"Understanding Common Fallacies: Ad Hominem, Straw Man, Appeal to Authority, and More – How to Identify and Avoid Logical Errors in Arguments

errors in logic, misuse of evidence, or rhetorical tricks that distract from the actual issue at hand. Understanding fallacies is crucial because they can mislead people and obscure the truth. Here's a detailed look at several common types of fallacies:

1. Ad Hominem (Attacking the Person)
This fallacy occurs when an argument is rebutted by attacking the character or circumstances of the person making the argument rather than addressing the substance of the argument itself. For example, if someone argues for environmental regulations and their opponent responds by attacking their personal lifestyle choices, that's an ad hominem fallacy.

2. Straw Man
A straw man fallacy happens when someone misrepresents or oversimplifies an opposing argument to make it easier to attack. Instead of engaging with the actual argument presented, the person creates a distorted version of it. For example, if someone argues for more robust public health measures and their opponent responds by claiming they want to shut down all private healthcare, that's a straw man fallacy.

3. Appeal to Authority
This fallacy occurs when someone asserts that a claim is true simply because an authority figure or expert says it is, without considering the authority's credibility or the argument's merit. For example, saying "This new diet must be effective because a famous celebrity endorses it" is an appeal to authority.

4. False Dilemma (False Dichotomy)
A false dilemma fallacy involves presenting two opposing options as the only possibilities when in fact more options exist. This type of fallacy limits the range of choices available, often to force a specific outcome. For instance, saying "You’re either with us or against us" disregards the possibility of neutral or alternative positions.

5. Slippery Slope
This fallacy suggests that a relatively small first step will inevitably lead to a chain of related events with significant impact, often with little evidence to support such a causal connection. For example, arguing that legalizing recreational marijuana will inevitably lead to widespread drug addiction and societal collapse is a slippery slope fallacy.

6. Circular Reasoning (Begging the Question)
Circular reasoning occurs when the conclusion of an argument is assumed in the premises, effectively providing no real evidence or logical progression. For instance, "The Bible is the word of God because God says so in the Bible" is circular reasoning because it assumes the conclusion within its premises.

1. Fallacy and its Types
UMAIR WAHEED
20-EE-30
SOBAN TARIQ
20-EE-31
HAMMAD ABBASI
20-EE-24

2. FALLACY
Argument meant to prove a point good reasons for accepting
a claim sometimes succeed and sometimes not.
When arguments fails to prove point then the problem will be
that the premises are false, the reasoning is faulty.
Flawed arguments are known as fallaciesand said to be
fallacious.

3. TYPES OF FALLACIES
There are two broad categories of fallacies:
1)Irrelaventpremises
2)Unacceptable premises

4. IrrelaventPremises
IrrelaventPremiseshavenobearingonthetruthoftheconclusion.An
argumentmayseemtoofferreasonsforacceptingtheconclusion,butthe
"reasons"hasnothingtodowiththeconclusion.
Examples:
Youcandismissthatalternativeenergyconservationplan.It'sthebrainchild
ofaliberalthinktankinWashington.
Weshouldrejectthatproposalforsolvingthecurrentwelfaremess.Itcomes
straightfromtheRepublicanparty.
Onlymanisrational.Nowomanisaman.Therefore,nowomanisrational.

5. IrrelaventPremises
There are different subtypes of irrelaventpremises
1. Genetic Fallacies
2. Composition
3. Division
4. Appeal to Person
5. Equivocation
6. Appeal to Polularity
7. Appeal to Trasition
8. Appeal to Ignorance
9. Appeal to Emotion
10.Red Herring
11.Straw Man

6. 1.Genetic Fallacies
Thegeneticfallacyisarguingthataclaimistrueorfalsesolelybecauseofits
origin.
Examples:
Youcansafelydismissthatenergyconservationplan.It'sthebrainchildofaliberal
thinktankinWashington.
Weshouldrejectthatproposalforsolvingthecurrentwelfaremess.Itcomes
straightfromtheRepublicanparty.
Russell'sideaabouttaxhikescametohiminadream,soitmustbebunk.
Theseargumentsfailbecausetheyrejectaclaimbasedsolelyonwhereitcomes
from,notonitsmerits.

