Hello! I'm a little stumped on Cause and Effect. In example 5, I thought the premise would be the cause and the conclusion would be the effect. The cause is 7/10 shoppers prefer Northwoods so being able to conclude that Northwoods is "tops for tastes" is the effect. But the correct argument is reversed. Why is this?
Reply
Create a free account to read and
take part in forum discussions.
@Rebecca-Alvarado what is the observed effect the author is trying to explain here?
Is it that Northwoods is tops for taste or that 7 out of 10 shoppers preferred Northwoods in the survey?
The observed effect is clearly the latter here, i.e. that 7 out of 10 shoppers preferred Northwoods.
The author's proposed cause for this effect? That it is tops for taste, which is the author's conclusion here.
Generally speaking, in cause and effect arguments the author is trying to explain some observed effect. Why did the baby cry? Why did this man get cancer? Why did 7 out of 10 shoppers prefer Northwoods? And the author's conclusion is his or her proposed cause.
Hope that helps! Please let us know if you have any other questions.
