45. Which of the following best expresses the central meaning of the underlined sentence in the lastparagraph?
(A) Myths sometimes survived in a society’s oral tradition because of their artistic qualitieseven after they were no longer deemed religiously beneficial.
(B) A society’s rites were more likely to be retained in the written tradition if its myths wereadmired for artistic qualities rather than religious benefits.
(C) The artistic quality of a myth was seldom an essential reason for a society to abandon itfrom the oral tradition regardless of its religious functions.
(D) Some early societies have high regard for certain rites in their religious practices and makethe effort to preserve them even when they ceased to be seen as useful.
(E) Myths seldom survived in a society’s tradition as part of the oral culture even when therituals were still in practice.