7. 2. Composition
Thefallacyofcompositionisarguingthatwhatistrueofthe'partsmustbetrueof
thewhole.
Theerrorhereisthinkingthatthecharacteristicsofthepartsaresomehow
transferredtothewhole,somethingthatisnotalwaysthecase.likewise,theerroris
committedwheneverweassumethatwhat'strueofamemberofagroupistrueof
thegroupasawhole.
Examples:
Theatomsthatmakeupthehumanbodyareinvisible.Therefore,thehumanbodyis
invisible.
Eachmemberoftheclubisproductiveandeffective.Sotheclubwillbeproductive
andeffective.
Eachnoteinthesongsoundsgreat.Therefore,thewholesongwillsoundgreat.
Everypartofthismotorcycleislightweight;therefore,thewholemotorcycleislight
weight.

8. 3. Division
Theflipsideofthefallacyofcompositionisthefallacyofdivisionthearguingthat
whatistrueofthewholemustbetrueoftheparts.
Thefallacyisalsocommittedwhenweassumethatwhatistrueofagroupistrue
ofindividualsinthegroup.
Examples:
Thismachineisheavy.Therefore,allthepartsofthismachineareheavy.
SincethecommitteeisapowerfulforceinWashingtonpolitics,eachmemberof
thecommitteeisapowerfulforceinWashingtonpolitics.
Universitystudentsstudyeveryconceivablesubject.Sothatuniversitystudent
overtherealsostudieseveryconceivablesubject.

9. 4. Appeal to the person
Thefallacyofappealtothepersonl(oradhominem,meaning"totheman")is
rejectingaclaimbycriticizingthepersonwhomakesitratherthantheclaimitself.
Examples:
Joneshasarguedforabanongovernment-sanctionedprayerinschoolsandat
school-sponsoredevents.Buthe'sarabidatheistwithoutmoralsofanykind.
Anythinghehastosayontheissueisboundtobeaperversionofthetruth.
WeshouldrejectChen'sargumentforlifeonotherplanets.Hedabblesinthe
paranormal.
Youcan'tbelieveanythingMorrissaysaboutwelfarereform.He'sableedingheart
liberal.

10. 5. Equivocation
Thefallacyofequivocationistheuseofawordintwodifferentsensesinan
argument.
Examples:
Theendofeverythingisitsperfection.Theendoflifeisdeath.Therefore,deathis
theperfectionoflife.
Onlymanisrational.Nowomanisaman.Therefore,nowomanisrational.
Inthefirstargument,endisusedintwodifferentsenses.Inthefirstpremiseitmeans
purpose,butintheseconditmeanstermination.Becauseofthisflip-flopinmeanings,
theconclusiondoesn'tfollowfromthepremises-butitlooksasifitshould.
Inthesecondargument,manistheequivocalterm.Inthefirstpremiseitmeans
humankind,butinthesecond,male.Sotheconclusiondoesn'tfollow,makingitappear
thatasoundargumenthasbanishedwomen'srationality.

11. 6. Appeal to Polularity
Thefallacyoftheappealtopopularity(ortothemasses)isarguingthataclaim
mustbetruemerelybecauseasubstantialnumberofpeoplebelieveit.Thebasic
patternofthisfallacyis"Everyone(oralmosteveryone,mostpeople,many
people)believesX,soXmustbetrue.“
Examples:
Mostpeopleapproveofthegovernment'snewsecuritymeasures,eventhough
innocentpeople'sprivacyissometimesviolated.SoIguessthemeasuresmustbe
okay.
Ofcoursethewarisjustified.Everyonebelievesthatit'sjustified.Thevast
majorityofAmericansbelievethatthere'sasupremebeing,sohowcouldyou
doubtit?

12. 7. Appeal to Trasition
Theappealtotraditionisarguingthataclaimmustbetruejust
becauseit'spartofatradition.
Examples:
Nooneinthisfamilyhaseverbeendivorced;therefore,youneedto
workoutyourmaritalproblems.Wedon'tgetdivorced!
Thecheerleadersshouldbeallowedtoweartheiruniformstoschool
onFridaysbecausethat'sthewaywehavealwaysdoneit.Itisa
traditionatthisschool.

