PrepTest 153, Section 3, Question 15
If the glee club pays cash today to(55 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(7 more words not shown)
- AAt least some(24 more words not shown)
- BMost members of(12 more words not shown)
- CAt least one(18 more words not shown)
- DThe club's party(12 more words not shown)
- EThere is enough(17 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
A discount for paying today sounds worth taking. But can the club actually pay today?
Knowing the price is not the same as having the cash. The committee might want the lower price and still have to wait because the club doesn't have enough money on hand. In that case, missing the discount would tell us about its ability to pay, not how much it cares about saving.
There's another possibility even if some cash is available. Imagine the club has $100 and can use it either to secure the equipment discount or to get an even larger discount on catering. Paying the caterer first could save the club more overall. Passing up this particular saving wouldn't show indifference to money; it could be the money-saving choice.
What we’re looking for
The necessary-assumption question asks for something the argument needs, not something that fixes every possible objection. The first concern gives us a clear prediction: enough cash must be available for today's equipment payment. Otherwise, the argument treats an option the club cannot take as an opportunity it simply doesn't care about.
Working the answers
- A
The author need not assume some influential members are interested in this discount to argue that the committee cares little about saving. Those members could be uninterested. Also, some interest by some members wouldn't automatically contradict the conclusion about the committee as a whole; this isn't a simple 'they care versus they don't' choice. It doesn't supply the needed ability to pay.
- B
We know the committee understands the costs of the rental choices. We are not told that most members know the club's overall financial situation, and that broader awareness is not required by the argument. What matters to our objection is whether the club can take the offer, not how many committee members understand the financial situation.
- C
Another agency refusing an early-payment discount would not tell us why this committee passes up the discount its usual agency offers. The argument does not compare the offers of different agencies. A fact about at least one agency's prices leaves the club's ability to take its actual offer unresolved.
- D
Other priorities might explain the decision, but the author doesn't have to assume them. The committee could care little about saving money without placing a number of other responsibilities above it. It might be careless about its responsibilities generally. D supplies a possible account of its priorities, not a necessary part of the accusation.
- ECorrect
If the cash isn't available, paying today isn't a real option. The committee could care deeply about saving and still be unable to get the lower price. Enough cash must therefore be available before the missed opportunity can support the author's accusation in this way.
That doesn't finish the argument. Our catering example could still offer another explanation for waiting. E is required because it removes the inability-to-pay objection; it doesn't guarantee that every other explanation disappears.
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