FALLACIES谬误学.ppt

FALLACIES EQUIVOCATION A fallacy committed when some word (or group of words) is used in different senses. Example: It’s not wrong for newspapers to pass on rumours about sex scandals. Newspapers have a duty to print stories that are in the public interest, and the public clearly has a great interest in rumours about sex scandals. False Dichotomy/ False Dilemma A fallacy committed when an arguer presents as jointly exhaustive two alternatives that are in fact no so. Example: Either we stop all whaling or whales will become extinct. We certainly don’t want whales to become extinct. Therefore we must stop all whaling. Composition A fallacy committed when an attribute of the parts is illegitimately transferred to the whole. Every part of a thing X has property F. Thing X has property F. Example The table is made of atoms and atoms are colourless. Therefore the table is colourless. Division A fallacy committed when an attribute of the whole is illegitimately transferred to the parts. Thing X has property F. Every part of a thing X has property F. Example Poverty isn’t a problem for America because America is a rich country. Argument against the person/ Poisoning the well A fallacy committed when an arguer directs his or her attack against the opponent instead of the argument or position. Example: Ken broke the vase, but he would not admit it. Anyway, its just like him. The little coward. False Cause/ Post Hoc A fallacy that arises from treating as the cause of something that which is not really its cause. Example The Japanese, who eat a lot of fish, have longer average life expectancy than any other nation. Developed nations should therefore encourage their citizens to increase their consumption of fish so that on average their citizens live longer. Red Herringaka Smoke Screen A fallacy that occurs when the arguer diverts the attention of the listener by arguing for or addressing a different issue. Example: Harvard President Derek Bok, justifying a tuition hike: