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Difficulty: Very hardNecessary Assumption

The recent discovery of monumental stone enclosures at a prehistoric site challenges the consensus that centralized political leadership emerged only after societies transitioned to agriculture. Radiocarbon dating confirms these structures predate domesticated crops by millennia. However, quarrying and transporting such massive pillars would have required the sustained, coordinated effort of numerous distinct nomadic bands. Therefore, the successful construction of these enclosures demonstrates that these pre-agricultural hunter-gatherers had already developed a centralized political authority capable of directing large-scale communal labor.

Which one of the following is an assumption required by the argument?

  1. A
    The long-held consensus that complex societal structures only emerged after the transition to agriculture is contradicted by physical evidence.
  2. B
    The centralized political authority that directed the construction of the stone enclosures eventually caused the society's transition to agriculture.
  3. C
    Any pre-agricultural society that successfully organizes large-scale communal labor possesses a centralized political authority.
  4. The level of sustained coordination required to quarry and transport the massive pillars could not have been achieved in the absence of a centralized political authority.Answer
  5. E
    The distinct nomadic bands that collaborated on the construction of the stone enclosures did not share a common spoken language.

Answer

The level of sustained coordination required to quarry and transport the massive pillars could not have been achieved in the absence of a centralized political authority.
The argument claims that because the construction required the sustained coordination of numerous nomadic bands, the society must have possessed a centralized political authority. This logic inherently assumes that such large-scale coordination is impossible without a centralized authority. If we apply the Negation Test to the correct answer, we get: 'The level of sustained coordination required... COULD have been achieved in the absence of a centralized political authority.' If this were true, the physical evidence of coordination would no longer demonstrate the existence of a centralized political authority, causing the argument to collapse entirely. Therefore, this assumption is logically required.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the conclusion of the argument.
The conclusion is that the pre-agricultural hunter-gatherers had developed a centralized political authority capable of directing large-scale labor.
This is signaled by the word 'Therefore' in the final sentence.
2
Identify the premises supporting this conclusion.
The primary premise is that quarrying and transporting the massive pillars required the sustained, coordinated effort of numerous distinct nomadic bands.
This establishes the factual basis from which the conclusion is logically drawn.
3
Locate the logical gap between the premises and the conclusion.
The argument jumps from 'sustained, coordinated effort' to 'centralized political authority.'
Coordinated effort does not inherently guarantee a centralized political authority; it could theoretically be achieved through egalitarian or decentralized cooperation.
4
Formulate the necessary assumption to bridge this gap.
The argument must assume that the required coordination could not have happened without a centralized political authority.
If it could happen without one, the evidence of coordination would no longer 'demonstrate' that they had already developed one.
5
Apply the Negation Test to verify the correct option.
Negating the correct answer yields: 'The coordination COULD have been achieved in the absence of a centralized political authority.'
This negated statement destroys the argument's core reasoning, confirming it is indeed the required necessary assumption.

Key Concept

Necessary Assumption (Bridging the Gap / Defender)
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Topics

Necessary Assumption

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