Fallacies

Question 1

Abusive Analogy

Answer 1

An analogy is drawn to bring arguer into scorn/disrepute

“though he knows as much about XXX as a __salesman__”

Question 2

Accent

Answer 2

Change the meaning of statements based on word stressing

Discredit others by quoting them with emphasis

Question 3

Analogical fallacy

Answer 3

Analogies are tools of communication more than sources of knowledge
Devastatingly effective when used against the person who first produced it
Seize upon one used and continue in a way more conducive to own argument
“Looks more like a cabbage to me”

Family life evokes a pleasant glow
Allows to argue for almost anything

Question 4

Apriorism

Answer 4

Use principles as a basis for accepting or rejecting facts

Do not dismiss facts, rather, reinterpret them

Question 5

Bifurcation

Answer 5

Black or white. Make the choice straightforward, remove all intermediate options
Offer a choice limited to something unpleasant or the course you advocate
“Either we do this, or we will be mocked and ridiculed.”

Question 6

Blinding with science

Answer 6

Use technical jargon to deceive audience into supposing objective experimental evidence supports them

Question 7

Bogus dilemma

Answer 7

Falsely presenting a dilemma where none exists

1. Deny consequences that follow
2. Show black or white choice is false
3. Rebutt it using same elements

Question 8

Complex question - Plurium interrogationum

Answer 8

Contains an assumption that the concealed question is answered affirmatively

Turn the actual question into presupposed fact
“Have you stopped beating your wife?”
“Did your misleading claims result in you being promoted?”
“Who was that lady I saw you with last night?”
“Would you prefer to watch a show now, or after dinner?”

Question 9

Concealed quantification

Answer 9

Ambiguity of expression permits a misunderstanding of the quantity which is spoken of
Use to condemn whole groups on basis of some members

Question 10

Damning the alternatives

Answer 10

Denigrate the alternatives

Question 11

Definitional retreat

Answer 11

Change the meaning of words in order to deal with an objection raised with the original wording
Save face by putting forward a totally different view
“When I said XXX, I was naturally referring to so and so, rather than you”
Presume that everyone understood the second meaning all along
“Everyone knows that when we say XXX, we use the xxx definition.”

Question 12

Emotional appeals

Answer 12

Discover the emotional disposition of audience
Use language calculated to arouse that emotion
Build it up assiduously by graphic descriptions, and turn it to bear on question of fact
People equate reason with a quiet life
“Let’s be reasonable about this.”

Question 13

Equivocation

Answer 13

Using words ambiguously
“Rest assured it will receive the attention it fully deserves.”
Joins irreconcilable differences with a smooth finish
“Realistic penalties” “Humane/fair consideration”

Question 14

Every child knows

Answer 14

Secure acquiescence
Audience does not wish to be ignorant of matters widely understood by children
Assertions are passed off unquestioned

Question 15

Hedging

Answer 15

Sheltering behind ambiguous meanings
Involves advance preparation for a definitional retreat
“You will find xxx desposited on your table.” <- WHEN??

Question 16

Hominem (abusive), argumentum ad

Answer 16

Attack the character of the arguer
Hostile material should be introducted with apparent reluctance, and made to bear on whether the opponent deserves consideration by the worthy audience
“It is with a heavy heart…”

Question 17

Irrelevant humour

Answer 17

Direct attention away from the argument

Question 18

Loaded words

Answer 18

Deliberate use of prejudiced terms
Conjure up an attitude more favourable or hostile than the unadorned facts would elicit
“found” implies discovered in a guilty secret
careful words of a respected person vs incoherent/ridiculous ramblings of a joker

Question 19

Poisoning the well

Answer 19

Discredit opposition before they have uttered a word
“Everyone except an idiot knows…”
“There may be those with defective judgement who….”
“Only those who are sexually inadequate…”
Recommended when claim will not survive sustained scrutiny
Useful for dealing with points against received opinion

Question 20

Red herrings

Answer 20

Irrelevant material is used to divert people away from the point being made
Select red herrings on the basis of known interests to audience
e.g. introduce the subject to the arguer’s bad back, or his summer holidays, or pet

Question 21

Reification

Answer 21

Supposition that words must denote real things

“extracted the blueness of the sky and inserted it into xxx”

Question 22

Runaway train

Answer 22

…….

Question 23

Shifting ground

Answer 23

Shift the substance of what was being said while claiming continuity
“I said the project is XXX. However, I share the objections you have voiced and can only say how this reinforces a view that it is not good enough for a project to be XXX.”
Use this to avoid it being known that you were wrong
“After hearing his POV, I feel that his amendment represents the spirit of what i was trying to say. I therefore accept his amendment as an improvement to my proposal/motion.”

Question 24

Shifting the burden of proof

Answer 24

Put forward an assertion without justification
Make the audience prove your claims are wrong
“Can you show me one convincing piece of evidence which disproves this?”
Tempt the audience into supplying instances, giving you a chance to ‘refute the exampes’ rather than giving arguments in favour of the case

Question 25

Slippery slope

Answer 25

….

Question 26

Straw man

Answer 26

Misrepresent opponent’s position

Extreme views are easier to argue against