FALLACIES

Fallacies are sometimes humorous. But to those who are directly affected by them they can be frustrating and even infuriating. Broadly speaking, a fallacy could refer to any error in reasoning. When an argument seems to establish a conclusion but in reality it is not, it commits a fallacy. As a general rule, informal fallacies should not be treated as one of the subject matters in the study of logic. It is because these errors are not drawn out in violation of the logical rules and principles but are drawn out from the misuse of ordinary language. he arguer!s motive is to devise his own language in order to deceive the listener and eventually accept the claim. But the art of reasoning is delivered through the use of language which is the medium of thought. hus, it is most appropriate to learn the nature of these fallacies under the realm of formal logic. "lassification of informal fallacies# $% he Fallacies of Irrelevant &vidences '% he Fallacies of Ambiguous (anguage )% he Fallacies of &*aggerated Assumptions +% he Fallacies of ,eglected "ategories

IRRELEVANT EVIDENCIES
his group of fallacies depends on psychological factors for their persuasive force. hese factors are logically e*traneous. hey do not provide evidence to support the conclusion they wish to establish. hey simply work on certain emotions to cause acceptance of the conclusion. $. Argumentum Ad Hominem -argument to the man% he words of a person we do not like, no matter how good or how well said, will carry little or no weight for us. We reject a person!s argument, not because of its incoherence but because of who the person is. We attack the man, rather than his argument. here are three forms of this fallacy. hese are the following# a% ad hominem abusive . committed when the argument directly malign the source. b% ad hominem circumstantial . is a milder form that simply makes reference to the person!s self/interest, convictions, or circumstances. c% tu quo que -you too% . another variation of ad hominem fallacy that attempts to discredit an argument by pointing out something in the background of the speaker.

Wow, Miss Tapia, bagay na bagay sa inyo ang suot nyo a! [Bong] Oo nga ano. She got that supreme ourt !igure . . . no appea"! [Tom]
'. Argumentum ad Verecundiam -appeal to authority% It is committed when the speaker cites a claim grounded on a premise being made by an e*pert in an unrelated field -un0ualified authority%. &*ample#

#instein$s theory o! re"ati%ity is impossib"e, as "ear"y in&i ate& by Mi hae" 'or&an, the greatest bas(etba"" p"ayer o! our time.
). Argumentum ad Populum -appeal to the people% his fallacy is committed when the claim being advanced for by the speaker is emotionally convincing and eventually accommodated by the people or the audience. his is commonly used by politicians, propagandists, media, and advertisements. When the speaker creatively captured the weakness of the listener -through flattery%, the common tendency for the listener is not to argue but to accept the proposition of the speaker. his fallacy has two kinds, namely, the direct and indirect. It is direct when the arguer e*cites the emotion of the crowd to win an acceptance of the conclusion. It is indirect when an arguer targets and e*ploits the desire of an individual who has a relation with a specific group. he individual feels being threatened or left behind by the peer when he never conforms to the beliefs and practices of the majority. his kind of ad populum is also known as Bandwagon or Peer Pressure.

Miss Tapia, youre "i(e an ange" !a""en !rom the s(ies)) este paba"e naman ho. [Tom] *in&i pwe&e, a"ang (warta! [Miss Tapia] Too ba& that ange" "an&e& on her !a e. [Tom] +ina, Tom, yester&ay was my birth&ay. -ou !orgot it again.

Tom,

*ow &o you e.pe t me to remember your birth&ay, # hin&i (a naman tumatan&a!

+. Argumentum ad Misericordiam -appeal to pity% It is committed whenever an arguer poses a conclusion and then attempts to evoke pity from the reader or listener in an effort to get him or her to accept the conclusion. he following e*amples will illustrate the point of the said fallacy#

Suitor, /ai"an mo a(o sasagutin0 Wa"a ba (ahit na (aunting pag1asa0 2ir", *wag (ang apura&o. 3ag1isipan (o muna. Suitor, /ung wa"a rin namang pag1asa, mabuti pa sigurong mamatay para hin&i na masa(tan.
1. Argumentum ad Baculum -appeal to force or threat% his fallacy is committed when the arguer poses a conclusion to another person and tells that person either implicitly or e*plicitly that some harm will come to him if he does not accept the conclusion. his is fallacious because such force or threat is logically irrelevant to the subject matter of the conclusion.

