PHI 2630 1st Edition Lecture 1 Outline of Current Lecture I Principle of Charity II Argument Structure III Types of Logical Fallacies Current Lecture I Principle of Charity a If there are various ways to interpret an argument you should always use the most charitable strongest one so that you avoid attacking a straw man see below and have a much higher caliber of discourse II Basic Structure of Arguments a Premises intended to support the conclusion b Conclusion supported by the premises III Types of Logical Fallacies a Appeal to Ignorance i We don t know that this is true so it must be false ii Example No one has proved that aliens exist so they in fact do not exist b Ad Hominem i Attacking one s opponent instead of addressing their claims ii Example It is clear that Clinton had sexual relations with that woman so we should not aid the struggling Mexican economy like he suggests c Begging the Question Assuming the Conclusion i When the conclusion of the argument is included in the premises for that same argument This is a type of circular reasoning that assumes the conclusion A implies B which implies A ii Example 1 We know the Bible is true because there was a miracle witnessed by 500 people 2 We know there was a miracle witnessed by 500 people because the Bible says so d Equivocation i When an argument intentionally uses an ambiguous word and changes the meaning of said word in the argument ii Example These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor s lecture GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes not as a substitute 1 I m going to the bank to cash this check 2 Banks are on the side of rivers 3 Therefore I am going to cash this check on the side of a river e Composition and Division i An argument that implies something is true of the whole because it is true of a part and vice versa ii Example 1 From part to whole If someone stands up at a football game he can see the field better Therefore if everyone stands up they can all see better 2 From whole to part It is true that this school has the best teachers in the country so each teacher on this campus must be the best in the country f Appeal to Authority i Arguing that something is true on the basis that some authority who please note does NOT have substantial knowledge in the particular field says it is true ii Example Kim Kardashian says conflicts in the Middle East will be solved in the next year so it must be true that conflicts in the Middle East will be solved next year g Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc i Event Y preceded event X so event Y must have caused event X ii Example The rooster crows immediately before sunrise so the rooster causes the sun to rise iii Note the differences between this and causation from correlation In post hoc the fallacy lies in coming to a conclusion based solely on the order of events In causation two things or events occur simultaneously or the chronological ordering is not important for the purposes of the argument h Causation from Correlation i Deriving a conclusion that X causes Y merely because there is a correlation between the two ii Example Concluding that the high level of criminal activity in a certain area is caused by a high level of homelessness in that area when really the two trends only correlate with each other but one is not caused by the other i Straw Man i When an argument purposefully misrepresents an opponents argument in a much weaker way than intended so it can easily be defeated ii Example Senator Smith says we should reduce funding for our barrett 50 caliber machine guns It is ridiculous that he even suggest we should leave ourselves defenseless like this j Red Herring i When an argument uses something else to distract from the issue at hand ii Example Accused of cheating by his wife the husband replies Nothing I do ever pleases you I spent all last week repainting the bathroom and then you said you didn t like the color
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