LSAT 152 | Section 4 | Logical Reasoning: Q10

LR Question 10 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: A traditional view of Neanderthals is that they lacked…

QUESTION TYPE: Necessary Assumption

CONCLUSION: Neanderthals were capable of symbolic thought.

REASONING: Researchers found a cave painting from about 40,000 years ago, so it was likely made by a Neanderthal.

ANALYSIS: What does painting have to do with symbolic thought? Maybe the painting was very abstract and required absolutely no thoughts. If it was a big blob of black paint, you’d probably have a hard time convincing anyone the artist needed symbolic thought to make it.

So the argument requires the assumption that making that kind of cave painting requires symbolic thinking. Otherwise, the conclusion doesn’t follow at all.

___________

1. This helps support that a Neanderthal did make that painting, but this is already a premise in the argument. The gap isn’t whether they could, but what that implies about their thinking.
2. This eliminates other hominids. That strengthens the claim that Neanderthals made the painting, but the argument could still attempt that claim even if others existed. Not necessary.
3. CORRECT. Without this, the argument cannot move from “they made the painting” to “they had symbolic thought.”
   Negation: The paintings do not indicate an ability to think symbolically.
4. Whether the painting is the earliest example isn’t relevant to the argument.
5. This is too strong. The stimulus is only about Neanderthals, not all hominids.