Question 57·Hard·Text Structure and Purpose
Historian Elaine Kramer’s recent study challenges the commonly held assumption that thirteenth-century Mediterranean trade flourished mainly because of Italian maritime dominance. Kramer begins by briefly outlining the traditional narrative, noting its emphasis on Genoese and Venetian fleets. She then cites newly translated notary records from North African ports to show that local Muslim merchants maintained extensive commercial networks independent of Italian mediation. By juxtaposing these records with shipping logs from Barcelona, Kramer argues that cross-cultural brokerage, rather than unilateral control, explains the period’s robust exchange.
Which choice best describes the overall structure of the text?
For text-structure questions, ignore the specific historical details and instead track the moves the author makes from beginning to end (e.g., present old view → introduce new evidence → draw new conclusion). In a quick second pass, reduce the passage to a two- or three-step outline in your own words, then compare that outline to each answer choice’s description of structure. Eliminate any option that adds steps not in the passage (like future research or unresolved debates) or misstates the author’s attitude (like claiming the author reinforces a view the passage says she challenges).
Hints
Locate the first major move in the passage
Focus on the first two sentences. Is the author mainly presenting her own idea there, or is she describing what people generally used to think?
Look at the transition "She then cites..."
Pay attention to what happens after "She then cites newly translated notary records." Is this new material used to support the earlier idea, oppose it, or do something else?
Think in terms of a two-part structure
Ask yourself: Does the passage (1) describe an existing view and then (2) support it, oppose it, combine it with another view, or discuss how to study it better? Then find the answer choice that matches that two-part sequence.
Step-by-step Explanation
Identify what the author talks about first
Look at the beginning of the passage: it says Kramer’s study "challenges the commonly held assumption" and that she "begins by briefly outlining the traditional narrative" about Italian maritime dominance and Genoese/Venetian fleets. This means the first part of the structure is: explain or summarize what people have traditionally believed.
See what the author does after presenting the traditional view
After outlining the traditional narrative, the passage says she "then cites newly translated notary records" from North Africa showing strong local Muslim merchant networks, and that by comparing these with Barcelona shipping logs, she "argues that cross-cultural brokerage, rather than unilateral control, explains the period’s robust exchange." Here, new evidence is used to argue for a different explanation than the traditional one.
Match that pattern to the answer choices
So the structure is: (1) present the commonly held or traditional interpretation, and (2) introduce and use new evidence to argue against it and offer a different explanation. Among the choices, the one that best describes this pattern is: It summarizes a prevailing interpretation and then presents evidence that challenges that interpretation.