LSAT 102 | Section 4 | Logical Reasoning: Q18

LR Question 18 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: Obviously, we cannot in any real sense mistreat plants…

QUESTION TYPE: Sufficient Assumption

CONCLUSION: We can’t mistreat plants.

REASONING: Plants don’t have nervous systems, and therefore can’t feel pain.

ANALYSIS: The argument assumes there’s no way to mistreat something if it can’t feel pain. That’s sort of silly. If I punch a hole in a wall, it seems fair to say I’m not treating the wall correctly, even if it can’t feel pain.

We can make this a good argument by assuming that something can’t be mistreated unless it feels pain.

(Mistreat ➞ pain)

Here’s how to diagram everything, including the correct answer:

Mistreat ➞ pain ➞ nervous system

And the Contrapositive:

No nervous system ➞ no pain ➞ can’t be mistreated

___________

1. This doesn’t tell us that an organism that can’t experience pain can’t be mistreated.
2. The last sentence already tells us this is true.
3. Plants don’t have nervous systems, so this tells us nothing about plants.
4. CORRECT. If this is true, then plants can’t be mistreated: plants can’t experience pain.
5. Plants don’t have nervous systems, so this tells us nothing about them.

Recap: The question begins with “Obviously, we cannot in any real sense mistreat plants”. It is a Sufficient Assumption question. Learn more about LSAT Sufficient questions in our guide to LSAT Logical Reasoning question types.