PRINCIPLES OF REASONING

2 0 2 2 / 0 5 / 0 4
INFORMAL FALLACIES

• Fallacies Based on Personal Attacks

1. Ad hominem abusive
2. Ad hominem circumstantial
3. Poisoning the well
4. Tu quoque ("You too!" )
• Fallacies Based on Emotional Appeals
1. Appeal to the people
2. Appeal to pity
3. Appeal to fear or force
INFORMAL FALLACIES

• Generaliz ation Fallacies

1. Rigid application of a generalization
2. Hasty generalization
3. Composition
4. Division
5. Biased sample
• False Cause Fallacies
1. Post Hoc
2. Slippery Slope
INFORMAL FALLACIES

• Fallacies of Unwarranted Assumption

1. Begging the Question
2. Complex Question
3. Appeal to Ignorance
4. Appeal to an Unqualified Authority
5. False Dichotomy
• Fallacies of Diversion
1. Equivocation
2. Straw Man
3. Red Herring
4. Misleading Precision
5. Missing The Point
WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT 36

• 4D.II.26-32
4 D. I I 2 6

Everything written in that book is 100% accurate. It has

to be, since nothing in it is false.
4 D. I I 2 6

Everything written in that book is 100% accurate. It has

to be, since nothing in it is false.

• Begging the question

4 D. I I 2 7

Statistics show that people with a college degree earn

50% more during their lifetime than those without a
degree. So, you should begin investing in blue chip
stocks.
4 D. I I 2 7

Statistics show that people with a college degree earn

50% more during their lifetime than those without a
degree. So, you should begin investing in blue chip
stocks.

• Missing the point

4 D. I I 2 8

The label on that cheesecake says that it has 40% fewer

calories. If I eat that cheesecake regularly, then I should
lose some weight.
4 D. I I 2 8

The label on that cheesecake says that it has 40% fewer

calories. If I eat that cheesecake regularly, then I should
lose some weight.

• Misleading precision
4 D. I I 2 9

My mother wants me to take piano lessons because

studies show that early music training helps students in
math. But pianos cost a lot of money, and even if we
could afford one, our apartment is too small.
4 D. I I 2 9

My mother wants me to take piano lessons because

studies show that early music training helps students in
math. But pianos cost a lot of money, and even if we
could afford one, our apartment is too small.

• Red herring
4 D. I I 3 0

The missing Malaysian airplane was either hijacked by

space aliens or it was sucked into a worm hole. But
NASA didn’t report any recent space-time continuum
anomalies, so it must have been space aliens.
4 D. I I 3 0

The missing Malaysian airplane was either hijacked by

space aliens or it was sucked into a worm hole. But
NASA didn’t report any recent space-time continuum
anomalies, so it must have been space aliens.

• False dichotomy
4 D. I I 3 1

You should start taking at least 1000 mg of calcium a day

to help you avoid osteoporosis because my history
teacher said it works for him.
4 D. I I 3 1

You should start taking at least 1000 mg of calcium a

day to help you avoid osteoporosis because my
history teacher said it works for him.

• Appeal to an unqualified authority

4 D. I I 3 2

I know you like chocolate ice cream and you like cake.
We’re about to have dessert, so I’ll make you a chili dog.
4 D. I I 3 2

I know you like chocolate ice cream and you like cake.
We’re about to have dessert, so I’ll make you a chili dog.

• Missing the point

Thank you!!!