What is a Fallacy?

Definition
A fallacy is an erroneous argument dependent
upon an unsound or illogical contention.
Appeal to Authority

The opinion of a person only becomes essential or

believable if that person is an expert in the field
from which he/she comments.
Instead of concentrating on the benefits of an
argument, the arguer will attempt to append their
argument to an individual of power or authority in
an effort to give trustworthiness to their argument.
Appeal to Fear and Pity
Some statements attack the emotions of readers or listeners
because, by nature people are swayed when statement
express threats or pitiful pleas.
APPEAL TO PITY
The university should support the “no failing”
policy for scholars since these students are the
poorest among the poor and failing them
would mean stealing their chances of getting a
college degree.
APPEAL TO FEAR
Senator Reyes’ proposal is a dangerous plot. If
we support him, we will find country become
even poorer that it is than it is today.
Equivocation
Some writers or speakers play with words in order to
circumvent or turn the tables around. They use
similar terms that may have different meanings in
different contexts.
An actor justifying his use of illegal drugs:
“Being an actor , I give so much pleasure to many people. I
just can’t understand why I’m not allowed to get some
pleasure for myself!”
False Analogy
One way of presenting arguments is by presenting an
analogy to compare two or more things. However, when
writers or speakers try to compare two unlike things in
order to forward a claim or argument , a fallacious
statement enters the scene.
There is nothing wrong with women undergoing
plastic surgery to enhance their beauty since we
don’t see anything wrong with applying make
up. Both of them are meant to make a woman
more beautiful.
False Cause
“post hoc, ergo propter hoc” – after this, therefore because of this

The repetition of the pronoun “this” creates a boundary or limitation

in terms of possible reasons or causes. If we analyze the phrase, we
will come to a conclusion that because something happened after
this then the cause of something is because of this.
Mayor Cruz took his office in 2009. In 2010, the city’s
unemployment rate increased by 2%. Therefore,
Mayor Cruz does not have a strong labor program.
False Dilemma
In certain instances, writers or speakers provide very limited options
to forward their claim.
False dilemma is almost similar with false cause, but in false cause,
the writer or speaker blatantly claims something, whereas in false
dilemma , the writer or speaker provides the readers or listeners
with narrow options to choose from.
What? You don’t believe biological wars too? If you
don’t believe in biological wars and you don’t also
believe in nuclear wars, then what kind of war do you
believe in?
Hasty generalization
Hasty generalization is an informal fallacy of
faulty generalization by reaching an
inductive generalization based on insufficient evidence—
essentially making a hasty conclusion without considering
all of the variables.
Employer: I’m sorry Mrs. Santos but our company cannot
hire you.
Mrs. Santos: But why sir?
Employer: well you’re a female, and a security guard’s job is
difficult.
Personal attack
This is also called ad hominem, a latin phrase which means
against the man. Personal attack that discredits the person
in order to forward an argument.
That man shoudn’t be our president! He is a son of a
former dictator and he never finished college!
Slippery Slope
The arguer claims that a sort of chain reaction,
usually ending in some dire consequence, will take
place, but there's really not enough evidence for that
assumption.
"Animal experimentation reduces our respect for life. If we
don't respect life, we are likely to be more and more
tolerant of violent acts like war and murder. Soon our
society will become a battlefield in which everyone
constantly fears for their lives. It will be the end of
civilization. To prevent this terrible consequence, we should
make animal experimentation illegal right now."
NOTE
Most of the time, fallacies are interconnected or
used simultaneously, which means that a
particular utterance of text may have two or
more fallacious statements.
M. Nepomuceno, Communication Arts: Critical Thinking and Learning Skills; 2012, Katha
Publishing Co. Inc