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17 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 Ad Hominem | criticizes an idea by pointing something out about the person who holds the idea, instead of directly adressing the actual merit of the idea. "you're wrong because you're a jerk" "She supports gun control, because she's a democrat" |
| Argument from authority | tempts us to agree with the writer's assumptions based on the authority of a famous person or entity or on his/her own character. |
| Appeal to ignorance | Assumption that whatever cannot be proven false must be true (or vice versa). "No one can prove that the Loch Ness monster doesn't exist, so therefore, it does exist." |
| Begging the Question | a fallacious form of argument where someone assumes that parts (or all) of what the person claims to be proving are proven facts. "The Loch Ness monster spoke to me in my dreams, so it must exist" |
| Hasty Generalization | When a writer will deliberately lead you to a conclusion by providing insufficient, selective evidence. ( "Ping-pong is a dangerous sport; my friend got hit in the eye with the ball and almost lost her vision in that eye.") |
| Non Sequitur | a statement or idea that fails to follow logically from the one before, I'm a native Texan so I'm against reforming the school finance system. |
| False Dichotomy | a consideration of only two extremes when there are intermediate possibilities (you either get it or you don't) |
| Slippery Slope | Suggest dire consequences from relatively minor causes. "If we stop requiring men to wear coats and ties in the dining room, pretty soon they'll start coming in dressed in beach-wear." Or, "Give 'em an inch and they'll take a mile." |
| Faulty Causality | the tendence to set up a cause-and-effect relationship when really, non exists, ex: Crime among Adolescents has risen in the past decade, and that is the result of increased sales of violent video games |
| Straw Man Argument | Simplifies an argument so that it is easier to take down. Example: The government doesn't take care of the poor because it doesn't have a tax specifically to support the poor.Example: We know that evolution is false because we did not evolve from monkeys. |
| Sentimental Appeals | Attempts to appeal to the hearts of readers/listeners so that they forget to use their minds. Not a valid argument, but it works sometimes. ex: Sorry i made you run five miles, but think how good you will feel when our team wins the championship |
| Red Herring | The introduction of a topic not related to the subject at hand. Example: I know your car isn't working right. But, if you had gone to the store one day earlier, you'd not be having problems. Example: I know I forgot to deposit the check into the bank yesterday. But, nothing I do pleases you. |
| Scare Tactics | This attempts to motivate people through fear : " If you don't use this product, terrible things might happen to you or your loved ones." |
| Bandwagon Appeals | Otherwise known as peer pressure, this type of argument encourages the listener to agree with a position because everyone else does. "If everyone else is doing it, it must be alright." The speaker usually tries to avoid having to explain the merits of the issue and explain why the ban is inappropriate. |
| Dogmatism | , Does not allow for discussion because the speakers presumes that his or her beliefs are beyond question; essentially, the "logic" is, "I'm correct because I'm correct." "We are members of the Wombat party and, as such, know that we are right when we assert that Wombats are the best!" |
| Equivocation | telling part of the truth while deliberatley hiding the entire truth( lying by omission)., The average family has 2.5 children. Your family is very average; therefore you must have 2.5 children. |
| Faulty Analogy | An illogical, misleading comparison between two things Why should i throw away my gum wrapper, would you throw away your brand new shoes? |
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