"presupposing what it seeks to establish" meaning

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• 6 Likes

  bunnyfriend7 Member

  February 2021 edited February 2021 191 karma

  it's a circular argument. for example: "this essay is the best in the class because it is better than the other essays in the class." Even though "presupposition" makes you think there has to be an unstated assumption, it is usually a stated premise with an equivalent meaning in the conclusion.
• grahamallam Member

  February 2021 75 karma

  It just means that the argument relies on assuming (presupposes) the truth of its main conclusion (what it seeks to establish).
• CardsnHogz Alum Member

  February 2021 168 karma

  Side questions Cuz curious: I read somewhere that circular reasoning answer choices are almost always wrong. I have no dog in this fight and I'lll check to make sure even if it is. I just wonder why they went with this one to be so often wrong. Maybe because it sounds convoluted and can trick lots of people confused by the other 4 answer?
• chimbolitad Alum Member

  February 2021 edited February 2021 26 karma

  The common flaw circular reasoning: in the argument there is a premise that is being use as a support for the conclusion that says the same thing as the conclusion, so you can not use the same thing to probe the conclusion. That is why presupposed what it seeks to establish.
  Ex. I am smart because I am smart.
• 1 Like

  yang9999 Core Member

  February 2021 419 karma

  @CardsnHogz said:
  Side questions Cuz curious: I read somewhere that circular reasoning answer choices are almost always wrong. I have no dog in this fight and I'lll check to make sure even if it is. I just wonder why they went with this one to be so often wrong. Maybe because it sounds convoluted and can trick lots of people confused by the other 4 answer?

  it's quite interesting; someone I know did an analytical dive into question frequency, and among the flaw questions, the flaw is rarely circular reasoning (it's more often a cause-correlation fallacy, some oddball version of an ad hominem, an exclusivity flaw, an equivocation/illegal concept shift, or an absence of evidence fallacy). And when the flaw is circular reasoning, the testmakers make the stimulus very subtle so that it's hard to detect on a first read.
• 2 Likes

  Forever Addicted to Coffee Member ⭐

  February 2021 540 karma

  @CardsnHogz said:
  Side questions Cuz curious: I read somewhere that circular reasoning answer choices are almost always wrong. I have no dog in this fight and I'lll check to make sure even if it is. I just wonder why they went with this one to be so often wrong. Maybe because it sounds convoluted and can trick lots of people confused by the other 4 answer?

  Circular reasoning seems not to be frequently used on the LSAT for a similar reason that answer choices that deny the premise are not. At the base, both seem to be considered as cheap tricks.
• CardsnHogz Alum Member

  February 2021 168 karma

  @"Forever Addicted to Coffee" said:

  @CardsnHogz said:
  Side questions Cuz curious: I read somewhere that circular reasoning answer choices are almost always wrong. I have no dog in this fight and I'lll check to make sure even if it is. I just wonder why they went with this one to be so often wrong. Maybe because it sounds convoluted and can trick lots of people confused by the other 4 answer?

  Circular reasoning seems not to be frequently used on the LSAT for a similar reason that answer choices that deny the premise are not. At the base, both seem to be considered as cheap tricks.

  Good point! Denying the premise=it's false because the evidence is false. Circular reasoning=it's true b/c the evidence is true.