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Logical Fallacies Engl 1302 Heilig
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What are logical fallacies? Bad! Common errors in reasoning Often substitute emotion for evidence Often oversimplify arguments Are not always obvious
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Identifying Fallacies There are many common fallacy types Finding fallacies in others’ arguments will: Help prevent manipulation Help you identify them in your own writing Make you a more mindful/aware citizen
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Example: Begging the Question When you restate your claim in a different way and pass it off as evidence Also known as circular logic or an unsupported assertion Accept the conclusion, no questions asked Examples: Students should not be allowed to park in lots now reserved for faculty because those lots should be for faculty only. Active euthanasia is morally acceptable. It is a decent, ethical thing to help another human being escape suffering through death.
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Hasty Generalization, False Cause, and Post Hoc These fallacies all have to do with drawing conclusions from evidence that might not be connected Hasty generalization: coincidence = fact False cause: correlation = causation Post hoc (after this): A happens because of B, because A has happened because of B before
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Oversimplification and Slippery Slope These fallacies make huge conclusions based on weak assumptions or little evidence Oversimplification: A quick black & white answer to a complex problem No one would be depressed if we gave everyone the boxed set of Star Wars blu-rays. Slippery Slope: A leads to B leads to C because of Reasons Because I overslept, I missed class, which means I’m going to fail the final, which means I’m going to drop out of college, which means I won’t get a job, which means I now have to live in a van down by the river
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Rationalization & Bandwagon These fallacies are based on excuses or deflection of the main issue at hand -Rationalization: Provides an explanation or defense of something -My science-fiction sequel to Hamlet would have made bank if people still appreciated the arts! -Bandwagon: Everyone else is doing it, why not me? -Bob drinks six shots of tequila every weeknight and passes all his classes, so everyone should be able to do the same thing
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Ad Hominem, Polarization, and Straw Man These are fallacies which attack the source of the argument instead of the argument itself Ad hominem (against the man): personal attacks on the author/name-calling Bill Nye smokes marijuana, so what he has to say about science isn’t valid. Polarization: Us vs. Them, us = awesome, them = the worst people on the planet People who think Star Trek is better than Star Wars are delinquents with no moral values Straw Man: Oversimplifying or misrepresenting the opposing side (setting up a dummy to attack) Others want gun control because they hate freedom.
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Examples: Outbreak! http://thedailyshow.cc.com/videos/g1lev1/an-outbreak-of-liberal-idiocy http://thedailyshow.cc.com/videos/g1lev1/an-outbreak-of-liberal-idiocy http://mediamatters.org/video/2011/10/19/dana-loesch-brings-the-nazis- like-occupy-wall-s/182296 http://mediamatters.org/video/2011/10/19/dana-loesch-brings-the-nazis- like-occupy-wall-s/182296 What fallacies do you see in the following clips?
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