Question

Social roles may either conflict or cooperate within any given person, depending upon the circumstances. They conflict when the behaviour patterns demanded by one role cannot be performed while performing the second role. Thus, one cannot easily be a saintly rake or a feminine brute, but given an understanding husband, a woman can be both a loving wife and a loving mother with no conflict between the roles.
Which of the following methods is used by the author to make his or her point?

• A. Applying an individual attribute to a whole
• B. Implying contradictions without actually citing them
• C. Relying on common-sense notions of social roles
• D. Presenting specific examples to clarify a generality
• E. Using paradox to highlight an implicit contradiction

Hint:

When asked about methods of argumentation, always check whether the author uses examples, analogies, paradoxes, or generalizations. Here, the presence of concrete examples (saintly rake, feminine brute, loving wife) points directly to “examples clarifying generality.”

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Step 1: Identify the general point.
The author’s general statement is that social roles can either be in conflict or can cooperate depending on the situation.
Step 2: Look at how the author supports this.
To illustrate this general idea, the author uses specific examples:
- Conflict: “one cannot easily be a saintly rake or a feminine brute.”
- Cooperation: “a woman can be both a loving wife and a loving mother with no conflict between the roles.”
Step 3: Match with the options.
- Option (A): Incorrect — the author does not generalize from one individual to a whole group.
- Option (B): Incorrect — contradictions are not implied but clearly stated through examples.
- Option (C): Incorrect — the point is not based on “common sense” but on constructed illustrations.
- Option (D): Correct — the author gives explicit examples to clarify the general point.
- Option (E): Incorrect — although paradox is hinted at, the structure is not paradoxical but explanatory through examples.
\[ \boxed{\text{Option D — Presenting specific examples to clarify a generality}} \]