<ol>
<li>The shift from traditional to cosmetic dentistry is because adults are getting few cavities and becoming more vain.</li>
</ol>
<p>(d) is occurring because adults are getting fewer cavities and becoming</p>
<p>The answer is D. I don’t understand CB’s explanation. It goes along the lines of, “shift can’t be the result of something”. Can I have a more lucid explanation as to why D is the answer?</p>
<ol>
<li>So there was this Passage Question which asked for the main technique that the author used. The correct choice was “metaphorical language”. I also saw one use of a metaphor but quite a few similes. When I looked at the explanation, it said that a simile is a type of metaphor… I got confused by this.</li>
</ol>
<p>I thought a simile was a comparison using like or as and a metaphor was just a comparison not using the aforementioned words. Expound?</p>
<p>Thanks in advance!</p>
<p>Similes are apparently metaphors by CB’s definition. I wouldn’t fault CB on that as both are tools of comparison; it’s just that a simile explicitly points out the comparison (using like or as) and a metaphor is implicit and conceptual.</p>
<p>What exactly where the answer choices though? Was “simile” an option? If not, that confirms my hypothesis that CB considers “metaphorical language” as a catchall for comparisons.</p>
<p>–</p>
<p>On to your first question - try stripping the sentence down to its bare essentials. </p>
<p>“The shift is because…” (WRONG)
vs.
“The shift is occurring…” (CORRECT)</p>
<p>The word “because” is a conjunction - it joins clauses. It’s not a verb. </p>
<p>You need a verb here to describe what the subject, “shift,” is doing. What is the subject doing? It is “occurring.”</p>
<p>Tell me if my explanations were lucid :).</p>
<p>Thank you guys very much! I understand this now!</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I was between two answer choices.</p>
<p>(a) the use of metaphorical language
(b) appealing to the emotions of the reader</p>