Argument Ploys, Tactics, and Logical Fallacies Flashcards
The erudition ploy
Overwhelm your audience with examples of the breadth or depth of your knowledge. An easily cowed audience will take your word for it rather than challenge you on specific points.
(Ethos)
The bragging gambit
Brag openly and hyperbolically if your audience is the type to appreciate it. (For example, it didn’t bother the fans of Mohammad Ali.)
(Ethos)
The character reference ploy
Get others to do your bragging for you.
Ethos
The tactical flaw ploy
Reveal a weakness that wins sympathy or shows the sacrifice you’ve made for the cause. Endear yourself by revealing your imperfection.
(Ethos)
The flip flop ploy
When an argument is doomed to go against you, heartily support the other side.
(Ethos)
The Eddie Haskell ploy
Make an inevitable decision look like a willing sacrifice on your part. In other words, when it seems that a decision won’t go your way, endorse it as proof of your disinterest and virtue. Short of open bribery, it’s the greatest sucking-up tool ever invented.
(Ethos)
The reverse Eddie Haskell ploy
Turn down an offer, saying you or someone close to you is not right for it.
(Ethos)
The reluctant conclusion
Act as though you felt compelled to reach your conclusion, despite your own desire not to believe it.
(Ethos)
The self-doubt ploy
(Dubitatio)
Show doubt about your own rhetorical skill. Lower expectations and convince the audience of your sincerity and authenticity. The best trick of all: make it seem like you have no tricks.
(Ethos)
The personal sacrifice ploy
Claim the choice will help the audience more than it will help you; even better, maintain that you will suffer from the decision.
(Ethos)
The sincerity ploy
Get your audience’s attention by disarming them: “I brought some prepared remarks, but after meeting some of you today I’ve decided to speak from the heart.”
(Ethos)
The reframing ploy
Reframe an argument by redefining a term or changing the terms of an argument. “It’s not ____; it’s _____.” The best correction makes you look more virtuous than your opponent by using a term that the audience values more.
(Ethos or Logos)
The vivid dream ploy
Describe your idea’s success in vivid detail as though the audience had already accomplished it.
(Ethos)
The I’ve got all the time in the world ploy
The petty functionaries of the world can either cut you a break or prepare to spend a long, long, long time on the phone with you.
(Ethos)
The humblebrag ploy
Using self-deprecating humor to brag (more socially acceptable than straightforward bragging).
(Ethos)
The Stalin technique
Don’t speak until the end of a meeting, waiting for others to exhaust their arguments, then step in, recapitulate what’s been said already, and frame the issue in a way favorable to your own opinion.
(Ethos)
The Hey Pal ploy
Interrupt your speaking to address a difference audience. This keeps your audience on their toes. You can point out a different audience, even a virtual audience, or someone in the audience.
(Ethos)
The ironic distance ploy
Distance yourself from a overly pathetic (emotional) appeal.
Ethos
The emotional refusal ploy
When being bullied or heckled, refuse to show the emotion the bully wants. Gain an audience’s sympathy by trying to look calm and above it all.
(Ethos)
The joke ploy
Lighten the mood by making a joke. Good as a distraction, not for changing someone’s mind, usually. (Might help ethos though.)
(Ethos)
The banter ploy
A form of attack and defense consisting of clever insults and snappy comebacks. The object is to outinsult your opponent. May help cement relationships.
(Ethos)
The how would you put it ploy
“I’m sorry. How would you have put it?” Instead of getting defensive, you put your own words in their mouth.
(Ethos)
The if loving you is wrong defense
Someone says you’re doing something the wrong way. Point out when the person has been wrong about something else and say, if that’s the right way, I’ll do it the wrong way, thanks.
(Ethos)
The dodged question ploy
Ask who benefits from this choice. If you don’t get a straight answer, don’t trust the person’s disinterest.
(Ethos)
The comparable experience ploy
The practically wise persuader shows examples from his own life.
(Ethos)
The cut to the chase ploy
A trustworthy, practically wise persuader sees your actual needs even if you haven’t mentioned them. Can the person cut to the chase of an issue?
