Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Logical Fallacies - The Fallacy Fallacy

This one is an interesting trap.  When someone argues fallaciously, it is tempting to assume that their point was wrong.  After all, why argue for a true point with fallacies.  But this is not necessarily the case.  When someone rejects an idea because fallacious arguments were used to support it, that someone is making the fallacy fallacy.



For example, if someone argues that homosexuality is genetic because they know a family that has three gay members, their argument is invalid, having only anecdotal evidence.  But if we not only reject their argument, but also reject their point, we are making the fallacy fallacy.  We cannot conclude that homosexuality is not genetic simply because someone argues for it using fallacious logic.  Almost every fact has been defended using logical fallacies at some point.  We just have to realize that it takes more evidence than one family to demonstrate such a claim, but that the claim may still be true or false.

1 comment:

  1. This is really true. The Fallacy Fallacy...I have to start using that term.

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