Logos: An appeal to reason - WordPress.com

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LOGICAL FALLACIES: DON'T USE THEM! 1. Hasty Generalization: Conclusion not justified/supported by sufficient evidence (Dr. Bob is a hard grader because.
LOGICAL FALLACIES: DON’T USE THEM! 1.

Hasty Generalization: Conclusion not justified/supported by sufficient evidence (Dr. Bob is a hard grader because he gave me a D on my first lab report.)

2.

Post hoc ergo propter hoc: False cause and effect. Remember that just because something happened before something else doesn’t mean it CAUSED the other thing. (I washed my car, which caused it to rain.)

3.

Genetic fallacy: Using a thing’s/person’s origin to make assumptions about its/their nature (Of course Mr. Flanagan drinks too much. He’s Irish, after all.)

4.

Begging the question: loading too much into a claim with the expectation that the reader will take all of it for granted as true (The evil of smoking must be banned immediately.[Smoking being evil is taken for granted here in order to establish the claim that smoking must be banned.])

5.

Circular argument: justifying an argument by restating it (President Reagan was a great communicator because he could speak very effectively.)

6.

Either/or: presents a false dichotomy where other options are possible (You’re either with us or you’re against us.)

7.

Faulty comparison or analogy: basing an argument on a comparison of two things, ideas, events, or situations that are similar but not identical (We can solve the cocaine problem the same way we solved the armed burglary problem: tougher sentences.)

8.

Ad hominem: an attack on the character of an individual/opponent rather than his or her actual opinions, arguments, or qualifications (Judge Christensen is a terrible judge; do you know he was out drinking again last Thursday night?)

9.

Ad populum: an emotional appeal to an abstract concept rather than a direct discussion of the issue at hand (If you are a true American, you should support tariffs to protect the garment industry.)

10.

Red herring/straw man: a diversion; veers readers’ focus off the issue at hand (Of course equal pay for women is an important issue, but I wonder whether women really want to take the responsibility that comes with higherpaying jobs. Do they really want the additional stress?)

11.

Traditional wisdom: uses the logic that the way things used to be is better than the way they are now, ignoring any problems of the past (Back in my day…)

12.

Scare tactic: creates fear in people as evidence to support a claim (If we do not solve this problem, it will surely result in the DESTRUCTION OF US ALL AAAAAUUUUUUGGGGGGGHHHH! Think of the children!)

13.

Appeal to the people: uses the views of the majority as a persuasive device (Everybody’s doing it…)

14.

Slippery Slope: implies or states that a progression of events must result from an individual event, though there is insufficient basis for this claim (What next?! If we allow seniors to park in our lot, pretty soon they’ll be wanting to drive our cars. Then they’ll want to live in our homes. HOW MANY OF YOU WANT SENIORS EATING ALL YOUR CEREAL AND USING UP ALL THE HOT WATERTHAT’SWHATITHOUGHT.)