Lesson DIFFERENT FALLACIES

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You have just learned that it is not enough to acquire knowledge but you
should analyze if that knowledge you have acquired is truthful or not. Philosophizing
involves the gift of speech and the gift of intelligence that enable us to reason out
and detect the falsity or truthfulness of a statement. When one reasons out, he/she
expresses his opinion and when others disagree, then argument begins. In
philosophical parlance argument is not an emotional reptilian word war or a
territorial show of force between persons but a philosophical method in knowing the
truth of a certain phenomenon or reality. It is a set of statements which includes the
premises and conclusion (the latter is the one that claims the truth of the premises)
(Cornejo & Ebia, 2017).

However, there are arguments that are erroneous or based from faulty
reasoning called Fallacies (Abella, 2016). Unconsciously, we are culprits of this in
our daily interaction with people including our families and friends. Even TV
commercials intentionally employ some faulty reasoning to convince their target
market to purchase their products. Lawyers outwit each other by employing some
fallacies to defend their clients. I am sure you are familiar with the famous “Flip
Top Battles” group in today’s digital world. Shall we say a modern dialectical
approach which appeal not only to the mind but also to our aesthetic sense? They
entertain audience and it is awesome how they display their wit to outsmart each
other in a poetic manner. It becomes an art and aesthetically superb, but if you go
beyond entertainment and analyze their statements there are a lot of faulty
reasoning going on. Below are some of the Fallacies which we believe you need to
be aware of. Abella, Roberto D. in his book “Introduction to the Philosophy of the
Human Person” laid down some of these fallacies:

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 FALLACY Short Description Examples
1.Argumentum ad Hominem came from Latin word “How can we believe
Hominem “homo” which means man. This him when he talks about
“Attacking the fallacy literally means hitting the social distancing, he is a
Person” person below the belt instead of lawyer who is a liar.”
focusing on the issue at hand.
2. Argumentum ad Baculum is a Latin word which “TV Patrol is the best
Baculum means scepter or stick. A scepter news program on TV. If
(Appeal to Force) is a symbol of authority. Normally you don’t believe me, I
it is the Pope who carries it in his won’t let you watch the
hands. This is committed when a TV.
person uses threat or force to
advance an argument.
3. Argumentum ad Misercordiam came from Latin “Forgive me officer,
Misercordiam word Misericordia which means there are lot of boarders
(Appeal to Pity) pity or compassion. A person uses in this apartment
emotion such as pity to convince including myself. Only
someone the owner was issued a
quarantine pass. We
don’t have food, we
can’t give our ATM to
the owner. That’s why I
went out. So I did not
violate
the Bayanihan
Act Heal as
One.”
4. Argumentum ad Populum is the Latin word for “I’m sure you want to
Populum people. Most of TV commercials have an i phone. Almost
“Appeal to people”/ are guilty of this argument which 80% of your
Bandwagon fallacy exploit people’s vanity, desires, schoolmates are using
etc. it.”
5. Argumentum ad Traditio means tradition. All of us in the family,
Tradition Advancing an idea since it has from our ancestors up
“Appeal to Tradition” been practice for a long time. to now, are devout
Catholics, so it is only
right that you will be
baptized as a Catholic.
6. Argumentum and Ignorantiam a Latin word for According to Zecharia
Ignorantiam ignorance. Whatever has been Sitchin, the author of
“Appeal to Ignorance” proven false must be true and vice the book “Cosmic Code,
versa “Adam was the first test
tube baby. Since nobody
proves otherwise,
therefore it is true.”
7. Petitio Principii According to Merriam Webster’s “God exists because the
(Begging the dictionary (www.merriam- Bible says so. The Bible
Question)

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 webster.com>dictionary>petitiopr is inspired. Therefore we
incipii) know that God
, it is a fallacy in which a Exists.”
conclusion is taken for granted in
the premises. Also called-“circular
argument.”
8. Hasty This fallacy is committed when Our neighbor who is a
Generalization one reaches a generalization police officer was
based on insufficient evidence convicted of being a
drug dealer, therefore,
all police officers are
drug
dealers.
9. Cause and Effect Assuming that the effect is “My teacher didn’t
related to a cause because both collect the homework
events occur one after the other. two weeks in a row
when my friend was
absent. Therefore, my
friend being absent is
the reason why my
teacher doesn’t
collect
the homework.”
10. Fallacy of Infers that something is true of a “You are a doctor,
Composition part, is true of a whole therefore you came from
a family of doctors.”
11. Fallacy of Division Infers that something is true of “Your family is smart,
the whole, must also be true on its therefore you are
parts smart.”
12. Fallacy Using the same term in a different “Humans walk by their
of situation with different meaning. legs. The table has legs.
Equivocation Therefore the table
walks by its legs.”

