LSAT 153 | Section 2 | Logical Reasoning: Q8

LR Question 8 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: Analyst: When Johnson attacked his opponent by quoting her…

QUESTION TYPE: Principle – Justify

CONCLUSION: Johnson’s campaign runners do not actually believe that the quote was more damaging in context.

REASONING: Johnson’s campaign keeps using the quote out of context, and never in context (despite opportunities to do so).

ANALYSIS: To solve this question, we need to make a principle. The author believes that because the campaign hasn’t used the quote in context, they must not actually believe it to be more damaging in context. We can deduce that in the author’s point of view, if it was more damaging, they would use it in context. We want an answer that, if true, makes it impossible for the campaign to be telling the truth.

___________

1. CORRECT. If a campaign always did the most damaging thing, and the quote was more damaging in context, the campaign would use it in context. But they don’t, so they must not believe it to be more damaging in context.
2. This answer makes us question why the campaign continues to use the quote out of context, but it doesn’t give us any insight on whether the campaign is lying or not. The campaign could still be telling the truth that the quote is more damaging in context.
3. So voters don’t like quotes being taken out of context. That doesn’t tell us why the analyst thinks the campaign is lying. Maybe voters have an even greater dislike for campaigns who use immensely damaging quotes in context! It’s possible that the campaign is telling the truth.
4. Again, this answer doesn’t prove that the campaign is lying. In either case, whether they’re lying or not, the words were said by the opponent. We don’t have enough information to connect the dots about what they think.
5. We still don’t have enough to know whether or not the campaign is lying. Sure, this provides a possible justification for why they would lie, but it doesn’t mean they are lying.

Recap: The question begins with “Analyst: When Johnson attacked his opponent by quoting her”. It is a Principle Justify question. Learn more about LSAT Principle Justify questions in our guide to LSAT Logical Reasoning question types.