AP Language - Glossary of Argument Terms and Fallacies (pg. 140-143 of The Language of Composition)

Ad hominem

Latin for "to the man," this fallacy refers to the specific diversionary tactic of switching the argument from the issue at hand to the character of the other speaker.
Example: If you argue that a park in your community should not be renovated because the person supporting it was arrested during a domestic dispute, then you are guilty of this.

Ad populum (bandwagon appeal)

This fallacy occurs when evidence boils down to "everybody's doing it, so it must be a good thing to do."
Example: You should vote to elect Rachel Johnson--she has a strong lead in the polls!

Appeal to false authority

This fallacy occurs when someone who has no expertise to speak on an issue is cited as an authority.
Example: A TV star is not a medical expert, even though pharmaceutical advertisements often use celebrity endorsements.

Argument

A process of reasoned inquiry; a persuasive discourse resulting in a coherent and considered movement from a claim to a conclusion.

Backing

In the Toulmin model, this consists of further assurances or data without which the assumption lacks authority.

Begging the question

A fallacy in which a claim is based on evidence or support that is in doubt. It "begs" a question whether the support itself is sound.

Circular reasoning

A fallacy in which the writer repeats the claim as a way to provide evidence.
Example: "You can't give me a C; I'm an A student!"

Claim

Also called an assertion or a proposition, it states the argument's main idea or position. A claim differs from a topic or subject in that a claim has to be arguable.

Claim of fact

Statement that asserts that something is true or not true.
Example: The number of suicides and homicides committed by teenagers, most often young men, has exploded in the last three decades.

Claim of policy

Statement that proposes a change.
Example: Yet one solution continued to elude us, and that is ending the ignorance about mental health, and moving it from the margins of care and into the mainstream where it belongs.

Claim of value

Statement that argues that something is good or bad, right or wrong.
Example: There's a plague on all our houses, and since it doesn't announce itself with lumps or spots or protest marches, it has gone unremarked in the quiet suburbs and busy cities where it has been laying waste.

Classical oration

Five-part argument structure used by classical rhetoricians. The five parts are: introduction, narration, confirmation, refutation, and conclusion.

Introduction (exordium)

Introduces the reader to the subject under discussion.

Narration (narratio)

Provides factual information and background material on the subject at hand or establishes why the subject is a problem that needs addressing.

Confirmation (confirmatio)

Usually the major part of the text, it includes the proof needed to make the writer's case.

Refutation (refutatio)

Addresses the counterargument. It is a bridge between the writer's proof and conclusion.

Conclusion (peroratio)

Brings the essay to a satisfying close.

Closed thesis

A statement of the main idea of the argument that also previews the major points the writer intends to make.
Example: The 3D characters, exciting plot, and complex themes of the Harry Potter series make them not only legendary children's books but also enduring literary classics.

Deduction

A logical process whereby one reaches a conclusion by starting with a general principle or universal truth (a major premise) and applying it to a specific case (a minor premise).
Example:
MAJOR PREMISE: Exercise contributes to better health.
MINOR PREMISE: Yoga is a type of exercise.
CONCLUSION: Yoga contributes to better health.

Either/or (false dilemma)

A fallacy in which the speaker presents two extreme options as the only possible choices.
Example: Either we agree to higher taxes, or our grandchildren will be mired in debt.

Faulty analogy

A fallacy that occurs when an analogy compares two things that are not comparable.
Example: Arguing that because we put animals who are in irreversible pain out of their misery, we should do the same for people, asks the reader to ignore significant differences between animals and people.

First-hand evidence

Evidence based on something the writer knows, whether it's from personal experience, observations, or general knowledge of events.

Hasty generalization

A fallacy in which a faulty conclusion is reached because of inadequate evidence.
Example: Smoking isn't bad for you; my great aunt smoked a pack a day and lived to be 90.

Induction

From the Latin inducere, "to lead into"; a logical process whereby the writer reasons from particulars to universals, using specific cases in order to draw a conclusion, which is also called a generalization.
SPECIFIC CASES: Exercise promotes weight loss. Exercise lowers stress levels. Exercise improves mood.
GENERALIZATION: Exercise contributes to better health.

Logical fallacy

Potential vulnerabilities or weaknesses in an argument. They often arise from a failure to make a logical connection between the claim and the evidence used to support it.

Open thesis

Statement that does not list all the points the writer intends to cover in an essay.
Example: The popularity of the Harry Potter series demonstrates that simplicity trumps complexity when it comes to the taste of readers, both young and old.

Post hoc ergo propter hoc

This fallacy is Latin for "after which therefore because of which," meaning that it is incorrect to always claim that something is a cause just because it happened earlier. One may loosely summarize this fallacy by saying that correlation does not imply causation.
Example: We elected Johnson as president and look where it got us: hurricanes, floods, stock market crashes.

Qualifier

In the Toulmin model, the qualifier uses words like "usually, probably, maybe, in most cases, and most likely" to temper the claim, making it less absolute.

Quantitative evidence

Includes things that can be measured, cited, counted, or otherwise represented in numbers.
Examples: statistics, surveys, polls, census information.

Rebuttal

In the Toulmin model, it gives voices to possible objections.

Reservation

In the Toulmin model, it explains the terms and conditions necessitated by the qualifier.

Rogerian arguments

Developed by psychiatrist Carl Rogers, these are based on the assumption that having a full understanding of an opposing position is essential to responding to it persuasively and refuting it in a way that is accommodating rather than alienating.

Second-hand evidence

Evidence that is accessed through research, reading, and investigation.
Examples: factual and historical information, expert opinion, and quantitative data.

Straw man

A fallacy that occurs when a speaker chooses a deliberately poor or oversimplified example in order to ridicule and refute an idea.
Example: Politician X proposes that we put astronauts on Mars in the next four years. Politician Y ridicules this proposal by saying that his opponent is looking for "little green men in outer space."

Syllogism

A logical structure that uses the major premise and minor premise to reach a necessary conclusion.
MAJOR PREMISE: Exercise contributes to better health.
MINOR PREMISE: Yoga is a type of exercise..
CONCLUSION: Yoga contributes to better health.

Toulmin model

An approach to analyzing and constructing arguments created by British philosopher Stephen Toulmin in his book The Uses of Argument (1958).
Template: Because (evidence as support), therefore (claim), since (warrant or assumption), on account of (backing), unless (reservation).
Example: Because it is raining, therefore I should probably take my umbrella, since it will keep me dry on account of its waterproof material, unless, of course, there is a hole in it.

Warrant

In the Toulmin model, it expresses the assumption necessarily shared by the speaker and the audience.