(Ethos)
The ironic love ploy
A bully wants you to cower or blush or run away in embarrassment. If you want to reverse the power dynamic, try pretending deep affection with just a little bit of pity. This kind of irony works best if your audience can see right through it. It’s really hard for a bully to respond to a loving, slightly pitying smile.
(Ethos)
The virtuous pose ploy
To win over your audience, show that you’re the better person. Respond to the bully’s heckling by calmly offering a conversation later (even if you want to kill him). Don’t show negative emotions, and seem slightly disappointed when the bully refuses to calmly talk it over with you.
(Ethos)
The aggressive interest ploy
Respond to a political bully by feigning sympathetic curiosity while continually asking for definitions of terms, details, and sources.
(Ethos)
The oh, you shouldn’t have ploy
(Accismus).
Acting coy.
Cheapskate: “No, let me… Really? Are you sure?”
(Ethos)
The code grooming ploy
Use insider language to get an audience to identify with you and your idea. Use language unique to the group, and as long as you don’t apply it indecorously, you’ll get in tight with your audience. Code language determines who’s in and out of a group. Find specific commonplace terms that make a group bond, and use them again and again and again.
(Ethos)
The Bushism ploy
Use logic-free speech full of code grooming.
Ethos
The reverse words ploy
Repeat the terms that express the opposite of your weakness or your opponent’s stance. Repeat the words that mean the opposite of what hurts your case.
Opponent: your department is failing to meet its goals. Wrong answer: it’s not really failing.
Right answer: well, we aren’t breaking records yet.
Significant other (looking fat): does this make me look fat? Wrong answer: no, not that fat at all. Right answer: it doesn't make you look thin.
Wrong: “We hadn’t anticipated the violent reaction to the invasion.”
Reverse words: “We are welcomed, but it was not a peaceful welcome.”
(Ethos)
The negative endorsement ploy
(Your boss’s despised predecessor) Larry would have loved that idea. Risky though, potentially linking you to the wrong person.
(Ethos)
The name-dropping ploy
Make yourself seem important by associating yourself with important people.
(Ethos)
The challenge as opportunity ploy
Turn a problem into identity rhetoric.
“Let it be said by our children’s children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God’s grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.”
(Ethos)
The you’ll do better next time ploy
Admonish your audience by flattering it.
“America, we are better than these last eight years. We are a better country this.”
“Oh, Sadie! You don’t do things like that. You’re a good girl.”
(Ethos)
The honor the deceased ploy
Channel the ethos of a great character by using characteristic verbal strategies of the deceased.
“In the struggle for peace and justice, we cannot walk alone. In the struggle for equality, we cannot walk alone. In the struggle to heal this nation and repair this world, we cannot walk alone.”
(Ethos)
The act cute ploy
Act in a manner so cute and endearing, the other person wants to do your bidding to please you. Works best for babies and pets.
(Ethos)
The concession ploy
Concede your opponent’s point in order to win what you want.
Logos
The anticipatory concession ploy
Agree in advance to what the other person is likely to say.
Logos
Antithesis
Contrast two thoughts by putting them side by side.
Logos
The Goldilocks technique
Put the option you want someone else to decide on in the middle between two extremes. For instance, in a store, put a mid-priced item between a cheap piece of junk and an expensive luxury item.
(Logos)
The doubt ploy
(Aporia)
Wonder openly or admit you can’t fathom a reason, and the audience will unconsciously start reasoning for you. Without even knowing it, they comfortably get inside your head.
(Logos)
The “But wait, there’s more…” ploy
A form of amplification. A tactic that turns the volume up when you speak. Layer your points this way.
(Logos)
The digression ploy
Stray off topic to change the tone and rhythm of an argument.
(Logos)
The babbling ploy
Repeating the same commonplace over and over. The other person doesn’t get it, the crux of the issue, the bedrock of your opinion, so you repeat yourself.
(Logos)
The deliberation omission ploy
(Metastatis)
The deliberate omission of the more awkward or controversial subjects related to a topic of discussion. One of the more manipulative figures.
