Logical reasoning PrepTest 133 · Section 1 · Question 8

Incorrect. This reflects the reason that the article's conclusion isn't backed up by the studies it cites, so it's a rebuttal/premise.

Incorrect. This is the conclusion of the environmentalists that the article criticized, not the main point of the argument itself.

Incorrect. There's no discussion of what should happen to the wolf population in the argument—just an analysis of whether criticism of a viewpoint was justified.

Incorrect. There's actually no one arguing that these studies were flawed! The disagreement is over how that population has been maintained.

Correct. Argument or Facts:
Argument

Valid or Flawed:
Flawed

Question Type:
Main Point

Stimulus Summary:
Article - Recent studies show the wolf population has been stable for 2 decades
Rebuttal - Environmentalists have been bringing in wolves to stabilize the population for the past 2 decades
Conclusion - The article was wrong to criticize environmentalists for a claim

Answer Anticipation:
This argument is interesting in that it represents three viewpoints, not the normal two. There's the environmentalists, the editor/article, and the letter-writer. It's the letter-writer that we're tasked with identifying the main point of.

She starts off with a judgment made on an article written that criticized environmentalists—it was unjustified. In general, when the author of an argument states her opinion on a separate viewpoint, that's the main point, so we've got a potential answer right away.

Looking at the rest of the argument, it brings up what the article's viewpoint was, and why it was wrong. Those are both in support of concluding that the article's criticism was unjustified, so the first statement is the main point of the argument.

Answer Explanation:
This answer highlights the letter's opinion of the article's conclusion/criticism—it's unjustified based on the studies. This is the main point of the argument.

Key Takeaway:
Especially when there are more than 2 viewpoints represented in a stimulus, be sure to keep track of each one. And when an opinion of an opposing point is noted, it's generally the main point of the argument!