Critical Thinking: Chapter 6
More Rhetorical Devices:
Psychological and Related
Devices
Psychological and Related
Devices

A good argument provides a justification
for accepting its conclusion.
Psychological and Related
Devices


Some rhetorical devices can be made to
look like arguments containing premises
and conclusions. But they don’t really
provide legitimate proof of what they
supposedly are proving.
This is called pseudoreasoning.
The “argument” from outrage


A fallacy is a mistake in reasoning.
It is a mistake to think that something is
wrong simply because it makes us
angry.
The “argument” from outrage


The “argument” from outrage consists in
inflammatory words (or thoughts)
followed by a “conclusion” of some sort.
It substitutes anger for reason and
judgment in considering an issue.
The “argument” from outrage

Scapegoating is a breed of “argument”
from outrage in which one person, or a
group, gets blamed for everything bad.
The “argument” from outrage

Example: Dear Editors: When Al Jones
wrote in to criticize city workers, he
didn’t mention his occupation. Maybe
he’s a millionaire without a care in the
world, that he has the time to criticize
people working for him--if he’s even a
taxpayer.
Scare Tactics

When the emotion appealed to is fear,
rather than anger, this is the fallacy
known as a scare tactic. A rhetorical
device that uses a threat instead of
good reasons to get someone to accept
a claim.
Scare Tactics

In a special case of scare tactics, the
“argument” by force amounts to saying,
“Agree with me or I will hurt you.”
Scare Tactics


Legitimate warnings are not scare
tactics even though they may be scary.
“If you don’t check your parachute
before jumping, you may die” is an
excellent argument!
Scare Tactics

Example: You bet I’ll explain why
Fantasy Land [an adult bookstore]
should be closed down! You go in there,
and we’ll send your license plate
number to the newspaper. Are you
going to like people knowing what kind
of stuff you read?
Argument from Pity

“Argument” from pity. You need a job
and although you are not qualified you
try to get it by making the employer feel
bad for you. The name of a rhetorical
device that plays on your compassion to
get you to accept a claim instead of
relying on sound reasons.
Argument from Pity

Example: Ladies and gentlemen of the
jury: My client stands before you
accused of three bank robberies. But
the prosecution has not told you about
three little children in this story, who will
have a hard time getting food on their
table if their daddy goes to prison.
Apple Polishing Fallacy

The apple polishing fallacy is when we
allow praise of ourselves to substitute
for judgment about the truth of a claim,
or when we do this to others.
Apple Polishing Fallacy

Officer: Excuse me, sir. Do you know
how fast you were going? Driver: I
never get over the sight of you mounted
policemen. How do you leap down off
the horse’s back so fast? And you must
have them well trained, not to run away
when you dismount.
Wishful Thinking Fallacy

Wishful thinking: Happens when we
accept or reject a claim simply because
it would be pleasant (or unpleasant) if it
were true.
Wishful Thinking Fallacy

Example: There must be life on other
planets. Imagine how lonely we’ll find
the universe if we discover that we’re
the only ones here.
Peer Pressure Fallacy

Peer pressure “argument”: Plays on our
desire for acceptance and our fear of
rejection. It is the name of the rhetorical
device that argues for a course of action
on the grounds that taking this course
will win the approval of others and
especially of one’s friends.
Peer Pressure Fallacy

Example: Are you telling me that you’re
twenty-one years old and still a virgin?
I’d keep quiet about that if I were you-you’d be the laughing stock of the dorm
if that were widely known.
Group Think Fallacy

Group think fallacy occurs when
someone lets identification with a group
take the place of reason and
deliberation when arriving at a position
on an issue.
Group Think Fallacy


Example: “My country right or wrong.”
Example: Pynchon is where it’s at. All
the Alpha Kappas read him.
Fallacies based on emotions

Remember: When “arguments” evoke
emotions that make us want to accept
the conclusion without support, look for
fallacies and rhetoric.
Rationalizing


Rationalizing is when we use a false
pretext to satisfy our own desires or
interests.
Rationalizing involves a confusion in
thinking. It involves an element of selfdeception about our true motivation.
Rationalizing

