AP Lang Rhetorical Fallacies

Rhetorical Fallacy

Faulty reasoning leading to a conclusion the advertiser, author, or speaker wants you to make. Uses language to trick you into accepting the author’s conclusion.

Identifying a Rhetorical Fallacy

1. Identify the conclusion

2. Identify the evidence

3. Examine the evidence

Ad Populum

A claim is asserted to be true or right solely because many people believe it.
ex. Since most people are going to vote for a certain political candidate, you should too. Otherwise you’ll just be wasting your vote

Appeal to Authority

Focuses solely on the credentials or fame of the person recommending the product, without saying anything about the product itself.
ex. An influencer is paid by a manufacturer to endorse a certain product

Ad Hominem

An argument directed against a person rather than the position they are maintaining.
ex. Dismissing someone's point about environmental regulation because they drive an SUV

Dogmatism

The assertion of opinions or beliefs as if they were indisputable facts.
ex. A politician asserts that their proposed tax cuts are the only solution to economic problems without acknowledging other potential solutions.

Equivocation

A word or phrase is used with two different meanings within the same argument, creating a misleading conclusion.
ex. I have the right to my property. Therefore, it is right for me to do whatever I want with my property.

Pathos

Appeal to emotion.
ex. Describing the suffering of a child in a war-torn country to evoke sympathy and empathy.

Slippery Slope Fallacy

An initial action will inevitably lead to a series of increasingly negative consequences, resulting in a disastrous outcome.
ex. If you eat at a fast-food takeout once, pretty soon you’ll never want to eat healthy, nourishing home-cooked meals again.

Appeal to Fear

An argument is presented to persuade someone by evoking fear of a negative consequence if they don't accept it.
ex. A politician claims that if a certain policy isn't adopted, the country will be in danger.

Red Herring Fallacy

An irrelevant topic is introduced to distract from the main issue being discussed.
ex. Person A says that they think students should have more input on school curriculum changes, and Person B says that teachers are happy with the current system, which isn’t relevant to Person A’s claim.

Straw Man Argument

A distorted or weaker version of an opposing claim is created and attacked as if it were the original argument.

ex. Person A says that they think public transportation should be improved, and Person B responds by saying, “So you think we should give up on personal vehicles and make everyone rely on buses? That's ridiculous!"

False Analogy

Two things are compared as if they are similar in ways that are not actually significant.

ex. “Making people register their own guns is like the Nazis making the Jews register with their government.”

Post Hoc Fallacy (Faulty Casuality)

Assumes that because one event happened before another, it must have caused the second event. 
ex. "Every time I wash my car, it rains. Washing my car causes rain.”

Reverse Causation Fallacy

Incorrectly assumes that one event (A) causes another event (B), when in reality, B actually causes A.

ex. Believing that smoking cigarettes causes depression, when in reality, many people smoke cigarettes to mitigate their depression.

Begging the Question

An argument's premises assume the truth of the conclusion they are supposed to prove.

ex. “The Bible is true because it is God's word, and God's word is true," begs the question: Is God’s word true?

Irrelevent Conclusion (Non Sequitur)

An argument's premises support a particular conclusion, but the arguer draws a different, unrelated conclusion instead.
ex. "We are quickly diminishing the supplies of fossil fuels in the earth therefore we should give up on cars and electricity and go back to the ways of the Amish." 

Non Sequitur

A conclusion does not logically follow from the premises or evidence presented.

ex. My dog is named Max, and he likes to eat dog food. Therefore, everyone named Max likes to eat dog food.

False Dilema

Two options are presented as if they are the only possibilities, when in reality, more options exist.
ex. “If we don’t launch a preemptive attack and destroy the enemy first, they will destroy us.”

Hasty Generalization

A conclusion is drawn about a large group or population based on a small or unrepresentative sample of evidence.

ex. “I met three people from Fairfax and they were all rude. Therefore, everyone from Fairfax is rude

Unfalsifiability

A statement that cannot be empirically investigated or confirmed through scientific methods because it lacks the necessary specificity.

ex. “Invisible unicorns live in my anus." (Cannot be observed or detected).