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Deirdre: Many philosophers have argued that the goal of every individual is to achieve happiness—that is, the satisfaction derived from fully living up to one’s potential. They have also claimed that happiness is elusive and can be achieved only after years of sustained effort. But these philosophers have been unduly pessimistic, since they have clearly exaggerated the difficulty of being happy. Simply walking along the seashore on a sunny afternoon causes many people to experience feelings of happiness.
Which one of the following most accurately describes a reasoning flaw in Deirdre’s argument?
  • a)
    It dismisses a claim because of its source rather than because of its content.
  • b)
    It fails to take into account that what brings someone happiness at one moment may not bring that person happiness at another time.
  • c)
    It allows the key term “happiness” to shift in meaning illicitly in the course of the argument.
  • d)
    It presumes, without providing justification, that happiness is, in fact, the goal of life.
  • e)
    It makes a generalization based on the testimony of a group whose views have not been shown to be representative.
Correct answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer?
Most Upvoted Answer
Deirdre: Many philosophers have argued that the goal of every individu...
Now let's examine each answer choice:
(A) It dismisses a claim because of its source rather than because of its content. This answer choice is not applicable to Deirdre's argument. Deirdre does not dismiss any claims based on their source; instead, she challenges the content of the philosophers' claims.
(B) It fails to take into account that what brings someone happiness at one moment may not bring that person happiness at another time. This answer choice is not the reasoning flaw in Deirdre's argument. Deirdre's argument does not address the issue of changing preferences or circumstances; she simply asserts that walking along the seashore brings happiness without considering possible variations over time
(C) It allows the key term "happiness" to shift in meaning illicitly in the course of the argument. This answer choice correctly identifies the reasoning flaw in Deirdre's argument. Deirdre starts by discussing happiness as the satisfaction derived from fully living up to one's potential, as claimed by philosophers. However, she then shifts the meaning of happiness to a more immediate and fleeting feeling that can be experienced by walking along the seashore. This inconsistency in the meaning of "happiness" undermines the coherence of her argument.
(D) It presumes, without providing justification, that happiness is, in fact, the goal of life. This answer choice is not the reasoning flaw in Deirdre's argument. Although Deirdre assumes that happiness is the goal of life, this assumption is not the central flaw in her reasoning.
(E) It makes a generalization based on the testimony of a group whose views have not been shown to be representative. This answer choice is not the reasoning flaw in Deirdre's argument. Deirdre does not rely on the testimony of a specific group to make her argument; instead, she asserts that walking along the seashore causes many people to experience happiness without specifying the source of this information.
In summary, the correct answer is (C) because Deirdre's argument allows the key term "happiness" to shift in meaning illicitly, undermining the coherence of her argument.
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Directions: Read the passage carefully and answer the question as follow.Shortly after September 11, 2001, the United States began requesting additional financial information about persons of interest by subpoenaing records located at the SWIFT banking consortium. SWIFT, which routes trillions of dollars a day, faced an ethical dilemma: fight the subpoenas in order to protect member privacy and the groups reputation for the highest level of confidentiality, or, comply and provide information about thousands of financial communications in the hope that lives will be saved. SWIFT decided to comply in secret, but in late June 2006, four major U.S. newspapers disclosed SWIFTs compliance. This sparked a heated public debate over the ethics of SWIFTs decision to reveal ostensibly confidential financial communications.Analyzing the situation in hindsight, three ethical justifications existed for not complying with the Treasury Departments requests. First, SWIFT needed to uphold its long-standing values of confidentiality, non-disclosure, and institutional trust. The second ethical reason against SWIFTs involvement came with inadequate government oversight as the Treasury Department failed to construct necessary safeguards to ensure the privacy of the data. Third, international law must be upheld and one could argue quite strongly that the governments use of data breached some parts of international law.Although SWIFT executives undoubtedly considered the aforementioned reasons for rejecting the governments subpoena, three ethical justifications for complying existed. First, it could be argued that the program was legal because the United States government possesses the authority to subpoena records stored within its territory and SWIFT maintained many of its records in Virginia. Second, it is entirely possible that complying with the governments subpoena thwarted another catastrophic terrorist attack that would have cost lives and dollars. Third, cooperating with the government did not explicitly violate any SWIFT policies due to the presence of a valid subpoena. However, the extent of cooperation certainly surprised many financial institutions and sparked some outrage and debate within the financial community.While SWIFT had compelling arguments both for agreeing and refusing to cooperate with the U.S. government program, even in hindsight, it is impossible to judge with certitude the wisdom and ethics of SWIFTs decision to cooperate as we still lack answers to important questions such as: what information did the government want? What promises did the government make about data confidentially? What, if any, potentially impending threats did the government present to justify its need for data?Q.Inferring from the passage, which of the following constituted an ethical justification for SWIFT complying with the government?

