Fallacies 1
1) Members of the human race have been enslaving each other since the dawn of time.
Therefore,
2) Slavery is morally okay.
Appeal to Tradition
If we don't invade Russia, the Russian government is going to brainwash us with microchips! So we have to invade.
Appeal to Fear
Appeal to Ignorance
1) Most people believe S.
Therefore,
2) S is true.
Appeal to Popularity
1) If you don't believe S, something bad will happen to you.
Therefore,
2) You should believe S.
Appeal to Fear
I know I spent all of my grad stipend on video games, but if I can't get a cash advance, I might go hungry! So you should really give me just a little cash.
Appeal to Pity
This morning, Joe Biden argued that we should raise taxes to pay for the national debt. But that guy's never worked a real job in his life, so we shouldn't believe a thing he says.
Ad hominem
You're vegetarian!? Don't you know Hitler was a vegetarian? I'd never advocate for anything that Hitler advocated for, so I'll stick with eating meat thank you very much.
Ad Hominem
Guilty by Association
2) Y is smarter than Z
Therefore,
3) X is smarter than Z
No Fallacy!
1) If you don't believe S or do A, something bad will happen to someone else.
Therefore,
2) You should believe S or do A.
Appeal to Pity.
Oh, you're against the war in Iraq. So you just want America to seem weak and to let other countries do whatever they want to us, huh? I don't think being weak is a very good thing, so you should support the war.
Easy Target (Straw Man)
1) These are the newest sneakers around. They just came out yesterday!
Therefore,
2) You should buy these sneakers.
Appeal to Novelty
Appeal to Popularity
1) S has been believed for a very long time.
Therefore,
2) S is true.
Appeal to Tradition
1) S2, a distorted version of S1, is false.
Therefore,
2) S1 is false.
Easy Target (Straw Man)
1) Justin Bieber likes to spit on his fans.
Therefore,
2) Justin Bieber is a bad role model.
No Fallacy! We could dispute whether the premises provide good enough justification for the conclusion, but there is no fallacy here. Sure, it might look like the Ad Hominem fallacy, but it isn't, simply because the premise is relevant for the conclusion.
Bernie believes the government should pay for your healthcare. You know who else believes that? The communists in China! So you can see why Bernie's wrong about that.
Ad Hominem Latin for "to the person")
More specifically, this is a fallacy that makes use of Guilt by Association.
Person 1: Cats are intelligent, independent little creatures. These traits make them easy pets and good companions.
Person 2: Well it's been proven that having dogs is great for your mental health. So I don't think cats are so great after all.
Red Herring
1) It has not been shown that S is false.
Therefore,
2) S is true.
Appeal to Ignorance
1) R2 is a good argument or true statement.
Therefore,
2) R1 is a bad argument.
Red Herring
Person 2: Oh, so you think that waffles are better than pancakes!? Pancakes can be even sweeter than waffles, and even more buttery! So waffles aren't the greatest food in the world.
No fallacy! These arguments are a bit ridiculous, but there's no fallacy committed here. It might look like there's an "easy target" fallacy, but nothing has really been misrepresented. If Person 1 thinks waffles are the best food in the world, it follows that Person 1 does think they're better than pancakes. This can't be a "red herring" either because it directly addresses Person 1's premises (i.e. that waffles are good because they're sweet and buttery).
I would never take the AstraZeneca vaccine. That company is aligned with the eugenics movement.
Ad Hominem
Guilty by Association
Oh, so you think it's wrong for me to buy a diamond ring while children are starving? But look at you! You have that nice car, don't you?
Ad Hominem
Some have argued that ad hominem attacks like this are not always fallacious, especially when they involve hypocrisy. However, in general, and for the purposes of this class, ad hominem is a bad way of making counterarguments. It is better to show that the form or premises of an argument are wrong than to show that the arguer is a hypocrite.
1) H asserts S.
2) There is something objectionable about H.
Therefore,
3) S is false.
Ad Hominem (Latin for "to the person")
1) It has not been shown that S is false.
Therefore,
2) S could be true.
No Fallacy! This argument does not prove that S is true, but if S has not been shown to be false, it at least COULD be true.