Bocconi Law Test flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Affirming the consequent

A logical fallacy that treats a necessary condition as sufficient: from 'If P then Q' and 'Q', it concludes 'P', which is invalid because Q may have other causes.

Negation test for assumptions

To identify an assumption, negate each candidate answer; if the argument becomes invalid when the statement is false, that statement is a necessary assumption of the argument.

Sufficient condition

A condition whose presence guarantees the outcome; in 'If A then B', A is sufficient for B, but B can still occur through other sufficient conditions.

Necessary condition

A condition without which the outcome cannot occur; in 'If A then B', B is necessary for A, so the absence of B guarantees the absence of A.

False dilemma

A reasoning flaw that presents only two options as exhaustive when other alternatives exist; it forces a choice between extremes and ignores middle ground.

Straw man fallacy

Misrepresenting an opponent's position in a weaker or distorted form, then attacking that distorted version instead of the actual argument.

Correlation versus causation

Two variables may move together without one causing the other; alternative explanations include reverse causation, a common cause, or coincidence.

Main idea question

A reading question asking for the central claim of a passage; the correct answer covers the whole text and is neither too narrow nor too broad.

Inference in reading

A conclusion that follows necessarily from stated information, even if not explicitly written; it must not depend on outside knowledge or mere plausibility.

Author's tone

The attitude conveyed by word choice and evaluation; options range from approving to critical, and neutral tone requires an absence of evaluative language.

Function of a paragraph

The role a paragraph plays in the argument, such as introducing a problem, providing evidence, conceding a point, or qualifying a claim.

Scope shift trap

An incorrect answer option that changes quantity or certainty, for example replacing 'most' with 'all' or 'may' with 'must', altering the meaning of the passage.

Signal words

Connectors such as however, therefore, and for example that reveal the logical relationship between sentences and help locate conclusions and evidence.

Vocabulary in context

Determining a word's meaning from surrounding sentences rather than its most common dictionary definition, which may not fit the passage.

Statuto Albertino

The 1848 charter granted by Charles Albert of Savoy; it was flexible, so ordinary laws could modify it, unlike the rigid 1948 Republican Constitution.

Italian Constitution 1948

The republican constitution resulting from a compromise among Catholic, socialist, and liberal forces; it is rigid and amended only through the Article 138 procedure.

Risorgimento

The nineteenth-century movement for Italian unification, combining Mazzini's republicanism, Cavour's diplomacy, and Garibaldi's military campaigns; Rome became capital in 1871.

Montesquieu separation of powers

The doctrine in The Spirit of the Laws (1748) that legislative, executive, and judicial powers should be separate to prevent tyranny and protect liberty.

Social contract theory

The view that political authority derives from an agreement among people; Hobbes, Locke, and Rousseau differ on the state of nature and the limits of sovereign power.

Hume's is-ought gap

The claim that descriptive statements about what is cannot by themselves justify normative statements about what ought to be, without an additional evaluative premise.

Corpus Juris Civilis

The sixth-century compilation of Roman law under Justinian; it preserved legal categories that shaped civil-law systems in continental Europe.

Plato's philosopher-kings

In the Republic, the claim that justice requires rule by those who know the good; philosophers should govern because they possess wisdom rather than mere opinion.

Article 3 Italian Constitution

It establishes formal equality before the law and commits the Republic to removing economic and social obstacles that limit substantive equality and human dignity.

Article 138 Italian Constitution

It sets the rigid amendment procedure: two deliberations in each chamber with an interval, and a possible referendum unless a two-thirds majority approves.

EU ordinary legislative procedure

The co-decision process in which the European Parliament and the Council of the EU jointly adopt legislation on a Commission proposal.

EU directive

A secondary-law instrument binding member states as to the result to be achieved while leaving national authorities free to choose form and methods.

Corte costituzionale

Italy's constitutional court, which reviews the constitutionality of legislation and resolves conflicts between state powers and between state and regions.

Rule of law

The principle that public power is exercised under law, with legality, separation of powers, independent courts, legal certainty, and protection of fundamental rights.

Dangling modifier

An introductory phrase that does not logically modify the subject of the main clause, as in 'Walking home, the rain started'.

Third conditional

A sentence about an unreal past situation: 'If I had known, I would have acted'; the if-clause uses past perfect and the result uses would have plus past participle.

Comma splice

An error that joins two independent clauses with only a comma; correct alternatives are a semicolon, a period, or a comma plus coordinating conjunction.

Affect versus effect

Affect is usually a verb meaning to influence; effect is usually a noun meaning a result, though effect can be a verb meaning to bring about.