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Deirdre: Many philosophers have argued that the goal of every individual is to achieve happiness—that is, the satisfaction derived from fully living up to one’s potential. They have also claimed that happiness is elusive and can be achieved only after years of sustained effort. But these philosophers have been unduly pessimistic, since they have clearly exaggerated the difficulty of being happy. Simply walking along the seashore on a sunny afternoon causes many people to experience feelings of happiness.Which one of the following most accurately describes a reasoning flaw in Deirdre’s argument?a)It dismisses a claim because of its source rather than because of its content.b)It fails to take into account that what brings someone happiness at one moment may not bring that person happiness at another time.c)It allows the key term “happiness” to shift in meaning illicitly in the course of the argument.d)It presumes, without providing justification, that happiness is, in fact, the goal of life.e)It makes a generalization based on the testimony of a group whose views have not been shown to be representative.Correct answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer?
Question Description
Deirdre: Many philosophers have argued that the goal of every individual is to achieve happiness—that is, the satisfaction derived from fully living up to one’s potential. They have also claimed that happiness is elusive and can be achieved only after years of sustained effort. But these philosophers have been unduly pessimistic, since they have clearly exaggerated the difficulty of being happy. Simply walking along the seashore on a sunny afternoon causes many people to experience feelings of happiness.Which one of the following most accurately describes a reasoning flaw in Deirdre’s argument?a)It dismisses a claim because of its source rather than because of its content.b)It fails to take into account that what brings someone happiness at one moment may not bring that person happiness at another time.c)It allows the key term “happiness” to shift in meaning illicitly in the course of the argument.d)It presumes, without providing justification, that happiness is, in fact, the goal of life.e)It makes a generalization based on the testimony of a group whose views have not been shown to be representative.Correct answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer? for GMAT 2024 is part of GMAT preparation. The Question and answers have been prepared according to the GMAT exam syllabus. Information about Deirdre: Many philosophers have argued that the goal of every individual is to achieve happiness—that is, the satisfaction derived from fully living up to one’s potential. They have also claimed that happiness is elusive and can be achieved only after years of sustained effort. But these philosophers have been unduly pessimistic, since they have clearly exaggerated the difficulty of being happy. Simply walking along the seashore on a sunny afternoon causes many people to experience feelings of happiness.Which one of the following most accurately describes a reasoning flaw in Deirdre’s argument?a)It dismisses a claim because of its source rather than because of its content.b)It fails to take into account that what brings someone happiness at one moment may not bring that person happiness at another time.c)It allows the key term “happiness” to shift in meaning illicitly in the course of the argument.d)It presumes, without providing justification, that happiness is, in fact, the goal of life.e)It makes a generalization based on the testimony of a group whose views have not been shown to be representative.Correct answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer? covers all topics & solutions for GMAT 2024 Exam. Find important definitions, questions, meanings, examples, exercises and tests below for Deirdre: Many philosophers have argued that the goal of every individual is to achieve happiness—that is, the satisfaction derived from fully living up to one’s potential. They have also claimed that happiness is elusive and can be achieved only after years of sustained effort. But these philosophers have been unduly pessimistic, since they have clearly exaggerated the difficulty of being happy. Simply walking along the seashore on a sunny afternoon causes many people to experience feelings of happiness.Which one of the following most accurately describes a reasoning flaw in Deirdre’s argument?a)It dismisses a claim because of its source rather than because of its content.b)It fails to take into account that what brings someone happiness at one moment may not bring that person happiness at another time.c)It allows the key term “happiness” to shift in meaning illicitly in the course of the argument.d)It presumes, without providing justification, that happiness is, in fact, the goal of life.e)It makes a generalization based on the testimony of a group whose views have not been shown to be representative.Correct answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer?.
Solutions for Deirdre: Many philosophers have argued that the goal of every individual is to achieve happiness—that is, the satisfaction derived from fully living up to one’s potential. They have also claimed that happiness is elusive and can be achieved only after years of sustained effort. But these philosophers have been unduly pessimistic, since they have clearly exaggerated the difficulty of being happy. Simply walking along the seashore on a sunny afternoon causes many people to experience feelings of happiness.Which one of the following most accurately describes a reasoning flaw in Deirdre’s argument?a)It dismisses a claim because of its source rather than because of its content.b)It fails to take into account that what brings someone happiness at one moment may not bring that person happiness at another time.c)It allows the key term “happiness” to shift in meaning illicitly in the course of the argument.d)It presumes, without providing justification, that happiness is, in fact, the goal of life.e)It makes a generalization based on the testimony of a group whose views have not been shown to be representative.Correct answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer? in English & in Hindi are available as part of our courses for GMAT. Download more important topics, notes, lectures and mock test series for GMAT Exam by signing up for free.
