Passage Four
Read the passage below and then do the exercises that follow.
If a Mecca exists for today’s youth, it must take the form of a rock concert. Such a colossal event draws people from surprisingly distant places and from oddly diverging lifestyles. The sophisticated college student may be seated next to the wide-eyed junior high cheerleader, the latter showing fright at the approach of a wild-eyed freak. How do these incompatible character types find a mutual appeal in rock concert What induces young people to exchange the few dollars earned through babysitting or car washing for a concert ticket
To many, the answer is immediately obvious—the music is the source of appeal at a concert. The quality of the sound produced, however, frequently casts doubt on this explanation. Unquestionably, rock concertsare loud ; the decibel level of some reportedly exceeds that attained by a jet plane on takeoff. In addition, this aural assault is often intensified by an out-of-tune guitar, by the faltering voice of the performer, or by the bad acoustic in the concert hall. Rock groups generally correct these problems in a studio; their recordings may even boast pleasing harmonies with intelligible lyrics. So why do we battle crowds to secure choice seating at a concert creates a magical, otherworldly atmosphere, reminiscent of a childhood never-never land. An eerie darkness shrouds the hall, and then, just as in our favorite fairy tale, the supernatural being( otherwise identified by the vulgar term, "rock star") appears in a burst of light. In another context he would have been known as a" god out of the machine. " Bizarre lighting schemes and gimmicks such as mock hangings or fire-breathing contribute to the atmosphere of other-worldliness in some acts. The fans are permitted only a glimpse of the star before he vanishes once more in the darkness, only to materialize the following evening in a concert hall hundreds of miles away. The stage becomes the rock star’s only natural habitat; for us, he can have no existence apart from it. We can scarcely conceive of our idols performing such mundane activities as going to the dentist, shopping for tuna fish, or changing the baby, perhaps we have a need to believe in an illusory creature of the night, somehow different from ourselves. Who fits this description better than a rock star
Referring to this passage, what is the presumed reason for the popularity of rock concerts and rock stars What alternative explanation does the author give in the passage ？