FACTS VERSUS OPINION: FOCUS ON INFORMATION LITERACY

Today's students, many of whom do most of their research online, are able to
access a nearly limitless supply of information -- much of it came from unknown
sources. In fact, the very nature of the medium allows anyone with an Internet
provider and a small amount of skill to disseminate whatever information he or she
chooses. The result is a World Wide Web of overflowing information, on the other
hand, it also contains inadvertent ignorance and blatant biases.

A. IDENTIFYING THE FACTORS OF A QUALITY WEBSITE

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Michigan State University reference librarian Terry Link suggests examining the
following factors when evaluating the quality of a Web site:
 Authority: Who is the author and what are his or her qualifications? Who is
the publisher and what is the purpose of the site?
 Verifiability: Are sources provided?
 Timeliness: Is the information current? When was it posted and/or last
updated?
 Relevance: Does the material contain unsubstantiated generalizations?
 Bias: Is the language emotional or inflammatory? Does the information represent
a single opinion or a range of opinions?
 Orderliness: Is the page arranged in an order that makes sense? Are underlying
assumptions identifiable? Is the information consistent?
 Clarity: Is the information clearly stated? Does the author define important
terms?
 Validity: Do the facts presented support the conclusions?

Likewise, when we critique sources, we must first understand the difference between
fact and opinion.
FACT OPINION
A fact is a statement that can be proven An opinion is a statement of belief which
true or false. may or may not be backed up by facts,
but cannot be proven true or false.
Is objective Is subjective
Is discovered Is created
States reality Interprets reality
Can be verified Cannot be verified

B. THE EVALUATION PROCESS

In considering the kinds of sources or sites, Robert Harris, a professor of
English at Southern California College suggests that students should ask
themselves, "Which sources are likely to be fair, objective, lacking hidden
motives, showing quality control?" Harris recommends selecting sites that
include as many of the following as possible:
 the author's name, title, and/or position.
 the site's organizational affiliation, if any.
 the date the page was created or updated.

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  contact information, such as an email or snail-mail address.
Once students have located sources that appear appropriate and credible, Harris
advises students to subject the sites to the CARS checklist for informational quality.
The four components of the CARS checklist are:
 Credibility: What about this source makes it believable?
 Accuracy: Is the information provided up-to-date, factual, detailed, exact, and
comprehensive?
 Reasonableness: Is the information fair, objective, moderate, and consistent?
 Support: Can the information be corroborated?

C. HOW DO I KNOW?
Harris suggests that, when evaluating those four components, students examine
the sites based on the following:
 Type -- determine whether the URL includes .gov (government), .edu or .ac
(educational/academic), .com (commercial), .org (nonprofit organization), or. ~
(personal page).
 Publisher -- determine whether the organization, agency, school, business, or
individual maintaining the site is likely to have a particular agenda or bias.
 Author -- determine the author's education, training, and background to find
out whether he or she is a trained expert, an experienced enthusiast, or an
uninformed observer.
 Structure -- determine whether the format is clear, logical, and easily navigable.
 Language -- determine whether the text contains emotional, inflammatory,
profane, or confusing language. Count the number of spelling, grammatical, and
typographical errors. Too many mistakes can indicate carelessness and suggest
informational errors as well.
 Dates -- determine when the information was published and/or updated. If
possible, check the publication dates of supporting data.
 Graphics -- determine whether images and animations take up a
disproportionate amount of space in relation to their informational value. Decide
whether the graphics convey information, add interest, provide interactivity, or
simply distract.
 Links -- determine whether the site's bibliography and/or links contain both
supportive and contradictory information.

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 What’s More

ACTIVITY 1: FACT VS. OPINION (Critical Thinking)

Directions: Analyze the following statements. Write F if it is FACT and O if it is

OPINION. Write your answer before the number.
1. According to the latest survey, families are purchasing more household items on
credit.
2. You can hear all the news you need to know from the BBC Radio 1 news team.
3. The professor argues that the effect of carbon emissions on the surrounding
environment will only get worse.
4. The research team has discovered a new method for conducting this chemical
analysis.
5. The latest poll shows a marked increase in employee dissatisfaction.
6. I think public opinion will change over time.
7. This book is an enjoyable story of life in a small village.
8. The use of computers at the college has increased and the stationery budget has
doubled in the last few years.

ACTIVITY 2: I-BILIB (Critical Thinking, Communication,)

Directions: Analyze the following pictures. Write BILIB if the picture followed CARS
(Credibility, Accuracy, Reasonableness, and Supported) and write NOT if it did not
follow CARS according to Robert Harris. Afterwards, explain your answer.

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ACTIVITY 3: LET’S APPLY (Critical Thinking, Character)

Directions: Fill in the table below with the main proponents of methods of
philosophizing. For each method, answer the questions: “ How can you find truth
using this method?” and “On what real-life situation can you apply this
method?”

