Logic

Common Fallacies

1. Straw Man Fallacy

Definition: Misrepresenting someone’s argument to make it easier to attack.

Example: Person A says, "We should have more green energy to reduce pollution." Person B responds, "Person A wants to shut down all coal plants immediately and put thousands of people out of work."

Explanation: Person B distorts Person A’s actual argument.

2. Slippery Slope Fallacy

Definition: Arguing that a small first step will inevitably lead to a chain of related (and usually worse) events without sufficient evidence for that progression.

Example: "If we allow people to drink alcohol, next thing you know, they'll legalize all drugs!"

Explanation: The assumption that one action will necessarily lead to extreme outcomes is unjustified.

3. Red Herring Fallacy

Definition: Distracting from the actual argument by bringing up an unrelated issue.

Example: "We shouldn't worry about climate change; what about all the trash in the oceans?"

Explanation: The speaker diverts attention from the main issue (climate change) to another problem (ocean pollution) without addressing the original point.

4. Ad Hominem Fallacy

Definition: Attacking the person making the argument rather than the argument itself.

Example: "You can’t trust his opinion on climate change because he’s not a scientist."

Explanation: The focus shifts from the argument to the person’s character or credentials, rather than addressing the argument.

5. Appeal to Ignorance (Argumentum ad Ignorantiam)

Definition: Claiming something is true because it hasn’t been proven false, or vice versa.

Example: "No one has proven that aliens don’t exist, so they must exist."

Explanation: Lack of evidence against something is not proof that it exists.

6. Ad Hominem

Same as "Ad Hominem Fallacy" above. It's a direct attack on a person instead of their argument.

7. Appeal to Authority (Argumentum ad Verecundiam)

Definition: Insisting that a claim is true simply because an authority figure endorses it, without questioning the evidence.

Example: "This product must be good because a famous actor uses it."

Explanation: The actor’s opinion is not necessarily based on expertise related to the product.

8. Hasty Generalization

Definition: Making a broad conclusion based on insufficient or unrepresentative evidence.

Example: "My friend smoked his whole life and lived until 90, so smoking can’t be that bad."

Explanation: Drawing a general conclusion from a single case is fallacious.

9. Bandwagon Fallacy (Appeal to Popularity)

Definition: Assuming something is true or right because it's popular or everyone is doing it.

Example: "Everyone is buying this phone, so it must be the best."

Explanation: Popularity does not guarantee quality or truth.

10. False Cause (Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc)

Definition: Assuming that because one event happened after another, the first event caused the second.

Example: "I wore my lucky socks, and then we won the game, so my socks caused the win."

Explanation: The correlation between the socks and the win is purely coincidental.

11. False Dilemma (Either/Or Fallacy)

Definition: Presenting only two choices when more options exist.

Example: "You're either with us or against us."

Explanation: It falsely limits the possible positions someone can take.

12. Correlation/Causation Fallacy

Definition: Mistaking correlation for causation.

Example: "Ice cream sales increase during the summer, and so do drowning incidents. Therefore, ice cream causes drowning."

Explanation: Both events are correlated because of a third factor (summer weather), but one does not cause the other.

13. Existential Fallacy

Definition: Assuming that a particular group exists in reality when making a claim about it.

Example: "All unicorns have horns."

Explanation: This statement assumes unicorns exist, but their existence is unproven.

14. Genetic Fallacy

Definition: Judging something as good or bad based on its origin rather than its merit.

Example: "You can't trust that study because it was funded by the government."

Explanation: The argument focuses on the source of the study rather than the content of the study itself.

15. Ad Baculum (Appeal to Force)

Definition: Using threats or force to justify a conclusion or argument.

Example: "You better agree with my idea, or you’ll lose your job."

Explanation: The argument relies on a threat rather than logic or evidence.

16. Begging the Question (Circular Reasoning)

Definition: The conclusion is assumed in the premises; arguing in a circle.

Example: "God exists because the Bible says so, and the Bible is the word of God."

Explanation: The argument assumes the truth of what it is supposed to prove.

17. Composition Fallacy

Definition: Assuming what’s true of the part is true of the whole.

Example: "Each part of this car is lightweight, so the whole car must be lightweight."

Explanation: The characteristics of the parts don't necessarily apply to the whole.

18. False Analogy

Definition: Comparing two things that aren’t sufficiently alike in relevant ways.

Example: "Employees are like nails. Just like nails must be hit on the head to work, employees must be pressured to work hard."

Explanation: The analogy fails because employees and nails are not comparable in this way.

19. Post Hoc Fallacy

Same as False Cause above. It assumes that because one event follows another, the first must have caused the second.

20. Affirming the Consequent

Definition: Assuming that because a result (consequence) is true, the cause must also be true.

Example: "If it rains, the ground will be wet. The ground is wet, so it must have rained."

Explanation: The wet ground could have been caused by something else, like a sprinkler.

21. Appeal to Emotion (Argumentum ad Passiones)

Definition: Manipulating emotions to win an argument instead of using valid reasoning.

Example: "You have to donate to this charity; think of all the starving children!"

Explanation: The argument appeals to sympathy, avoiding a rational discussion of the issue.

22. Either/Or (False Dilemma)

Same as False Dilemma above. It simplifies a complex issue into just two choices, ignoring other possibilities.