Q24

[ohthatpatrick]

"Inferred" = find a line reference to justify the correct answer. Be dubious of answer choices that use any EXTREME or OUT OF SCOPE term.

Where did the author discuss MM's ideal of exposing structural materials? Lines 48-57.

Essentially, the author says that the ideal was an impractical expense, given that most buildings were being built with an assembly line of different subcontractors, whereas making exposed structural materials look good called for "an unrealistically high level of craftsmanship".

A) Does the passage mention any Modernist architects who repudiated the ideal? No.

B) Does the passage comment on whether "exposed structural materials" had popular appeal? No.

C) Does the passage specify whether MOST builders were unwilling to attempt it? No. The author suggests that most builders might be incapable of that level of craftsmanship, but never says whether or not they were willing to attempt it.

D) Does the passage ever connect "exposed structural materials" to Wagner or Wright? No, and knowing that those two were discussed in a different paragraph lends some conviction to eliminating this answer.

E) Does the passage discuss whether this ideal was aesthetic vs. practical? Hmmm. Perhaps. We definitely know from line 52 that this ideal demanded an unrealistically high level of craftsmanship. That supports the idea that the ideal is "impractical". So does saying, in line 57, that the ideal contributed to Modern architecture being 'prohibitively expensive'. But where does 'aesthetic' concerns come from? The beginning of this 3rd paragraph explains that Modernist architects' "concerns were chiefly aesthetic". (Line 34-36) So, yes, we can support this answer.

(E) is correct.