On what real-life
How can you
Methods of Main situation can you
find truth using
Philosophizing Proponent(s) apply this
this method?
method?

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 1. Dialectic

2. Pragmatic

3. Phenomenological

4. Primary and
Secondary
Reflections

5. Analytic

What I Have Learned

ACTIVITY: IMPORTANT POINTS TO PONDER

(Critical Thinking, Character, Communication)

Direction: Complete the statements below:

I learned that Truth is

I feel that Truth is important because

I commit to uphold the truth by

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 What I Can Do

ACTIVITY 1: WIN AN ARGUMENT (Communication, Critical Thinking, Character,

Collaboration)
Directions: By using the graphic organizer of dialectic method below, answer the
question: How do you criticize someone’s opinion/argument in a way that makes
sense and is respectful? Try to talk or interview two persons that have contrasting
idea about the question, then write your own synthesis to their answers.

THESIS ANTI-

SYNTHESIS

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ACTIVITY 2: COMIC CON
(Critical Thinking, Character, Communication, Creativity)

Directions: Draw a comic strip that portrays ONE type of fallacy. Explain your work.

Explanation:

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 Assessment

Select the keyword that best fits the statement in each item. Write the chosen letter
on a separate sheet of paper.

1. What type of fallacy is present in the statement, “Before we begin the debate,
everyone here should know that my opponent is a convicted felon”?
A. mora licensing
B. equivocation
C. argumentum ad baculum
D. ad hominem

2. According to Husserl, the success of natural science lead to the gradual

scientific rejection of .
A. spirit
B. matter
C. nature
D. existence

3. When Husserl described human experience as the immediate data

of consciousness, he meant .
A. Pure subjectivity
B. Pure objectivity
C. materialism
D. dualism

4. What is Husserl’s point of view with regards to consciousness?

A. The study of consciousness is the same as the study of nature
B. The study of human consciousness differs from the way
scientists study nature.
C. It does not matter whether we study consciousness similarly
or differently than the way scientists study nature.
D. Husserl was not interested in the study of consciousness.

5. What type of fallacy is present in the statement, “My father smoked four
packs of cigarettes a day since age fourteen and lived until age sixty-nine.
Therefore, smoking really can’t be that bad for you”?
A. ad misericordiam
B. false analogy
C. hasty generalization
D. post hoc

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6. Which among these headlines presented information that are
fair, objective, and moderate?
A. It’s time to consider other means of cash aid distribution
B. Other countries around the world have much better means in
cash aid distribution
C. Government vows to faster distribution of coronavirus aid
D. We can also learn lesson from Vietnam how they distribute their cash
aid

7. Which among these headlines has no errors in terms of spelling, grammar,

and content?
A. Robredo Chides Gov’t for Unclear Communication on New Quarantine
Rules
B. Robredo Blames the Government as They Don’t Have Clear Rules in
Quarantine
C. Robredo Charge the Govrnment as Culprit of Confusion in Quarantine
D. Robredo blames those in Executive Branch for Communication’s
Unclear

8. Which among the statements contain substantiated generalizations?

A. “Drug war a massive failure”—Robredo
B. Robredo lies to world, shames the nation and herself in UN message
C. The real albatross on Leni Robredo’s neck
D. Let Leni plan on her own drug war

9. Which among the following authors could be the most credible according
to his or her Twitter account’s background?
A. Banat By – Simpleng tao na mahilig bumanat
B. Atom Araullo- Journalist. @ UNHCPPh Goodwill Ambassador
C. AkoNgaSY Lyco- Speak now or be silent forever. Follow me I will not
follow you
D. Senyora- Full time haciendera and professional husgadera

10. Which among the following publishers pose no particular agenda or bias?
A. Bulag Ang ABS-CBN sa Katotohanan by Antonio Brigas
B. ABS-CBN Naipasara Sanhi ng Di Pagrenew ng Prangkisa by GMA
News
C. Nararapat Lamang na Huwag ng Magbukas ang ABS-CBN by Balat
Sibuyas
D. Bye Bye Kapamilya by the Avengers

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 Additional Activities

ACTIVITY: EVERYDAY FALLACIES (Critical Thinking, Communication, Character)

Directions:
A. Observe conversations of your parents and identify three (3) common fallacies.

B. Watch commercials on TV and news and take note of the fallacies committed.
Identify 5 fallacies and write your answers on a separate sheet of paper.

Critical Thinking Questions:

1. In your relationship with your family, what common fallacy or fallacies you
commit as an alibi for any wrongdoing? Narrate at least two occasions.
2. Do you think Fallacy can help us in finding the truth? Why or why not?

3. What methods of philosophizing do you think are most useful in finding the
truth? Exp

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