PrepTest 130, Section 4, Question 19
Anyone who believes in democracy has a high(32 more words not shown)
The conclusion follows logically if(7 more words not shown)
- AAnyone who believes(15 more words not shown)
- BAnyone who believes(24 more words not shown)
- CIf Griley is(15 more words not shown)
- DAnyone who does(28 more words not shown)
- EUnless Griley believes(15 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
Believing in democracy requires a high regard for the wisdom of the masses, according to the first sentence. If Griley lacks that regard, the conclusion would follow. But do we know that he lacks it?
We know he thinks popular artwork is unlikely to be good. That is a judgment about popular artistic taste, not automatically a judgment about the public's wisdom in general. Griley might distrust people's taste in paintings while respecting their political judgment. Calling him an elitist does not itself supply the missing connection.
What we’re looking for
The question asks us to make the conclusion follow. We need a rule taking Griley's known view about art to a lack of high regard for the wisdom of the masses. That would establish that he fails a requirement for believing in democracy.
Working the answers
- A
This would establish that someone with Griley's art belief is an elitist. We already know he is an elitist. The needed step is from his art belief to a lack of high regard for the masses, so repeating the label does not complete the argument.
- BCorrect
Griley has the belief described: popular artwork is unlikely to be good. B says that anyone with that belief lacks a high regard for the wisdom of the masses. Since everyone who believes in democracy has that high regard, Griley cannot believe in democracy. The answer supplies the missing connection and completes the reasoning.
- C
This covers the case in which Griley is not an elitist. The passage says he is one, so the rule does not give us its result. We cannot use a statement about what would follow from a condition he fails to meet to settle his actual regard for the masses.
- D
This begins with lacking high regard for the masses and leads to elitism and the art belief. We need to start with the art belief, which we know, and reach the missing lack of high regard. D does not license that direction. Griley could hold the art belief for some other reason while still respecting the masses' wisdom.
- E
This says that if Griley does not believe in democracy, he lacks high regard for the masses. But whether he believes in democracy is what we are trying to establish. E tells us something that would follow from the desired conclusion without connecting his stated art belief to it.
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