Rational Thinking & Creative Ideas Erroneous Reasoning: Fallacies 1. Fallacies are simply mistakes or defects that occur in arguments. They are incorrect inferences. Fallacious arguments may superficially be persuasive‚ but logically incorrect. Fallacies can be committed in many ways‚ but usually they involve either a mistake in reasoning or creation of some illusion that make a bad argument appear good. Understanding fallacies and knowing why some inferences are incorrect could help us to
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Fallacies and Generalizations Posted by John Smith on March 30‚ 2011 Fallacies and generalizations of complex topics is common in today’s high-pace society. Even before the era of 24/7 news‚ it was often easier to persuade people to an action if the terms were simplified. Unfortunately‚ this simplification often mires debates‚ and those who have no cost to being wrong often burden others with the cost of making a wrong decision. As I have been reading Economic Facts and Fallacies (by Sowell)
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I. Fallacies A. What are Fallacies B. Bandwagon Fallacy C. Either – Or Fallacy A fallacy is an error in reasoning in which the evidence given for the conclusion does not provide the needed degree of support. Fallacies are defects that weaken the speaker’s arguments when trying to persuade an audience while speaking. By preparing yourself to look for fallacies in your own and others’ writing you can strengthen your ability to avoid using fallacies. There are two important things to know about
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| | | | Fallacy Assignment The article that I chose for my fallacy assignment is: “Arrest Everybody” by Jacob Sullivan. This article is an editorial article discussing Arizona’s immigration reform law. The article is addressing the specific law that requires police to investigate the immigration status of people they encounter during their daily police duties. Sullivan is arguing that Arizona’s new law is encouraging police to imitate or emulate other officers
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English 1C 05 June 2015 The Weakness in Fallacies Fallacies are land minds hidden beneath a flatbed of language. They appear hidden to the eye that lacks the knowledge about them. Most go by undetected and cloaked. We experience them everyday and a lot of them go through our heads because we are unaware of them. Depending on how elaborate the fallacy is‚ it can potentially sway people to a certain decision‚ either mundane or crucial. Identifying fallacies are important because you can develop the
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3/4/12 Fallacies I’ve Used I have use many fallacies on a daily basis‚ but I have noticed that the fallacies I use the most are the appeal to bandwagon‚ poisoning the well‚ and apples and oranges. I appeal to bandwagon by always using peer pressure whenever I try to convince people to do things. For example during my senior year in high school‚ the upcoming senior ditch day was coming up and I tried to convince my friends to skip the day with me. To convince them‚ I said that most seniors in our
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Logical Fallacies Response 1. Hasty Generalization: My father smoked four packs of cigarettes a day since age fourteen‚ and lived until age sixty-nine. Therefore‚ smoking really can’t be that bad for you. Explanation: This is a clear example of a hasty generalization. The writer concludes that smoking is universally not bad just because his or her father is still alive although he smokes a lot. The health risk of smoking cannot be claimed based on the case study of one person. It is very unreasonable
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An Encyclopedia of Errors of Reasoning The ability to identify logical fallacies in the arguments of others‚ and to avoid them in one’s own arguments‚ is both valuable and increasingly rare. Fallacious reasoning keeps us from knowing the truth‚ and the inability to think critically makes us vulnerable to manipulation by those skilled in the art of rhetoric. What is a Logical Fallacy? A logical fallacy is‚ roughly speaking‚ an error of reasoning. When someone adopts a position‚ or tries to persuade
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1. argumentum ad baculum a. Chairman of the Board: "All those opposed to my arguments for the opening of a new department‚ signify by saying‚ ‘I resign.’" b. The Department of Transportation needs to reconsider the speed limit proposals on interstate highways for the simple reason that if they do not‚ their departmental budget for Department of Transportation will be cut by 25%. c. I’m sure you can support the proposal to diversify into the fast food industry because if I receive any opposition on
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Logical Fallacies Logical fallacies have existed since the dawn of time. As defined by Bassham et al a logical fallacy "is an argument that contains a mistake in reasoning." With this definition one must keep in mind that the definition of an argument according to Bassham et al is "a claim put forward and defended by reasons." The ability to recognize logical fallacy will enable one to break down an argument. This ability is crucial to the critical thinking process. Logical fallacies can be
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