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ONE OF SEVEN WAYS OF SEEING

Logical Fallacies

Spot the gaps between a persuasive argument and a sound one.

344 ideas to exploreArranged from A to Z
Logical Fallaciesbeginner

Appeal to Nature

A logical fallacy that assumes natural is always better than unnatural, often adopted as a default belief without justification.

politics · sociology↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Appeal to Personal Incredulity

The fallacy of appeal to personal incredulity occurs when someone assumes that if they cannot understand or imagine something, it must be false. It often appears in debates over science and expert opinions, especially when those opinions conflict with deeply held beliefs.

politics · science↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Appeal to Pity

A logical fallacy where an arguer attempts to evoke pity to support a conclusion that is not logically supported by relevant evidence.

logic · law↗
Logical Fallaciesbeginner

Appeal to Popularity

Using the popularity of a premise or proposition as evidence for its truthfulness. This fallacy relies on the mistaken belief that if something is popular, it must be good, true, or valid.

politics · education↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Appeal to Possibility

A logical fallacy where a conclusion is assumed to be true not because it is probably true, but because it is possible—no matter how improbable.

logic · philosophy↗
Logical Fallaciesbeginner

Appeal to Probability

A logical fallacy where one assumes something is true or will happen simply because it is probable or possible, ignoring the need for definitive proof.

logic · philosophy↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Appeal to Ridicule

The appeal to ridicule is a logical fallacy that dismisses a claim by mocking or making fun of it, rather than providing relevant evidence. It is a fallacy of relevance because ridicule does not disprove a statement, and many seemingly ridiculous beliefs turn out to be true.

politics · education↗
Logical Fallaciesbeginner

Appeal to the Moon

The Appeal to the Moon fallacy occurs when someone argues that because a seemingly impossible task (like putting a man on the moon) was achieved, other difficult tasks are equally achievable, ignoring differences in feasibility, resources, and probability.

logic · philosophy↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Appeal to the People

An appeal to the people uses a group’s beliefs or feelings to support a conclusion. McCraw distinguishes epistemic and emotive forms, explaining why popularity alone does not establish truth and examining when group testimony might still provide relevant evidence.

logic · philosophy↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Appeal to Tradition

A logical fallacy that uses the longevity of a practice as a justification for its continuation, ignoring relevant evidence and moral considerations. It can prevent progress and perpetuate harmful beliefs and institutions.

politics · sociology↗
Logical Fallaciesbeginner

Arguing from Fallacy

The fallacy of assuming that because an argument contains a logical fallacy, its conclusion is necessarily false. Even if a claim is poorly argued, the claim itself may still be true.

politics · education↗
Logical Fallaciesbeginner

Argument by Fast Talking

A logical fallacy where rapid speech is mistaken for intelligence or confidence, and thus taken as evidence for the truth of the argument; also committed by speakers who rush to prevent audience processing.

logic · communication↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Argument by Gibberish

The Argument by Gibberish fallacy occurs when incomprehensible jargon or incoherent gibberish is used to give the appearance of a strong argument, replacing evidence or valid reasoning, often leading the audience to accept the conclusion due to confusion or intimidation.

politics · education↗
Logical Fallaciesbeginner

Argument by Personal Charm

Accepting a claim because the speaker is charming or flattering substitutes a personal impression for reasons relevant to the claim. Charm can make an argument more persuasive without making it stronger.

politics · marketing↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Argument by Repetition

Argument by repetition is a logical fallacy where a claim is repeated persistently to persuade an audience, relying on psychological familiarity rather than evidence or logic. It is a form of propaganda often used in politics and rhetoric.

politics · sociology↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Argument from Adverse Consequences

The argument from adverse consequences is a logical fallacy where one argues that a proposition is false because its truth would lead to undesirable consequences. It conflates pragmatic considerations with factual truth, committing a fallacy of relevance.

logic · law↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Argument from Age

The misconception that previous generations had superior wisdom, leading to acceptance of aged ideas without critical evaluation.

philosophy · sociology↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Argument from Authority

The argument from authority fallacy occurs when a claim is supported by a false or irrelevant authority figure rather than by evidence or reasoned argument. Legitimate authorities must be experts in the specific context, and even experts can be wrong.

advertising · law↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Argument from Fallacy

The argument from fallacy occurs when one concludes that a claim is false because the argument supporting it is fallacious. Truth and falsity are features of claims, not reasoning, so a fallacious argument does not guarantee a false conclusion.

logic · politics↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Argument from Hearsay

An argument from hearsay relies on a report passed through someone who did not witness the event. Its strength depends on the original source, the accuracy of transmission, and the possibility of checking the account.

law · philosophy↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Argument from Ignorance

An argument from ignorance treats a claim as established because it has not been disproved, or as impossible because it has not been demonstrated. Ask whether the missing evidence would actually be expected if the claim were true.

logic · education↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Argument from Silence

Silence alone does not settle whether a claim is true. Its evidential value depends on the context, including whether a response would be expected if the claim were true or false.

logic · politics↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Argument of the Beard

A logical fallacy where one argues that no useful distinction can be made between two extremes because there is no precise point where they meet, ignoring that the extremes are clearly different (also known as the continuum fallacy or sorites fallacy).

logic · philosophy↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Argument to Moderation

The argument to moderation fallacy asserts that a compromise between two extreme positions must be correct, ignoring that truth or correctness may lie entirely with one side or neither.

logic · philosophy↗
Logical Fallaciesbeginner

Argument to the Purse

A logical fallacy where the truth of an argument is judged based on the financial status of the arguer, either assuming wealth indicates correctness or poverty indicates wisdom.

economics · philosophy↗
Logical Fallaciesbeginner

Argumentum ad Baculum (Appeal to Fear)