TOM 456 BO52 W#7# S*47852. 5a(a(aasar naman $tong si 2o"em, napa(asumbungero (ay sir. [Tom] M7. 2O+#M O9#7*#476 T*# 68S:;SS8O5. 4nong sumbungero0 Tom, bawiin mo ang sinabi mo or e"se).. [Mr. 2o"em] Or e"se what0 [Tom] 8susumbong (ita (ay sir! [Mr. 2o"em]
2. Argumentum ad Ignorantiam -appeal to ignorance% his fallacy is committed when one concludes that just because a proposition has not been proved false, therefore, it is true3 or that it is false, just because it is not been proved to be true.

7ein arnation is true sin e no one has pro%e& that it &oes not ta(e p"a e.
4. Ignoratio Elenc i -irrelevant conclusion% his fallacy is committed when we draw out a conclusion not warranted in the premises. An e*ample will illustrate this fallacy#

Mon(eys are so ia" beings. 'uan is a so ia" being. *en e, 3e&ro is a mon(ey.

AMBI!"#"S LAN!"A!E
hey arise from careless as well as incompetent use and interpretation of language, although some of the fallacies seem created to deliberately entrap. $. Amp i$ol% It is produced by a faulty sentence construction. A sentence may allow itself to be interpreted in different ways because of defective synta*. &*ample#

May "agnat a(o. Siguro tran(aso na $to. [6yani] 6yani, a"am mo ba that e.er ise (i""s germs0 [Mr. 2o"em] 3aano (ong mapag1e.er ise ang mga germs0 [6yani]
'. E&ui'ocation his fallacy is committed when one or more words were used in two different senses in the argument. &*ample#

Tom, &o you pra ti e a upun ture here0 [Bong] ;m . . . -es, in !a t my wi!e is an e.pert in a upun ture. [Tom] Ta"aga! [Bong] Oo, she has been nee&"ing me !or years. [Tom] Ts(, !our o "o (, a"" my wor(s &one, pero !i%e o "o ( pa ang uwian. [Bongs thin(ing] 6yani, ano (ayang &apat gawin to (i"" time0 [Bong] Sa(sa(in mo! [6yani]
5ur best defense against e0uivocation is to define our terms carefully. ). Accent
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his fallacy is a result of a misplaced emphasis. By putting the emphasis on the wrong word or phrase in a sentence, the original intent of the statement could be changed. &*ample#

Ma&a"as nga (aming mag1away ng wi!e (o. But ne%er na)..38542B;*4T45 /O S-4 52 /4M4-! [Tom] *ey, thats something! Mabait (a pa"a. #, what &o you &o instea&0 [Ba"&o] 8 use my !eet. [Tom] Mr. Ba"ti , Tom re!use& to !o""ow my instru tions. [Mr. 2o"em] 6i& you te"" him that 8 ga%e you authority0 [Mr. Ba"ti ] -es, sir. What &i& he say0 *e to"& me to go ba ( to the &e%i". What &i& you &o then0 8 ame straight to you, sir.

+. Composition It is a reasoning that proceeds from the characteristic of individual parts to those of the whole. 5r it is a contention that the distributive characteristic of the members of a class or group will tell us e*actly what the characteristic of its collective whole will be. &*ample#

Mom, &ont put sa"t in the i e ream. 8t wi"" be sa"ty! rie& the "itt"e boy.
1. Di'ision It is the reverse of composition. 6ere, the characteristic of the whole is attributed to its parts.

