Logical Fallacies

Question 1

Appeal to Anonymous Authority

Answer 1

Question 2

Appeal to Authority

Answer 2

Question 3

Appeal to Common Practice

Answer 3

Question 4

Appeal to Ignorance

Answer 4

(aka, “Unproven vs. Untrue”)

Question 5

Appeal to Incredulity

Answer 5

Question 6

Appeal to Money

Answer 6

Question 7

Appeal to Novelty

Answer 7

Question 8

Appeal to Popular Belief

Answer 8

Question 9

Appeal to Probability

Answer 9

Question 10

Appeal to Tradition

Answer 10

Question 11

Appeal to Consequence of a Belief

Answer 11

Question 12

Appeal to Fear

Answer 12

Question 13

Appeal to Flattery

Answer 13

Question 14

Appeal to Nature

Answer 14

Question 15

Appeal to Pity

Answer 15

Question 16

Appeal to Ridicule

Answer 16

Question 17

Appeal to Spite

Answer 17

Question 18

Appeal to Wishful Thinking

Answer 18

Question 19

Anecdotal Evidence

Answer 19

Question 20

Composition

Answer 20

(aka, “Part-to-Whole”)

Question 21

Division

Answer 21

(aka, “Whole-to-Part”)

Question 22

Design Fallacy

Answer 22

Question 23

Gambler’s Fallacy

Answer 23

Question 24

Hasty Generalization

Answer 24

Question 25

Jumping to Conclusions

Answer 25

Question 26

Middle Ground

Answer 26

Question 27

Perfectionist Fallacy

Answer 27

Question 28

Relativist Fallacy

Answer 28

Question 29

Spotlight

Answer 29

Question 30

Sweeping Generalization

Answer 30

Question 31

Undistributed Middle

Answer 31

Question 32

Ad Hoc Rescue

Answer 32

(aka, “Special Pleading”)

Question 33

Begging the Question

Answer 33

Question 34

Biased Generalizing

Answer 34

Question 35

Confirmation Bias

Answer 35

Question 36

False Dilemma

Answer 36

(aka, “False Dichotomy” or “False Choice”)

Question 37

Lie

Answer 37

Question 38

Misleading Vividness

Answer 38

Question 39

Red Herring

Answer 39

Question 40

Slippery Slope

Answer 40

Question 41

Suppressed Evidence

Answer 41

Question 42

Unfalsifiability

Answer 42

Question 43

Affirming the Consequent

Answer 43

Question 44

Circular Logic

Answer 44

Question 45

Cum Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc

Answer 45

Question 46

Denying the Antecedent

Answer 46

Question 47

Ignoring a Common Cause

Answer 47

Question 48

Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc

Answer 48

Question 49

Two Wrongs Make a Right

Answer 49

Question 50

Ad Hominem

Answer 50

Question 51

Burden of Proof

Answer 51

Question 52

Circumstance Ad Hominem

Answer 52

Question 53

Genetic Fallacy

Answer 53

Question 54

Guilt by Association

Answer 54

Question 55

Straw Man

Answer 55

Question 56

No True Scottsman

Answer 56

Question 57

Tu Quoque

Answer 57

Question 58

Loaded Question

Answer 58

Question 59

Quantities vs. Percentages

Answer 59

Using numbers as if they indicate percentages, or vice versa.

Question 60

Relative vs. Absolute

Answer 60

Something can be “more” OR “less”, depending on if it’s measured in relative or absolute terms. READ CAREFULLY!

EX: Jack got a raise of 5% and Jill got a raise of 10%. Therefore, Jill now has a higher salary. What if Jack started with a salary of $1,000,000 and Jill started with $50,000? Then, the argument is false. If they had started with the same salary, then it would be true.

Question 61

Equivocation Flaw

Answer 61

Using the same word in two different ways.

Question 62

Prescription vs. Description

(i.e. Naturalistic Fallacy)

Answer 62

“You can’t get an ‘ought’ from an ‘is’!”

Question 63

Term Shift

Answer 63

The argument jumps from one term in the premise to a different term in the conclusion. This is the classic assumption gap.

Question 64

Illegal Reversal

Answer 64

A –>B. Therefore, B–>A. WRONG!

EX: “All dogs are mammals. Therefore, all mammals are dogs”.

Question 65

Illegal Negation

Answer 65

A –>B. Therefore, /A –> /B. WRONG!

EX: “Fish live in the ocean. Therefore, if it’s not a fish, it doesn’t live in the ocean.”