Fallacies are errors in argument and they fall

Fallacies are errors in argument and they fall into two groups: 1. Evasions 2. Oversimplifications Source: The Little Brown Handbook, 11 th ed

Evasions 1. Begging the question: treating an opinion that is open to question as if it were already proved or disproved. 2. Non sequitur (“it does not follow”): drawing a conclusion from irrelevant evidence. 3. Red herring: introducing an irrelevant issue to distract readers. 4. False authority: citing as expert opinion the views of a person who is not an expert. Source: The Little Brown Handbook, 11 th ed

Evasions 5. Inappropriate appeals: a. Appealing to readers’ fear or pity b. Snob appeal: appealing to readers’ wish to be like those who are more intelligent, famous, rich, and so on. c. Bandwagon: appealing to readers’ wish to be part of the group. d. Flattery: appealing to readers’ intelligence, taste, and so on. e. Argument ad populum (“to the people”): appealing to readers’ general values, such as patriotism or love of family f. Argument ad hominem (“to the man”): attacking the opponent rather than the opponent’s argument. Source: The Little Brown Handbook, 11 th ed

Oversimplifications 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Hasty generalization (jumping to a conclusion): asserting an opinion based on too little evidence. Sweeping generalization: asserting an opinion as applying to all instances when it may apply to some, or to none. Absolute statements and stereotypes are variations. Reductive fallacy: generally, oversimplifying causes and effects Post hoc fallacy: assuming that A caused B because A preceded B. Either/or fallacy (false dilemma): reducing a complicated question to two alternatives. False analogy: exaggerating the similarities in an analogy or ignoring key differences. Source: The Little Brown Handbook, 11 th ed

Examples 1. Red herring: A campus speech code is essential to protect students, who already have enough problems coping with rising tuition. [Tuition costs and speech codes are different subjects. What protection do students need that a speech code will provide? ] 2. False authority: Jason Bing, a recognized expert in corporate finance, maintains that pharmaceutical companies do not test their products thoroughly enough. [Bing’s expertise in corporate finance bears no apparent relation to the testing of pharmaceuticals. ] 3. Snob appeal: Tiger Woods has an account at Big City Bank, and so should you. [A celebrity’s endorsement does not guarantee the worth of a product, a service, an idea, or anything else. ] Source: The Little Brown Handbook, 11 th ed

Examples 4. Bandwagon: As everyone knows, marijuana use leads to heroin addiction. [What is the evidence? ] 5. Argument ad populum: Any truly patriotic American will support the President’s action. [But why is the action worth taking? ] 6. Argument ad hominem: One of the scientists has been treated for emotional problems, so his pessimism about nuclear waste merits no attention. [Do the scientist’s previous emotional problems invalidate his current views? ] 7. Sweeping generalizations: Women are emotional. [Stereotyping] 8. Hasty generalization: Several youth who shot up schools were users of violent video games. Obviously, these games can breed violence and they should be banned. [Jumping to conclusions] Source: The Little Brown Handbook, 11 th ed

Examples 9. Reductive fallacy: Poverty causes crime. [If so, then why do people who are not poor commit crimes? And why aren’t all poor people criminals? ] 10. Post hoc fallacy: In the two months since he took office, Mayor Holcomb has allowed crime in the city to increase 12 percent. [The increase in crime is probably attributable to conditions existing before Holcomb took office. ] 11. Either/or fallacy: City police officers are either brutal or corrupt. [Most city police officers are neither. ] 12. Circular Argument: Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was a good communicator because he spoke effectively. Source: The Little Brown Handbook, 11 th ed