Bong, "isten to this).. more peop"e &ie in be& than anywhere e"se! [Tom] 6-458 O9#7*#476 T*# 68S:;SS8O5. T*# 582*T 4<T#7, *# S+#3T 85 T*# <+OO7 4W4- <7OM *8S B#6.
2. Comple) *uestion A comple* 0uestion is so worded that a simple answer maybe an answer to many other unasked 0uestions. his is the case when a judge sustains the objection of the defense attorney that the prosecutor!s 0uestion is leading. 6e recogni7es that the 0uestion is an attempt to entrap the witness.

7oman, ha%e you reso"%e& to "ea& a straight "i!e this year0 [Wi!e] -es, &ear. [*usban&] So now you a&mit that you were hi&ing things behin& my ba ( "ast year! [Wi!e]

NE!LECTED CATE!#RIES
hese fallacies are committed because some fundamental principles are not given attention to or part of the truth is ignored.

$. +alse Cause
his fallacy occurs in a manner of inferring cause/effect correlation. It is fallacious because it makes the presumption of causal connection between the premises -cause% and -conclusion%, and probably this connection does not e*ist. here are two kinds of this fallacy# a% 859 65" &:;5 8:58 &: 65" -after this, therefore, because of this%. It presupposes that just because one event precedes another event, then the first event causes the second. b% ,5, "A<9A 8:5 "A<9A. It simply means to accept, as the cause what is actually is not a cause. 9ymptoms, phenomena, conditions, as well as the effects themselves are erroneously regarded as the cause.

4 man was wa"(ing with his &og in the heat o! the sun an& ha& a stro(e. 8t is not goo& to ta(e a wa"( with your &og.
'. Begging t e *uestion his fallacy is committed by assuming from the beginning the very thing that one sets to prove. It is technically known as petitio principii. "ircular definitions are the simplest form of this fallacy. &*amples#
,

Whi h omes !irst, the hi (en or the egg0 Be!ore the hi (en, there omes the egg. But an egg annot e.ist without the hi (en. *mp, ta"agang (ayong mga "a"a(i pare1pareho. -ou are a"" beasts. [Miss Tapia] Beasts pa"a, e ba(it (ayo "uma"apit sa men0 [Tom] Be ause 8 "o%e anima"s! [Miss Tapia]
). Accident his fallacy is committed when one believes that a general rule applies to all situations without e*ception. What is true in general may not be true in =accidental> circumstances.

M7. B4+T8: W4S 7#46852 4 5#WS343#7 W*#5 *# :4M# 4:7OSS 45 85T782;852 +85#. *uh, a or&ing to my horos ope 8 shou"& not ma(e any &e ision to&ay. [Mr. Ba"ti ] ;3O5 7#T;75852 *OM#, 4 7OBB#7 :O5<7O5T#6 *8M 4T 2;5 3O85T. Money or "i!e [7obber] 8"" "et you (now tomorrow. [Mr. Ba"ti ]
+. Con'erse Accident It is a reverse of accident. he argument proceeds with what is true of specific cases to general truths. "onverse accident is also known as hasty generalization. &*ample#

Women are at the bottom o! a"" troub"es.

1. Blac- or . ite It is also known as $i/urcation or false dilemma. he fallacy is committed when we limit the alternatives to =either?.or.> When we fail to take account of the mediating alternatives between e*tremes. &*ample#

3o"iti ian, The on"y so"ution to the insurgen y prob"em in Min&anao is a mi"itary option.
2. #ne0 More or Less It is also known as the argument of the beard. his fallacy is committed when one is blind to e*treme. 6e refuses to recogni7e differences in kind3 all differences are only a matter of degree.

