Logic and Reasoning- Fallacies
***Formal fallacy (deductive)
"All dogs are animals. Tom is an animal. Tom is a dog." invalid, Tom is a cat
Fallacy of division
Applying a property of the whole to individuals (Just because a roof is large that doesn't mean the shingles are large)
The following is what type of fallacy: "Dr. Doe is infallible. I know this because his website says that he is infallible and he is the author of the website. So, it must be right."
Beggin the Q, circular conclusion
The following is what type of fallacy: "Aren't you going to do something about your child's terrible behavior?"
Complex Q
The following is what type of fallacy: "have you stopped feeding your dog yet?"
Complex question...sad
The following is what type of fallacy: "Evolution is a biological law of nature.All civilized people should obey the law. Therefore, all civilized people should obey the law of evolution.
Equivocation
The following is what type of fallacy: "I saw a fraternity guy act rudely to a fast-food employee in the food court. Probably most fraternity and sorority members are rude and arrogant."
Hasty generalization
The following is what type of fallacy: "The first two students whose exams I graded received an A. Therefore, I expect all 50 students to receive an A."
Hasty generalization
Appeal to pity
Making someone feel bad i order to persuade them to do something (Think SPCA commercials and guilt-tripping)
The following is what type of fallacy: "If you go and see the new Jackie Chan movie it will triple your chances of turning into blue cheese."
Misleading precision
The following is what type of fallacy: "The producer presented his budget for the movie. However, a lot of newspapers are going bankrupt, and so are many magazines. The cost of printing presses, newsprint, and ink is rising. Thus, we should reject his budget proposal."
Red Herring
The following is what type of fallacy: "He's not a moron at all, he's a friend. My personal relations with the president are extremely good."
Red herring
The following is what type of fallacy: "I can't believe the police didn't give the driver of that ambulance any citations. He was speeding, he went through a red light, and the ambulance swerved from lane to lane without using any turn signals."
Rigid application of a generalization
The following is what type of fallacy: "My grandma smoked 2 packs of cigs everyday and lived to be 93. So smoking isn't bad for your health."
Rigid application of a generalization
The following is what type of fallacy: "If you let your kids play video games with guns, we will eventually have a bunch of homicidal killers."
Slippery slope argument
Straw man
When an argument is misrepresented in order to create a new argument that can easily be refuted. The arguer then falsely claims that their opponent's real argument has been defeated. (Contorting the true meaning) -Often used in political discourses
"Everyone says that a logic course is easier than a math course, so it must be."
ad populum
Complex Question
A Q that assumes that another question has already been answered (AKA loaded question- the worst kind)
"Congress shouldn't bother to consult major universities about educational appropriations. As members of educational establishment, they will naturally want as much money for education as they think they can get."
Ad hominem abusive
The following is what type of fallacy: "Do not listen to his criticism of our senator. After all, he is too young and probably experiemented with drugs when he was in college."
Ad hominem abusive
Begging the Question- circular conclusion
An argument that is a circular conclusion. Basically when the conclusion is just a restatement of the premise and assumes truth based on the premises.
hasty generalization
An argument that relies on a small sample that is unlikely to represent the population specific to general
The following is what type of fallacy: "She is a chess game master, so when she says that Russia is manipulating the internal affairs of countries that were once apart of the Soviet Union you should believe her."
Appeal to an unqualified authority
Slippery slope argument
Arguing without good reason that taking one step will inevitably lead to a failing step. (A->B->C->D...)
"I believe in the Bible because it is the written word of God through his prophets. Obviously, God would not lie to his prophets. After all, the Bible says so."
Begging the q
The following is what type of fallacy: "Why opium produces sleep: because there is in it a dormitive power."
Begging the question
The following is what type of fallacy: "Everything in that book is 100% accurate. It has to be, since nothing is false."
Begging the question, circular conclusion
The following is what type of fallacy: "Murder is wrong, so capital punishment is wrong."
Begging the question, controversial and unsubstantiated (Assumes that capital punishment is murder, which not everyone would agree with)
The following is what type of fallacy: "All the people in the fraternity think that hazing is not a problem. So, I'm sure that the entire student population agrees with us on that issue."