Example: She’ll be glad I spent the night
out drinking. I’m giving her some
personal space.
Argument From Popularity

“Argument” from popularity is when we
accept the conclusion of an argument
because a lot of other people have
accepted the same conclusion. The
name of a rhetorical device that
encourages the acceptance of a claim
on the grounds that it is already
accepted by some substantial number
of others.
Argument From Popularity


Example: There must be an afterlife.
Wherever you find human beings you find
their minds naturally returning to this thought.
Example: Obviously it was right for the United
States to attack Iraq in 1991. Polls at the time
showed that over 90 percent of Americans
thought the war was justified.
Argument From Popularity
Example: My opponent would like to see
TV networks label their programming,
on the grounds that violent shows make
children who watch them violent. But
everyone knows a couple of shows
can’t change your personality.
Common Practice Fallacy


The name of a rhetorical device that
tries to justify an action on the grounds
that it is normal behavior, accepted by
all or most people.
Example: Why do you take a bus to
work when most people drive?
Relativism

Review of Chapter 1: “Truth is relative.”
Opinions are relative, but not factual
claims. Remember: factual claims can
be tested or verified.
Subjectivist Fallacy

The name of a rhetorical device that is
based on the view called relativism, that
what is true for one is not true for
another.
Subjectivist Fallacy

Example: Professor: I gave you a D on
your essay because your grammar was
faulty and your organization was difficult
to follow. Student: That’s just your
opinion!
Subjectivist Fallacy

Example: Biker: I refuse to buy a
Japanese motorcycle. I don’t believe in
doing business with Communist
countries. Reporter: But Japan isn’t
communist. Biker: Well to me they are.
Two wrongs make a right

Two wrongs make a right is a fallacy
because wrongful behavior on someone
else’s part doesn’t convert wrongful
behavior on your part into rightful
behavior.
Two wrongs make a right

Example: Well! Finally after all these
years, the telephone company makes
an error on my bill in my favor! And I’m
surely not going to point it out to them.
They’ve been gouging me since the
telephones first came into existence.
Red Herring

A red herring fallacy is caused when a
person brings a topic into a
conversation that distracts from the
original point, especially if the new topic
is introduced in order to distract.
Red Herring

Example: It’s clear enough to me that
Senator John McCain would have made
a great president. Look, it isn’t often that
we get a chance to elect a guy who’s a
war hero, a prisoner of war in an enemy
prison camp, and we ought to have
done it when we had the chance.
Smokescreen

Basically the same as a red herring. A
smokescreen is when you pile up so
many issues the original issue gets lost.
The name of a rhetorical device that
tries to side-track someone by bringing
up a related but irrelevant topic.
Smokescreen


“To the people who brought you ‘The Great American
Smokeout,’ we make The Great American Challenge. We
challenge the American Cancer Society to clean up the air
in its ‘smoke free’ offices. We are willing to bet there isn’t
much cigarette smoking at American Cancer Society
offices. But, according to a recent study from the National
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH),
cigarette smoke also wasn’t the problem in 98 percent of
203 buildings reported to have indoor air problems. . . .
Indoor air inspections resulting from worker complaints
typically find viruses, fungal spores, bacteria, gases, closed
fresh air ducts, and ventilation systems in need of
maintenance.”
—Full-page ad in USA Today, sponsored by the Tobacco
Institute
Smokescreen

A real, literal smokescreen! The Tobacco Institute is
playing off reports of dangerous office environments,
but the ad is meant to divert attention away from the
even greater dangers of cigarette smoking. The ad
may also hint that those who feel ill at the office
should not blame the smoker; but the “Smokeout”
was directed to actual smokers.
Exercises


Identify instances of pseudoreasoning in the
following passages:
“Listen, Higgins. I need your
vote in the next department
election or I may not get elected
chair. Remember, if I do get
elected, it will be me who decides
what hours your classes meet
next year.”
Exercises
“Listen, Higgins. I need your
vote in the next department
election or I may not get
elected chair. Remember, if I
do get elected, it will be me
who decides what hours your
classes meet next year.”

