Necessary AssumptionDiff: Hard
Logic Breakdown
Passage Summary: One group says a law is too detailed, and another says it's too blurry; the author thinks that because they can't both be right, the law must be perfect.
Conclusion: The tax reform legislation is framed exactly as it should be.
Reasoning: Political groups on the right and left offer contradictory criticisms (too specific vs. too vague), and since a statement cannot be both, the criticisms must be wrong.
Analysis: The author is making a huge assumption: that if two people disagree in opposite ways, the truth must be exactly in the middle. This is a 'Goldilocks' fallacy. Just because the law isn't *both* too specific and too vague doesn't mean it isn't one of them. For the conclusion to hold, the author must assume that the existence of contradictory criticisms is a reliable indicator of quality. A necessary assumption here is that the critics' opinions are actually mutually exclusive in a way that invalidates both, rather than one side simply being correct.
Conclusion: The tax reform legislation is framed exactly as it should be.
Reasoning: Political groups on the right and left offer contradictory criticisms (too specific vs. too vague), and since a statement cannot be both, the criticisms must be wrong.
Analysis: The author is making a huge assumption: that if two people disagree in opposite ways, the truth must be exactly in the middle. This is a 'Goldilocks' fallacy. Just because the law isn't *both* too specific and too vague doesn't mean it isn't one of them. For the conclusion to hold, the author must assume that the existence of contradictory criticisms is a reliable indicator of quality. A necessary assumption here is that the critics' opinions are actually mutually exclusive in a way that invalidates both, rather than one side simply being correct.
Passage Stimulus
Passage Redacted
Unlock Full Passage18.Which one of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends?
Correct Answer
E
E is required. If it’s possible that some provisions are overly specific and others are overly vague, then both criticisms could be accurate without showing the proposal is “just right.” Negation test: If the legislation is a mix, the reformer’s conclusion no longer follows.
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