Second-Hand Evidence

What is an example of post hoc ergo propter hoc?

"We elected Johnson as president and look where it got us: hurricanes, floods, stock market crashes."

What is an example of a bandwagon appeal?

"You should vote to elect Rachel Johnson—she has a strong lead in the polls!"

What logical fallacy can quantitative evidence be used for?

A bandwagon appeal, which is when evidence boils down to "everybody's doing it, so it must be a good thing to do." Sometimes statistics can be used to prove that "everybody's doing it", which makes the fallacy appear as a cold, hard fact.

What does quantitative evidence not need be?

All percentages and dollar figures.

What can historical information provide current debates with?

Background and Context

What is second-hand evidence? What does it include?

Evidence that is accessed through research, reading, and investigation. It includes factual and historical information, expert opinion, and quantitative data.

How does Samuel Walker use historical information in "Hate Speech: The History of American Controversy"?

He cites a series of historical examples: the KKK, immigration laws, restriction targeting certain ethnicities, and a high-profile court case (the Sacco and Vanzetti case: when two Italian American anarchists were executed for robbery and murder in a highly questionable prosecution) to argue that the 1920s were a period of bigotry and intolerance.

How does Charles Krauthammer use historical evidence in "The 9/11 'Overreaction'? Nonsense,"? Why is it effective?

He compares the War on Terror (launched by the US after 9/11) to previous military campaigns in U.S. history such as the Iraq War, the Afghanistan War, the Civil War, and the Pacific campaign of World War II. The evidence is effective because the historical information is brief but detailed enough to show the writer's grasp of the history and explicitly lay out his comparison.

What is a pitfall of historical information? How should you be careful using this type of evidence?

Historical events are complicated. You must be careful to keep the descriptions of the events brief while still correctly representing events.

What are the most common forms of second-hand evidence?

Historical information, expert opinion, and quantitative data.

What can expert opinion lead to? What does it mean? How can it be avoided?

It can lead to an appeal to false authority, which is when someone who has no expertise to speak on a subject is cited as an authority (ex: a TV star endorsing pharmaceuticals). To avoid this, be sure to verify the person's background and qualifications.

What appeals does Second-hand evidence develop?

It can occasionally develop pathos, and it often helps to establish a writer's ethos. However, the central appeal is to logos—reason and logic.

What does historical information often appeal to? Why?

It often appeals to ethos because it shows that she/he has taken the time to research the matter and become informed.

What does quantitative evidence appeal to?

Logos

How does Peggy Orenstein use expert opinion in "Just a Little Princess"? How does it help her argument?

Orenstein carefully quotes and paraphrases Forman-Brunell's comments on how "princess culture" arises during periods of uncertainty and profound change (ex: Shirley Temple during the Great Depression; "Little Princess" during a time of rapid urbanization, immigration, and poverty). Forman Brunell is a historian at the University of Missouri—Kansas City (an expert). This expert opinion helps her argument that fairy godmothers have an impact on girls' view of themselves because the findings of a researcher add credibility.

What is expert opinion evidence?

Pointing out that an expert agrees with you in order to bolster your argument.

What logical fallacy can historical evidence lead to? What is it? How do you avoid it?

Post hoc ergo propter hoc ("after which therefore because of which"). This fallacy is when one claims that something was a cause of something else just because it happened earlier. However, correlation does not necessarily imply causation. To avoid this fallacy, check your facts, consider of the complexity of the situation, and be very cautious.

What is quantitative evidence?

Quantitative evidence includes things that can be represented in numbers: statistics, surveys, polls, and census information.

Experts can be......

Recognized widely or locally.

How does Amy Domini use quantitative evidence to support her argument?

She cites numerical evidence to support her argument that fast food is a way of life.

What is an expert?

Someone who has published research on a topic or whose job or experience gives him or her specialized knowledge.

What is historical evidence often used for?

To develop a point of comparison or contrast to a more contemporary situation.

What is historical information?

Verifiable historical facts that a writer knows from research.

When is it necessary to provide A LOT of information?

When the audience or more scholarly or skeptical.

When are you using second-hand evidence?

When you cite what someone else knows.

What is important about using an expert opinion?

You must make sure that your expert is seen as credible by your audience so that his/her opinion will add weight to your argument.

How does Fareed Zakaria use quantitative evidence to support his argument in "When Will We Learn?"

Zakaria uses quantitative evidence about the low acceptance rate of Finnish teachers into teacher-training programs, as well as about how South Korean students go to school for 2 more years than American students do.