#12 - Several movie critics have claimed that this movie

[Administrator]

Complete Question Explanation

Flaw in the Reasoning. The correct answer choice is (A).

Answer choice (A): This is the correct answer choice.

Answer choice (B):

Answer choice (C):

Answer choice (D):

Answer choice (E):

This explanation is still in progress. Please post any questions below!

[maximbasu]

Hi,
The correct answer is A while I chose E.

The stimulus states:
1. Some critics said that this movie will inspire tyranny + anarchy
2. They're wrong: why? no clue
3. Conclusion: Their claim isn't true + harmful to filmmakers' reputation

Task: ID the flaw

My reasoning for E: I thought that the "argument's conclusion is false" related to the argument of the critics. If they're wrong, some of their evidence may still be correct.
Is E wrong because that's not the main issue with the stimulus? The issue is that the author has never read the Powerscore Logical Reasoning Bible + therefore doesn't know that you can't "Hurdle the Uncertainty" with evidence; you need to explain evidence when you're accusing someone of being wrong.

Is A correct because that's exactly what the stimulus states? "No satisfactory evidence?"

MB

[Shannon Parker]

Hi max,

Ok starting with the diagram.

P1: Critics claim movie will inspire socially irresponsible behavior.
P2: Critics relied on flawed survey data
C: Critics are wrong and statement potentially harmful to moviemaker's reputation.

Answer choice "E" and answer choice "A" basically mirror each other, and therefore one is right and one is wrong for exactly the same reason. The author specifically addresses the faulty evidence, and thereby concludes that the critic's claim is false, even though the author does not have any evidence disputing the claim itself.

Hope this helps.

~Shannon

[jenna_d]

I still don't understand fully how E and A are different - I also chose E assuming that the evidence could be true even if flawed. But is it because the data is "deeply flawed" that we consider there to be no satisfactory evidence? Thank you!

[Eric Ockert]

Hi Jenna!

Thanks for the questions. Answer choice (E) is incorrect because it is backwards. Let's assume instead of the wording you see in (E), it was written like so:

"fails to consider that, even if some of the evidence used to justify a conclusion is deeply flawed, an argument's conclusion might still be true."

Now, that would be a correct answer. That would be very similar to the flaw discussed in answer choice (A). Answer choice (E) has the right elements, but it twists them up into a description that doesn't follow from the stimulus. Tricky answer to be sure!

Hope that helps!

[tlatimer]

Hi, I chose B as the answer and understand why A is in fact correct. I'm trying to understand what makes B incorrect. Is it the term "pejorative" and the harm piece of the conclusion?

Thanks!

- Tre

[Paul Popa]

Hi Tre,

Great question! With Flaw questions (as with most LR questions) you really want to focus on the author's main conclusion. In this case, (B) is ultimately irrelevant to the author's argument. The author is saying the because the survey data is deeply flawed, we can conclude that the critics are wrong and that their claim is potentially harmful to the moviemakers' reputations. This is a common evidence flaw. Poor evidence for an argument is not proof that the argument itself is false. Even if (B) was true, it doesn't hurt the author's argument because they're only concerned with the damage of an untrue statement. Even if a true statement is potentially more harmful, it doesn't change the fact that this claim, if false, is potentially damaging to their reputations. For example:

A: "You saying that I lied on my tax return is untrue, and potentially hurts my reputation."
B: "But you cheating on your spouse IS true, and potentially even more damaging!"
A: "Um, ok? That may be true, but your statement about my tax return is what I'm focused on, and my conclusion still holds."

Hope this helps!