Exam 3-Explanations

Question 1

Appeal to Force

Answer 1

S commits an appeal to force fallacy when S urges X to perform some Action or accept some idea by threatening X with T instead of giving relevant reasons for I such as…

Question 2

Appeal to Pity

Answer 2

S commits the Appeal to Pity fallacy when S tries to persuade X to perform some Action or accept some Idea by appealing to X’s sympathy by giving a sad story that Q instead of giving relevant reasons for I such as….

Question 3

Ad Hominem (Abusive)

Answer 3

S commits an abusive ad hominem fallacy when S rejects or dismisses X’s claim that P by attacking X personally by saying Q, instead of giving relevant evidence for ~P (that is, instead of giving evidence that P is wrong)

Question 4

Ad Hominem (Circumstantial)

Answer 4

S commits a circumstantial ad hominem fallacy when S rejects or dismisses X’s claim that P just because of the circumstance that X is Q instead of giving relevant evidence for ~P.

Question 5

Ad Hominem (Tu Quoque)

Answer 5

Q = X does it (Activity in P), too”

Question 6

Ad Populum (Appeal to Emotion)

Answer 6

S commits an ad populum fallacy when S urges X to accept P by (A) appealing to E. This is a fallacy because no relevant evidence is given for P.
OR
(B) stating that G believes P. This is a fallacy because G’s belief is not a relevant reason to believe P is true.

Question 7

Appeal to Ignorance

Answer 7

S commits the fallacy of appeal to ignorance when S concludes that P is true just because we can’t prove or don’t know, or have no evidence that ~P is true. (A) this is a fallacy because it could just as easily be argued that ~P can be concluded because we (can’t prove, etc) that P is true.

Question 8

Appeal to Authority

Answer 8

S commits the fallacy of appeal to authority when S tries to persuade X that P is true because Y said it was true, but Y is not (or may not be) an appropriate authority because E.

Question 9

Fallacy of Accident

Answer 9

S commits the fallacy of accident when S tries to apply the general rule G to the specific case C, concluding that P, without recognizing that C is an exception to G because E.

Question 10

Converse Accident (Hasty Generalization)

Answer 10

S commits the fallacy of hasty generalization when S concludes the general rule G based on (A) too few particular cases P. This is a fallacy because P is not enough evidence to conclude G.

Question 11

Irrelevant Conclusion

Answer 11

S commits the fallacy of irrelevant conclusion when S uses premise(s) P or (P1, P2…) that actually support the conclusion of C. But S draws a different conclusion D that does not follow from the premises.

Question 12

False Cause

Answer 12

S commits the fallacy of false cause when S assumes that A causes B, without any real evidence that A causes B.

Question 13

Slippery Slope

Answer 13

S commits the slippery slope fallacy when S claims that some proposed action or event A is just the first in a series of steps (S1, S2…) eventually causing D. But S has no evidence that each step will cause the next one.

Question 14

Begging the Question

Answer 14

One premise argument:
S begs the question when he concludes C, and appears to support it using P as a premise. However, P is actually only a restatement of C, because (show how P means the same thing as C). No real evidence is given to support the conclusion C.

Chain Argument:
S begs the question when he concludes C, and supports it by P1 which is supported by P2….But S then claims Pn is true because C is true, assuming what he was trying to prove. No real evidence is given to support C. The argument is Circular

Question 15

Complex Question

Answer 15

The question P is a complex question. Whoever answers it is presumed already to have answered A to another question Q, which was not asked.

Question 16

Straw Man

Answer 16

S creastes a straw man when he attempts to refute X’s claim that P, by exaggerating X’s claim, saying (falsely) that S’s claim is Q. S does this because it is easier to refute Q than P. S gave no evidence for not-P, and X never claimed Q.

Question 17

Red Herring

Answer 17

S attempts to refute X’s claim P by changing the subject to a discussino of Q. S gives no evidence that not-P, and Q is irrelevant because S commits F.

Question 18

Equivocation

Answer 18

S equivocates on the word W. When it is used in P, W means M, but when it is used in Q, W means N. This ambiguity leads S to the unwarranted conclusion C.

Question 19

Amphiboly

Answer 19

The passage commits the fallacy of amphiboly. Because of a mistake in the grammar of P, two different meanings of P are possible. One meaning is M. Another meaning is N. The problem with P is… (Explain the gramatical error). One of these meanings leads to the unwarranted conclusion C.

Question 20

Accent

Answer 20

By emphasizing W, the sentence P leads to the conclusion C, which is different from conclusion D.

Question 21

Composition

Answer 21

Because the parts of T are C, S attributes C to the whole thing T. However, it is inappropriate (or wrong) to say T is C, because…

Question 22

Division

Answer 22

Because the whole thing T is C, S attributes C to the parts of T. However, it is inappropriate (or wrong) to say the parts of T are C, because…