Fallacies

by Shauna McPherson Lone Peak High School

Lamont told me that all the kindergartners outline their drawings. They don’t just color. If I don’t outline, he says, I won’t be cool when I go to kindergarten next year.

Bandwagon, Appeal to Fear, Overgeneralization, Eithor-or, and possibly

False Premise

My printer spit out a few weird codes. If we don’t get this fixed right away, I bet my computer’s going to need to be replaced.

Slippery Slope and a bit of Non Sequitur

The printer’s probably broken because one of my students used my computer yesterday.

Post Hoc (and a bit of Non Sequitur)

“It’s always better when we’re together.”

--Jack Johnson

Overgeneralization

The majority of the Grammy winners have been black for the last few years. The award givers are likely biased toward blacks.

Correlation vs. Cause and Hasty Generalization

“Coke is it.”

Glittering generalities (also Slogan and Vagueness)

Picture also adds Transfer.

If you go into the ROTC, they’ll pay completely for your college and you’ll be able to ride in helicopters and rappel.

Card-stacking

I wouldn’t want to go into the ROTC because my cousin did it and had a terrible experience. He was “hazed” by his group and nearly was suffocated from one of their tests. He also was fed such lousy food that he ended up having to be hospitalized.

Anecdotal Evidence (and Hasty Generalization)

But if you don’t serve in the military, you’re not a real man.

Either/or and Appeal to Fear

Furthermore, all five of your brothers have served their country. Are you going to be less patriotic than they are?

Bandwagon/Appeal to Tradition, Appeal to Nationalism/Virtue Words, also implying an Either/Or (or you could call it Many Questions)

So, you’re deciding between fighting for democracy, gaining a tough body, and learning some adult discipline, or skipping around the country with a bunch of free-loaders, and helping out some lazy good-for-nothings?

Slanting (slanted language) and Name-Calling/Stereotyping

Plus, keep in mind, that by joining the military, I met the sexiest, most beautiful woman I’d ever seen in my life.

Post hoc (or correlation vs. cause); also trying to use Transfer or Appeal to Emotion

But if I joined the ROTC, you know I’d have to wear khaki a lot, and that color looks terrible on me.

(assume he would have to wear khaki and assume the color does look terrible on him)

Straw Man