Question

passage 1
this brief essay by author and college professor charles augustus eggert was published in california in 1913 as part of the collection why i am opposed to socialism: original papers by leading men and women. socialism was a popular and controversial theory at that time, four years before the russian revolution. no government had yet tried to put the theory of socialism into practice.

why i am opposed to socialism
by charles augustus eggert

i am opposed to socialism, first, because it is not an inductively obtained system, but an “ism” that postulates qualities in the individuality of a nation which no nation, or community even, has yet developed to a sufficiently high state to make this “ism” fit to be seriously tried.

in passage 1, which criticism does eggert apply to socialist reasoning?

• it treats people as motivated primarily by financial considerations.
• it assumes that all nations are alike and without distinctive cultures.
• it is based on abstract ideas rather than history and experience.
• it places more value on strong management than on cooperation.

Explanation:

In the passage, Eggert says socialism is not an inductively obtained system (which would be based on history/experience) but an "ism" with abstract postulations about a nation's individuality. So the criticism is that it's based on abstract ideas rather than history and experience. The other options: the passage doesn't mention financial motivations, nation - culture sameness, or management vs cooperation.

Answer:

It is based on abstract ideas rather than history and experience.