Ad Hominem (Argument to the Man)

Question 1

Attacking the person instead of his argument.

Answer 1

Ad Hominem

Question 2

“Von Daniken’s books about ancient astronauts are worthless because he is a convicted forger and embezzler.”

Answer 2

Ad Hominem

Question 3

Simply attempting to make the other person angry, without trying to address the argument at hand. Delaying tactic.

Answer 3

Needling

Question 4

“Well, you’re just smarter than the rest of us.”

Answer 4

Dismissal by Differentness

Question 5

A wink at an audience, or clowning in their general direction.

Answer 5

Argument by Personal Charm

Question 6

Attacking an exaggerated or caricatured version of your opponent’s position.

Answer 6

Straw Man (Fallacy of Extension)

Question 7

“evolution means a dog giving birth to a cat.”

Answer 7

Straw Man (Fallacy of Extension)

Question 8

“Senator Jones says that we should not fund the attack submarine program. I disagree entirely. I can’t understand why he wants to leave us defenseless like that.”

Answer 8

Straw Man (Fallacy of Extension)

Question 9

On the internet, exaggerating the opponent’s position so that a comparison can be made between the opponent and Hitler.

Answer 9

Straw Man (Fallacy of Extension)

Question 10

“Two historians debated whether Hitler killed five million Jews or six million Jews. A Holocaust denier argued that this disagreement made his claim credible, even though his death count is 3-10 times smaller than the known minimum.

Answer 10

Inflation of Conflict

Question 11

“The defendant in a murder trial must be found guilty, because otherwise husbands will be encouraged to murder their wives.”

Answer 11

Argument from Adverse Consequences (Appeal to Fear, Scare Tactics)

Question 12

Using the arguments that support your position, but ignoring or somehow disallowing the arguments against.

Answer 12

Special Pleading (Stacking the Deck)

Question 13

Assuming there are only two alternatives when in face there are more. Ex. Atheism is the only alternative to Fundamentalism.

Answer 13

Excluded Middle (False Dichotomy, Faulty Dilemma, Bifurcation)

Question 14

The claim that whatever has not yet been proved false must be true (or vice versa).

Answer 14

Burden of Proof

Question 15

Asking your opponent a question which does not have a snappy answer. Your opponent has a choice: he can look weak or he can look long-winded.

Answer 15

Argument by Question

Question 16

“When are we going to give the old folks of this country the pension they deserve?”

Answer 16

Argument by Rhetorical Question

Question 17

“Have you stopped beating your wife?”

Answer 17

Loaded Question

Question 18

Over-simplifying. As Einstein said, everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler. Political slogans such as “Taxation is theft” fall in this category.

Answer 18

Reductive Fallacy (Oversimplification)

Question 19

If an argument or arguer has some particular origin, the argument must be right (or wrong). The idea is that things from that origin, or that social class, have virtue or lack virtue.

Answer 19

Genetic Fallacy (Fallacy of Origins, Fallacy of Virtue)

Question 20

If you learn the psychological reason why your opponent likes an argument, then he’s biased, so his argument must be wrong.

Answer 20

Psychogenetic Fallacy

Question 21

Snobbery that very old (or very young) arguments are superior. Variation of the Genetic Fallacy, but has the psychological appeal of seniority and tradition (or innovation).

Answer 21

Argument from Age (Wisdom of the Ancients)

Question 22

Ideas from elsewhere are made unwelcome. “This is the way we’ve always done it.” Innovations will upset matters. Local ways are superior, local identity is worth any cost… etc.

Answer 22

Not Invented Here

Question 23

Arguing that evidence will someday be discovered which will (then) support your point.

Answer 23

Argument to the Future

Question 24

Discrediting the sources used by your opponent. Variation of Ad Hominem

Answer 24

Poisoning the Wells

Question 25

Using emotionally loaded words to sway the audience’s sentiments instead of their minds.

Answer 25

Argument by Emotive Language (Appeal to the People)

Question 26

Getting the audience to cut you slack. Ex. Ronald Reagan “Join the winning team.”

Answer 26

Argument by Personal Charm

Question 27

“I did not murder my mother and father with an axe ! Please don’t find me guilty. I’m suffering enough being an orphan.”

Answer 27

Appeal to Pity (Appeal to Sympathy, The Galileo Argument)

Question 28

Threats, or even violence. On the net, the usual threat is of a lawsuit. The traditional religious threat is that one will burn in Hell.

Answer 28

Appeal to Force

Question 29

Being loud. UPPERCASE

Answer 29

Argument by Vehemence

Question 30

Reasoning in a circle. “We must have a death penalty to discourage violent crime.”

Answer 30

Begging the Question (Assuming the Answer, Tautology)

Question 31

The claim that the speaker is an expert, and so should be trusted.

Answer 31

Argument from Authority

Question 32

“I’m not a doctor, but I play one on TV.”

Answer 32

Argument From False Authority

Question 33

“Experts agree that…”, “scientists say…” or even “they say…” This makes the information impossible to verify, and brings up the very real possibility that the arguer himself doesn’t know who the experts are. In that case, he may just be spreading a rumor.

Answer 33

Appeal To Anonymous Authority

Question 34

“I used to believe in X.” This is simply a weak form of asserting expertise. The speaker is implying that he has learned about the subject, and now that he is better informed, he has rejected X. So perhaps he is now an authority, and this is an implied Argument From Authority.

Answer 34

Statement of Conversion

Question 35

“I used to think that way when I was your age.” The speaker hasn’t said what is wrong with your argument: he is merely claiming that his age has made him an expert.

Answer 35

Statement of Conversion

Question 36

Claiming that two situations are highly similar, when they aren’t. “The solar system reminds me of an atom, with planets orbiting the sun like electrons orbiting the nucleus. We know that electrons can jump from orbit to orbit; so we must look to ancient records for sightings of planets jumping from orbit to orbit also.”

Answer 36

Bad Analogy

Question 37

There is a WWII story about a British lady who was trained in spotting German airplanes. She made a report about a certain very important type of plane. While being quizzed, she explained that she hadn’t been sure, herself, until she noticed that it had a little man in the cockpit, just like the little model airplane at the training class.

Answer 37

Argument From Spurious Similarity

Question 38

An abstract thing is talked about as if it were concrete. “Nature abhors a vacuum.”

Answer 38

Reifying

Question 39

Assuming that because two things happened, the first one caused the second one. Ex. “Before women got the vote, there were no nuclear weapons.” or, “Every time my brother Bill accompanies me to Fenway Park, the Red Sox are sure to lose.”

Answer 39

False Cause

Question 40

When sales of hot chocolate go up, street crime drops. Does this correlation mean that hot chocolate prevents crime? No, it means that fewer people are on the streets when the weather is cold.

Answer 40

Confusing Correlation and Causation

Question 41

The bigger a child’s shoe size, the better the child’s handwriting. Does having big feet make it easier to write? No, it means the child is older.

Answer 41

Confusing Correlation and Causation

Question 42

Using as evidence a well-known wise saying, as if that is proven, or as if it has no exceptions.

Answer 42

Cliche Thinking

Question 43

The claim, as evidence for an idea, that many people believe it, or used to believe it, or do it.

Answer 43

Appeal to Widespread Belief (Bandwagon Argument, Peer Pressure, Appeal to Common Practice)

Question 44

Assuming that what is true of the whole is true of each constituent part. Ex. human beings are made of atoms, and human beings are conscious, so atoms must be conscious.

Answer 44

Fallacy of Division