Two things are true of all immoral actions. First, if they are

Question

Two things are true of all immoral actions. First, if they are performed in public, they offend public sensibilities. Second, they are accompanied by feelings of guilt.

If all the statements above are true, then which one of the following must be false?

(A) Some immoral actions that are not performed in public are not accompanied by feelings of guilt
(B) Immoral actions are wrong solely by virtue of being accompanied by feelings of guilt
(C) Some actions that offend public sensibilities if they are performed in public are not accompanied by feelings of guilt
(D) Some actions that are accompanied by feelings of guilt are not immoral, even if they frequently offend public sensibilities
(E) Every action performed in public that is accompanied by feelings of guilt is immoral

Source: LSAT & CR Archive

KarishmaB · Accepted Answer

True for all immoral actions:
1. If performed in public, they offend public
2. They are accompanied by guilt

So all immoral actions are accompanied by guilt. And all immoral actions, if performed in public, offend the public.

Which MUST be FALSE? (as per the argument)

(A) Some immoral actions that are not performed in public are not accompanied by feelings of guilt
FALSE! The argument clearly states that ALL immoral actions are accompanied by guilt. This doesn't depend on whether they are performed in public or not. So this must be the answer.

(B) Immoral actions are wrong solely by virtue of being accompanied by feelings of guilt
The argument doesn't talk about right/wrong.

(C) Some actions that offend public sensibilities if they are performed in public are not accompanied by feelings of guilt
Not necessarily false. We don't know about "some actions". We only know about "immoral actions"

(D) Some actions that are accompanied by feelings of guilt are not immoral, even if they frequently offend public sensibilities
Not necessarily false. We don't know about "some actions". We only know about "immoral actions"

(E) Every action performed in public that is accompanied by feelings of guilt is immoral
Not necessarily false. The argument doesn't tell us about "every action". We only know about "immoral actions".

Answer (A)

Bunuel · Answer

OFFICIAL EXPLANATION

The correct answer choice is (A).

The first statement regarding immoral actions indicates that “if they are performed in public, they offend public sensibilities.” The correct diagram for this statement is: IP = immoral actions performed in public, O = offend public sensibilities, IP—>O. The relationship above is restricted to public performances. No information is given about non-public performances. The next statement in the stimulus is “second, they are accompanied by feelings of guilt.” This statement can cause problems because most students assume that the “they” refers to immoral actions performed in public. But read the stimulus carefully—the first sentence states that two things are true of immoral actions, and the “they” in the last sentence refers to those actions in the first sentence. Because the last sentence does not reference actions in public, it is a broader statement that addresses all immoral actions: I = immoral actions, G = accompanied by feelings of guilt: I—>G. Thus, the two conditional statements in the stimulus do not have the same sufficient condition. Again, read carefully in order to avoid the error of assuming the two statements reference the same condition.

Answer choice (A): This is the correct answer. Answer choice (A) is correct because any immoral action is accompanied by feelings of guilt, and (A) improperly tries to assert that some immoral actions are not accompanied by feelings of guilt. Note how this answer plays off the second statement—the exact statement that many students are likely to misunderstand. If you interpret the second statement to apply to public actions, you will mistakenly think answer choice (A) could occur.

Answer choice (B): The stimulus does not address the “wrongness” of immoral actions. Thus, this answer could possibly be true and is therefore incorrect.

Answer choice (C): This answer is tricky. Look carefully at the wording of the answer—is immorality mentioned? No, it is not, and thus neither sufficient condition in the stimulus can apply. The statement in this answer choice is possible because a public action that offends public sensibilities does not have to be an immoral action, and so a public action that offends public sensibilities does not have to be accompanied by feelings of guilt. For the purposes of discussion, say that the public action in question is flag burning. Such an action performed in public could offend the public, but since we do not know if it immoral according to the answer, the flag burner does not have to experience feelings of guilt. This conforms to the scenario described in answer choice (C).

Answer choice (D): This answer choice tests your knowledge a Mistaken Reversal. Remember, any Mistaken Reversal is an error because it is not certain that the sufficient condition must occur when the necessary condition occurs. So, if the necessary condition occurs, the sufficient condition may or may not occur. This answer states that the necessary condition of the second statement occurs and that the sufficient does not. This outcome is possible under any single-arrow conditional scenario. In concrete terms, just because some actions are accompanied by feelings of guilt does not mean they are immoral, so this answer choice could occur and hence is wrong.

Answer choice (E): This answer tests the flip side of possibilities that could occur under a conditional statement. In this situation, the necessary condition of the second statement occurs and the sufficient condition also occurs. Since a Mistaken Reversal might be true unless otherwise stated, this answer could occur and is incorrect. Answer choices (D) and (E) present a dynamic one-two punch: answer choice (D) tests to see if you understand that the occurrence of the necessary condition does not automatically lead to the occurrence of the sufficient condition, and answer choice (E) tests to see if you understand that the occurrence of the necessary condition could lead to the occurrence of the sufficient condition.

Arro44 · Answer

The option we are looking for is a.

The statement tells that all immoral actions are accompanied by guilt, this statement holds regardless of whether the action is performed in public.

AC A breaks this statement and therefore has to be wrong.

Best regards,
Chris

VerbalBot · Answer

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Two things are true of all immoral actions. First, if they are

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