Common Fallacies

This set of vocabulary flashcards covers common logical fallacies and their definitions as presented in Mr. James Riner's lecture.

Fallacy

A flaw in logic or reasoning typically due to mistaken or unverifiable beliefs, incomplete or incorrect data, or intentionally misleading statements.

Strawman Fallacy

A fallacy that occurs when someone distorts or misrepresents someone else’s argument to make it seem like the argument can be easily refuted, often by oversimplifying or mischaracterizing the opposition.

Ad Hominem Fallacy

Occurs when one side attacks the character or personality of the other side instead of addressing the argument itself; Latin for “argument towards the person.”

Mud slinging

The act of maliciously attacking an opponent’s character in the hopes of damaging the opponent’s image or cause.

Tu Quoque Fallacy

A prevalent type of Ad Hominem fallacy, also called the ‑Hypocrisy Fallacy,‑ where one tries to undermine an argument by accusing the presenter of being a hypocrite; Latin for “you also.”

Appeal to Authority Fallacy

Occurs when someone insists a claim is true based solely on only one expert’s opinion or based on only one provider of information.

Anecdotal Evidence Fallacy

A fallacy occurring when a personal story or the story of another person is used to make broad conclusions about a topic while excluding outside perspectives.

Bandwagon Fallacy

Occurs when someone claims something is true because a majority of people believe it is true; originated from an American phrase from the $19^{th}$ century.

Appeal to Pity Fallacy

A fallacy that occurs when an argument attempts to use only pity or guilt to convince an audience.

Correlation Equals Causation Fallacy

Occurs when it is assumed a cause and effect relationship exists between two events simply because they happen at the same time.

Cherry Picking Fallacy

Occurs when an argument points to cases and data that support it but ignores or belittles cases and data that do not.

Texas Sharp Shooter Fallacy

An alternative name for the Cherry Picking Fallacy, based on a story of a Texan who shoots a barn wall and then paints target lines around the holes.

Burden of Proof Fallacy

Occurs when an argument claims the opposition must disprove its claims instead of the argument proving the truth of its own claims.

Slippery Slope Fallacy

Occurs when an argument makes the claim that a big event will happen due to a smaller event without providing proper evidence for the chain of events.

Hasty Generalization Fallacy

Occurs when one makes a big claim with incomplete or incorrect data; this fallacy is the root of any stereotype and bigotry.

False Dilemma Fallacy

A fallacy occurring when an argument makes it seem there are only two options or perspectives in a situation when there are actually multiple.

False Compromise Fallacy

Also called “Argument to Moderation,” this creates the idea that there is always a middle ground to an argument and that the middle ground is the correct choice by default.

Red Herring Fallacy

Occurs when someone tries to discredit or confuse an argument by redirecting the conversation to a different topic.

Sunk Cost Fallacy

Occurs when someone is reluctant to abandon an argument or cause because of all the past action and investment already placed into it.

The ‑Fallacy‑ Fallacy

Occurs when one thinks an argument or position is automatically wrong or $100\%$ false simply because a fallacy was identified within it.