Scare tactics

Exercises

When several people in Harvey’s department
get new computers, he is annoyed because he
is not among them. “I’ll tell you what,”
Harvey says to his wife, “if they want to rip
me off by not getting a new computer for
me, I’ll just rip them off for extra office
supplies. They’ve got a lot of stuff at work
we could use around here, and they’ll have
no way of knowing that it’s gone.
Turnabout’s fair play.”
Exercises


When several people in Harvey’s department
get new computers, he is annoyed because he
is not among them. “I’ll tell you what,”
Harvey says to his wife, “if they want to rip
me off by not getting a new computer for
me, I’ll just rip them off for extra office
supplies. They’ve got a lot of stuff at work
we could use around here, and they’ll have
no way of knowing that it’s gone.
Turnabout’s fair play.”
Two wrongs
Exercises

You saw what the former governor of Illinois did:
He declared a moratorium on executions in the state.
It was a good thing, too, because it turns out that a
large number of the inmates on death row had to be
turned loose because DNA evidence proved them
innocent beyond a shadow of a doubt. It’s about
time we got serious about the fact that we’ve been
convicting innocent people and sentencing them to
death.
Exercises


You saw what the former governor of Illinois did:
He declared a moratorium on executions in the state.
It was a good thing, too, because it turns out that a
large number of the inmates on death row had to be
turned loose because DNA evidence proved them
innocent beyond a shadow of a doubt. It’s about
time we got serious about the fact that we’ve been
convicting innocent people and sentencing them to
death.
No fallacy. I think it’s about time too.
Exercises

No, I do NOT believe that a murderer has a right to
live, and here’s why. The criminal justice system in
this country has gotten completely out of control,
what with rapists, murderers, you name it—all
getting off scot-free. It’s got to change!
Exercises


No, I do NOT believe that a murderer has a right to
live, and here’s why. The criminal justice system in
this country has gotten completely out of control,
what with rapists, murderers, you name it—all
getting off scot-free. It’s got to change!
Red herring
Exercises

Those four officers who killed the innocent man in
New York by mistake should be found not guilty of
any crime. None of them had ever been in any kind
of trouble before, and, tragically, this kind of thing is
just going to happen when we have aggressive
police work.
Exercises


Those four officers who killed the innocent man in
New York by mistake should be found not guilty of
any crime. None of them had ever been in any kind
of trouble before, and, tragically, this kind of thing is
just going to happen when we have aggressive
police work.
Red herring; in fact, two red herrings
Exercises

Gays in the military? No way. Clinton promoted the
idea just to get the homosexual vote.
Exercises


Gays in the military? No way. Clinton promoted the
idea just to get the homosexual vote.
Red herring
Exercises

Gays in the military? Yes. There are
no valid grounds for opposing the
measure, as can be seen in the fact that
policies of nondiscrimination to gays
are common practice throughout
Western democracies.
Exercises
Gays in the military? Yes. There are
no valid grounds for opposing the
measure, as can be seen in the fact that
policies of nondiscrimination to gays
are common practice throughout
Western democracies.

Common practice

Exercises

From a prosecutor’s closing statement at a
trial: “In conclusion, ladies and gentlemen of
the jury, there can be absolutely no doubt
that this defendant committed these terrible
murders. Look at the mother of the victim,
sitting over there, and the father—their lives
are forever destroyed by this evil deed.
Never again will they know the peace and
happiness that was their due. Put yourselves
in their shoes, and you will know whether or
not this man is guilty.”
Exercises


From a prosecutor’s closing statement at a
trial: “In conclusion, ladies and gentlemen of
the jury, there can be absolutely no doubt
that this defendant committed these terrible
murders. Look at the mother of the victim,
sitting over there, and the father—their lives
are forever destroyed by this evil deed.
Never again will they know the peace and
happiness that was their due. Put yourselves
in their shoes, and you will know whether or
not this man is guilty.”
Red herring
Exercises

