Necessary AssumptionDiff: Hard
Logic Breakdown
Passage Summary: Hector believes that since public art is intended to help the community, and only the community can decide what helps them, a hated sculpture fails its purpose and must be removed.
Conclusion: Hector concludes that if the public scorns the sculpture, it should be removed from the town plaza.
Reasoning: He bases this on the premises that public art must benefit the public and that public opinion is the only way to determine if that benefit is being realized.
Analysis: Hector's argument contains a significant gap between a work failing to benefit the public and the requirement that it be removed. He establishes that unpopularity equals a lack of benefit, but he never explicitly states that 'lack of benefit' is a sufficient reason for removal. We are looking for a link that confirms that if a public work fails to fulfill its intended purpose of benefiting the public, it no longer deserves its place. If we negate this—suggesting that a work should stay even if it doesn't benefit the public—his entire argument for removal collapses.
Conclusion: Hector concludes that if the public scorns the sculpture, it should be removed from the town plaza.
Reasoning: He bases this on the premises that public art must benefit the public and that public opinion is the only way to determine if that benefit is being realized.
Analysis: Hector's argument contains a significant gap between a work failing to benefit the public and the requirement that it be removed. He establishes that unpopularity equals a lack of benefit, but he never explicitly states that 'lack of benefit' is a sufficient reason for removal. We are looking for a link that confirms that if a public work fails to fulfill its intended purpose of benefiting the public, it no longer deserves its place. If we negate this—suggesting that a work should stay even if it doesn't benefit the public—his entire argument for removal collapses.
Passage Stimulus
Passage Redacted
Unlock Full Passage25.The argument Hector makes in responding to Monica depends on the assumption that
Correct Answer
E
E links public feeling to actual benefit: if the public feels it does not benefit, then it does not benefit. That’s exactly the missing bridge Hector needs to move from popularity (what people feel) to the normative conclusion (remove it because it fails the benefit criterion). Negation test: Suppose the public can feel they don’t benefit while in fact they do benefit. Then even if the sculpture is scorned, it might still benefit the public, and Hector’s conclusion that it certainly ought to be removed no longer follows. So E is necessary.
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