Finding the conclusion in an argument
The conclusion is the point the speaker wants you to accept. Everything else in the passage exists to support it.
One point, held up by reasons
Every argument has one thing it is trying to get you to believe. That is the conclusion. Everything else is there to hold it up.
Picture it as a shelf resting on legs. The reasons are the legs. The conclusion is the shelf — and there is only ever one shelf.
Spot the signposts
Some words almost always sit in front of a conclusion: therefore, so, this shows that, which means that.
Other words sit in front of reasons: because, since, as, given that.
They are not a guarantee, but they are the fastest place to start looking.
The because test
When the signposts do not help, try this. Take two sentences and say one, then "because", then the other.
Only one order will sound right, and the sentence in front of "because" is the conclusion.
What a conclusion is not
It is not the most interesting sentence, and it is not a fact everyone already agrees with.
A conclusion is something the speaker needs you to be persuaded of. If nobody would argue with a sentence, it is doing the job of a reason, not a conclusion.
Reasons can come before or after
The conclusion is not always the last sentence, and it is not always the first. It is the claim everything else is holding up.
An argument can open with its conclusion and spend the rest of the paragraph supporting it, or build up reasons and finish with the point. Both are normal.
So do not look for a position in the paragraph. Look for the sentence the others answer "why?" for.
Facts on their own are not conclusions
A sentence that simply reports something — the bus runs every ten minutes — is evidence. It is not what anybody is trying to persuade you of.
A conclusion is a claim somebody could disagree with: we should catch the bus, the school day should start later, the rule is unfair.
If nobody could argue with a sentence, it is not the conclusion. That single test removes most of the wrong options in an exam question.
Worked examples
Our school should start later. Teenagers who sleep longer concentrate better, and studies show later starts improve results.
The sleep evidence and the study results are things offered as support. The thing they support is the first sentence.
Check it with the because test: "School should start later because teenagers who sleep longer concentrate better" reads properly. The other way round does not.
Answer: The school should start later
Dogs need daily walks, and our family is out of the house from morning to night. So we should not get a dog.
The signpost "so" points straight at the last sentence. The two facts before it are the reasons, and they are things nobody would argue with — another sign that they are reasons rather than the point.
Answer: We should not get a dog
Since the bus is often late and the walk only takes fifteen minutes, walking to school is the better choice.
"Since" marks what follows it as a reason, and there are two of them here. The conclusion is what those reasons are aimed at: that walking is better.
Answer: Walking to school is the better choice
"The library closes at four. I finish school at half past four. So I cannot use it after school." What is the conclusion?
The first two sentences are facts nobody would dispute. The third is the claim they support, and the only one you could argue with.
Answer: I cannot use the library after school
"We should plant more trees in the playground. Shade lowers the temperature and children play outside longer." Where is the conclusion?
First, this time. The two sentences after it explain why, so they are the reasons and the opening sentence is the claim.
Answer: The first sentence
Why is "Our school has 400 students" unlikely to be a conclusion?
It is a fact nobody would argue with. Conclusions are claims somebody could disagree with, which is why they need reasons at all.
Answer: Nobody could disagree with it
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