Logical Reasoning · Method of Argument

PrepTest 142 · Section 2 · Question 17

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

Step 1 · Pre-Question Guidance · read this first

Question type

Method of Argument

The one idea it tests

In an analogy, map each piece on one side to its partner on the other side by the job it does.

The basic logic

The argument compares A's struggle against something with many parts to B's struggle against a crowd. Line up who struggles with who, what is many with what is many, and what is one with what is one. The single item on one side matches the single item on the other.

Tiny words that decide it

“like”
“far more”
“single”

Playground logic

Lulu says cracking a five-lock diary is, for Tommy, like a goalie stopping five balls at once. Tommy is the goalie, the locks are the balls, and a one-lock diary is a single ball. Match by job, not by looks.

Step 2 · The kid story

Lulu's Five Locks

Lulu got a new diary with five little locks. Her old one had just one. "Tommy cracked my old diary in a minute," she told Priya. "He'll never crack this one." Priya raised an eyebrow. "Why not?" Lulu pointed her pencil like a teacher. "For Tommy, cracking five locks at once is like a goalie trying to stop five soccer balls kicked at the same time. Way harder than stopping a single ball." Priya thought it over. "So Tommy is the goalie. The five locks are the five balls. And your old one-lock diary is the single ball." "Exactly." From the hallway came a small voice: "I'm getting a bigger net." Lulu added a sixth lock.

Step 3 · Try the model question

Lulu: My old diary had one lock; my new diary has five. For Tommy, cracking a five-lock diary is like a goalie trying to stop five soccer balls kicked at once, which is much harder than stopping a single ball.

In Lulu's comparison, which one of the following plays the same role as Lulu's old one-lock diary?

Step 4 · The courtroom tale

The Two Fences

A farmer argued his new fence was raccoon-proof. "Your Honor, my old fence had one latch. The new one has eight. For a raccoon, opening eight latches is like a juggler keeping eight balls in the air instead of one." The judge leaned forward. "Mr. Whitfield, help me map this." Mr. Whitfield counted on his fingers. "The raccoon is the juggler. The eight latches are the eight balls. The old one-latch fence is the single ball." "And the farmer?" "Not in the picture, Your Honor. He just built the fences." The judge nodded. A raccoon in the back row looked unimpressed.

Step 5 · Work the real question

Open PrepTest 142, Section 2, Question 17 in your official copy from LSAC (for example in LawHub) and read it there.

Your answer

How to apply it

Write the two sides of the analogy in two columns. On each side, list who is struggling, what has many parts, and what has one part. Draw lines between partners by the job each plays. Then find the item the question asks about, see whether it is the 'one' or the 'many' side, and pick its partner. Ignore choices that are pieces with no partner at all.