Biased sample
The following is what type of fallacy: "Each grain of sand is hard, so your sand castle will be hard."
Composition
The following is what type of fallacy: "George Soros is famous because he broke the Bank of England. It follows that the Bank of England must have spent a lot of money on construction costs to fix all of the broken parts of the bank."
Equivocation
The following is what type of fallacy: "That's a fast turtle. Therefore, that's a fast animal."
Equivocation
The following is what type of fallacy: "The community of Pacific Palisades is extremely wealthy. Therefore, every person living there is extremely wealthy."
Fallacy of Division
The following is what type of fallacy: "Should we not assume that just as the eye, hand, the foot, and in general each part of the body clearly has its own proper function, so man too has some function over and above the function of his parts?"
Fallacy of composition
The following is what type of fallacy: "Either we cut school funding or raise taxes. Nobody wants to cut school funding, so we must raise taxes."
False dichotomy
The following is what type of fallacy: "Either you love your country or you are a traitor. I'm sure you're not a traitor. Therefore, you must love your country."
False dichotomy
The following is what type of fallacy: "I went to a soccer game the other day and asked all of the people in the stands what their favorite sport was. 80% of them answered soccer. Therefore, America's favorite sport is soccer."
Hasty generalization
The following is what type of fallacy: "You can't speak French. Petey Bellows can;t speak French. I must therefore conclude that nobody at the university of Minnesota can speak French."
Hasty generalization
The following is what type of fallacy: "Biology was easy for me. Physics 1 was no problem. I think I'm going to change my major to social work."
Missing the point
The following is what type of fallacy: "I read that it can take years to locate black boxes from planes that have crashed. These boxes could contain crucial information. Therefore, all airplane travel should be suspendded."
Missing the point
The following is what type of fallacy: "Every thread of material of which this shirt is composed is red, so the shirt is red."
No fallacy
The following is what type of fallacy: "Since every piece of my sewing machine is made from steel, it follows that my sewing machine is steel."
No fallacy
The following is what type of fallacy: "The coroner determined the cause of death was an overdose of toxic drugs. No evidence of foul play was found. In addition, there was no suicide note. We conclude that the death was an accident.
No fallacy
Ad populam/Appeal to the people
Trying to convince someone to do something because a lot of other people are doing it or trying to convince someone of something because of widely held beliefs (Think peer pressure and social constrictions/norms) manipulating a psychological need or desire
Red Herring
Trying to divert attention away from the original topic by completely changing the subject. (Argument that may be relevant for SOME claim, but not the one at hand) -AKA Irrelevent
Rigid application of a generalization
When a generalization is inappropriately applied to the case at hand (Results from the unwarranted assumption that a generalization or a rule is universal- meaning it has no exceptions) general to specific
Fallacy of composition
When one assumes that the whole has the same properties as the parts; that what is true of the parts must be true of the whole
Appeal to ignorance
When someone assumes a proposition is false because it hasn't been proven true OR When someone assumes a proposition is true because no one has proved it to be false (Absence of evidence...think innocent until proven guilty)
Unqualified or inappropriate authority
When someone who does not qualify as an expert in a specific field is the reasoning behind an argument (Buying a Mazda because Tiger Woods says to) AKA misplaced omniscience
Misleading precision
When the presentation of a statistic is used to make a claim seem stronger than it is (When you over-emphasize or inflate statistical facts backing a claim)
Ad Hominem abusive
When there is a personal attack made to support an argument (when the responder tries to undermine the claimer) AKA insulting
"You ought to try to study harder in school this year, Samuel, because it will spare your parents the embarrassment of a letter from the instructor telling them you're not taking your school work seriously."
appeal to force
The following is what type of fallacy: "If the workers of this company do not agree to a 25% cut in salary, then the company may have to shut its doors. Therefore, the workers of this company must agree to a 25% cut in salary."
appeal to force
The following is what type of fallacy: "your honor, before you sentence my client- I want you to consider his life circumstances. He is an orphan. Perhaps you can give him a light punishment. "
appeal to pity
The following is what type of fallacy: "All the cells in his body are tiny. Thus, he is tiny."
composition
The following is what type of fallacy: "All the members of my club are high school seniors. therefore, my club is a high school senior."
