QUEZON MEMORIAL ACADEMY

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ENGLISH 9
3rd QUARTER
WEEK 5
I. TITLE
Learning the Logical Fallacies
II. OBJECTIVES
At the end of this lesson, students should be able to:
 Identify common types of fallacies;
 Analyze what makes a particular point logical fallacy;
 Practice reasoning and identifying weaknesses in argument by writing a dialogue.
III. ANTICIPATORY GUIDE
Considered an innovation of theatrical form and an influential member of the “little theater” movement in
the United States, Alice Gerstenberg was born in Chicago, Illinois on August 2, 1885, and the daughter of
Julia and Erich, wealthy socialities.
She attended Bryn Mawr, a college which provided quality education for many high society women.
Gerstenberg studied theater in New York, where she composed her first full-length play, The Conscience of
Sarah Platt.
In 1922, she founded the Playwright’s Theater which she ran until 1945. In 1938, she received the
Chicago Foundation Award for Literature.
IV. LESSON CONTENT
TYPES OF FALLACIES
1. Ad hominem – A person attack is an argument based on the perceived failings of an adversary rather than
on the merits of the case.
Example: Peter can’t have followers because as the former Chairman said, he’s unapproachable.
2. Ad Misericordiam – An argument that involves an irrelevant or highly exaggerated appeal to pity or
sympathy.
Example: “I’m positive that my work will meet your requirements. I really need the job since my
grandmother is sick.”
3. Bandwagon – An argument based on assumption that the opinion of the majority is always valid:
everyone believes it, so you should, too.
Example: “C’mon, friend, everybody’s doin’ it.”
4. Begging the Question – This argument known as a circular argument does not give importance to what
it’s supposed to prove; in other words, the argument takes for granted what it’s supposed to prove.
Example: “I can’t believe people eat dog. That’s just plain gross. Why? Because it’s a dog, of course.
How could someone eat a dog?”
5. False Dilemma – This fallacy which is sometimes called the “either-or fallacy” resorts to
oversimplication. It is an argument based on only two alternatives when in fact additional options are
available.
Example: “You’re either for me or you’re against me.”
6. Non Sequitur – An argument in which a conclusion does not follow logically from what preceded it.
Example: “If you loved me, you’d buy this car.”
7. Post Hoc – A fallacy in which one event is said to be the cause of a later event simply because it occurred
earlier.
Example: “Bill purchases a new Macbook and it works fine for months. He then buys and installs a new
piece of software. The next time he starts up his McBook, it freezes. Bill concludes that the software must
be the cause of the freeze.”
8. Red Herring – An observation that draws the attention away from the central issue in an argument or
discussion.
 Example: “We start debating the evidence supporting global warming, but you bring up the fact that
during his fights this theory is depressing… or that Pacquiao has abig house and flies on jets during his
fights.”
9. Slippery Slope – This is the act of arguing from the perspective that one change inevitably will lead to
another.
Example: “We have to stop the tuition increase! The next thing you know, they’ll be charging Php200,
000 a semester!”
10. Straw Man – A fallacy in which an opponent’s argument is overstated or misrepresented in order to be
more easily attacked or refuted.
Example: “We either leave right now or we’ve never going to get there.”
V. ASSESMENT/EVALUATION
Write two examples of each type of fallacies.
VI. ASSIGNMENT
Recall a line or a dialogue that has faulty reasoning that you might have heard from someone you know or
someone you watched on TV. Write the statement below, identify the fallacy committed, and explain why there is
an error in reasoning in that particular statement.

Prepared by

JOCHELLE C. FERNANDEZ
MARIEDEN T. RIMANDO
(Subject Teachers)