Logical ReasoningDifficulty: Hard

PT14 S4 Q16 Explanation

It is not reasonable to search

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

TopicsMethod

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Stimulus

It is not reasonable to search out “organic” foods— those grown without the application of synthetic chemicals—as the only natural foods. A plant will take up the molecules it needs from the soil and turn them into the same natural compounds, whether or not those molecules come from chemicals are part of nature, so all are equally natural.

What this question is testing

Method

Conclusion

The author argues against the idea that "organic" foods are the only natural ones.

Evidence

The author's argument: plants make the same compounds whether their inputs come from synthetic fertilizer or not. Anything a plant produces is part of nature. So all foods are equally natural.

Evaluate

Watch what just happened. The author quietly redefined "natural." In ordinary usage (and in the position the author is rejecting), "natural" food means food grown without synthetic chemicals. The author switched it to mean "any compound that exists in nature."

Under the new definition, of course conventionally-grown food counts as natural — almost anything would. But the new definition isn't the one the original claim was using. The author rigged the term in their own favor.

Goal

The right answer will say the author redefines a term in a way that benefits the argument.

Reading along? Open the full official question in LawHub — we show a fragment here and keep the reasoning in our own words.

The question
16.

The argument proceeds

Answer choices

  1. Correct68% picked this

    redefining a term in a way that is favorable to

    Why this is right

    This describes the move exactly. The author redefines "natural" — broadening it from "grown without synthetic chemicals" (the sense relevant to the position being rejected) to "any compound made by a plant." The broader definition makes the conclusion follow easily, since under the new definition essentially all food is "natural." That's a redefinition favorable to the argument.

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

  2. Bad Description2% picked this

    giving a reason why a recommended course of action would

    The argument doesn't recommend any action and doesn't argue that some action is beneficial. It pushes back against a labeling distinction (organic = natural). There's no "do this because it would help" structure here.

  3. Bad Description6% picked this

    appealing to the authority of scientific

    The argument leans on a fact about plant chemistry but doesn't cite scientific authorities or methods as a way to bolster the claim. It just makes the chemical claim directly. This isn't an "experts say so" appeal.

  4. Bad Description7% picked this

    showing that a necessary condition for correctly applying the term “organic”

    The author doesn't argue that some food fails to satisfy a necessary condition for being "organic." The author actually accepts the standard usage of "organic" and instead works on the term natural by widening its definition. Wrong term, wrong move.

  5. Bad Description17% picked this

    reinterpreting evidence presented as supporting the position

    The argument doesn't take evidence offered for the rejected position and reinterpret it. It introduces its own facts (plants produce the same compounds regardless of input) and redefines a key term ("natural"). Reinterpretation of opposing evidence isn't what's happening.

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