15 Logical Fallacies Review

Straw Man

Misrepresent (oversimplify, generalize, exaggerate) someone’s argument in order to defeat it

False Cause

“post hoc ergo propter hoc” “after this, therefore because of this”

assumes one event is responsible for causing another

Slippery Slope

argues against an action on the basis that it will lead to a series of largely unrelated bigger consequences

Ad Hominem

“at the man”

attacking/arguing against the person, not the argument

Burden of Proof

person makes a claim but instead of proving proof, they demand their opponent to disprove the original claim

Moving the Goalposts

changing the rules (or what counts as proof) in the middle of the game

Circular Reasoning

evidence for the claim is no different than the claim itself

Gambler’s Fallacy

mistaken belief about the likelihood of something to happen again after occurring a number of times

Red Herring

information designed to mislead or distract

False Choice

two choices are presented as the ONLY options when there are more

False Analogy

assuming that because two things share a characteristic, they are identical

Appeal to Authority/Emotion

Authority: using a person of authority in place of an actual argument

Emotion: using emotional manipulation in place of an argument

Ethos

appeals to authority/status, credibility of arguer

Pathos

appeals to emotion

Logos

appeals to reason and logic

Tu Quoque Fallacy

“you too”

assuming a claim is false because it’s inconsistent with the behavior of the arguer

Fallacy of Relative Privation

dismissing one problem because another problem exists

Righteousness Fallacy

assuming a person Is right because they have good intentions, are kind, or are compassionate