Download Logic

MORE ON ARGUMENT
AN ARGUMENT
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Read the following argument. Examine it closely. Do you
think it is logically sound? Why?
[T]he acceptance of abortion does not end with the killing of
unborn human life. It continues on to affect our attitude
toward all aspects of human life. This is most obvious in how
quickly, following the acceptance of abortion, comes the
acceptance of infanticide―the killing of babies who after
birth do not come up to someone's standard of life worthy to
be lived―and then on to euthanasia of the aged. If human
life can be taken before birth, there is no logical reason why
human life cannot be taken after birth.
Source: Francis A. Schaeffer, "It is Your Life that is Involved",
FALLACIES
Looking closely at the argument, you may have
noticed that it insists that a chain of events
(dehumanizing attitudes like acceptance of
infanticide) will happen if one single event is
allowed to occur (acceptance of abortion) without
offering any proof that this chain reaction will
occur.
 The argument contains what’s called a fallacy
(weak, misleading, or deceptive reasoning on the
part of the writer). This particular fallacy is called a
“slippery slope” fallacy.

FALLACIES
When examining an argument in order to judge its
quality, we must understand and know how to
identify these logical dodges.
 Look in your Dialogues textbook on pages 46-57.
This lists some of the more common logical
fallacies with examples.
 Consider some of the persuasive appeals that
you’ve been exposed to. Do you think you’ve seen
any of these fallacies used? When? What was the
argument?

COMMON FALLACIES:

Ad Hominem
 With
this fallacy, the person making the argument
attacks his or her opponent personally rather than
attacking the argument being made.
COMMON FALLACIES:

Ad Misericordiam
 This
is an appeal to emotion that leaves logic
behind.
COMMON FALLACIES:

Ad Populum
 This
sort of argument makes an appeal to popular
emotions or prejudices instead of offering logical
reasoning.
COMMON FALLACIES:

Bandwagon:
 This
is an argument that indicates that something
is desirable or right simply because it’s popular.
COMMON FALLACIES:

Begging the Question:
 This
sort of argument defends the thesis with an
unproven claim or idea that it simply tries to pass
off as fact.
COMMON FALLACIES:

Circular Reasoning:
 This
sort of argument tries to support a claim by
simply restating the claim in different words.
COMMON FALLACIES:

Dicto Simpliciter
 This
sort of argument provides an unreasonably
simple solution to a complex problem.
COMMON FALLACIES:

False Analogy:
 This
type of argument uses an analogy as a form of
support when the items in the analogy are not
similar enough to warrant it.
COMMON FALLACIES:

False Dilemma:
 This
sort of argument indicates that there are only
two alternatives in the situation when there are, in
fact, more.
COMMON FALLACIES:

Faulty Use of Authority:
 This
argument uses an authority who is competent
in an area entirely unrelated to the topic at hand.
COMMON FALLACIES:

Hasty Generalization:
 This
type of argument produces a conclusion based
on too little evidence.
COMMON FALLACIES:

Non Sequitur:
 Here,
an argument is made in which the conclusion
that is drawn does not follow from the premise that
has been established.
COMMON FALLACIES:

Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc:
 This
type of faulty argument insists that one event
caused another simply because the first event
came first and the second came after.
COMMON FALLACIES:

Red Herring:
 This
argument, instead of supporting the thesis
with reasoning, introduces a distraction that simply
changes the subject instead of supporting the
claim.
COMMON FALLACIES:

Slippery Slope:
 This
type of faulty argument claims that if one event
is allowed to happen, then it will cause a chainreaction of other events that either end in a
spectacular failure or success. None of the links in
this supposed chain is proven, though.
COMMON FALLACIES:

Stacking the Deck:
 This
sort of faulty argument uses only evidence that
supports its thesis, completely ignoring any
contrary evidence no matter how compelling.
COMMON FALLACIES:

Straw Man:
 This
is a misrepresentation of an opponent’s idea
or position in order to make that idea or position
easier to refute.
EXERCISE:
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Form groups of 3-4 people.
Your group will pretend to be a sleazy advertising
company, and it is your job to put out an ad for a product
or a commercial for a politician using as many fallacies
as possible to sway the audience.
Create an ad for your politician or product using as many
fallacies as possible.
Choose a spokesperson from your group to read your ad
to the class.
The rest of the class will need to listen carefully and
attempt to detect any fallacies presented in the ad.