(Logos)
The redefinition ploy
Don’t automatically accept the meaning your opponent attaches to a word. Redefine it in your favor. Accept your opponent’s terms while changing their connotation.
(Logos)
The definition jujitsu ploy
Accept your opponent’s term and its connotation; then defend it as a positive thing. If your opponent’s terms actually favor you, use them to attack
(Logos)
The definition judo ploy
Use terms that contrast with your opponent’s, creating a context that emphasizes their (or their argument’s) weakness and makes them look bad.
(Logos)
The twist a cliche ploy
Concede your opponent’s cliche and then deliberately mess it up. You can tack on a surprise ending or take it literally.
Surprise ending:
“I want to look like her. It looks like she was poured into that bathing suit.”
“And forgot to say when.”
Take it literally:
“The early bird catches the worm.”
“You can have it.”
(Logos)
The reverse a cliche’s syntax ploy
Refreshen a cliche by reversing the syntax.
“In this case the worm got the bird.”
Can also use a chiasmus:
“My friends never call me.”
“Do you ever call your friends?”
(Logos)
The one word ploy
Get your audience to remember one thing by putting it in one word.
“Virginia, I have just one word for you, just one word. Tomorrow. Tomorrow.”
(Logos)
The argument from strength
(Argumentum a fortiori)
If this hard thing is possible, an easier thing must be.
“He’s a picky eater, and he loves this restaurant.”
(Logos)
The confronting a bigot gambit
When some starts spouting hateful speech, point out a particular innocent person of that group that would be affected by this bigotry, while describing values you have in common.
(Logos)
The sympathy ploy
Share your listener’s mood. Register concern for your audience’s emotions (usually by mimicking them) and then change the mood to suit your argument.
(Pathos)
The backfire ploy
Inspire sympathy through a mea culpa routine that exaggerates the emotions that your audience feels.
Works best one-on-one, with someone you know and like. Strangers may take your dramatic statement at face value.
Artie: “Do me a favor. just kick my ass, okay? Kick this ass for a man, that’s all. Kick my ass. Enjoy. Come on. I’m not asking, I’m telling. Kick my ass.”
A friend won’t kick your ass, but a stranger might.
You can calm an individual’s emotion in advance by overplaying it yourself. This works especially well when you screw up and want to to prevent the wrath of an authority.
(Pathos)
The oversympathizing ploy
Sympathize with someone else, but go too far. Oversympathizing makes someone’s mood seem ridiculous without actually ridiculing it.
(Pathos)
The storytelling ploy
The best way to change your audience’s mood. Make it directly involve you or the audience. Telling a story in the first-person has the most pathetic (emotional) appeal to an audience.
(Pathos)
The self-control ploy
A persuader who apparently struggles to hold back her emotions will get better results than one who displays her emotions too forthrightly. When you argue emotionally, speak simply. People in the middle of a strong emotion rarely use elaborate speech. Less is more. Less evokes more.
(Pathos)
The terrify an underling ploy (who has been found to do or say the wrong thing)
Speak more softly than usual, don’t gesture with your hands, and let your eyes betray cold fury.
(Pathos)
The belittlement charge
Show your opponent dissing your audience’s needs, wants, dreams, and desires. This’ll rile them up.
(Pathos)
The patriotism ploy
Rouse your audience’s group feelings by showing a rival group’s success or show this other group disrespecting your territory or symbols. Invoke the pride of the group.
(Pathos)
The announced emotion ploy
Inoculate your audience from an emotion by specifically stating it in advance; i.e., “promise me you won’t get angry.”
(Pathos)
The nostalgia ploy
Promise a return to a perfect past.
Pathos
The desire ploy
Exploit your audience’s lust for something (flowers, bikinis). This can push them from to taking action once their mind is mostly made up, bridging the persuasion gap.
(Pathos)
The passive voice ploy
Pretend that things happened on their own. You didn’t track mud across the floor. Mud was tracked across the living room floor. This is weaselly if you’re at fault, honorable if you’re trying to cover for someone else, say a friend or coworker.
