Text Structure and Purpose

SAT Reading and Writing· difficulty 4/5

Histories of jazz often credit New Orleans as the music's sole birthplace. The city's role was clearly central, but musicologist Tomás Reyes argues that focusing on a single origin obscures the parallel development of related styles in cities like Chicago, Kansas City, and St. Louis. In Reyes's account, jazz emerged from a constellation of urban scenes rather than a single river.

Which choice best describes the function of the second sentence in the text?

  • A

    It introduces an unrelated musical style.

  • B

    It restates the standard account that New Orleans is the sole birthplace.

  • C

    It refines the standard account by acknowledging New Orleans's centrality while adding parallel sites.

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  • D

    It rejects New Orleans's role in jazz history.

Explanation

Reyes accepts New Orleans's centrality and adds the parallel scenes, refining rather than rejecting. B captures this refinement.

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