Critical Reasoning

If retail stores experience a decrease in revenues during this holiday season, then either attitudes toward extravagant gift-giving have changed or prices have risen beyond the level most people can afford. If attitudes have changed, then we all have something to celebrate this season. If prices have risen beyond the level most people can afford, then it must be that salaries have not kept pace with rising prices during the past year.
Assuming the premises above to be true, if salaries have kept pace with rising prices during the past year, which one of the following must be true?
(A) Attitudes toward extravagant gift-giving have changed.
(B) Retail stores will not experience a decrease in retail sales during this holiday season.
(C) Prices in retail stores have not risen beyond the level that most people can afford during this holiday season.
(D) Attitudes toward extravagant gift-giving have not changed, and stores will not experience a decrease in revenues during this holiday season.
(E) Either attitudes toward extravagant gift-giving have changed or prices have risen beyond the level that most people can afford during this holiday season.

OA in a while.

IMO its A.To balance the equation i.e if salary increases than attitude of ppl must have changed for the sails to decline.What is the OA?

IMO C

Question type: Inference

If revenue decrease then 1. attitude change or 2. Prices have risen
If 1. attitude is changed then we have something to celebrate about
IF 2. Prices have risen then salaries have not kept Pace

or

If M then N or P
if N then O
if P then Q

Now the question asks if not Q then ?
Ans: Not P, which is choice C

What is the correct answer to this now? C?

i think the answer is C

this question involves logic

OA is indeed C.

vineesh, is the aristotle cr set a good investment of time ? how r the questions ? nd do aristotle forums have discussions over them ?

revenue decreses --> attitute towards exp gifts chananged or prices increased
if former, then it's good.
if latter, salaries have not increased.

If salaries have increase (negation of statement 3), then prices have not risen beyond the level most people can afford.

Option C tells the same thing.

If retail stores experience a decrease in revenues during this holiday season, then either attitudes toward extravagant gift-giving have changed or prices have risen beyond the level most people can afford. If attitudes have changed, then we all have something to celebrate this season. If prices have risen beyond the level most people can afford, then it must be that salaries have not kept pace with rising prices during the past year.
Assuming the premises above to be true, if salaries have kept pace with rising prices during the past year, which one of the following must be true?
(A) Attitudes toward extravagant gift-giving have changed.
(B) Retail stores will not experience a decrease in retail sales during this holiday season.
(C) Prices in retail stores have not risen beyond the level that most people can afford during this holiday season.
(D) Attitudes toward extravagant gift-giving have not changed, and stores will not experience a decrease in revenues during this holiday season.
(E) Either attitudes toward extravagant gift-giving have changed or prices have risen beyond the level that most people can afford during this holiday season.


Got confused between A and C. Can anybody tell me why A is wrong as the argument with the given premises in the end is leading us to A right?? Can any of the experts plss helpp

I concur with Saurabh33 though I also went for A but..

if A then N or M

If N then O
If M then L


Question has ~L. it means if L is negated, M must be negated. We don't know if A actually happened. Had A actually happened, answer choice A would have been true

Hello Experts,

I understand why option C to this question is correct. I believe its the 'reversal and negation' logic that has been utilized for option C. However, could you please help me understand the flaw behind the other options?

Regards,
Amit

vineeshp wrote:If retail stores experience a decrease in revenues during this holiday season, then either attitudes toward extravagant gift-giving have changed or prices have risen beyond the level most people can afford. If attitudes have changed, then we all have something to celebrate this season. If prices have risen beyond the level most people can afford, then it must be that salaries have not kept pace with rising prices during the past year.
Assuming the premises above to be true, if salaries have kept pace with rising prices during the past year, which one of the following must be true?
(A) Attitudes toward extravagant gift-giving have changed.
(B) Retail stores will not experience a decrease in retail sales during this holiday season.
(C) Prices in retail stores have not risen beyond the level that most people can afford during this holiday season.
(D) Attitudes toward extravagant gift-giving have not changed, and stores will not experience a decrease in revenues during this holiday season.
(E) Either attitudes toward extravagant gift-giving have changed or prices have risen beyond the level that most people can afford during this holiday season.

The contrapositive of an if-then statement must be true.

Original statement: If A, then B.
Contrapositive: If not B, then not A.

Example:
Original statement: If John is in New York City, then John is in the United States.
This statement is true.
Contrapositive: If John is not in the United States, then John is not in New York City.
This contrapositive also is true.

Passage:
If revenues decrease, then attitudes have changed or prices are unaffordable.
If attitudes have changed, then we can celebrate.
If prices are unaffordable, then salaries have not kept pace with prices.

Contrapositives of the statements above, in reverse order:
If salaries have kept pace with prices, then prices are not unaffordable.
If we can't celebrate, then attitudes have not changed.
If attitudes have not changed and prices are not unaffordable, then revenues have not decreased.

Assuming the premises above to be true, if salaries have kept pace with rising prices during the past year, which one of the following must be true?
As the red statement indicates:
If salaries have kept pace with prices, THEN PRICES ARE NOT UNAFFORDABLE.
Thus, C must be true:
Prices in retail stores have not risen beyond the level that most people can afford during this holiday season.

The correct answer is C.

(A) Attitudes toward extravagant gift-giving have changed.
This statement must be true if revenues decrease and prices are not unaffordable.
Since it is not known whether revenues have decreased and prices are not unaffordable, eliminate A.

(B) Retail stores will not experience a decrease in retail sales during this holiday season.
This statement must be true If attitudes have not changed and prices are not unaffordable.
Since it is not known whether attitudes have not changed and prices are not unaffordable, eliminate B.

(D) Attitudes toward extravagant gift-giving have not changed.
This statement must be true If we can't celebrate.
Since it is not known whether we can celebrate, eliminate D.

(E) Either attitudes toward extravagant gift-giving have changed or prices have risen beyond the level that most people can afford during this holiday season.
This statement must be true If revenues decrease.
Since it is not known whether revenues have decreased, eliminate E.

Thanks a lot Mitch!

Your explanations are quite detailed and well organized as always!!!

Your explanation helped me understand the process to apply the contrapositive principle to statements which are of the form 'If A then B or C'. I'm not sure if this principle is tested on the GMAT but it was worth knowing.

Thanks again!
Amit