Fallacy Detective- Avoiding the Question Flashcards
Red Herring
When a person avoids the question and inserts something irrelevant.
Son: Why can’t I go see The Day of the Spatulas with my friends?
Dad: Because January 1 falls on a Wednesday this year.
Special Pleading
When someone uses a double standard or argues for an unjustified exception.
Asher: Why are you eating that? I thought we were on a diet and we weren’t going to snack between meals.
Imogen: It’s only cookie dough. It’s not even cooked. It doesn’t really count as snacking if it isn’t cooked yet.
Ad Hominem Attack
Attacking an opponent’s character or his motives for believing something instead of proving his argument.
Jenny: My uncle says that Robert E. Lee was a good, honest man.
Sylvia: Doesn’t your uncle come from Alabama? That’s in the South. I don’t think we need to give much weight to your Uncle’s arguments if he is from the South. He’s obviously biased.
Genetic Fallacy
Condemning an argument because of where it began, how it began, or who began it.
Jenny: I think capital punishment is wrong. We should never punish people to death.
Clyde: The only reason you disagree with capital punishment is because you were abused as a child and have never gotten over it.
Tu Quoque
Dismissing someone’s viewpoint on an issue because he himself is inconsistent in that very thing.
Fred: I wouldn’t smoke cigarettes if I were you. It is a bad habit, and it will bring you all kinds of problems.
Jake: Don’t tell me not to smoke, you do it too.
Faulty Appeal to Authority
An appeal to someone who has no special knowledge in the area being discussed.
My car mechanic says the best way to fix computer problems is to just give the computer a good, sharp kick. He says it should always work.
Appeal to the People
When we claim that our viewpoint is correct because many other people agree with it.
It looks as if more people vacation in Florida than any other place. It must be the nicest place in America to visit.
Straw Man
Changing or exaggerating an opponent’s position to make it easier to refute.
Mother: I think you have been playing too many of those video games lately.
Son: Oh, so you think I should just throw away my 1,000 dollar video game collection and sit up in my room taking practice IQ test all day?
