Post Hoc
Perri Collier
Myles King
Post Hoc
• Event A happened immediately prior to event B.
Therefore, A caused B.
• Post Hoc also manifests itself as a bias towards
jumping to conclusions based upon
coincidences.
•
"Logical Fallacy: Post Hoc." Logical Fallacies:
The Fallacy Files. Fallacy Files. Web. n.d.
13 Apr. 2011.
"Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc." Cunningham &
Cunningham, Inc. CategoryLogic, 27 Feb.
2007. Web. 14 Apr. 2011.
Universal Example of Post Hoc
• I had been doing pretty poorly this season.
Then my girlfriend gave me this neon
laces for my spikes and I won my next
three races. Those laces must be good
luck...if I keep on wearing them I can't help
but win!
•
"Fallacy: Post Hoc." Fallacy: Post Hoc. The Nizkor Project, 2009. Web. 14
Apr. 2011.
Example of Post Hoc in The
Crucible
• “Giles: Last night-mark
this-I tried and tried and
could not say my prayers.
And then she closed her
book and walks out of the
house, and suddenlymark this-I could pray
again.”
– Act 1 Page 186
• This is an example of
post hoc because the fact
that Giles’s wife was
reading a book has
nothing to due with the
fact that he could not say
his prayers. A more
plausible explanation
would be that maybe
Giles just forgot his
prayers. It even says that
sometimes he forgets his
prayers in the
background information
given.
Example of Post Hoc in The
Crucible
• “Abigail: She sends her
spirit on me on church;
she makes me laugh at
prayer.”
– Act 1 Page 187
• This is an example of
post hoc because Tituba
sending her spirit out on
Abigail has nothing to do
with her laughing at
prayer. Abigail is just
laughing at prayer
because she just does
not want to be there most
likely and that is just part
of her personality.
Example of Post Hoc in The
Crucible
• “Cheever: ‘Tis hard
proof: I find here a
poppet Goody Procter
keeps.”
– Act 2 Page 203
• This is an example of
post hoc because the
fact that Elizabeth has
a doll in her house
does not mean that
she is guilty and a
witch. It also does not
mean that she has
done all the things
Abigail says she has
done.
Example of Post Hoc in The
Crucible
• “Hathorne: …You
would faint, saying
their spirits came out
of their bodies and
chocked you-”
• “Mary Warren: That
were pretense, sir.”
– Act 3 Page 218
• This is an example of
post hoc because the
fact that these girls
were fainting has
nothing to due with
the possibility that
these people are
witches. However, the
court is using this as
evidence to convict
many people of being
witches.