LSAT 136 – Section 2 – Question 13

LSAT 136 - Section 2 - Question 13

June 2012

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Question
QuickView		 Type Tags Answer
Choices		 Curve Question
Difficulty		 Psg/Game/S
Difficulty		 Explanation
PT136 S2 Q13
+LR
Flaw or descriptive weakening +Flaw
Net Effect +NetEff
Link Assumption +LinkA
Value Judgment +ValJudg
A
75%
165
B
11%
159
C
5%
160
D
8%
158
E
1%
151
142
152
162
 +Medium 146.855 +SubsectionMedium

Brooks: I’m unhappy in my job, but I don’t know whether I can accept the risks involved in quitting my job.

Morgenstern: The only risk in quitting is that of not finding another job. If you don’t find one, you’re going to be pretty unhappy. But you’re already unhappy, so you might as well just quit.

Summarize Argument
Brooks states that she’s unhappy in her job, but doesn’t know whether she can accept the risks of quitting.

Morgenstern concludes that Brooks should just quit. This is based on the fact that even if Brooks can’t find another job after quitting — which is the only risk of quitting — Brooks is going to be unhappy. But Brooks is already unhappy; so Brooks will be unhappy whether she quits or not.

Identify and Describe Flaw
Morgenstern overlooks the possibility that the unhappiness from quitting and being unable to find another job might be much more serious and debilitating than the unhappines Brooks currently feels from staying at the job. Morgenstern also overlooks the possibility that there are other negative effects from quitting that might outweigh whatever gains in happiness Brooks might obtain (such as inability to pay rent, starving, becoming homeless, etc.).

A
fails to take into account that unhappiness can vary in intensity or significance
Morgenstern overlooks the possibility that Brooks’ unhappiness from failing to find a job after quitting might be more intense or significant than her unhappiness from staying in the job. This variation in impact of unhappiness shows why Morg.’s conclusion doesn’t follow.
B
relies on an assumption that is tantamount to assuming that the conclusion is true
(B) describes circular reasoning. The author’s conclusion that Brooks should just quit isn’t based on the assumption that Brooks should just quit. It’s based on the assumption that her unhappiness wouldn’t be worse from quitting.
C
mischaracterizes what Brooks says
Morgenstern doesn’t mischaracterize anything Brooks says. Morg. acknowledges that Brooks is unhappy at the job and that there are risks involved in quitting. Morgenstern makes assumptions about those risks and the level of unhappiness, but that isn’t twisting Brooks’ statements.
D
conflates two different types of risk
Morgenstern’s premise indicates that “the only” risk in quitting is that of not finding another job. This kind of risk isn’t confused for another kind of risk. There’s only one sense of “risk” — the chance that a particular bad outcome will happen.
E
reaches a generalization on the basis of a single case
The claim that Brooks “might as well just quit” isn’t a generalization. It’s a claim that applies to Brooks alone and is directed toward what Brooks should do; this isn’t general.

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LSAT PrepTest 136 Explanations

Section 1 - Reading Comprehension

Section 2 - Logical Reasoning

Section 3 - Reading Comprehension

Section 4 - Logical Reasoning

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