Logical Fallacies

Charlie: I think we should put more money into schools. Quality public education is so important.

Bob: So you’re saying we should cut military spending and spend it instead on more spiral notebooks and crayons? I guess you want our country to be a weak, defenseless target for terrorists.

• Ad Hominem

• Hasty Generalization

• Red herring

• Straw Man

Tags

CCSS.RI.8.1

CCSS.RI.8.8

CCSS.RL.11-12.1

CCSS.RL.8.1

CCSS.RL.9-10.1

Oh, please. What would you know about labor laws? You don’t even have a job.

• Ad Hominem

• Slippery slope

• Hasty Generalization

• Straw man

If I don’t take this A.P. class, then I won’t do well on the exam. If I don’t do well on the A.P. exam, then I can’t get into a good college. If I can’t get into a good college, then I’ll never get a good job. If I can’t get a good job, then I’m going to have to live in my parents’ basement forever. Guess I’ll sign up for the A.P. class.

• Post hoc

• Slippery Slope

• Hasty Generalization

• Faulty use of authority

Tags

CCSS.RI.8.1

CCSS.RI.8.8

CCSS.RL.11-12.1

CCSS.RL.8.1

CCSS.RL.9-10.1

You need to go to the party with me, otherwise you’ll just be bored at home.

• hasty generalization

• post hoc

• false dilemma

• appeal to pity

Tags

CCSS.RI.8.1

CCSS.RI.8.8

CCSS.RL.11-12.1

CCSS.RL.8.1

CCSS.RL.9-10.1

I know the professor said the Bridges of Madison County was smarmy trash and lacked any artistic worth. But I still think he's wrong. After all, it was on the best-seller list for over 100 weeks.

• Faulty use of authority

• Red Herring

• Non sequitur

• Begging the Question

Tags

CCSS.RI.8.1

CCSS.RI.8.8

CCSS.RL.11-12.1

CCSS.RL.8.1

CCSS.RL.9-10.1

An ad hominem attack

• is a very effective debate strategy
• goes after a person's argument.
• is always against a popular idea.
• is an attack on the person, not the argument 

Tags

CCSS.RI. 9-10.8

CCSS.RI.11-12.5

CCSS.RI.11-12.8

CCSS.RI.8.5

CCSS.RI.9-10.5

Teacher: If I let you go to the bathroom pretty soon everybody will want to go to the bathroom. This is an example of

• Faulty use of authority

• Ad populum

• An Ad Hominem attack

• The Slippery Slope Fallacy

Tags

CCSS.RI.8.1

CCSS.RI.8.8

CCSS.RL.11-12.1

CCSS.RL.8.1

CCSS.RL.9-10.1

"Good morning! Have you gotten over the grouchy mood you were in?"

• Loaded question

• Ad hominem

• False dilemma

• False analogy

Tags

CCSS.RI.8.1

CCSS.RI.8.8

CCSS.RL.11-12.1

CCSS.RL.8.1

CCSS.RL.9-10.1

"The mind is like a knife, cutting through difficult problems. But just as too much cutting dulls a knife, so too much education dulls the mind."

• False dilemma

• False analogy

• Hasty generalization

• Begging the question

Tags

CCSS.L.6.5B

CCSS.L.8.5B

CCSS.W.11-12.2D

"The two courses I took at UF were not very interesting. I don't think its a good university."

• Non sequitur

• Ad hominem

• Hasty generalization

• False dilemma

Tags

CCSS.RI.8.1

CCSS.RI.8.8

CCSS.RL.11-12.1

CCSS.RL.8.1

CCSS.RL.9-10.1