Q12 - Novelist: Any author who thinks

[jardinsouslapluie5]

I've seen these kind of flaw questions and am not completely acquired.
I appreciate if you could go over all the answer choices.
Thank you

[timmydoeslsat]

I would start with an equivalent situation:

If the test is hard, I will study for no more than 10 minutes.

If the test is easy, I will study for no more than 5 minutes.

Therefore, I will study for at most 10 minutes if I take the test.

What has this argument failed to consider? The middle ground. Cannot the test be between easy and hard? Perhaps if the test is of intermediate difficulty, the person will study for at least 50 minutes. The possibility is there.

This argument contains the same flaw. If we think it is ungrammatical...and...If we are sure it is grammatical.

Where is the intermediate space between these two ideas?

Answer choices:

A) The argument claims that the books are useless. It does not infer that the authors will not in fact use them.

B) The author makes one inference, and a faulty one at that, which is the conclusion of uselessness for these books. The "claim" this answer choice states is claimed in this argument is not in fact claimed in the argument. The second part of this answer choice is a claim, but not the first part.

C) The conclusion is qualified for authors.

D) The conclusion is qualified for reference sources.

[sujin91]

I still don't understand why answer choice D is incorrect. This argument assumes that the only use is grammar books is reference source. Couldn't an author make use of the book for other purposes ?

[sumukh09]

I still don't understand why answer choice D is incorrect. This argument assumes that the only use is grammar books is reference source. Couldn't an author make use of the book for other purposes ?

The argument doesn't assume that grammar books cannot have any other function for authors other than reference sources. The conclusion is that grammar books are useless AS reference sources for author's; so we're talking specifically about references sources and nothing else. Grammar books could probably be used for other things, but those other things don't matter because the argument is concerned only with grammar books and their use as reference sources.

[bernard.agrest]

So, this is obviously a flaw question.

The novelist is saying the following:

1) If you're an author who thinks a sentence is ungrammatical you wont ride it down, so you don't need a grammar book.

2) If you're an author and you don't think a sentence is grammatical you wont write it down, and once again, you wont need the grammar book.

At this point it should be fairly clear that the flaw is between perfect grammar and awful grammar.

3) He concludes from this that - grammar books are useless as reference sources for authors.

A) He doesn't say that, he just says that they are useless.
B) He doesn't infer this either.
C) We're talking about authors ONLY.
D) This almost got me, but the novelist specifically says that they're useless as REFERENCE sources, he might think they're an excellent book for something else.
E) This was what i pre-phrased in my head before even looking at the answer choice, and its the winner.

[olaizola.mariana]

Even though I chose (E) because it presents the flaw more clearly, I am having trouble ruling out (B). To me, they both seem to be addressing the middle ground that the author fails to take into account. (B) says: if I never make the mistake of thinking that a sentence is ungrammatical when it is in fact grammatical, I will always feel sure that it is grammatical. But what if I have doubts (and for this reason, a dictionary would prove useful)? I could imagine a person who takes as a given that sentences she reads are grammatical - and therefore never makes the first mistake - but who is not entirely sure in her own judgement about grammar.

[ohthatpatrick]

You can make answer choices like (A) and (B) easier on yourself by simply asking yourself whether they match the PREM and CONC.

The CONC is what the author "infers". The PREM is the "claim from which" the inference comes.

There's only one conclusion/inference made in this argument: "Grammar books are useless as reference sources for authors".

(A) says the author inferred "author will not consult grammar books". Bad match for Conclusion, eliminate.

(B) says the author inferred "authors will feel sure that a sentence is grammatical". Bad match for Conclusion, eliminate.

In order for "infers, from the claim that _____, that _____" to be right here, it would have to sound like

*(B)* infers, from the claims that grammar books are useless to authors who think a sentence is ungrammatical or who feel sure a sentence is grammatical, that grammar books are useless as reference sources for all authors.

We knocked off (B) so far because the Inference part of it doesn't match the CONC. But you could just as easily knock off (B) for the PREM half of it. (B) says that there was a claim that "an author does not mistakenly think that a sentence is ungrammatical".

Was there such a claim? It's a hideous double negative so let's clean it up:
"not mistakenly" = "correctly"

Was there a claim that said
"an author correctly thinks that a sentence is ungrammatical"?

Nope. We never even weigh in on whether the author is correct or incorrect about her feelings about whether a sentence is grammatical or ungrammatical.

Hope this helps.

[olaizola.mariana]

Oh, this helps a lot! I think that, for some reason, I tend to equate "infer" with "assume" and I see they are not at all the same. I will watch out for this word in the future. Thanks!

[roflcoptersoisoi]

Premises:
If an author thinks an sentence is ungrammatical they won't write it down and thus won't need to use a grammar book.
If an author is sure a sentence is grammatical they will not feel the need to consult a grammar book.

Conclusion: Grammar books are useless as references for authors.

Flaw: Erroneously splits authors into two groups: Those who think a sentence is ungrammatical and those who think sentences are, what about those who aren't sure.


(A) No such claim is even made in the stimulus, nope.
(B) No such claim is even made in the argument.
(C) Due to the limited scope of the argument it does indeed do this but that is not a flaw in the argument
(D) It doesn't presume this. The author concludes that insofar as reference sources are concerned the grammar books are useless for authors. He doesn't presume that they have no other uses.
(E) Bingo.