1 Fallacies Worksheet (Answers) A fallacy is an error in reasoning. In ethics, it is important to understand fallacies in order to avoid them. Each of the following statement(s) contains a fallacy. Please explain why each statement(s) highlights an error in reasoning. Please note that different fallacies are given different terms. In this case, the instructor has underlined these terms. 1) Considering Canada has legalized marijuana, we can conclude that adults should be granted the right to use it. This argument demonstrates the appeal to law fallacy. It does not provide any reasons as to why adults should be granted the right to use marijuana. We cannot assume that something is moral simply because it is legal. Likewise, we cannot assume that something is immoral simply because it is illegal. A similar fallacy is called appeal to majority. Namely, we cannot assume that something is moral simply because the majority of people agree with it 2) Same-sex marriage is not inherently wrong. Nevertheless, marriage is typically defined as a “union between a man and a woman”. If we re-define marriage to include same-sex couples, then, in turn, we have created a fluid definition of marriage. As such, we will be obligated to condone other forms of marriage (e.g., polygamy, arranged marriages and child marriages). This argument demonstrates the slippery slope fallacy. It assumes that allowing one thing will set off a chain reaction that cannot be stopped. In the case of same-sex marriage, Canada provides a counter-point. The federal government legalized same-sex marriage in 2005, but has not legalized polygamy, arranged marriages or child marriages. 3) There are no grey areas in the euthanasia debate. People either are in favor of euthanasia or opposed to it. This fallacy is sometimes called the black and white fallacy. It assumes that there only two available options. In the case of euthanasia, there are many variables to consider. Variables include (but are not limited to) age, mental capacity and type of illness. Hence, one might argue that euthanasia is moral in situation A, but immoral in situation B. The same level of complexity applies to most (if not all) ethical issues, including abortion, animal cloning, genetic engineering and war. Fallacies Worksheet (Answers) 2 4) One study in the U.S.A. examined the correlation between pornography consumption and incidents of rape. It typically found that those states that sold large amounts of pornographic material had higher incidents of rape. As such, we can conclude that pornography is immoral because it causes heinous (i.e. awful) crimes. Therefore, it should be banned. Correlation does not mean causation. We cannot assume that because there is an association (i.e. correlation) between pornography consumption and incidents of rape that one must have caused the other. These are highly complex social issues and likely involve a number of factors. This fallacy is sometimes referred to as false cause. 5) Socialism is immoral because it advocates total equality. Why should a janitor, for instance, make as a much money as a neurosurgeon? This fallacy is sometimes called the straw man fallacy. In this case, a person attacks a simplified version of their opponent’s argument (as opposed to their actual argument). Namely, a person attacks a “straw man” (as opposed to a “real man”). Socialism is highly complex (as with all economic and political theories). It is far too simplistic to suggest that everyone makes the same wage in a socialist economy. 6) Adolf Hitler was in favor of aborting a fetus found to have developmental disabilities. He argued that such individuals were of little value to German society, and, furthermore, “polluted the Aryan race.” Considering all the evil that Hitler unleashed in the world, it would be unwise to follow his moral views, and, therefore, one should never abort a fetus because it has a developmental disability. This argument does not offer a rebuttal to Hitler’s arguments. It merely assumes that we must take the opposite stance of Hitler because he was a bad person. This fallacy is sometimes called ad hominem, which is a Latin phrase meaning “to the person”. In ethics, one needs to consider the other person’s arguments, not the person making them (regardless of their moral character). Likewise, we should not agree with someone’s arguments simply because they are well respected (sometimes referred to as the appeal to authority fallacy). Fallacies Worksheet (Answers)