(Pathos)
The keep everything simple ploy
When dealing with someone already angry, use simple language and avoid jargon, so that the person doesn’t think more deeply and more crossly about what you’re saying. keep sentences short, and use plainspoken, honest-sounding language.
(Pathos)
Give them a choice ploy
Give them a choice, usually between two options, allowing them to weigh on their preference and mood. Makes the audience feel more powerful and gives them a sense of self-control. People who feel powerless lash out more.
(Pathos)
The smile ploy
Smile at someone, and they may smile back in turn. People who are smiling don’t dwell on unpleasant subjects. Frowning people think more analytically.
(Pathos)
The dialogue ploy
A character repeats another past conversation with another character using dialogue (paraphrased or approximated). Adds realism to storytelling.
(Pathos)
The cinematic present ploy
Switch from past to present tense for the sake of vividness. A tricky technique, but can work well, especially in oral storytelling.
(Pathos)
The take pity on me ploy
An appeal to take pity on the speaker. Any combination of whining, crying, and begging falls under this category.
(Pathos)
The unverified given ploy
Speak of an unproven point as if it’s already a given. It’s a risky technique because the audience might call you on it.
(Pathos)
Argument by the stick
(The threat ploy)
Fear compels people to act, and compulsion precludes a choice. No argument there, only naked instinct.
(Fighting)
The I’m not going to get personal, but… ploy
Attack a person’s reputation without seeming to. Say “I’m not going to make personal attacks; I just want to…” and then name your opponent’s personal weakness.
For instance if you’re debating a professor who has a tendency to overtheorize, say, “I’m not just going to get personal; I just want to talk about the practicalities.”
(Fighting)
The no-to-mention ploy
(Paralipsis)
Mentions something by saying you’re not going to mention it. As in “not to mention that you snore like a buzz saw in bed.” It makes you sound fairer than you are–denying that you’ll kick a man when while digging a boot into his ribs.
(Fighting)
The ad hominem attack
Attacking the other person’s character. Formal logic considers it a fallacy, but it’s A-OK in rhetoric. Humiliation is a form of ad hominem attack.
(Fighting)
The innuendo ploy
An insidious form of humiliation. Latin for “a significant nod.” Insulting someone for insult’s sake, not trying to persuade an audience, using an allusive disparaging remark or hint.
(Fighting)
The insulting hint ploy
A subtler form of innuendo, turning one a compliment into a slam.
“Good to see you wearing a tie today.”
(Fighting)
The benign innuendo ploy
(Significatio)
Hint at more than the words say.
Interviewer: what do you think of your boss?
You: he’s very particular about his clothing.
(Fighting)
The middle finger ploy
Don’t try to persuade. Express your anger and fight.
Fighting
The edit yourself out loud ploy
(Formal name: epergesis, meaning explanation), aka the correction figure.
Interrupt yourself, pretend you can’t think of what to say, or correct something in the middle of your own sentence.
Moe: “I’m better than dirt. Well, most kinds of dirt, not that fancy store-bought dirt… I can’t compete with that stuff.”
Without the correction figure: “I’ve never been so embarrassed as I was watching you at the party last night.”
With the correction figure: “I never was so embarrassed as I was last night. Actually, I have been that embarrassed–the last time we went to a party together.”
Correcting yourself makes the audience believe you have a passion for fairness and accuracy even while you pile on the accusations.
(Fighting)
The mocking imitation ploy
Talk about someone not currently present by mocking their way of speaking or mannerisms (a way of distancing them from the mind of your immediate audience). Bring audience inside the joke, distance the victim.
(Fighting)
The all natural fallacy
It assumes that members of the same family have the same traits.
Some all natural things are great for you; some are poison.
(Logical Fallacy)
The deliberate ambiguity ploy
Say “all-natural ingredients,” not “all natural ingredients.”
(Logical Fallacy)
The appeal to popularity ploy
“Because all the other kids get to, I should, too.” If a lot of people believe it, it must be true. The premise fails to reach the conclusion. While this is not kosher in logic, it is acceptable in rhetoric, given that it’s a legitimate kind of appeal to ethos.
