Hints
Check the sentence before and after the underlined portion
Reread the sentence right before and right after the underlined sentence. How does Santos talk about attention-based funding before the underlined part, and what does she recommend in the final sentence?
Pay attention to the transition "Even so, Santos concedes"
The phrase "Even so" plus "concedes" shows a shift in her tone. Is she doubling down on her criticism, or is she adding a nuance to what she just said?
Ask what the underlined sentence adds to the argument
Does the underlined portion introduce a new main idea, define a key term, offer a small exception, or present a view that will be knocked down later? Think about how it changes or shapes your understanding of Santos’s overall point.
Check whether the rest of the paragraph supports or rejects the idea in the underlined sentence
After the underlined sentence, does Santos argue against the usefulness of vivid outreach, or does she incorporate that idea into her final recommendation?
Step-by-step Explanation
Identify Santos’s main position in the passage
First, summarize what Santos is arguing overall. In the first two sentences, she questions proposals to give money only to programs that get the most attention and explains that flashy projects attract people but do not always match ecological needs. She also says that slow, unglamorous habitat projects can give the greatest long-term benefit. So her main stance is critical of using popularity alone to decide funding and supportive of long-term habitat efforts.
Understand the role of the transition phrase
Look closely at the start of the underlined sentence: "Even so, Santos concedes". This kind of phrase usually signals that the writer is qualifying or softening a previous point. After criticizing attention-based funding, she is now admitting something that partially goes in the other direction. So we should expect this sentence to acknowledge some value in the attention-getting campaigns she has just criticized.
Paraphrase the underlined sentence in context
Restate the underlined portion in your own words: Santos is saying that, despite her earlier concerns, vivid outreach can still be important because a viral reef-cleanup video might be how many volunteers first get involved, and then later support less glamorous but more important work. This means she is not fully rejecting attention-grabbing campaigns; she is recognizing a limited, supporting benefit they can have.
Connect the underlined sentence to the conclusion
Now read the final sentence: "Consequently, Santos concludes, agencies should pair attention-getting campaigns with sustained investment in quieter, habitat-focused efforts, rather than using popularity as a proxy for success." The underlined sentence prepares for this by explaining why attention-getting campaigns shouldn’t be thrown out completely: they can draw people in. That idea leads directly into her recommendation to pair eye-catching outreach with long-term habitat projects, instead of choosing only what is popular.
Match this function to the best answer choice
The underlined sentence does not define "popularity" and does not claim that outreach popularity proves ecological need. Instead, it softens Santos’s criticism by granting a modest benefit to vivid outreach and sets up her final proposal to combine attention-getting campaigns with sustained habitat work.
Therefore, the correct answer is: It qualifies Santos’s criticism by acknowledging a limited advantage of attention-grabbing campaigns, paving the way for her proposal.