Hi Zierra,
Ok, good question! Let's start with a quick overview of the stimulus. In this argument, the first sentence provides some context for the rest of the argument, as well as the reason Jerome cited for passing on the trip: it's too expensive. The first part of the second sentence is the conclusion of the argument ("cost cannot be the real reason"), and the second part of the second sentence provides the premise that underlies that conclusion: that Jerome always says no to these unscheduled trips. So, on reading that, what was your reaction to the conclusion? Does the fact that Jerome always says no to Melvin mean that cost isn't the reason? I didn't think so, and so my initial feeling was that this is a weak argument.
If Melvin was one of your friends, he sounds like he's a fun guy at least—he apparently likes to take some camping trips and go have some fun. But he's also pretty disorganized! The dude wants to take a week-long trip and he asks Jerome on Saturday, just two days before? That's not cool Melvin, how about giving your friend a bit more notice?
It's also important that the very last sentence specifies that Jerome always says no to these
unscheduled trips. Earlier in the argument, the stimulus notes that taking time off without notice means you don't get paid ("wages he would forfeit by taking off without notice"). So, if Jerome were to go on this trip without notice, he's going to lose wages, and that is in addition to what he would have to pay to go on the trip in the first place. It's the kind of thing that you or I would be wary about because it seems unnecessary; just schedule it properly and you won't lose any wages.
Thus, when the argument says that cost isn't the reason, I don't agree that that has to be the case. Melvin gives Jerome no notice, and it would obviously cost Jerome lost wages, and be more expensive than it would had it been properly scheduled.
The question stem is a Flaw in the Reasoning, so the stem confirms what we already knew: this isn't a great argument.
With all that in mind, we head to the answer choices, and you specifically asked about (A) and (C). Let's look at each, and also briefly comment on (E):
- Answer choice (A): Flaw questions are part of the First Family of questions, meaning they are based on the facts of the stimulus. These are "did it actually happen" kind of questions where the Fact Test typically plays a role. You can always check Flaw answers by first making sure that what is in the answer choice actually happened. So, in this one, does the author attempt to forestall an attack on Melvin? I don't see that happening here simply because all it says about Melvin is that he asked Jerome to go on this vacation. Is this argument really talking about Jerome simply to take the heat off of Melvin? I wouldn't say so, but during the test if you were uncertain, you could say to yourself "I don't love this but I'll hold it just in case nothing else seems better."
Answer choice (C): The argument actually allows for the fact that Jerome prefers scheduled vacations (and this is the case despite not explicitly mentioning this in the stimulus). Why? Because the argument rejects the case that cost is the reason, and that opens the door to something else being the factor (such as a preference for scheduled vacations). So, to me, this is a tricky answer because it uses the phrase "overlooks the possibility" and then the possibility isn't mentioned. That makes it seem like the answer happened. But, it's the case here that by rejecting cost, the argument at least allows for the scheduled vacation preference option, which means that saying that it "overlooked" it isn't known to have occurred.
Answer choice (E): This is the correct answer, and it does occur. From my analysis above, I thought the argument was weak because cost really could be the reason Jerome always says no. But the argument rejects that and then really doesn't go into any further detail about it; it just says that cost isn't the reason because he keeps saying no, and that's it.
So, take a close look at (C)—the way they constructed that is really well done, and I can see why it was attractive to you.
Please let me know if that helps, or if you have further questions. Thanks!