13. 8. Appeal to Ignorance
Theappealtoignoranceisarguingthatalackofevidenceproves
something.Inonetypeofthisfallacy,theproblemarisesbythinkingthata
claimmustbetruebecauseithasn'tbeenshowntobefalse.
Examples:
Noonehasshownthatghostsaren'treal,sotheymustbereal.
IthoughtIhadeveryreasontothinkIwasdoingfineleadingthegroup;no
onecomplained.
Nooneonthecouncilobjectedtotheideathatheproposed,soeveryone
mustthinkit’sagreatidea.

14. 9. Appeal to Emotion
Thefallacyoftheappealtoemotionistheuseofemotionsaspremisesinan
argument.Thatis,itconsistsoftryingtopersuadesomeoneofaconclusion
solelybyarousinghisorherfeelingsratherthanpresentingrelevantreasons.
Theyappealtoalmostnothingbutstrongemotions.
Examples:
“They’resayingthatwhatIdidwasacrime,butI’mnotguilty,becauseifIam
thenI’llhavetospendmanyhorribleyearsinjail”.
Youshouldhiremeforthisnetworkanalystposition.I'mthebestpersonforthe
job.IfIdon'tgetajobsoonmywifewillleaveme,andIwon'thaveenough
moneytopayformymother'sheartoperation.Comeon,givemeabreak.

15. 10. Red Herring
Thedeliberateraisingofanirrelevantissueduringanargumentthistypeof
argumentcalledRedHerring.
Thisfallacyconsistsindivertingattentionfromtherealissuebyfocusing
insteadonanissuehavingonlyasurfacerelevancetothefirst.
Examples:
Son:"Wow,Dad,it'sreallyhardtomakealivingonmysalary."Father:
"Consideryourselflucky,son.Why,whenIwasyourage,Ionlymade$40a
week.“
Reporter:"Mr.President,youropponent,Imrankhanisconsiderablyyounger
thanyou.Doyouthinkthatwiththethreatofnuclearwar,ageshouldbean
issueinthiscampaign?"PresidentReagan:"Notatall.Iamnotgoingto
exploitmyopponent'syouthandinexperience."

16. 11. Straw man
Thefallacyofthestrawmanthedistorting,weakening,or
oversimplifyingofsomeone'spositionsoitcanbemoreeasilyattacked
orrefuted.
Examples:
Teachingassistant:thehomeworkassignmentwasmuchharder
thanwethought,soIthinkweshouldgiveafewextrapointsto
studentswhocompletedit.Professor:that’saterribleidea.Ifwe
giveeveryoneaperfectscorefornoreason,studentswon’tbother
workinghardinthefuture.

17. Unacceptable Premises
Unacceptablepremisesarerelevanttotheconclusionbutare
nonethelessdubious-someway.Anargumentmayhavepremisesthat
pertaintotheconclusion,buttheydonotadequatelysupportit.
Premisescanbeunacceptablebecausetheyareasdubiousastheclaim
they'reintendedtosupport,becausetheevidencetheyofferistooweakto
adequatelysupporttheconclusion,orbecausethey'reotherwiseso
defectivethattheyprovidenosupportatall
Soingoodarguments,premisesmustbebothrelevantandacceptable.In
fallaciousarguments,atleastoneoftheserequirementsisnotmet.

18. EXAMPLES
Look,eitheryousupportthewaroryouareatraitortoyourcountry.You
don'tsupportthewar.Soyou'reatraitor.
WeabsolutelymustnotlosethewarinVietnam.IfSouthVietnamfallstothe
communists,thenThailandwillfalltothem.IfThailandfallstothem,then
SouthKoreawillfalltothem.Andbeforeyouknowit,allofSoutheastAsia
willbeundercommunistcontrol.
Therightsofthecriminalarejustasimportantastherightsofthevictim.
Everyone'srightsareequal.
Snowiswhite.Thatbirdiswhite.Becausethesethingsarealike,thatbirdis
alsocoldlikesnow.