One o1e& to another, We ha%e a rea""y ni e party p"anne& !or tomorrow, so 8 hope you"" ome. 'ust s(ip you a!ternoon "asses. 4nyway, whats one absen e, more or "ess0

E1A!!ERATED ASS"MPTI#NS
&very argument begins with an assumption. If the assumption is false or simply e*aggerated, the ensuing conclusion will likely be unreliable. $. Contradictor% Assumptions An argument containing contradictory statements commits the fallacy of contradictory assumption, for contradictory assertions cannot stand together as true. &*ample#

6uring the =>>? presi&entia" e"e tion, Mr. 4"!re&o +im ran as one o! the an&i&ates. 4s one o! his ampaign p"at!orm, he promise& to o!!er !ree e&u ation to a"" young <i"ipinos i! he won the e"e tion.
@r. (im committed a fallacy of contradictory assumption because he offered to give free education without even mentioning the means as to where he would get the necessary funds. Aid he plan to restructure the system of ta*ationB hat was not clear. '. Misusing t e Mean 5ne of the better known Aristotelian principles is the doctrine of the mean. Aristotle urged persons to act moderately, to avoid e*tremes in order to achieve happiness. Between cowardice and rashness, one must choose courage3 between empty vanity and undue humility, one must choose pride. But for Aristotle, the mean varies from person to person, from situation to situation. It is not absolute3 rather the mean is =relative to us, this being determined by a rational principle and by that principle which the man of practical wisdom could determine it.>

We misuse the mean when we take it as absolute. Any argument which insists that the mean is the right course of action for no other reason than that it is the middle position, misuses the mean. &*ample#

The best !orm o! go%ernment is between tyranny an& &emo ra y. This is a better ompromise between the nee& to preser%e in&i%i&ua"s &ignity whi"e upho"&ing the we"!are o! the state.
). H%pot esis Contrar% to +acts he argument that proceeds from =hypothesis contrary to fact> is a form of rationali7ing. o argue this way is at best only to guess. &*ample#

8! the 'apanese won the war, the 3hi"ippines wou"& now be an in&ustria"i@e& ountry "i(e 'apan.
+. +alse Analogies Analogy is the similarity or resemblance between two things. As such, it is an e*cellent inductive device. It works on the premise that when two things are similar in certain respects, they are also similar in other respects. But one must guard against carrying the analogy too far because two things that are similar in some respects are not necessarily similar in every aspect. &*ample#

The brain is "i(e a sponge. When the sponge is saturate& with water, it stops absorbing. So when the brain is saturate& with (now"e&ge, it stops "earning.
1. Special Pleading In some respects, this fallacy is akin to the fallacy of accent. It arises when we attempt to make an opinion or proposal attractive by citing only its favorable side. :elated to special pleading is di'ersion, a tactic used to draw one!s attention from the real issues. &*ample#

Bong, you mean to say me (otse (ana0 [Bebs] 7ight, Bebs. [Bong] 4nong mo&e"0 [Bebs] A? mo&e" "ang. [Bong] Wow, A? mo&e"0 That 8%e got to see! [ Bebs] *a0 #r)ah sa(a na Bebs. [Bong] 4nong sa(a na0 +ets go! [Bebs]
W6&, 6&C :&A"6&A B5,;!9 8(A"&, B&B9 WA9 965"D&A.

Why &i&nt you te"" me its an =?A? mo&e"! [Bebs]

2. Rationali3ing he word rationali7ation is often used in place of reasoning. It should be remembered, however, that rationali7ing also means inventing seemingly valid reasons for acts, events, and opinions in place of the real causes. In effect, any argument that appeals to emotion is rationali7ation. It provides psychological rather than logical reasons for its conclusion. here are all sorts of rationali7ing. 5ne is pretending to dislike something because it cannot be attained -sour grapes%, to cover up for what is unsatisfactory in something -sweet lemon%, and to critici7e others in order to cover up for one!s own mistakes and inade0uacies.