composition
The following is what type of fallacy: "Each ingredient you are using tastes delicious. Therefore, the cake has to taste delicious."
composition
The following is what type of fallacy: "I know for a fact that the acrylic paints that Vincent van Gogh used to create this portrait were very inexpensive. So even though his painting is hanging in a museum, it can't be very expensive."
composition
The following is what type of fallacy: "BMWs are expensive, so the steering wheel is expensive."
distributive
The following is what type of fallacy: "College students take 15 hours per semester."
distributive
"That frat just celebrated their 50th bday. That guy over there is a member of the frat. Therefore, he must have celebrated his 50th bday."
division
The following is what type of fallacy: "Our cookies contain 30% less fat, so you should start eating them if you want to lose weight."
misleading precision
"Old man Brown claims that he saw a flying saucer in his farm, but he never got beyond the fourth grade in school and can hardly read or write. He is completely ignorant of what scientists have written on the subject, so his report cannot possibly be true."
Ad hominem abusive
The following is what type of fallacy: "My opponent says that he is well qualified for city council. But what he failed to tell you is that he has been arrested twice. I urge you, therefore, to reject his candidacy."
Ad hominem abusive
The following is what type of fallacy: "My opponent wants to sever the Danish church from the state for his own personal sake. His motion is an attempt to take over the church and further his ecumenical theology by his usual mafia methods."
Ad hominem abusive
The following is what type of fallacy: "She is old, out of touch with reality, and belongs in a loony bin. So, you cannot accept her advice on marriage."
Ad hominem abusive
The following is what type of fallacy: "I know that your cousin recommends taking vitamins every day. After all, she's a pharmacist; what do you expect her to tell you?"
Ad hominem circumstantial
The following is what type of fallacy: "Of course senator Jay argues that my adminsitration's tax proposals are bad for the country. But since his party lost the last election, his opinions have no credibility.
Ad hominem circumstantial
The following is what type of fallacy: "We have all hear your arguments against euthanasia. But we all know the real reason you are against it is because you are a physician and sick people make you more money"
Ad hominem circumstantial
The following is what type of fallacy: "HD3D TVs have set the new standard in television viewing. All we ask is that you go into any of our stores and look at one yourself. We bet that you will join the millions of others who have switched,"
Ad populam/Appeal to the people
Post-hoc
After the fact, therefore because of the fact. No reasoning for two events being related, it is simply assumed that because event B occurs after event A, A caused B to occur.
"You will back up my story and tell the committee I am reasoning logically; because if you don't I will do everything in my power to see that you are fired."
Appeal to force
The following is what type of fallacy: "You spend all of your time reading sports. When I was your age, I spent all of my time outside playing sports. So, if you don't start joining sports teams, then I won't give you any more money to buy books and I'll tear up your library card."
Appeal to force
The following is what type of fallacy: "I believe that we are reincarnated. No one has ever been able to prove that after death our spirits don't move on to another baby."
Appeal to ignorance
The following is what type of fallacy: "Little green men made me stab you"
Appeal to ignorance...can't prove they didn't
"My client is an integral part of this community. If he is sent to prison not only will this city suffer but also he will be most missed by his family. You surely cannot find it in your hearts to reach any other verdict than "not guilty."
Appeal to pity
The following is what type of fallacy: "Why just watch sports? Why not become the athlete you know you are. Hard Armour t-shirts. For the athlete deep inside you waiting to get out."
Appeal to the people/ad populum
BONUS- Best animal? (Domestic or wild)
DOG
The following is what type of fallacy: "When you buy two lottery tickets instead of one, you double your chances of winning."
Misleading precision
The following is what type of fallacy: "We verified your employment history and did a credit check. I assume that you have read our repayment terms, since you signed the loan agreement form. Therefore, I am going to approve your application for a loan."
No fallacy
The following is what type of fallacy: "You forgot to water your plants for three weeks and now they are dead. Clearly, the lack of water caused their untimely demise."
No fallacy
The following is what type of fallacy: "You scored at least 93% on all three exams, and you did all of the homework.Your class participation was excellent. In addition, the only time you missed class, you provided a doctor's excuse. Given this level of performance, you will receive an A for this course."
