Fallacies

slippery slope

if one thing is allowed, it will be the first step in a downward spiral

begging the question

if the writer makes a statement that the very question argued has already been proved

false causality

implies that because one event follows another event, the first event must be the cause of the second

false dilemma

it poses an either-or situation and suggests that only two alternatives exist

faulty use of authority

just because someone is an expert in one area doesn't mean he's an expert in all areas

Animals shouldn't be made to suffer to further scientific knowledge, because making animals suffer is wrong.

non sequiter

dogmatism

pushing one doctrine as the only possible approach or conclusion to an issue

appeals to pity

requests for aid, appeals to our sympathetic feelings

appeals to tradition

says something should be done a certain way simply because it has always been done that way in the past

A cartoon showing people dressed in rags talking about casual fridays getting carried away

slippery slope

bandwagon effect

suggests most everyone else agrees with the speaker- "everyone is doing or saying this, so you should do it too."

false analogy

the assumption that because two things are alike in some ways they must be alike in others

moral equivalence

the suggestion that serious wrongdoings that don't differ from minor offenses

equivocation

when a lie is given the appearance of truth or when in which the truth is misrepresented in deceptive language

straw man

when a person simply ignores a person's actual position and substitutes a distorted, exaggerated, or misrepresented version of that position

Make love, not war.

false dilemma

Beauty ad claiming "For the most beautiful hair, 4 out of 5 hollywood stars use it"

faulty use of authority and bandwagon

A city of Chicago Health Department poster trying to encourage students to take a tuberculosis test states that good grades and good health go together.

false causality, faulty use of authority

oversimplification/ reductive fallacy

an argument that leaves out relevant considerations about an issue to imply that there is a single cause or solution to a complex problem

ad hominem

an attack on the person rather than on the argument or the issue

guilt by association

an unfair attempt to make someone responsible for the beliefs or actions of others

WWII poster with a boot crushing a church saying "we are fighting to prevent this"

appeals to fear

Cartoon: Man is on his cellphone surrounded by others on their phones. He is saying "I don't know I just felt like calling."

bandwagon

appeals to fear

based on evidence that fear is an appropriate response to the issues and that it can move an audience toward the solution to the problem

Ad celebrating the Boston Red Sox's world series victory. The caption underneath the picture says "A team destined to reverse the curse"

begging the question

Nixon's the one.

dogmatism

hasty generaliztion

drawing conclusions on the basis of insufficient information

Guns don't kill, people do.

equivocation

How can we not support railroads? Railroads are the arteries of our nation, and the trains are the lifeblood that bring sustenance to all parts of the body.

false analogy

Lewis Caroll's riddle: "How is a raven like a writing desk? Because Poe wrote both."

false analogy

"careless talks cost lives"

false causality

Non sequiter

when the logical structure of an argument is invalid

red herring

when the speaker brings up a point that has nothing to do with or no relationship to the real issue or subject

exaggeration

where someone tries to add more causes then are relevant