The Introduction To FallaciesWord下载.docx

1、argument in which the premises given for the conclusion do not provide the needed degree of support. A deductive fallacy is a deductive argument that is invalid （it is such that it could have all true premises and still have a false conclusion）. An inductive fallacy is less formal than a deductive f

2、allacy. They are simply arguments which appear to be inductive arguments, but the premises do not provided enough support for the conclusion. In such cases, even if the premises were true, the conclusion would not be more likely to be true. Examples of Fallacies1. Inductive Argument Premise 1: Most

3、American cats are domestic house cats. Premise 2: Bill is an American cat. Conclusion: Bill is domestic house cat. 2. Factual Error Columbus is the capital of the United States. 3. Deductive Fallacy If Portland is the capital of Maine, then it is in Maine. Portland is in Maine. Portland is the capit

4、al of Maine. （Portland is in Maine, but Augusta is the capital. Portland is the largest city in Maine, though.） 4. Inductive Fallacy Having just arrived in Ohio, I saw a white squirrel. All Ohio Squirrels are white. （While there are many, many squirrels in Ohio, the white ones are very rare）. Fallac

5、y: Ad Hominem Description of Ad HominemTranslated from Latin to English, Ad Hominem means against the man or against the person. An Ad Hominem is a general category of fallacies in which a claim or argument is rejected on the basis of some irrelevant fact about the author of or the person presenting

6、 the claim or argument. Typically, this fallacy involves two steps. First, an attack against the character of person making the claim, her circumstances, or her actions is made （or the character, circumstances, or actions of the person reporting the claim）. Second, this attack is taken to be evidenc

7、e against the claim or argument the person in question is making （or presenting）. This type of has the following form:1. Person A makes claim X. 2. Person B makes an attack on person A. 3. Therefore As claim is false. The reason why an Ad Hominem （of any kind） is a fallacy is that the character, cir

8、cumstances, or actions of a person do not （in most cases） have a bearing on the truth or falsity of the claim being made （or the quality of the argument being made）. Example of Ad Hominem1. Bill: I believe that abortion is morally wrong.Dave:Of course you would say that, youre a priest.Bill:What abo

9、ut the arguments I gave to support my position?Those dont count. Like I said, youre a priest, so you have to say that abortion is wrong. Further, you are just a lackey to the Pope, so I cant believe what you say. Ad Hominem Tu Quoque Also Known as:You Too FallacyDescription of Ad Hominem Tu QuoqueTh

10、is fallacy is committed when it is concluded that a persons claim is false because 1） it is inconsistent with something else a person has said or 2） what a person says is inconsistent with her actions. This type of 2. Person B asserts that As actions or past claims are inconsistent with the truth of

11、 claim X. 3. Therefore X is false. The fact that a person makes inconsistent claims does not make any particular claim he makes false （although of any pair of inconsistent claims only one can be true - but both can be false）. Also, the fact that a persons claims are not consistent with his actions m

12、ight indicate that the person is a hypocrite but this does not prove his claims are false. Examples of Ad Hominem Tu QuoqueSmoking is very unhealthy and leads to all sorts of problems. So take my advice and never start.Jill:Well, I certainly dont want to get cancer.Im going to get a smoke. Want to j

13、oin me Dave?Well, I guess smoking cant be that bad. After all, Bill smokes.2. Jill:I think the gun control bill shouldnt be supported because it wont be effective and will waste money.Well, just last month you supported the bill. So I guess youre wrong now.3. Peter:Based on the arguments I have pres

14、ented, it is evident that it is morally wrong to use animals for food or clothing.But you are wearing a leather jacket and you have a roast beef sandwich in your hand! How can you say that using animals for food and clothing is wrong! Appeal to Authority Fallacious Appeal to Authority, Misuse of Aut

15、hority, Irrelevant Authority, Questionable Authority, Inappropriate Authority, Ad Verecundiam Description of Appeal to AuthorityAn Appeal to Authority is a fallacy with the following form:1. Person A is （claimed to be） an authority on subject S. 2. Person A makes claim C about subject S. 3. Therefor

16、e, C is true. This fallacy is committed when the person in question is not a legitimate authority on the subject. More formally, if person A is not qualified to make reliable claims in subject S, then the argument will be fallacious. This sort of reasoning is fallacious when the person in question i

17、s not an expert. In such cases the reasoning is flawed because the fact that an unqualified person makes a claim does not provide any justification for the claim. The claim could be true, but the fact that an unqualified person made the claim does not provide any rational reason to accept the claim

18、as true. When a person falls prey to this fallacy, they are accepting a claim as true without there being adequate evidence to do so. More specifically, the person is accepting the claim because they erroneously believe that the person making the claim is a legitimate expert and hence that the claim

19、 is reasonable to accept. Since people have a tendency to believe authorities （and there are, in fact, good reasons to accept some claims made by authorities） this fallacy is a fairly common one. Since this sort of reasoning is fallacious only when the person is not a legitimate authority in a particular context, it is necessary to provide some acceptable standards of assessment. The following standards are widely accepted:1. The person has sufficient expertise in the subject matter in question. Claims made by a person who lacks the needed degree of expertise to make a reliable claim wi