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Question

Difficulty: EasyDistinguishing Main Point from Subsidiary Points

Passage:
"Recent archaeological discoveries in the Indus Valley have revealed large numbers of standardized weights and measures alongside identical trade seals across widely separated urban centers. This widespread uniformity strongly suggests that the Indus Valley civilization operated under a highly centralized administration. Consequently, historians must revise the long-held assumption that ancient societies in this region were organized solely as loose confederations of independent city-states."

Based on the logical structure of the passage, order the following claims from the foundational evidence (least supported by other claims, providing the raw facts) to the main conclusion (most supported by other claims, representing the ultimate point of the passage).

  1. 1The archaeological record shows standardized weights and trade seals across the region.
  2. 2The Indus Valley civilization operated under a highly centralized administrative system.
  3. 3Historians must revise their assumption that the region's ancient societies were loose confederations.

Answer

The correct order from foundational evidence to main conclusion is: 1) The archaeological record shows standardized weights and trade seals across the region. 2) The Indus Valley civilization operated under a highly centralized administrative system. 3) Historians must revise their assumption that the region's ancient societies were loose confederations.
The argument follows a linear, logically supportive structure. The physical evidence (standardized weights and seals) supports a logical deduction (a centralized administration), which in turn is used to argue for a broader theoretical shift (revising the assumption about loose confederations). Placing them in this sequence correctly maps the passage's hierarchy of support from bottom to top.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the main point of the passage.
The main point is that historians must revise their assumption about ancient societies being loose confederations.
This is the author's ultimate argument, signaled by 'Consequently, historians must revise...' and supported by the rest of the text.
2
Identify the foundational evidence that requires no further support in the text.
The foundational evidence is the discovery of standardized weights and trade seals.
These are stated as factual archaeological discoveries serving as the starting point of the argument.
3
Identify the intermediate claim that connects the evidence to the main point.
The intermediate claim is that the civilization operated under a highly centralized administration.
This claim is a deduction based on the standardized evidence, which then serves as the premise for why historians need to revise their assumptions.

Key Concept

Distinguishing Main Point from Subsidiary Points and Evidence
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Distinguishing Main Point from Subsidiary Points

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