Straw Man
Defeating a weaker version of the real argument.
What it is
A straw man replaces the real argument with a weaker version. Then it defeats the weak version and declares victory. The original argument is never touched.
This flaw rewards close reading. The stimulus says one thing. The flawed reply says something slightly stronger, then knocks that down.
An LSAT-style example
This example is original. It is not a real LSAT question.
Dr. Ames supports requiring one statistics course for business majors. Her critic replies: Dr. Ames wants every student to become a mathematician. That is absurd. A business degree does not require years of advanced math.
The flaw: Ames proposed one course. The critic attacks a demand that every student become a mathematician, which she never made.
How to spot it on test day
- The reply sounds more extreme than the original claim.
- Watch for words the first speaker never used: all, every, always, never.
- Line up the two claims side by side. Do they actually match?
The right answer vs. the trap
The right answer
The correct answer says the argument misrepresents or distorts the position it attacks.
The trap
The trap may say the argument ignores evidence or begs the question. The key move here is distortion: the target was swapped before the attack.
Find your weak flaws
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