SAT Reading Comprehension: Literal Comprehension Questions

The bulk of reading comprehension questions on the SAT are literal comprehension questions. The biggest problem that students have with these questions is that they think the way to solve them is "too easy". My students have often described this approach as “playing dumb”.

So, for your own sake, be stupid. In school and in life, you are rightly rewarded for taking ideas and making conclusions or inferences about them. If you do the same with literal comprehension questions, however, you will end up choosing many incorrect answers. So be as dumb as dumb can be. It will be hard. But I have faith in your capacity for stupidity.

For example, if you read in the school newspaper that your classmate is ranked first in your class, then you would naturally come to the conclusion that she is intelligent. In the context of literal comprehension, however, you cannot make this conclusion. You can only state that your friend is ranked first in your class, exactly as it is written in the newspaper.

A PRACTICE QUESTION FOR LITERARY COMPREHENSION

“Studies have confirmed that elephants, like humans, possess the ability to recognize themselves in mirrors and the ability to use language.”

1) In the above lines, the author mentions behaviors to show that elephants

(A) communicate ideas through a complex language
(B) possess intelligence of a higher order
(C) display a self-awareness that rivals that of humans
(D) have an extraordinary brain capacity
(E) have capabilities normally associated with human beings

(Take a moment, summon your inner stupidity, and try to answer the question.)

EXPLANATION OF THE PRACTICE QUESTION FOR LITERAL COMPREHENSION

Got it? Let's make sure by comparing the sentence and the answer choices.

“Studies have confirmed that elephants, like humans, possess the ability to recognize themselves in mirrors and the ability to use language.”

Choice (A): communicate ideas through a complex language
Choice (B): possess intelligence of a higher order
Choice (C): display a self-awareness that rivals that of humans
Choice (D): have an extraordinary brain capacity
Choice (E): have capabilities normally associated with human beings

If you identify the main ideas of the sentence and the answer choices, it becomes clear that only choice (E) contains all the main ideas found in the sentence. I know, I know, if you think about it you try to argue for other choices...remember, stop thinking!

SAT Reading: Literal Comprehension

Lesson Includes:

—Overview of Literal Comprehension Questions

—A Practice Question for Literary Comprehension

—An Explanation for the Practice Question for Literary Comprehension

SAT Math

SAT Writing

SAT Reading

SAT Vocabulary