PT56, S2, Q10 Critic: The idealized world portrayed in

[ManhattanPrepLSAT1]

10. (D)
Question Type: Assumption
The conclusion of the argument is that neither tragedy nor comedy can be classified as satirical literature or romance literature. The evidence for this is that in tragedy and comedy the moral qualities of major characters must change during the course of the action. To ensure this conclusion to be true, we need to assume that in satirical literature and romance literature the moral qualities of major characters do not change during the course of the action. We find this answer choice best represented in answer choice (D).

(A) is incorrect. Whether or not some characters in comedies and tragedies are neither debased nor idealized does not address whether major characters are neither debased nor idealized.
(B) undermines the argument. If the visions of the world portrayed in works of comedy and tragedy change during the course of the action, as stated in answer choice (B), and the moral qualities of major characters in works of comedy and tragedy change during the course of the action, as stated in the stimulus, then the major characters of tragedy and comedy could have moral qualities that reflect the world in which they are presented. According to this, tragedy and comedy could be classified as satirical literature or romance literature.
(C) is consistent with the stimulus but provides nothing new. We know that characters in tragedies must have moral qualities that change during the action. So, if a character were to begin as idealized, it makes sense that the character would end as debased.
(E) is out of scope. We do not care about minor characters, but rather major characters.