Tom, what &i& you &o in here0 [Mr. 2o"em] 8 &onate& some o! my b"oo&....hi ! [Tom] *ah, what wi"" they &o with your b"oo&0 theres so mu h a" oho" in it! [Mr. 2o"em] We"", at "east they an use it to steri"i@e their instruments! [ Tom]

!er&@bags BABCBD

E1ERCISE 45 Identify the fallacy that is most conspicuously committed in each of the following#
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TOM, 3apaso( na(o, 2i%e me my baon. +854, Wait). 5o (iss no baon. TOM, B"a (mai"er!!! 6yani, those papers 8 put in this bo. mar(e& Out1where are they now0 [San&y] 8 threw them out! [6yani] #9#7-BO6- W4S +4;2*852 4T 6-458, T*# '458TO7. *uwag ninyong pagtawanan si 6yani, be ause hes tanga. Who (nows0 Some&ay he might be ome the right1han& man o! Mr. Ba"ti 0 [Mr. 2o"em] 5a(u, Mr. 2o"em, hin&i ho yata mangyayari $yun. [6yani] 4t ba(it naman, 6yani0 /asi ho, "e!than&e& a(o, e. 6yani, i(a(asa" na pa"a ang brother mo, /anino0 [M. Ba"ti ] Sa babae, Sir! [6yani] #stupi&o! Meron ba namang i(inasa" sa "a"a(i0 [M. Ba"ti ] Meron ho).. yung ate (o. [6yani] O, "asing (a, Tom. [Mr. Ba"ti ] But, sir, p"ain water "ang ho ang ininom (o))Fhi !G [Tom] 3"ain water0 +oo( here, Tom. 6ont try to !oo" me. 8 sme"" gin. [Mr Ba"ti ] O! ourse! 6ont you (now that water is ma&e up o! gin0 [Tom] 2in0 HMr. Ba"ti ]
-es).o.ygin an& hy&rogin! *i . [Tom]

C.

D.

E.

I.

Te"" your boss that as soon as the he ( is rea&y, 8"" gi%e him a ring! [:"ient te""ing 6yani] 4<T#7 *#47852 T*# 85ST7;:T8O5, 6-458 W#5T B4:/ TO M7. B4+T8: 456 S486, 3ag rea&y na &aw ho ang tse(e, bibigyan &aw (ayo ng singsing! 6yani, what (in& o! wat h is that0 [Bong] 8to ang tinatawag na won&er wat h! [6yani] Won&er wat h0 Meron bang bran& na ganyan0 [Bong] Meron . . . . #%ery time 8 "oo( at it 8 won&er what time it is! [6yani] Tom, 8 !oun& these F"ong sto (ingsG in your pants po (et. /anino $to0 [Wi!e] *a! #r . . . . thats mine, 8 bought it, heh, heh . . . . . 8m using this !or my hair, see0 *eh, heh. [Tom] [Tom an& Miss Tapia are ta"(ing to ea h other in sign "anguage.] Miss Tapia, ba(it sign "anguage ang ginagamit nyo0 [Mr. 2o"em] 2a"it (ami, an& were not in spea(ing terms. [Miss Tapia] Ts(, masa(it ang u"o (o. [Tom] 4"am mo Tom, when 8 ha%e a hea&a he . . . . . my wi!e wi"" Kust rub the ba ( o! my ne (, then p"ant a "itt"e (iss on my "ips, ayos na, wa"a na ang hea&a he. [Mr. 2o"em] Ta"aga0 8 thin( 8"" &o that. Where is your wi!e0 [Tom] Tom, (umuha (a ng "i!e insuran e po"i y. [Mr. 2o"em] 5o, than(s, hin&i (o naman pa(i(inabangan $yan when 8 &ie! [Tom] We"", what you nee& is !ire insuran e. [Mr. 2o"em] <ire . . . 4n& why wi"" 8 nee& that0 [Tom] Be ause 8 thin( thats where you"" go when you &ie. [Mr. 2o"em] *ayop (a! 2inawa mo a(ong tao1tauhan sa iyong sa(ahan pero ang saho& (o ay hin&i tumaas. /ung mamatay a(o, sinong magpa(ain sa pami"ya (o). 8(aw0 [wor(er] O, Sige ing"esin mo para taasan (ung saho& mo. [#mp"oyer] 4nima" you! Man man me in the !arm but my sa"ary &i& not "imb. 8! 8 &ie, who wi"" eat my !ami"y, you0 [wor(er]
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J.

A.

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=B.

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