Can a conclusion in an argument come before the premises?

Such as:“The key problem is the supposed superiority of the two major alternatives to adoption. Abortion seems to convey an immediate benefit: It makes the problem disappear. (And don't worry about death or post-abortion regrets that may grow more severe as time goes by.) Despite 1996's welfare-reform bill, single-parenting still conveys benefits.”

By definition, it cannot!! A conclusion is intended to conclude the paper -- conclude = end.

In the given example, the conclusion appears to be stated before the premises. Generally, a well-structured argument follows a logical sequence, starting with premises (supporting reasons or evidence) and leading to a conclusion (the main claim or result). However, it's worth noting that the ordering of the premises and conclusion can vary depending on the context and writing style. In some cases, an author may choose to state the conclusion first for rhetorical or persuasive purposes.

In general, in a logically sound argument, the conclusion typically comes after the premises. The conclusion is the final claim or statement that the argument aims to support, while the premises are the supporting statements or evidence that lead to the conclusion. This structure is known as the deductive reasoning format, where the premises logically lead to the conclusion.

However, in your provided example, it seems that the conclusion is stated before the premises. This is not a typical structure for an argument. Instead, the text appears to be presenting the main problem (the supposed superiority of alternatives to adoption) and then providing some potential support for that problem in the form of statements about abortion and single-parenting.

If you were to restructure the argument in a more logical format, you would first present the premises (supporting statements) that lead to the conclusion (final claim). For example:

(Premise 1) The supposed superiority of alternatives to adoption is a key problem.
(Premise 2) Abortion may seem to offer an immediate benefit by making the problem disappear.
(Premise 3) Single-parenting may still convey benefits despite the welfare-reform bill.
(Conclusion) Therefore, the problem of the supposed superiority of alternatives to adoption persists.

By rearranging the statements in the deductive reasoning format, you can present a more coherent and logical argument.