f a l l a c i e s {Mod 1}

Question 1

What is a FALLACY?

Answer 1

Bad reasoning.

Question 2

What is PROPAGANDA?

Answer 2

Fallacies perpetrated on a large scale.

Question 3

What is a RED HERRING fallacy? What are it’s 2 main subsets?

Answer 3

Irrelevancy designed to misdirect & get argument off track. (changing subject, bring gup irrelevant info, arguing about anything other than the topic at hand) 2 subsets are Appeal to Emotion & Ad hominem.

Question 4

What is an APPEAL TO EMOTION fallacy?

Answer 4

Type of red erring specifically seeking to arouse an emotional response.

Question 5

What is an AD HOMINEM fallacy?

Answer 5

“Against the man” - a personal attack on an individual or group instead of a refutation of their arguments or policy. (ie, name calling)

Question 6

What is a GLITTERING GENERALITY fallacy?

Answer 6

Using vague terms w little/no defined content to produce positive emotions in listener. (Also called weasel words) VERY common in politics. (“Yes we can” or “Make America Great Again”

Question 7

What is a GUILT BY ASSOCIATION fallacy?

Answer 7

Associating a person/theory/policy with a separate, disparaged person/theory/policy, attempting to transfer the negative feelings associated with one to the other.

Question 8

What is a FALSE DILEMMA fallacy?

Answer 8

Presenting 2 options as only possibilities in order to force acceptance of 1. Fallacy mistakenly omits 3rd option.

Question 9

What is a SLIPPERY SLOPE fallacy?

Answer 9

Claiming a policy will begin a chain reaction inevitably leading to an undesirable result. ****NOT ALL SS are fallacies. If each step in the slope can be justified then it can serve legitimate warning. Only Fallacious if you skip steps and go from A to Z.

Question 10

What is an APPEAL TO IMPROPER AUTHORITY fallacy?

Answer 10

Citing a biased study, unqualified endorser or any other source that cannot legitimately prove a claim. Celebrity endorsements, ads claiming “scientifically proven” w/o actually providing proof. **NOT ALL APPEALS TO AUTHORITIY ARE FALLACIOUS! Legitimate experts can be trusted, proof requires discussion of the evidence.

Question 11

What is a HASTY GENERALIZATION fallacy?

Answer 11

Drawing inductive conclusion based on inadequately small sample.

Question 12

What is a BANDWAGON or ARGUMENT FROM POPULAR OPINION fallacy?

Answer 12

Claim that if most/all ppl believe it, then it must be true.

Question 13

Identify the type of fallacy -
Child: Mom, I hate these vegetables. They taste terrible!
Mom: There are children starving in other countries who wish they had vegetables.

Answer 13

RED HERRING, bc the starving children are irrelevant to the taste of the vegetables.