Logical Reasoning

PT105 · S1 · Q1 Tennyson's line of poetry

A free, expert breakdown of this official LSAT Logical Reasoning question.

  • Save & drill this skill — build targeted practice sets from questions like this one

  • Video walkthroughs — watch every question solved step by step

  • 81 official LSATs — as questions, timed sections & full-length tests

Start practicing free

Tennyson's line of poetry "nature, red in tooth and claw" is misconstrued by many evolutionists as a reference to Darwin's theory of evolution.

Conclusion

Tennyson's line of poetry "nature, red in tooth and claw" is misconstrued by many evolutionists as a reference to Darwin's theory of evolution. This means Tennyson's line of poetry was not meant to refer to Darwin's theory of evolution.

Evidence

The poem in which the line appears was published in 1850, but Darwin kept his theory closely held until publishing it in 1859. In addition, in view of the context provided by the rest of the poem, the line was clearly meant to refer to the dominant biological theory of the early nineteenth century, which was a creationist theory.

Evaluate

Most arguments on Main Conclusion are Rebuttal style, leveraging opposing descriptors like "misconstrued" to alert us that the author disagrees with the common interpretation. Here, the argument clarifies that Tennyson's line is not a reference to Darwin's theory, providing publication timelines and contextual details from the poem.

Goal

Identify the best answer that reflects Tennyson’s line of poetry is not a reference to Darwin’s theory of evolution.

1.

Which one of the following most accurately expresses the main point of the argument?

  1. The line of Tennyson's poetry

    Word Salad

    This resembles the first sentence, but is a distortion of its meaning. The first sentence is saying that Tennyson's line isn't a reference to Darwin's theory. No one is discussing whether or not that line is an apt description of Darwin's theory. It would obviously take more than one line to accurately describe Darwin's theory.

    7% picked this

  2. The dominant biological theory in

    Last-Claim Bait

    This doesn't match the first sentence at all. In fact, it matches the final claim, which is very rarely the conclusion on Main Conclusion questions. This is just part of the support for the conclusion.

    2% picked this

  3. Tennyson's line of poetry was

    Premise

    This captures a timeline fact that supports the argument but fails to express the main point regarding the misinterpretation of the line.

    5% picked this

  4. Darwin's theory of evolution was

    Inference-Bait

    This does not come close to matching the first sentence, so our analysis could end there. This is an idea that can be inferred from the premises, so it feels "true" but is unrelated to our task.

    1% picked this

  5. Correct

    Tennyson's line of poetry was

    Why this is right

    This captures the main point: Tennyson's line of poetry was not a reference to Darwin's theory of evolution, addressing the misconception directly.

    Skill tested: Main Conclusion · how this choice captures the argument's function is the move to repeat next time.

    85% picked this

Continue the review in LSAT Lab

Save this question, watch the video walkthrough, and drill similar questions in your LSAT Lab account.

Save and practice this skill
LSAT Lab

Turn this review into a targeted study plan.

Save this question, drill more like it, watch the video walkthrough, and track your progress in your LSAT Lab account.

Start practicing free