Page 167 - Smart Thinking: Skills for Critical Understanding and Writing, 2nd Ed

154 ANSWERS, DISCUSSION, AND FURTHER ADVICE

conclusion, then the argument would make very little, if any, sense at all. In this
case, the premises do not add together. While the word 'and' might suggest they do,
either premise on its own would be sufficient to support the conclusion. Hence
they are independent of one another in the diagram. (See chapter 4.)
b (Nicole Kidman is an international movie star) 1 and I know that, (as a
general rule, international movie stars get paid a lot of money) 2. Therefore,
it is obvious that (Nicole Kidman is well paid) 3.

©*©

Y

©

This example should be easier than the first. This time there are two linking
phrases, which clearly show the conclusion and one of the premises. Claims 1 and
2 are dependent on one another, meaning they must be 'grouped' together. (See
chapter 4.)
c (I have not got a university education, whereas several of my colleagues do) 1.
(All of them have recently received promotions, but I did not receive one) 2.
Given that (we are all roughly equal in our job performance) 3, I would have
to conclude that (a university education really helps one to get ahead in a
career) 4.

Y

0

It is equally acceptable to separate claims 1 and 2 into four claims (that is, 'I
have not got a university education' as the first, 'several of my colleagues do [have
a university education]' as the second, and so on), but it does not clarify the
analytical structure. The trick here is to avoid being fooled by the punctuation: the
first three claims are all dependent premises, despite being spread over three
sentences and despite the lack of clear signals for the first two claims. See the
section 'Special function of premises' in chapter 4 for a discussion of how one claim