LSAT 114 | Section 2 | Logical Reasoning: Q5

LR Question 5 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: Logician: I have studied and thoroughly mastered the laws of logic…

QUESTION TYPE: Flawed Reasoning

CONCLUSION: The logician claims that it is absurd to argue that he sometimes violates the laws of logic in everyday conversation.

REASONING: The logician has studied the laws of logic, just like a physicist has studied the laws of physics. But it would be absurd to say that a physicist violates the laws of physics in everyday life.

ANALYSIS: The logician has terrible logic. The laws of physics can’t be violated. Even people who know nothing of gravity must still obey it. But anyone can violate the laws of logic, even an expert.

___________

1. This doesn’t matter. Our conception of physical laws may change. But the laws themselves don’t and we have to obey them.
2. This isn’t it. The problem is that the laws of physics can never be violated. They’re very different from the laws of logic. 
3. This is backwards. The logician’s flaw is actually that he does assume a physicist could circumvent (get around) the laws of physics if he wanted to. But they can’t.
4. CORRECT. The laws of logic and the laws of physics are very, very different. Everyone can use bad logic but no one can break the laws of physics. 
5. That’s not his problem. The logician has bad logic, but he doesn’t contradict himself.