LOGICAL FALLACIES: (False arguments or errors in reasoning)
Ad Hominem—In Latin, this means to take the argument “to the man,” as in one attacks the person or group associated with an argument, and not the argument itself. Candidates often attempt to discredit their opponents’ ideas in this fashion.
Example
“My opponent cheated on his wife, so he would be a terrible mayor.”
Ad Populum—In Latin, this means to take the argument “to the people,” as in one tries to appeal to the emotions or prejudices of a group, and not their reason. It can also be defined as excusing actions/thoughts because a certain group accepts such actions/thoughts.
Example
“You should wear red, white, and blue on 9/11 because it is the patriotic thing to do.”
Circular Reasoning—Supporting a statement by simply repeating it in different words.
Example
“Teenagers should avoid fad diets, because it is important for adolescents to stay away
from popular weight-loss plans.”
Either/Or Fallacy—A statement that suggests there are only two choices available in a situation that really offers more than two options. Also called Reductio ad Absurdum, Latin for “to reduce to the absurd.”
Example
“Either students should be allowed to leave school to have lunch at nearby restaurants,
or they should be allowed to choose the cafeteria menu.”
False Analogy—An argument based upon comparison, but one where the argument is flawed because two cases are not sufficiently parallel.
Example
“There are seven windows given to animals in the domicile of the head: two nostrils, two
eyes, two ears, and a mouth. . . . From this and many other similarities in Nature, too
tedious to enumerate, we gather that the number of planets must necessarily be seven.”
(Francesco Sizzi, 17th-century Italian astronomer)
Hasty Generalization—An argument based on too little evidence, or one that claims something is certain rather than merely probable. Often such arguments use absolute words such as “all,” or “none.”
Example
“No one cares that there is not enough parking downtown.”
Post hoc (ergo propter hoc) —Means “after this, therefore because of this”; a fallacy in which one event is said to bethe cause of a later event simply because it occurred earlier. This is a kind of oversimplification, where variables are not taken into account, and A is simply assumed to have caused B, even if they are actually unrelated events.
Example
“The mayor declared a ‘get-tough’ crime policy and, sure enough, crime rates dropped.”
Slanting—A fallacy in which a writer/speaker selects facts, words, or emphasis to achieve a preconceived intent. Crucial information may be omitted, or word choice may make what is actually harmful seem helpful.
Example
#1—Favorable intent: “Although the senator looks bored, when it comes time to vote, he is on the
right side of the issue.”
#2—Unfavorable intent: “The senator may vote on the right side of the issues, but he always
looks bored.”
Slippery Slope—A fallacy in which a course of action is objected to on the grounds that once taken, it will lead to additional actions until some undesirable consequence results.
Example
“If we loosen immigration policies, the nation will be overrun and the economy will
collapse.”
Straw Man—A fallacy in which an opponent’s argument is overstated or misrepresented in order to be attacked or refuted. Often the opponent’s argument is exaggerated to the extent that no one rational person would hold that position. One usually resorts to setting up a straw man (which is very easy to knock down) when one’s opponent has a strong argument and one cannot rebut it directly.
Example
“Senator Jones says that we should not fund the attack submarine program. I disagree
entirely. I can’t understand why he wants to leave us defenseless like that.”
Red Herring—A fallacy in which one tries to distract from the issue at hand by introducing another topic, often an inflammatory topic. The tactic is to try to get the audience in such an uproar over the new topic that the initial topic is forgotten (as in trying to throw tracking dogs off the scent by throwing something smelly like a dead fish in another direction).
Example
“It is true that this city has serious difficulties getting medical aid to its homeless women,
but the real issue we should be discussing here is the number of abortions taking place in
city clinics.”