19. Unacceptable Premises
Therearedifferentsubtypesofunacceptablepremises
1.BeggingtheQuestion
2.FalseDilemma
3.SlipperySlope
4.HastyGeneralization
5.FaultyAnalogy

20. 1. Begging the Question
Thefallacyofbeggingthequestion(orarguinginacircle)isthe
attempttoestablishtheconclusionofanargumentbyusingthat
conclusionasapremise.
Examples:
TheBiblesaysthatGodexists.TheBibleistruebecauseGodwroteit.
Therefore,Godexists.
Killingpeopleiswrong,sothedeathpenaltyiswrong.
Therightsofthecriminalarejustasimportantastherightsofthe
victim.Everyone'srightsareequal.

21. 2. False Dilemma
Thefallacyoffalsedilemmaisassertingthatthereareonlytwoalternatives
toconsiderwhenthereareactuallymorethantwo.
Examples:
Look,eitheryousupportthewaroryouareatraitortoyourcountry.You
don'tsupportthewar.Soyou'reatraitor.
Eitherthoselightsyousawinthenightskywerealienspacecraft(UFOs),or
youwerehallucinating.Youobviouslyweren'thallucinating.Sotheyhadto
beUFOs.
Drinkwatereverydayandbehealthy,orcontinuetodrinksodasandbe
unhealthy.Thosearetheonlyoptions.
Theanimalshelterisaplacethatvaluesanimalrightsandnevereuthanizes
animals,ortheanimalshelterisaplacethatkillsinnocentanimals.

22. 3. Slippery Slope
Thefallacyofslipperyslopeisarguing,withoutgoodreasons,thattakinga
particularstepwillinevitablyleadtoafurther,undesirablestep(orsteps).The
ideabehindthemetaphor,ofcourse,isthatifyoutakethefirststepona
slipperyslope,youwillhavetotakeothersbecause,well,theslopeisslippery.
Examples:
WeabsolutelymustnotlosethewarinVietnam.IfSouthVietnamfallstothe
communists,thenThailandwillfalltothem.IfThailandfallstothem,thenSouth
Koreawillfalltothem.Andbeforeyouknowit,allofSoutheastAsiawillbe
undercommunistcontrol.
Ifassaultriflesarebannedinthiscountry,thenhandgunswillbenext.Then
sportingrifleswillbebanned.Andultimatelyallgunswillbebanned,andour
fundamentalfreedomtoowngunswillbecanceledoutaltogether.Soifassault
riflesarebanned,wemightaswellstriketheSecondAmendmentfromthe
Constitutionbecauseitwillbeworthless.

23. 4. Hasty Generalization
Theconnectionbetweentheavailabilityerrorandthefallacyknownashasty
generalization.
Theguiltyofhastygeneralizationwhenwedrawaconclusionaboutawholegroup
basedonaninadequatesampleofthegroup.Thismistakeisagenuinefallacyof
unacceptablepremisesbecausethepremisesstatingthesamplesizearerelevant
totheconclusion,buttheyprovideinadequateevidence.
Examples:
YoushouldbuyaDellcomputer.They'regreat.Iboughtonelastyear,andithas
givenmenothingbutflawlessperformance.
TheonlymaleprofessorI'vehadthisyearwasachauvinistpig.Allthemale
professorsatthisschoolmustbechauvinistpigs.
TheFrencharesnobbyandrude.Rememberthosetwohigh-and-mightyguyswith
reallybadmanners?They'reFrench.Irestmycase.

24. 5. Faulty Analogy
AnanalogyisacomparisonoftwoOrmorethingsalikeinspecificrespects.
Anargumentbyanalogyreasonsthisway:Becausetwoormorethingsare
similarinseveralrespects,theymustbesimilarinsomefurtherrespect.
Examples:
Dogsarewarm-blooded,nursetheiryoung,andgivebirthtopuppies.
Humansarewarm-bloodedandnursetheiryoung.Therefore,humansgive
birthtopuppiestoo.
Snowiswhite.Thatbirdiswhite.Becausethesethingsarealike,thatbirdis
alsocoldlikesnow.