Here you can find the meaning of Deirdre: Many philosophers have argued that the goal of every individual is to achieve happiness—that is, the satisfaction derived from fully living up to one’s potential. They have also claimed that happiness is elusive and can be achieved only after years of sustained effort. But these philosophers have been unduly pessimistic, since they have clearly exaggerated the difficulty of being happy. Simply walking along the seashore on a sunny afternoon causes many people to experience feelings of happiness.Which one of the following most accurately describes a reasoning flaw in Deirdre’s argument?a)It dismisses a claim because of its source rather than because of its content.b)It fails to take into account that what brings someone happiness at one moment may not bring that person happiness at another time.c)It allows the key term “happiness” to shift in meaning illicitly in the course of the argument.d)It presumes, without providing justification, that happiness is, in fact, the goal of life.e)It makes a generalization based on the testimony of a group whose views have not been shown to be representative.Correct answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer? defined & explained in the simplest way possible. Besides giving the explanation of Deirdre: Many philosophers have argued that the goal of every individual is to achieve happiness—that is, the satisfaction derived from fully living up to one’s potential. They have also claimed that happiness is elusive and can be achieved only after years of sustained effort. But these philosophers have been unduly pessimistic, since they have clearly exaggerated the difficulty of being happy. Simply walking along the seashore on a sunny afternoon causes many people to experience feelings of happiness.Which one of the following most accurately describes a reasoning flaw in Deirdre’s argument?a)It dismisses a claim because of its source rather than because of its content.b)It fails to take into account that what brings someone happiness at one moment may not bring that person happiness at another time.c)It allows the key term “happiness” to shift in meaning illicitly in the course of the argument.d)It presumes, without providing justification, that happiness is, in fact, the goal of life.e)It makes a generalization based on the testimony of a group whose views have not been shown to be representative.Correct answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer?, a detailed solution for Deirdre: Many philosophers have argued that the goal of every individual is to achieve happiness—that is, the satisfaction derived from fully living up to one’s potential. They have also claimed that happiness is elusive and can be achieved only after years of sustained effort. But these philosophers have been unduly pessimistic, since they have clearly exaggerated the difficulty of being happy. Simply walking along the seashore on a sunny afternoon causes many people to experience feelings of happiness.Which one of the following most accurately describes a reasoning flaw in Deirdre’s argument?a)It dismisses a claim because of its source rather than because of its content.b)It fails to take into account that what brings someone happiness at one moment may not bring that person happiness at another time.c)It allows the key term “happiness” to shift in meaning illicitly in the course of the argument.d)It presumes, without providing justification, that happiness is, in fact, the goal of life.e)It makes a generalization based on the testimony of a group whose views have not been shown to be representative.Correct answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer? has been provided alongside types of Deirdre: Many philosophers have argued that the goal of every individual is to achieve happiness—that is, the satisfaction derived from fully living up to one’s potential. They have also claimed that happiness is elusive and can be achieved only after years of sustained effort. But these philosophers have been unduly pessimistic, since they have clearly exaggerated the difficulty of being happy. Simply walking along the seashore on a sunny afternoon causes many people to experience feelings of happiness.Which one of the following most accurately describes a reasoning flaw in Deirdre’s argument?a)It dismisses a claim because of its source rather than because of its content.b)It fails to take into account that what brings someone happiness at one moment may not bring that person happiness at another time.c)It allows the key term “happiness” to shift in meaning illicitly in the course of the argument.d)It presumes, without providing justification, that happiness is, in fact, the goal of life.e)It makes a generalization based on the testimony of a group whose views have not been shown to be representative.Correct answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer? theory, EduRev gives you an ample number of questions to practice Deirdre: Many philosophers have argued that the goal of every individual is to achieve happiness—that is, the satisfaction derived from fully living up to one’s potential. They have also claimed that happiness is elusive and can be achieved only after years of sustained effort. But these philosophers have been unduly pessimistic, since they have clearly exaggerated the difficulty of being happy. Simply walking along the seashore on a sunny afternoon causes many people to experience feelings of happiness.Which one of the following most accurately describes a reasoning flaw in Deirdre’s argument?a)It dismisses a claim because of its source rather than because of its content.b)It fails to take into account that what brings someone happiness at one moment may not bring that person happiness at another time.c)It allows the key term “happiness” to shift in meaning illicitly in the course of the argument.d)It presumes, without providing justification, that happiness is, in fact, the goal of life.e)It makes a generalization based on the testimony of a group whose views have not been shown to be representative.Correct answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer? tests, examples and also practice GMAT tests.
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