Argumentum ad Baculum, also known as the argument from fear, is a logical fallacy that relies on threats, punishment, or scare tactics to persuade someone to accept a conclusion, replacing logical premises with emotional manipulation.

logic · politics↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Argumentum ad Hominem, Post Mortem

A post mortem ad hominem invents an insult a deceased thinker would direct at an opponent. The imagined authority’s personal attack does not address the argument, and its attribution may also be speculative.

logic · education↗
Logical Fallaciesbeginner

Argumentum ad populum

The argumentum ad populum (appeal to the people) is a logical fallacy that claims a belief, attitude, or value is correct simply because a group of people holds it, ignoring that groups can be wrong.

philosophy · politics↗
Logical Fallaciesbeginner

Avoiding the Issue

Avoiding the issue means evading the point under discussion instead of answering it. A pause or refusal is not automatically fallacious; the problem is treating an irrelevant response as if it resolved the argument.

politics · law↗
Logical Fallaciesbeginner

Bandwagon

The bandwagon fallacy appeals to popularity or the fact that many people do something as an attempted form of validation.

philosophy · politics↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Base Rate Fallacy

The base rate fallacy occurs when probabilistic reasoning neglects the general prevalence (base rate) of a condition in a population, focusing instead on specific information such as test results, leading to flawed conclusions. It is commonly seen in interpretations of tests for rare events.

politics · law↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Begging the Question

Begging the question (petitio principii) is a logical fallacy in which the argument's premise assumes the truth of its conclusion, leading to circular reasoning that fails to provide genuine evidence.

politics · education↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Berkson's Fallacy (Berkson's Paradox)

Berkson’s fallacy is a selection effect: restricting attention to a common effect of two variables can create or distort their association. A relationship within the selected group may therefore misrepresent the relationship in the wider population.

medicine · psychology↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Biased Sample Fallacy

Drawing a conclusion about a population based on a sample that is biased or selected to misrepresent the true average, often leading to inaccurate generalizations.

philosophy · statistics↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Bifurcation

The fallacy of bifurcation, also known as the black-and-white fallacy, occurs when an argument presents only two options when more exist, oversimplifying complex issues.

logic · politics↗
Logical Fallaciesbeginner

Bigfoot and Cryptozoology

Cryptozoology, the study of mythical animals like Bigfoot, is criticized as pseudoscience because it starts with a conclusion and seeks evidence. This section argues that despite wishful thinking, lack of physical evidence and widespread hoaxes make Bigfoot extremely unlikely, and encourages pursuing real unknown species through scientific disciplines.

science · philosophy↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Broken Window Fallacy

The broken window fallacy is the illusion that destruction and subsequent spending on recovery are a net benefit to society, ignoring the unseen opportunity costs. It exposes the tendency to focus on visible gains while overlooking invisible losses.

politics · sociology↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Burden of Proof

The burden of proof fallacy is an informal fallacy where one party in a persuasive dialogue fails to recognize or incorrectly assigns which side has the obligation to provide evidence for their claim.

politics · science↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Carroll’s Paradox

Carroll's Paradox demonstrates that logical inference requires an infinite regress of justifying steps unless we assume a basic rule of inference (such as modus ponens) is valid. It highlights the necessity of accepting meta-logical assumptions to reach any conclusion.

logic · philosophy↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Causal Fallacies

Causal fallacies are errors in reasoning about cause and effect, often involving incorrect assumptions that correlation implies causation or ignoring confounding variables.

logic · science↗
Logical Fallaciesbeginner

Causal Reductionism

Assuming a single cause or reason when there were actually multiple causes or reasons, also known as the fallacy of the single cause.

logic · science↗
Logical Fallaciesbeginner

Cherry Picking

When only select evidence is presented to persuade an audience, while withholding evidence that goes against the position.

politics · business↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Cherry-picking (or the Fallacy of Confirmation)

Cherry-picking is the selective reporting of facts that confirm one's story while ignoring contradictory evidence, leading to biased perceptions in science, finance, and other fields. It exploits optionality by allowing the storyteller to present only favorable examples, hiding the downside and creating a distorted view of reality.

sociology · science↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Chronological Snobbery

Chronological snobbery is the fallacy of assuming that newer ideas are necessarily superior to older ones simply because they are from a later time period, without considering evidence or argument.

philosophy · science↗
Logical Fallaciesbeginner

Circular Argument

A logical fallacy where two unproven claims are used to support each other, or the conclusion is assumed within a premise, creating a reasoning loop with no independent evidence.

logic · philosophy↗
Logical Fallaciesbeginner

Circular Reasoning

A type of reasoning where the proposition is supported by premises that are themselves supported by the proposition, creating a closed loop that fails to provide new or useful information.

philosophy↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Circumstantial Ad Hominem

A circumstantial ad hominem fallacy occurs when an argument is dismissed based on the arguer's personal circumstances or potential bias, rather than addressing the argument itself. This fallacy incorrectly assumes that bias automatically undermines the argument's validity.

politics · philosophy↗
Logical Fallaciesbeginner

Complex Question

A complex question embeds an unestablished assumption. Answering it on its own terms may concede that assumption, so a respondent can challenge the premise before answering.

logic · law↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Complex Question (Loaded Question)

The complex question fallacy involves posing a question that presupposes an unproven or unjustified premise, often forcing the respondent to inadvertently affirm an unstated claim. It appears in two forms: implicit (loaded questions like 'Have you stopped beating your wife?') and explicit (collapsing two separate questions into one).

politics · law↗
Logical Fallaciesintermediate

Complex Question Fallacy

A complex or loaded question embeds a disputed assumption. Answering within its terms can make that assumption appear accepted, even though it has not been established.

logic · politics↗