Critical Thinking Lecture 5a Fallacies

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Critical ThinkingLecture 5aFallacies

• By David Kelsey

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Fallacies

• A fallacy is a mistake in reasoning.
• Examples

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The argument from outrage

• An argument from outrage is given when
  inflammatory words are followed by a conclusion.
• Examples

• When a person becomes angry she can become
  illogical in two ways
• 1. Mistaking rhetoric for argument
• 2. Displacing anger

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Scapegoating

• To scapegoat a person or group
• to blame that person or group for something they
  didnt do.
• Serial Murderer example

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Scare Tactics

• One uses scare tactics when she tries to scare
  someone else into believing some claim.
• Painting a scary picture
• Global warming example

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More fallacious reasoning

• Argument by force
• Trying to get someone to accept some claim by
  threatening her.
• Examples

• Argument from pity
• Evoking compassion to cause a mistake in
  reasoning.
• Examples

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Argument from Envy

• One makes an argument from envy when she evokes
  envy to cause a mistake in reasoning.
• Examples

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Apple Polishing

• Apple polishing occurs when pride causes a
  mistake in reasoning.
• Examples

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Guilt trips and Wishful Thinking

• A guilt trip occurs when guilt is evoked to get
  someone to accept a claim.
• Examples

• Wishful thinking
• to accept a claim simply because it would be
  pleasant if it were true.
• Example
• Believing God exists

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The peer pressure argument

• Peer pressure argument
• To accept (or urge acceptance of) some claim
  because one will gain someones approval if she
  does.
• Examples

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The group think fallacyand Nationalism

• The group think fallacy occurs when one
  substitutes pride of membership in a group for
  reason and logic in arriving at some claim.
• Examples of groups

• Nationalism
• when national pride leads one to blind
  endorsement of a country and its policies.
• Examples

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Rationalizing

• One rationalizes when she uses a false pretext to
  satisfy her own desire.
• Example
• Mr. Smith rationalizes the Table Saw he gives his
  wife

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Argument from popularity

• This occurs when someone accepts some claim on
  the grounds that all or most of some group of
  people (not experts) believe it.
• Just because everyone believes something doesnt
  make it true
• Example

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Arguments from common practice andfrom tradition

• Argument from common practice
• when someone justifies some action on the grounds
  that it is common.
• Example

• Argument from tradition
• when someone justifies some action on the grounds
  that it is tradition.
• Example

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Relativism fallacy two wrongs make a right

• Relativism fallacy
• to think that one and the same factual claim can
  be both true for one person or culture and false
  for another.
• Example

• Two Wrongs make a Right
• When someone performs a wrong action and you
  retaliate with another wrong action.
• Examples

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Red Herrings

• Red Herring
• When an argument is being made in favor of some
  claim and someone introduces another claim for
  the sake of distracting attention away from the
  original argument, she has introduced a red
  herring.
• The purpose of the red herring is distraction
• Changing the subject
• Examples

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Smokescreens

• Smokescreen
• when an argument is being made in favor of a
  claim and she attempts to distract attention away
  from it by piling issues on top of it or by
  making the argument overly complex until the
  original argument is lost in the verbal smoke.
• For example
• What reasons were given for Invading Iraq?