Is the president guilty of sexual harassment, as the
Republicans are yelping? Hey, give me a break!
What’s important is jobs, health care, welfare
reform.
Exercises


Is the president guilty of sexual harassment, as the
Republicans are yelping? Hey, give me a break!
What’s important is jobs, health care, welfare
reform.
Red herring
Exercises

No, I don’t believe that Uncle Bob is really gone
forever. He was like a father to me, and I believe
that someday, somehow or other, we’ll see one
another again; I don’t think I could go on if I didn’t
believe that.
Exercises


No, I don’t believe that Uncle Bob is really gone
forever. He was like a father to me, and I believe
that someday, somehow or other, we’ll see one
another again; I don’t think I could go on if I didn’t
believe that.
Wishful thinking
Exercises

Listen, friends, it’s our money the board of supervisors
wants to spend putting sewers and other improvements out
there in that Antelope Creek development. And you know
who’s going to profit from it the most? The developers,
who don’t even live around here. I tell you, we have sat
back and done nothing long enough! It’s high time we told
these out-of-town interlopers or antelopers or whatever
they are to go mess with somebody else’s town. I won’t
stand for it any more!
Exercises

Listen, friends, it’s our money the board of supervisors
wants to spend putting sewers and other improvements out
there in that Antelope Creek development. And you know
who’s going to profit from it the most? The developers,
who don’t even live around here. I tell you, we have sat
back and done nothing long enough! It’s high time we told
these out-of-town interlopers or antelopers or whatever
they are to go mess with somebody else’s town. I won’t
stand for it any more!

“Argument” from outrage (There is a relevant
appeal here, but the speaker is clearly trying to evoke
outrage from his audience as well.)
Exercises

I’ll tell you why a hundred dollars is
enough child support. You go into court
and ask for more, and I’ll have my lawyer
file a countersuit that will set you back a
bundle in legal fees!
Exercises

I’ll tell you why a hundred dollars is
enough child support. You go into court
and ask for more, and I’ll have my lawyer
file a countersuit that will set you back a
bundle in legal fees!

Scare tactics
Exercises

I know it was not very nice to overcharge them like that
for the room, but all’s fair in love, war, and business, my
dear. Besides, if the situation were reversed and we were
desperate for lodging, they would have bled us for all
we’re worth.
Exercises

I know it was not very nice to overcharge them like that
for the room, but all’s fair in love, war, and business, my
dear. Besides, if the situation were reversed and we were
desperate for lodging, they would have bled us for all
we’re worth.

Two wrongs make a right
Exercises

George, I speak for the rest of the neighbors on our
street. Frankly, your front yard is a mess, and we’d
appreciate it if you would do something about it. We
put the time and money into making our places look
nice, but the effort is largely ruined by one awful
looking place right here in the middle of the block.
We hope you’ll do something about it.
Exercises

George, I speak for the rest of the neighbors on our
street. Frankly, your front yard is a mess, and we’d
appreciate it if you would do something about it. We
put the time and money into making our places look
nice, but the effort is largely ruined by one awful
looking place right here in the middle of the block.
We hope you’ll do something about it.

This might look like peer pressure or common
practice, but I don’t believe it’s a fallacy at all.
Exercises

Letter to the editor: “Your food section frequently features
recipes with veal, and you say veal is a wholesome,
nutritious dish. I disagree. Do you know how veal comes
to be on your plate? At birth a newborn calf is separated
from its mother, placed in a dark enclosure, and chained
by its neck so that it cannot move freely. This limits
muscular development so that the animal is tender. It is
kept in the dark pen until the day it is cruelly slaughtered.”
 —Cascade News
Exercises

Letter to the editor: “Your food section frequently features
recipes with veal, and you say veal is a wholesome,
nutritious dish. I disagree. Do you know how veal comes
to be on your plate? At birth a newborn calf is separated
from its mother, placed in a dark enclosure, and chained
by its neck so that it cannot move freely. This limits
muscular development so that the animal is tender. It is
kept in the dark pen until the day it is cruelly slaughtered.”
 —Cascade News

Argument from pity
Exercises

Letter to the editor: “Your food section frequently features
recipes with veal, and you say veal is a wholesome,
nutritious dish. It may be wholesome and nutritious, but it
is produced in a gruesome, inhumane way. At birth a
newborn calf is separated from its mother, placed in a dark
enclosure, and chained by its neck so that it cannot move
freely. This limits muscular development so that the
animal is tender. It is kept in the dark pen until the day it is
cruelly slaughtered.”

