Logical Reasoning · Flaw

PrepTest 141 · Section 2 · Question 3

Phase 1 (your first ~400 questions): read the guidance, then answer. No clock.

Step 1 · Pre-Question Guidance · read this first

Question type

Flaw

The one idea it tests

A broad rule about how things usually go is built on a single example.

The basic logic

Check how many cases back up the conclusion. If the conclusion says 'rarely' or 'usually' about a whole group but the evidence is one story, it is a Tiny Sample.

Tiny words that decide it

“rarely”
“one case”
“general”

Playground logic

Marcus's top bun says letting younger kids join a team is rarely smart. His patty is one story about one team. One example cannot carry a rule about all teams.

Step 2 · The kid story

The Hornets' Bad Season

Marcus stands on the bench at recess like a coach. 'Listen up! Letting a younger kid join your team is almost never a good idea. Remember the Hornets? They let a second grader join, and they lost every single game. Even after they got new jerseys, they kept losing.' Priya raises her juice box. 'That is one team, Marcus. One.' Owen adds, 'My cousin's team added a little kid last year and they won the trophy.' Nadia says, 'And maybe the Hornets lost because their goalie broke his wrist.' Marcus climbs down. 'Okay, but it was a really memorable season.' Lulu writes on her clipboard: one story is not a rule. Biscuit barks, which everyone agrees means 'Tiny Sample.'

Step 3 · Try the model question

Marcus: Teams should rarely let younger kids join. After all, the Hornets let a second grader join, and they lost every game that season. Even their new jerseys did not help.

Which one of the following best describes a weakness in Marcus's reasoning?

Step 4 · The courtroom tale

The Lighthouse Paint Ban

The town council wanted to ban painting lighthouses red. Their lawyer told Judge Okoro, 'Painting a lighthouse red is rarely wise. Fifty years ago, Gull Point painted theirs red, and a ship ran aground the next winter. Later they added a brighter lamp, and still ships struggled.' The judge leaned forward. 'Counselor, how many red lighthouses have you studied?' 'Just the one, Your Honor.' 'And how many red lighthouses exist?' 'Hundreds.' The judge sighed. 'You want a rule for hundreds of lighthouses from one story about one lighthouse. Motion denied.'

Step 5 · Work the real question

Open PrepTest 141, Section 2, Question 3 in your official copy from LSAC (for example in LawHub) and read it there.

Your answer

How to apply it

Find the conclusion and notice how broad it is: does it talk about a whole group or what usually happens? Then count the examples in the evidence. If there is only one case, the flaw is a Tiny Sample, a general rule from a single story. Pick the choice that names that gap. Skip choices that describe moves the argument never makes, like circular reasoning or confusing a requirement with a guarantee.