Logical Reasoning

PT154 · S1 · Q2 Classicist: In the ancient Athenian

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Classicist: In the ancient Athenian democracy, unlike in any other political system in world history, the legislature consisted of all eligible voters.

Conclusion (Thus)

If the world has ever known true democracy, it was only in ancient Athens.

Evidence

It was only in ancient Athens that the legislature consisted of all eligible voters. Athenian voters made all political decisions by direct vote after public debate in the Assembly.

Evaluate

The conclusion we're trying to prove is a weird type of claim. Suppose I said, . I'm not actually trying to prove she has daisies. I'm saying daisies are the only possible type of flower in her kitchen, but it wouldn't make me wrong if there weren't daisies. I would only be wrong if there were some other type of flower in her kitchen.

So, similarly, we don't need to prove that ancient Athens was a true democracy. We just need to know that every other political system has not been a true democracy.

Since the argument didn't give us a proving mechanism for "If xyz, then not true democracy", the correct answer will have to give us such a rule.

What do we know about all other political systems that would allow us to prove they aren't true democracies? We know that only ancient Athens had a legislature consisting of all eligible voters. So in every other political system, we know that wasn't the case.

Goal

So, we're probably going to see an answer like, .

The conclusion of the classicist's argument follows logically if which one of the following is assumed?

Most political systems in world
Unrelated to Goal
Since this doesn't provide a rule that says, "If xyz, then not true democracy", it won't help us to prove the conclusion.
1% picked this
Public debate is an essential
Unrelated to Goal
Since this doesn't provide a rule that says, "If xyz, then not true democracy", it won't help us to prove the conclusion.
1% picked this
Athens was the only city
Unrelated to Goal
Since this doesn't provide a rule that says, "If xyz, then not true democracy", it won't help us to prove the conclusion.
2% picked this
Correct
A political system is not
Why this is right
This is one of those fun Sufficient Assumption examples where the "New Concept in Conclusion" shortcut takes us all the way to the correct answer choice. We're trying to prove that all other political systems besides ancient Athens were not true democracies. This is the only answer that provides a rule that would allow us to prove "not true democracy": Eligible voters don't not a true themselves vote directly ? democracy on all political decisions We were told that ancient Athens was the only political system in world history in which the legislature consisted of all eligible voters, who made all political decisions by direct vote. So we know that this rule applies to every other political system, proving that none of them were true democracies. Thus, it allows us to derive the conclusion that "Other than possibly ancient Athens, the world has never known true democracy".
Skill tested: Sufficient Assumption · how this choice captures the argument's function is the move to repeat next time.
94% picked this
Most Athenians who were eligible
Unrelated to Goal
Since this doesn't provide a rule that says, "If xyz, then not true democracy", it won't help us to prove the conclusion.
2% picked this

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