—Cascade News
Exercises


Letter to the editor: “Your food section frequently features
recipes with veal, and you say veal is a wholesome, nutritious
dish. It may be wholesome and nutritious, but it is produced in a
gruesome, inhumane way. At birth a newborn calf is separated
from its mother, placed in a dark enclosure, and chained by its
neck so that it cannot move freely. This limits muscular
development so that the animal is tender. It is kept in the dark
pen until the day it is cruelly slaughtered.”

—Cascade News
No fallacy. What is the difference?
Exercises

Ad for a store that sells pianos: “Pianos are our only
business. You’ll get the best deal at the piano
experts.”
Exercises


Ad for a store that sells pianos: “Pianos are our only
business. You’ll get the best deal at the piano
experts.”
Red herring (That they sell nothing but pianos
is irrelevant to how much they sell them for.)
Exercises

Frankly, I don’t think you would be satisfied with
anything less than our Model 24, which allows for
more expansion than any other personal computer in
its class. The way you catch on to things—
something I can tell just from the questions you’ve
asked here in the store—you’re not going to be
happy with a machine whose limits you’ll soon
reach.
Exercises


Frankly, I don’t think you would be satisfied with
anything less than our Model 24, which allows for
more expansion than any other personal computer in
its class. The way you catch on to things—
something I can tell just from the questions you’ve
asked here in the store—you’re not going to be
happy with a machine whose limits you’ll soon
reach.
Apple polishing
Exercises

Sure, driving after you’ve been drinking can get you
into trouble with the law, but if you’re careful I
don’t think there’s anything wrong with it. After all,
everyone does it, right?
Exercises


Sure, driving after you’ve been drinking can get you
into trouble with the law, but if you’re careful I
don’t think there’s anything wrong with it. After all,
everyone does it, right?
Common practice
Exercises

Getting on Senator Davis’s case about the propriety
of some of his financial dealings strikes me as just
plain carping. Davis made a considerable economic
sacrifice when he left private industry and entered
politics; the people of this district are lucky to have
him there.
Exercises


Getting on Senator Davis’s case about the propriety
of some of his financial dealings strikes me as just
plain carping. Davis made a considerable economic
sacrifice when he left private industry and entered
politics; the people of this district are lucky to have
him there.
Red herring
Exercises


From a letter to the editor: “They’re wrong again, the
doctors who say that the sun causes cancer. The four
substances for all life are water, food, air, and sun.
Everybody knows the sun opens the pores of your skin to
release poisons; it cannot cause cancer. Cancer is caused
by the toxins man puts in the air, not by sunlight.”
—Cascade News
Exercises



From a letter to the editor: “They’re wrong again, the
doctors who say that the sun causes cancer. The four
substances for all life are water, food, air, and sun.
Everybody knows the sun opens the pores of your skin to
release poisons; it cannot cause cancer. Cancer is caused
by the toxins man puts in the air, not by sunlight.”
—Cascade News
Argument from popularity, although I
don’t think this view is popular among many
Exercises

Listen. As long as you’re going to live here at home
and let your mother and me support you, you can rest
assured that you’re going to cooperate. And that goes
for your opinions as well as for your behavior.
Exercises


Listen. As long as you’re going to live here at home
and let your mother and me support you, you can rest
assured that you’re going to cooperate. And that goes
for your opinions as well as for your behavior.
Scare tactics
Exercises

It’s clear enough to me that Senator John McCain
would have made a great president. Look, it isn’t
often that we get a chance to elect a guy who’s a war
hero, a prisoner of war in an enemy prison camp, and
we ought to have done it when we had the chance.
Exercises


