TARA · Critical Thinking
TARA matching arguments questions
Find the argument whose reasoning has the same shape, or the same flaw, whatever its subject.
How to spot it
- Which of the following most closely parallels the reasoning ...?
- Which of the following contains the same flaw ...?
Try one
Original example
If the bakery is open, the lights are on. The lights are not on. So the bakery is not open.
Which of the following has the same structure as the argument above?
The method
- Replace the topic words with letters: if A then B; not B; so not A.
- Do the same to each option.
- Match the shape, including whether it is valid.
The trap
Watch forMatching the topic or the words instead of the logical shape.
Now a harder one
Harder
All the runners who trained every day finished the race. Jo finished the race. So Jo must have trained every day.
Which of the following contains the same flaw as the argument above?