Mutual Exclusivity

Question 1

False Dilemma

Answer 1

False Dichotomy
Black-or-White Thinking
Fallacy of the Excluded Middle
Fallacy of Bifurcation

falsely imposing a mutually-exclusive choice when additional valid alternatives exist

A claims P or R
Q is a valid alternative

“You either die the hero, or live long enough to see yourself become the villain”

Question 2

False Dilemma // Argument from Ignorance

Answer 2

argumentum ad ignorantium

1. a proposition is true because it hasn’t been proven false
2. a proposition is false because it hasn’t been proven true

“John’s never said he likes strawberries, therefore he must have a dislike for them.”
“P has never been proven false, therefore
it’s true.”

Question 3

False Dilemma // Argument from Ignorance // Argument from Silence

Answer 3

use in regards to historical articles, when an author is silent on an fact is used as evidence against the fact’s existence

can be legitimate if it meets certain criteria

“Marco Polo never mentions the Great Wall of China - did he really visit China?”

Question 4

False Dilemma // Argument from Ignorance // Fallacy Fallacy

Answer 4

assuming that an argument involving fallacious reasoning thereby contains a false conclusion

A claims P
A justifies P poorly
therefore, P is false

“they’ve failed to prove this proposition, therefore it’s false”

Question 5

False Dilemma // Inflation of Conflict

Answer 5

falsely concluding that, if experts disagree on a subject, no conclusion can be reached on that subject

A claims P
P does not have expert consensus
therefore, P cannot be verified

“If these scientists are so smart, why can’t they agree on when exactly “climate change” is going to kill us all? It seems to me the whole thing is a sham!”

Question 6

False Dilemma // Nirvana Fallacy

Answer 6

a proposition is invalid simply because it is imperfect

A claims P
P is not perfect
therefore P is insufficient/invalid

“We’ll never completely eliminate COVID-19, so what’s the use in all these vaccinations?”

Question 7

Suppressed Correlative

Answer 7

Fallacy of Lost Contrast
Fallacy of the Suppressed Relative

expanding the definition of one side of a correlative conjunction, such that it encompasses (suppresses) the other

“A: Are you happy, or not?
B: No-one on this Earth has ever tasted of true happiness.
A: That definition of happy neutralises the value of the word.”

Question 8

Denying the Correlative

Answer 8

attempting to introduce a third alternative to a valid either/or conjunction

P or not-P
Therefore, Q

“A: Do you, or do you not, have a dog?
B: I have a cat.”