It’s clear enough to me that Senator John McCain
would have made a great president. Look, it isn’t
often that we get a chance to elect a guy who’s a war
hero, a prisoner of war in an enemy prison camp, and
we ought to have done it when we had the chance.
Reference to the prisoner-of-war experience
remains a red herring until it’s at least indicated how
it is relevant to performance as president.
Exercises

Look, you can argue about it all day long, but I
believe that Carmichael is the best person for the job,
and I hope he gets it. That’s my opinion, and it’s as
good as any other opinion, so we may as well change
the subject. .
Exercises

Look, you can argue about it all day long, but I
believe that Carmichael is the best person for the job,
and I hope he gets it. That’s my opinion, and it’s as
good as any other opinion, so we may as well change
the subject.

A version of the subjectivism. One person may
be as good as another, and one may have as much
right to an opinion as another, but not all opinions are
created equal; those with better reasons are better
opinions.
Exercises

Toads do too cause warts. People have known that for
centuries.
Exercises


Toads do too cause warts. People have known that for
centuries.
A version of appeal to popularity
Exercises


“It says here that smoke from wood-burning stoves,
no matter how airtight they’re supposed to be, gets
into your house and is a health hazard.”
“No way. We just spent close to a
thousand dollars on this new stove; what you’re
reading can’t be true.”
Exercises



“It says here that smoke from wood-burning stoves,
no matter how airtight they’re supposed to be, gets
into your house and is a health hazard.”
“No way. We just spent close to a
thousand dollars on this new stove; what you’re
reading can’t be true.”
Wishful thinking
Exercises


“Greyhound reminds you that when you travel by car,
you take chances, especially if you are traveling
alone. Anything can happen: dangerous thunderstorms
[sound effect: thunder], engine trouble [sound of car
failing to start], blowouts [tire blowing out, car
screeching to a stop]. Next time [upbeat music] don’t
take chances. It’s time to go Greyhound and leave the
driving to us.”
—Greyhound advertisement
Exercises


“Greyhound reminds you that when you travel by car,
you take chances, especially if you are traveling
alone. Anything can happen: dangerous thunderstorms
[sound effect: thunder], engine trouble [sound of car
failing to start], blowouts [tire blowing out, car
screeching to a stop]. Next time [upbeat music] don’t
take chances. It’s time to go Greyhound and leave the
driving to us.”
—Greyhound advertisement

This may look like scare tactics, but the points
made are relevant to the claim that alternatives to the
automobile may be safer. Of course it doesn’t follow
that Greyhound is the best alternative.
Exercises


MARTY: If we keep on the way we are
going, we will destroy civilization on this
planet.
TRACY: That’s so depressing. I think we
need to think well of things.
Exercises



MARTY: If we keep on the way we are
going, we will destroy civilization on this
planet.
TRACY: That’s so depressing. I think we
need to think well of things.
Wishful thinking
Exercises


he: Well, things didn’t work out quite the way I
wanted, but that’s the way life often is.
she: That’s not my philosophy. Your dreams will come
true if you want them to, but you really have to want
them to.
Exercises



he: Well, things didn’t work out quite the way I
wanted, but that’s the way life often is.
she: That’s not my philosophy. Your dreams will come
true if you want them to, but you really have to want
them to.
Wishful thinking
Exercises


first speaker: Think about it. A seven-day waiting
period to buy a gun would give people a chance to
cool off; it would also give police a chance to make
background checks. Are seven days that much of an
inconvenience?
second speaker: I wouldn’t talk that way around here,
friend. Lots of people ’round here own guns, and they
don’t take kindly to people who want to make them
register their guns.
Exercises



first speaker: Think about it. A seven-day waiting
period to buy a gun would give people a chance to
cool off; it would also give police a chance to make
background checks. Are seven days that much of an
inconvenience?
second speaker: I wouldn’t talk that way around here,
friend. Lots of people ’round here own guns, and they
don’t take kindly to people who want to make them
register their guns.
Scare tactics