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- Fri Jan 21, 2011 12:00 am
#24033
Complete Question Explanation
Flaw in the Reasoning. The correct answer choice is (E)
This Stimulus is a dialogue between Lenore and Victor. There is a standard LSAT bias in favor of females and against males that may or may not come into play here, but one should be cognizant of it at the outset. Lenore states that it is naïve to think that historical explanations can be objective because historians are always influenced by their national, political, and class loyalties. Victor on the other hand replies that because biases have been detected and their sources identified indicate that there are people who can maintain objectivity.
But is Victor’s conclusion correct? Does one have to be objective to identify biases or sources of bias? These are questions that should be asked when assessing the Stimulus.
The Question Stem asks “Victor’s response des not succeed as a rebuttal of Lenore’s argument because his response…” indicating that this is a Flaw in the Reasoning question type.
Answer Choice (A): This answer states that Victor’s response displays the same type of biased thinking that Lenore is speaking out against. This is incorrect since there does not appear to be any obvious bias in Victor’s reply. There might be some ignorance in his statement but apparent bias. Answer Choice (A) should be eliminated.
Answer Choice (B): This answer deals with the failure to address the special case of historians who deliberately distort evidence in order to promote their own political objectives. While Victor’s response fails to do this, that is not why it fails as a rebuttal to Lenore’s statement.
Answer Choice (C): This answer states that Victor’s argument fails as a rebuttal because it fails to provide examples of cases in which biased thinking has been detected and the source of that bias has been identified. It is not necessary to provide examples to rebut an argument, so do not be sidetracked into thinking this is a correct answer. While Victor fails to provide examples to rebut Lenore’s statement, that is not why his rebuttal fails. Answer Choice (C) should be eliminated.
Answer Choice (D) alleges that Victor’s rebuttal fails because it does not consider sources of bias in historical explanation other than those that are due to national, political, and class loyalties. On first reading, this answer choice is attractive, so hold onto it as a contender.
Answer Choice (E): This is the correct answer choice. The answer states that Victor’s responses fails as a rebuttal because it overlooks the possibility that those who detect and identify bias are themselves biased in some way. While
With two contenders, we must examine both answer choices to determine which one is the better of the two choices. Answer Choice (D) discusses that Victor’s rebuttal does not consider biases other than those due to national, political, or class loyalties. While it is true that Victor’s reply does not do this, that does not mean his rebuttal fails. On the other hand, Victor contends that there are people who can maintain objectivity because biases and sources thereof are identified. This does fail to take into account that those who identify biases and their sources may in fact have some bias themselves. Thus Victor’s conclusion is not correct. Answer Choice (E) is the correct answer choice.
Flaw in the Reasoning. The correct answer choice is (E)
This Stimulus is a dialogue between Lenore and Victor. There is a standard LSAT bias in favor of females and against males that may or may not come into play here, but one should be cognizant of it at the outset. Lenore states that it is naïve to think that historical explanations can be objective because historians are always influenced by their national, political, and class loyalties. Victor on the other hand replies that because biases have been detected and their sources identified indicate that there are people who can maintain objectivity.
But is Victor’s conclusion correct? Does one have to be objective to identify biases or sources of bias? These are questions that should be asked when assessing the Stimulus.
The Question Stem asks “Victor’s response des not succeed as a rebuttal of Lenore’s argument because his response…” indicating that this is a Flaw in the Reasoning question type.
Answer Choice (A): This answer states that Victor’s response displays the same type of biased thinking that Lenore is speaking out against. This is incorrect since there does not appear to be any obvious bias in Victor’s reply. There might be some ignorance in his statement but apparent bias. Answer Choice (A) should be eliminated.
Answer Choice (B): This answer deals with the failure to address the special case of historians who deliberately distort evidence in order to promote their own political objectives. While Victor’s response fails to do this, that is not why it fails as a rebuttal to Lenore’s statement.
Answer Choice (C): This answer states that Victor’s argument fails as a rebuttal because it fails to provide examples of cases in which biased thinking has been detected and the source of that bias has been identified. It is not necessary to provide examples to rebut an argument, so do not be sidetracked into thinking this is a correct answer. While Victor fails to provide examples to rebut Lenore’s statement, that is not why his rebuttal fails. Answer Choice (C) should be eliminated.
Answer Choice (D) alleges that Victor’s rebuttal fails because it does not consider sources of bias in historical explanation other than those that are due to national, political, and class loyalties. On first reading, this answer choice is attractive, so hold onto it as a contender.
Answer Choice (E): This is the correct answer choice. The answer states that Victor’s responses fails as a rebuttal because it overlooks the possibility that those who detect and identify bias are themselves biased in some way. While
With two contenders, we must examine both answer choices to determine which one is the better of the two choices. Answer Choice (D) discusses that Victor’s rebuttal does not consider biases other than those due to national, political, or class loyalties. While it is true that Victor’s reply does not do this, that does not mean his rebuttal fails. On the other hand, Victor contends that there are people who can maintain objectivity because biases and sources thereof are identified. This does fail to take into account that those who identify biases and their sources may in fact have some bias themselves. Thus Victor’s conclusion is not correct. Answer Choice (E) is the correct answer choice.
