Sect. 3.2 reading - Fallacies of Relevance

fallacies of relevance

a group of informal fallacies that occur because the premises of an argument are irrelevant to the conclusion

appeal to force (Argumentum ad Bacalum)

an informal fallacy that occurs when an arguer threatens a reader or listener for the purpose of getting him or her to accept a conclusion

appeal to pity (Argumentum ad Misericordiam)

an informal fallacy that occurs when an arguer attempts to evoke pity from a reader or listener for the purpose of getting him or her to accept a conclusion

appeal to the people (Argumentum ad Populum)

an informal fallacy that occurs when an arguer plays on certain psychological needs for the purpose of getting the reader or listener to accept a conclusion

appeal to fear

a variety of appeal to the people that occurs when an arguer trumps up a fear of something and then uses that fear as the premise for some conclusion

the bandwagon argument

a variety of the appeal-to-the-people fallacy that occurs when the arguer plays on the reader’s or listener’s need to feel a part of a group

appeal to vanity

a variety of the appeal-to-the-people fallacy that occurs when an arguer plays on the vanity of the reader or listener

appeal to snobbery

a variety of the appeal-to-the-people fallacy that occurs when the arguer plays on the reader’s or listener’s need to feel superior

appeal to tradition

a fallacy that occurs when an arguer cites the fact that something has become a tradition as grounds for a conclusion

argument against the person

an informal fallacy that occurs when an arguer verbally attacks the person of a second arguer for the purpose of discrediting his or her argument

ad hominem abusive

a variety of the argument-against-the-person fallacy that occurs when an arguer verbally abuses a second arguer for the purpose of discrediting that person’s argument

ad hominem circumstantial

a variety of the argument-against-the-person fallacy that occurs when an arguer cites circumstances that affect a second arguer, for the purpose of discrediting that person’s argument

tu quoque (“you too”) fallacy

a variety of the argument-against-the-person fallacy that occurs when an arguer shifts the burden of guilt onto a second arguer for the purpose of discrediting his or her argument

Personal factors are never relevant to truth and falsity as such, but they are relevant to ___.

to believability.

accident

an informal fallacy that occurs when a general rule is wrongly applied to an atypical specific case

*TIP: the fallacy of accident gets its name from the fact that one or more accidental features of the specific case make it an exception to the rule.

straw man

a fallacy that occurs when the arguer misinterprets an opponent’s position for the purpose of more easily attacking it, demolishes the misinterpreted argument, and then proceeds to conclude that the original argument has been demolished.

missing the point (ignatio elenchi - means “ignorance of the proof”)

an informal fallacy that occurs when the premise of an argument entails one particular conclusion, but a completely different conclusion is actually drawn.

red herring

a fallacy that occurs when the arguer diverts the attention of the reader or listener by addressing extraneous issues and finishes by presuming that some conclusion has been established