Question

find one real example of fallacy of reasoning.( introduction to logic and critical thinking by matthew j. van cleare). The example could be from any source for example political debate, a journal article e.t.c summarize and explain the example or source and also describe what occur with the example and also explain how the example will be made a stronger argument without the fallacy being committed.

Answer 1

A fallacy can be defined as a flaw or error in reasoning. The most basically, a logical fallacy refers to a defect in a reasoning of an argument that causes the conclusion to be invalid, unsound or weak. Studying fallacy provides with a foundation for evaluating and critiquing other argument as well. In ancient Greece, Aristotle classified fallacied in to two categories

• Linguistic
• Non - linguistic

Fallacies of reasoning : These are common errors in reasoning that will undermine the logic of your argument. Fallacies can be illegitimate argument or irrelevant pointspoints, and are often identified because they lack evidence that supports them.

Both logic and critical thinking certainly involve the analysis and assessment of argument. "Argument" is a word that has multiple distant meaning, argument is a heated exchange of differing views.

Example :

Sally : Abortion is morally wrong and those who think otherwise are seeking to justify murder.

Bob : Abortion is not morally wrong and those who think so are right wing bigots who are seeking to impose narrow minded views on all the rest of us.

Sally and Bob are having argument in this exchange. That they expressing conflicting views in a heated manner. Hower, that is not the sense of argument with which logic is concerned. Lohic concerns with the different sense of the word argument. An argument in this sense, is a reason for thinking that a statement, claim or idea is true.

For example : Sally - Abortion is morally wrong because it is wrong to the life of an innocent human beingbeing i.e fetus.

In this example sally has given a argument against the moral Permissibility of abortion. The conclusion of this argument is that "abortion is morally wrong".