Marsha: But there are many forms of government under which citizens can be manipulated into believing they have a say when they don’t.
Marsha points out that many forms of government manipulate people into thinking that they have a say in how the government is run when they really don’t.
A
concur with Elena’s claim that democracy is the best form of government
B
support Marsha’s unstated conclusion that the best form of government is one that appears to be democratic but really is not
C
suggest that the premise Elena uses to support her conclusion could be used to support a conflicting conclusion
D
support Marsha’s unstated conclusion that most people seek only the appearance of democracy rather than democracy itself
E
reject Elena’s conclusion that the best form of government is democracy
Researcher: The use of the newest drug in treating this disease should be discontinued. The treatment usually wreaks havoc with the normal functioning of the human body, causing severe side effects such as total loss of hair, debilitating nausea, and intense pain in the joints.
A
fails to specify what is meant by “normal functioning of the human body”
The researcher doesn't define “normal functioning,” but she doesn’t need to. Even if she did define it, it wouldn’t support her argument because she still fails to consider any benefits of the drug that might outweigh the cost of disrupting “normal functioning.”
B
fails to consider the consequences of not administering the treatment
The researcher argues that the drug should be discontinued because of its many costs, but she ignores its potential benefits. That is, she fails to consider the costs of not taking the drug, which might be much more severe than nausea, hair loss, and joint pain.
C
presumes that every patient with the disease is treated with the drug
The researcher never makes this assumption. She just argues that those patients who are treated with the drug usually experience severe side effects.
D
does not consider the length of time needed for the treatment to begin taking effect
The researcher doesn't mention how long it takes for the drug to work, but even if she did, it wouldn’t support her argument because it wouldn’t address the question of whether there are benefits of the drug that outweigh its costs.
E
does not acknowledge that the effects of the treatment may not be of the same severity in all cases
The researcher actually does acknowledge this by saying that the drug “usually wreaks havoc” on patients’ bodies. Whether some patients’ side effects are less severe doesn’t affect the argument that the drug usually causes severe side effects and thus must be discontinued.
Tyra: I accept Aristotle’s principle of justice, but it’s human nature to want to do special favors for friends. Indeed, that’s what friends are—those for whom you would do special favors. It’s not unjust for dentists to do that.
A
Aristotle’s principle of justice is widely applicable
B
situations involving friends and situations involving others should be considered relevantly similar cases
C
human nature makes it impossible to treat relevantly similar cases similarly
D
dentists should be willing to schedule an after-hours appointment for anyone who asks
E
Aristotle recognizes that friendship sometimes morally outweighs justice
A
People who do not undergo mediation to resolve their conflicts should be sure that their positions are correct.
B
People whose conflicts are not based on ideology should attempt to resolve their conflicts by means of litigation.
C
People whose conflicts are based on ideology are not always sure that their positions are correct.
D
People who are sure of the correctness of their positions are not people who should undergo mediation to resolve their conflicts.
E
People whose conflicts are based on ideology are not people who should undergo mediation to resolve their conflicts.
A
The methods by which the studies measured whether clients improved primarily concerned immediate symptom relief and failed to address other important kinds of improvement.
B
On average, clients improve more dramatically when they receive long-term psychotherapy, a year or longer in duration, than when clients receive short-term psychotherapy.
C
The studies found that psychotherapy by a trained counselor does not result in any greater improvement, on average, among clients than does simple counseling by an untrained layperson.
D
The specific techniques and interventions used by therapists practicing different kinds of psychotherapy differ dramatically.
E
More-experienced therapists tend to use a wider range of techniques and interventions in psychotherapy than do inexperienced therapists.
Sonya: Anyone who lives without constant awareness of the fragility and precariousness of human life has a mind clouded by illusion. Yet those people who are perpetually cognizant of the fragility and precariousness of human life surely taint their emotional outlook on existence.
Summary
If someone lies without constant awareness of the fragility and precariousness of human life, then they have a mind clouded by illusion. People who are perpetually aware of the fragility and precariousness of human life taint their emotional outlook on existence.
Strongly Supported Conclusions
Everyone has either a mind clouded by illusion or a tainted emotional outlook on existence. If someone’s mind is unclouded by illusion, then their emotional outlook on existence is tainted. If someone’s emotional outlook on existence is not tainted, then their mind is clouded by illusion.
A
Anyone who places a higher priority on maintaining a positive emotional outlook than on dispelling illusion will be completely unaware of the fragility and precariousness of human life.
This is unsupported because it is not the emotional outlook that produces an awareness of fragility and precariousness. Rather, it is the awareness of fragility and precariousness of human life that is sufficient for a certain emotional outlook.
B
Either no one has a tainted emotional outlook on existence, or no one has a mind clouded by illusion.
This is unsupported because some people could fall into either category. Some people may be aware of the fragility and precariousness of human life while others are not.
C
It is impossible for anyone to live without some degree of self-deception.
This is unsupported because it is possible for people to be always cognizant of the fragility and precariousness of human life, which may not require self-deception.
D
Everyone whose emotional outlook on existence is untainted has a mind clouded by illusion.
This is strongly supported because everyone must be either constantly aware of the fragility and precariousness of human life or they are not. If their emotional outlook on existence is untainted, then they are not aware of the fragility and precariousness of life.
E
It is better to be aware of the fragility and precariousness of human life than to have an untainted emotional outlook on existence.
This is unsupported because the author provides no means for determining which state of awareness is better.