Question regarding a MGMAT Critical Reasoning definition.

[FotisK758]

Greetings from Greece,

I am studying in accordance with your CR Guide , but I feel that I cannot understand a definition and I am a bit confused.

There are some examples where the Manhattan Team uses the word claim showing that it is somehow another way of finding a conclusion whereas in other examples they connect it with the context of the premises.

Personally I stick to the idea that claim is close to the opinion idea.

[Sage Pearce-Higgins]

The Isles of Greece! The Isles of Greece! Where burning Sappho loved and sung...

Apologies if our guide isn't clear. Be careful what a conclusion is: it's the main claim of the argument, such as an opinion or prediction i.e. something that somebody could disagree with. For example, if I say "The capital of Greece is Athens." then I don't need to provide support for that, because it's a fact. And even if you could have a disagreement about it with an odd person, then it would be a silly argument and GMAT wouldn't do that. However, if I say "I think it will rain tomorrow." then you could ask me for my evidence and we could have a sensible disagreement about it. "I think it will rain tomorrow." is clearly a claim.

However, even if all conclusions are claims, it doesn't follow that all claims are conclusions. I could present an argument like this one: "I saw clouds in the sky so I think it will rain tomorrow; therefore I think we shouldn't plan a trip to Hydra." The main conclusion (the big claim) in this argument is that 'we shouldn't plan a trip to Hydra', but I support this with the claim that 'I think it will rain tomorrow'. Claims can support other claims, particularly in this kind of two-step argument.

I hope this helps.

[FotisK758]

Hi Sage,

I really appreciate your reply; it is very clear.

"Most examples that Sage uses refer to Greece (claim); therefore, what can be inferred is that he likes Greece a lot-maybe more than Lord Byron. (main claim=conclusion)".

I hope, taking as an indicator my above statement, that I understood what you mean. Definitely the CR guide is incredible and has helped me improve my score, but sometimes I thought that I was confused with these terms.

Fotis

[Sage Pearce-Higgins]

Good to hear that. (And yes, I visit Greece most summers.) I like your example of an argument!

One minor point: if you read something like "Most examples that Sage uses refer to Greece." in a GMAT problem, that would be taken as a fact rather than a claim. I.e. if they state something as if it were a fact in a CR problem, then we don't need to dispute it. A claim would sound more like "It is believed that most examples that Sage uses refer to Greece."