Main Point = Conclusion?

priyamsingh1988

For Main Point questions, are they asking us to kind of mechanically pick out the conclusion of the argument, as indicated by words such as "thus", "therefore" etc or are they asking us to fully read and understand the argument and pick the answer choice that best captures what the stimulus is aiming to prove? Basically is main point = conclusion or does it mean the gist of the stimulus?

LSATisland

'Main Point' = 'Conclusion'.

However, that is not necessarily the part that follows words like 'thus' and 'therefore'. In fact, often the LSAT writers are trying to trap you into thinking it is the argument's main conclusion when it might just be a sub-conclusion.

ENTJ

Working off what Torah said, you have to look at the different dynamics of the stimulus. For example, argument part questions are notorious for having competing conclusions. You could have a conclusion come right after the turn (but, however, etc) and another competing conclusion coming after a premise indicator. The way JY talks about making the decision of which one would be the main conclusion is probably the best approach. Put each possible contender as the main conclusion and see if the argument makes sense with that contender as the possible main conclusion. The major premise/subsidiary conclusion won't work. Hope that helps.

If you're still confused, take a look at the argument part lectures. Specifically lesson 7 of 11 (Ambiguity Inspires Interpretation)