(Logical Fallacy)
Reductio ad absurdum
Reducing an argument to absurdity. The premise is unbelievable.
(Logical Fallacy)
The fallacy of antecedent
It never happened before, so it never will. For instance, “I’ve never gotten into a car accident before” or “My dog doesn’t bite.”
(Logical Fallacy)
The false analogy
I can do this well, so I can do this unrelated thing just as well.
(Logical Fallacy)
Unit fallacy
Mistaking one kind of unit for another. One apple plus one orange equals two apples.
(Logical Fallacy)
Pathetic fallacy
Plants or objects that seem like people have feelings like people do. Sounding human doesn’t make them human.
(Logical Fallacy)
Reverse pathetic fallacy
The idea that horrible people are monsters, not people.
Horrible people are still people, even if they act like monsters.
(Logical Fallacy)
Misinterpreting the evidence
The examples don’t support the conclusion.
“Seeing all those crimes on TV makes me want to lock up my kid and never let him out.”
(Logical Fallacy)
The hasty generalization
The argument offers too few examples to prove the point.
“That intern from Yale was great. Let’s get another Yalie.”
(Logical Fallacy)
The fallacy of ignorance
If we can’t prove it, then it must not exist.
Alternatively, if we can’t disprove it, it must exist.
“Doctor: there’s nothing wrong with you. The tests all came back negative.”
(Logical Fallacy)
Tautology
The same thing gets repeated using different words as if you’re proving something. Also known as begging the question.
The proof doesn’t support the choice because the proof is the choice.
“You can trust our candidate because he’s an honest man.”
Politicians love this trick.
(Logical Fallacy)
The many questions fallacy
Two or more questions get squashed into one, so that a conclusion proves another conclusion.
“When did you stop beating your wife?”
“What did the president know, and when did he know it?”
(Logical Fallacy)
The false dilemma
You’re given two choices when you actually have many choices.
“You can help this child, or you can turn the page.”
(Logical Fallacy)
The complex cause fallacy
Only one cause gets the blame (or credit) for something that has many causes.
“If you’re so smart, why aren’t you rich?”
(Logical Fallacy)
The red herring
(aka the Chewbacca defense)
It switches issues in midargument to throw the audience off the scent.
“If Chewbacca lives on Endor, you must acquit.”
(Logical Fallacy)
The whataboutism ploy
Avoid talking about your side’s faults by pointing out that the other side has done comparable wrongs. A type of red herring.
(Logical Fallacy)
The straw man
A version of the red herring, it switches topics to one that’s easier to fight.
(Logical Fallacy)
The slippery slope fallacy
If we allow this reasonable thing, it will inevitably lead to an extreme version of it.
(Logical Fallacy)
Post hoc ergo propter hoc
(the Chanticleer fallacy)
After this, therefore because of this. The reason (“This followed that”) doesn’t lead to the conclusion (“This caused that.”).
“Our newsletter was a big success. After we started publishing it, donations went way up.”
(Logical Fallacy)
The fallacy of power (appeal to authority)
The person on top wants it, so it must be good. This logical fallacy is fine to use in rhetoric, a kind of appeal to ethos.
(Logical Fallacy)
Yogiism
A figure of logical nonsense that makes a crude emotional sense. A kind of paradox.
“No one goes there anymore. It’s too crowded.”
“No-rules game with just a few rules.”
(Logical Fallacy)
The sunk costs fallacy
(Good money after bad fallacy)
Trying to rectify a mistake by continuing it.
Can use this logical fallacy pathetically (emotionally) in rhetoric. Related to loss aversion. People are willing to spend more to avoid risk of a small loss than for a chance of a big gain.
“After all we’ve put into it, we can’t stop now.”
Proper reply: would you choose a double or nothing bet on it today?
(Logical Fallacy)
The utter stupidity ploy
The inability to acknowledge or see one’s own illogical thinking, even when pointed out directly by someone else.
(Logical Fallacy)
The truthiness ploy
Only recognizing “facts” that feel right. The refusal to believe anything that fails to match your existent opinion.
(Logical Fallacy)