No fallacy
The following is what type of fallacy: "Four of us ate at that Italian restaurant last night. Three of us had lasagna, and one had a salad. We all had the same kind of appetizer and dessert. The three who had lasagna all got sever stomach aches, but the one who got a salad felt fine. It follows that the lasagna probably caused the stomach aches."
No fallacy, strong inductive argument
The following is what type of fallacy: "My mother wants me to take piano lessons because studies show that early music trainings help students in math. But piano lessons cost a lot of money, and even if we could afford one, our apartment is too small."
Red herring
The following is what type of fallacy: "Your mother said that you can't afford a new car with your current income. But you said your girlfriend is ashamed of riding in your car, and she doesn't like its color. Also, think how a new car will impress the guys at work. Given this, you should definitely buy a new car."
Red herring
What is the difference between hasty generalization and rigid application of generalization
Rigid application of generalization argues from the general to the specific and a hasty generalization argues from the specific to the general -Rigid= accident -Hasty= reverse or converse accident
The following is what type of fallacy: "If you don't clean your room, then the dirt and dust will build up. Before you know it, bacteria will grow. Whatever you touch in your room will then spread bacteria, which will contaminate the entire house. We will all wind up in the hospital, terminally ill."
Slippery slope
What is the difference between post-hoc and Slippery slope arguments
Slippery slope arguments are things that are predicted to occur, while post-hoc refers to a conjunction of events already occurring
The following is what type of fallacy: "You said that I don't spend enough time with you and that I ignore you when we are together. Do you want me to be more like the guy next door? He doesn't work, so he spends all day at home with his wife. But he is constantly screaming at her and putting her down, even in public. So, if that's what you want, then I'll do it."
Straw man/jerk
Begging the question- controversial and unsubstantiated
Taking something that is in dispute as a given (Usually something controversial)
The following is what type of fallacy: "My uncle drinks a six-pack of beer every day, so I couldn't believe it when he lectured me on the dangers of alcohol. He's one to talk! Nothing he says about drinking alcohol can be true because he cannot stop drinking himself."
Tu Quoque
The following is what type of fallacy: "Recently, we highlighted a British journalist's story about the underside of Dubai's startling ascent. Some in Dubai called foul, including one writer who wants to remind Britains that their own country has a dark side. After all, what to think of a country in which one fifth of the population is in poverty?"
Tu Quoque
The following is what type of fallacy: "She did not vote in the last election. In fact, she is not even registered to vote. It follows that anything she suggests about how our country should be run cannot possibly be of any concern to us."
Tu Quoque
Missing the point
When you have premises that prove a DIFFERENT conclusion than the one they are being applied to. (When premises that seem to lead logically to one conclusion are used instead to support an unexpected conclusion.)
Ad hominem circumstantial
When you try to undercut an argument based on the circumstances of a person's life (Poisoning the well and tu quoque***) examples- political affiliation, educational institution, place of birth, religious affiliation, and income
False dichotomy
When you wrongly assume that there are only a specific number of options when there are actually more than that (AKA False Alternatives) (ex. Looking up at the sky and seeing the light and concluding that it is only either a star or a UFO, but it could be a number of things)
Equivocation
Where a term shifts meaning during the course of an argument (When there is a different meaning of a term in the premise than in the conclusion) -AKA an ambiguity
The following is what type of fallacy: "He is wrong about circles being round because he's a drug dealer."
ad hominem abusive
The following is what type of fallacy: "Of course she wants to cut the tax bracket, she's a billionaire and only cares about benefiting herself."
ad hominem circumstantial
The following is what type of fallacy: "It is safe to say that the Beatles are the greatest band of all time. So it is safe to say that no band has ever been better than The Beatles."
begging the q
The following is what type of fallacy: "We are justified in going to war to protect ourselves from foreign aggression. It follows that we should go to war with Syria."
begging the q
The following is what type of fallacy: "A large survey of SUV owners revealed that 80% believe that global warming is a hoax intended to get them to give up their vehicles. This shows that the vast majority of Americans don't believe that global warming is real."
biased sample and hasty generalization
The following is what type of fallacy: "Every football player at Crestfallen High School can run two miles in under 15 minutes, so all the students at that school must be in great physical condition."
