What a Flaw question asks
A Flaw question gives you an argument and asks what is wrong with it. The right answer names the exact gap between the evidence and the conclusion. Your job is to find that gap before you look at the choices.
The method
- Find the conclusion. What is the author trying to prove? Look for words like therefore, thus, or so.
- Find the evidence. What reasons does the author give? Boil it down to a sentence or two.
- Ask what is missing. The evidence never fully proves the conclusion. What would have to be true for the leap to work? That missing piece is the flaw.
- Predict the answer. Say the flaw in your own words first. Then find the choice that says the same thing.
Common flaws to know
- Correlation is not causation. Two things happen together, so one must cause the other. Maybe. The argument has not ruled out other explanations.
- Attacking the person, not the argument. The speaker has a bad track record, so the claim must be false. Unreliable people can still make true claims.
- Assuming what needs proving. The conclusion is hiding inside the evidence. Strip the fancy wording and the argument says the same thing twice.
- Part-to-whole leaps. A few members have some trait, so the whole group must. A few bad examples do not prove a universal rule.
Traps to avoid
The most tempting wrong answers describe a flaw the argument did not commit. Before you pick, check the choice against the argument. Did the author actually make that mistake? If not, the choice is wrong no matter how flaw-like it sounds.