Recognizing Fallacies
From Various Sources
Fallacy
• Illogical statements that may sound
reasonable or true but are actually
deceptive and dishonest.
Begging the Question
•
Assumes in the premise what the arguer
should be trying to prove in the
conclusion – which asks the reader to
agree that certain points are self-evident
when in fact they are not
•
The unfair and shortsighted legislation
that limits free trade is a threat to the
American economy.
Argument from Analogy
•
An argument based on an analogy
may be missing important
dissimilarities between the two things
being compared
•
The overcrowded conditions in some parts of our city
have forced people together like rats in a cage. Like
rats, they will eventually turn on one another, fighting
and killing until a balance is restored. It is therefore
necessary that we vote to appropriate funds to build
low-cost housing.
Ad Hominem
• Diverts attention from the facts of an
argument by attacking motives or character
of the person making the argument
• The public should not take seriously Dr.
Mason’s plan for improving county health
services. He is a former alcoholic whose wife
recently divorced him.
Hasty Generalization
• When a conclusion is reached on the
basis of too little evidence.
• Because our son really benefited from
nursery school, I am convinced that every
child should go.
Either/Or Fallacy
• When a writer only presents two
alternatives when many more exist
• We must choose between life and
death, between intervention and
genocide. No one can take a neutral
position on this issue.
Equivocation
• When the meaning of a key term
changes at some point in an argument
• As a human endeavor, computers are a praiseworthy
and even remarkable accomplishment. But how
human can we hope to be if we rely on computers to
make our decisions?
Red Herring
• When the focus of an argument is
shifted to divert the audience from the
actual issue
• The mayor has proposed building a new baseball-only sports
stadium. How can he even consider allocating millions of
dollars to this scheme when so many professional baseball
players are being paid such high salaries.
Tu Quoque
• Asserts that an opponents argument
has no value because the opponent
does not follow his or her own advice.
• How can that judge favor stronger
penalties for convicted drug dealers?
During his confirmation hearings, he
admitted smoking marijuana when he
was a student.
Appeal to Doubtful Authority
• When the evidence refers to a person
who has no authority on the issue (not
an expert)
• According to Ten Koppel, interest rates
will remain low during the next fiscal
year.
Misleading Statistics
• Misrepresented or distorted statistics
• Women will never be competent
firefighters; after all, 50 percent of the
women in the city’s training program
failed the exam.
• Only two women took the exam and the
sample is not large enough.
Post Hoc Reasoning
• Assumes that because two events
occur together in time, the first must be
the cause of the second
• Every time a republican is elected
president, a recession follows. If we
want to avoid another recession, we
should elect a democrat as our next
president.
Non Sequitur
• When a statement does not logically
follow from a previous statement
• Disarmament weakened the United
States after World War 1. Disarmament
also weakened the United States after
the Vietnam War. For this reason,
efforts to control guns will weaken the
United States.