biased sample and hasty generalization
The following is what type of fallacy: "Tu students take thousands of hours per semester."
collective
The following is what type of fallacy: "Tyler White is skilled. Therefore the Astros are skilled."
collective
"A prosecutor states to the jury: "You cannot let this man go free because our society is not safe with him at large. Who knows who his next victim will be?"
complex
"I can see that you are in the market for a new car. We're having a sale on Pintos this month. Do you want to pay cash or do you want the installment plan?"
complex q
The following is what type of fallacy: "Are you going to do something about your child's terrible behavior?"
complex q
The following is what type of fallacy: "Do you still cheat on your taxes?"
complex q
The following is what type of fallacy: "Why would you accept help from the Red Cross when they're such a corrupt organization?"
complex q
The following is what type of fallacy: "A bus uses more gasoline than a car. Therefore, buses use more gasoline in a year than cars."
composition
The following is what type of fallacy: "More noise is produced by a motorcycle than a car. Therefore, more noise is produced on US roadways by motorcycles than by cars."
composition
The following is what type of fallacy: "He is huge, so he must have huge cells"
division
The following is what type of fallacy: "My car goes from zero to sixty miles in under 5 seconds, so the windshield wipers must be able to clean the front windows in under 5 seconds too."
division
The following is what type of fallacy: "My teacher said that bald eagles are disappearing. I remember seeing a bald eagle at the zoo. Therefore, we better hurry to see it before it disappears."
division
The following is what type of fallacy: "All bright students do well in logic. Evan is wearing a bright neon yellow shirt. Evan will do well in logic."
equivocation
The following is what type of fallacy: "July said she had a hot date last night. Her apartment can get hot unless she uses the air conditioner. Therefore, the air conditioner in her apartment must not have been working."
equivocation
The following is what type of fallacy: "Either we give up some of our traditional basic freedoms or we lose the war on terror."
false dichotomy
The following is what type of fallacy: "How is education supposed to make me feel smarter? Besides, every time I learn something new, it pushes some old stuff out of my brain. Remember when I took that home winemaking course and I forgot how to drive?"
hast generalization (Created based on one instance)
"As I walked to the library from the Learning Center not one person spoke to me. Lander University is not as friendly as I was led to believe."
hasty generalization
The following is what type of fallacy: "Those three buses get fewer than five miles to a gallon of gasoline. Therefore, most buses probably get fewer than five miles to a gallon."
hasty generalization
The following is what type of fallacy: "We need to decrease our dependency on foreign oil, therefore we should increase our supply of nuclear weapons."
missing the point
She began making 100k the year after she graduated from college, and when she took an IQ test, she scored 20 points higher than when she was in high school. See, I told you: money makes people smarter."
post hoc
The following is what type of fallacy: "For the natives, they are all near dead of the smallpox, so as the Lord hath cleared our title to what we possess." -Massachusetts colony governor, 1634
post hoc
"During the Gulf war many Americans made immense profits. That is an indisputable fact. Therefore, there can be no doubt that American business interests instigated the war."
post-hoc
"It should be no surprise to you that if a Democrat is elected in the next presidential election that we will have one of the worst recessions in years. Recessions always seem to be created by Democratic administrations."
post-hoc
The following is what type of fallacy: "Since the 1950s, our society has become increasingly more violent. It is obvious what has caused this to happen. Check the facts. As the number of television sets bought by consumers rose every year, so did crime."
post-hoc
The following is what type of fallacy: "We took bible and prayer out of public schools, and now we're having weekly shootings practically. We had the '60s sexual revolution, and now people are dying of AIDS."
post-hoc
The following is what type of fallacy: "my cousin's illegal drug supply was stolen last week. Luckily, the thief was caught. Therefore, the police have to return my cousin's stolen drug supply to him."
rigid application of a generalization
Appeal to force
telling someone that if they don't act in a certain way than something bad will happen to them AKA threatening them
"But Doctor, surely your advice that I should not drink coffee is not sound advice since you yourself often drink coffee."
tu quoque ad hominem
"The late Ely Culbertson, one of the world's outstanding bridge players, once declared that the United Nations as presently constituted has serious defects. He must be right because I don't think the opinion of a man of his caliber should be taken lightly."
unauthorized authority