Logical Fallacies

A logical fallacy is a flaw in the chain of reasoning that leads to a conclusion which does not necessarily follow from the premises or evidence.

Erroneous Appeal to Authority

An erroneous authority is an author who claims to be an expert in a given subject, but is not or someone who is cited as authority but is not.
example: Superman says that flying is the safest form of transportation, but he's not an expert in transportation.

Ad Hominem ("to the person")

An argument which focuses on the person making a claim instead of the claim itself
example: You don't know anything about money because you're child.

Shifting the Issue

An author draws attention away from the issue instead of offering evidence that will enable people to draw their own conclusions about the soundness of an argument.
example: You say I have anger problems, but I'm actually really good with budgeting.

Either/Or Fallacy

An author will take two extremes and force readers to make a choice between seemingly contradictory positions although in reality one position does not exclude the other.
example: If you're not a democrat, you must be a republican.

Sweeping Generalizations

An author attempts to draw a conclusion without providing sufficient evidence to support the conclusion or without examining possible counterarguments.
example: All African American children come from broken homes.

Bandwagon

An author urges readers to accept idea because a significant number of people support it.
example: Everyone has sex before marriage so it must be morally acceptable.

Begging the Question

The advancing of a circular argument that asks readers to accept a premise that is also the conclusion readers are expected to draw.
example: The bible is true because the scripture says it is.

False Analogy

Authors try to persuade that something is true by using a comparison.
example: Life is like a box of chocolates. Chocolate is sweet so life must be sweet.

Technical Jargon

Author uses big words and asserts something without providing evidence that premises are true.
example: Dihydrogen monoxide will kill you if you inhale it.

Confusing Cause and Effect

States a fact, but does not prove the premise caused the conclusion.
example: The sun set before it rained, therefore sunsets cause rain.

Appeal to Fear

Uses fears and prejudices so that the listener reasons with emotion instead of rational thought.
example: The terrorists used guns to take control, therefore no one is allowed to have guns.

Fallacy of Division

What is true of the whole must be true of its parts.
example: Obama won the presidential election, so America must be all democratic.

Hasty Generalization

When a person draws a conclusion about a group based on a sample that is too small to be representative.
example: All pastors commit adultery because my pastor did.

The Straw Man Argument

Makes a generalization about what a group believes without actually citing a specific writer or work.
example: He hates rape victims because he is pro-life in all circumstances.

Fallacy of the Middle Ground

Assumes that the middle position between two extreme positions must be correct.
example: Bob wants two kids and Mary wants one kid, therefore Bob and Mary must have 1.5 kids.


P.S. I really enjoy how you put characters from Harry Potter as the fake students for example essays, etc. :)

Disability-Clare

The freak shows are especially interesting because they provide a niche for people with disabilities. After they were stopped due to the 'exploitation', many of the workers actually complained because they lost their job and their community. This may not speak for all of them, but at least some of them felt they belonged in these shows because it would be hard to make a living otherwise. When people lose their jobs, they have lost a drive, a purpose, a contribution to society. It can be depressing to be given free handouts because you feel unworthy when you do not work for it.

Though everyone realizes those with disabilities are human beings, many people do not actually know it. There is something inherent in society which has the need to categorize people, but it is due to our sin nature and therefore not good. People are equal and deserve equal treatment by everyone else. For my field, which is education, knowing about kids with disabilities will be extremely helpful. Before, I had never really thought about disabilities in depth. I just accepted it. Now, being forced to actually think about it and wrestle with different people's world-views, I have realized the importance of thinking about these things. In education, I will actually make the effort to accommodate to all of my students and learn about their different needs to help them learn successfully instead of delegating the task to the students or other faculty members. To add to all of this, knowing about people with disabilities should be important to all people because they are human beings and deserve to be a part of society just like everyone else.

Because our class is focusing in on this subject this semester, I have noticed how much disability actually comes up in daily activities. If I would have been asked a couple months ago if disability still lingered in society as a form of entertainment, I would have said no way because that would be really messed up. However, to my dismay, I have found that disability is throughout entertainment. People thrive on the new and different, especially in horror films in which the antagonist is always a person with mental disabilities. It is kind of sad to realize that we are trained in our subconscious to be weary and cautious of that which is different.

Words

Words are what people make them. Meanings change over time when people begin using words in different ways. Words which were offensive at one point may not be offensive any longer and words which at one point invoked no emotion may be emotional now. The essay I wrote gives lots of examples of words with meanings that have changed over time because of how different groups of people used them. I think it is interesting how words affect people to great extents even though those same people have control over the words being used and their meanings. There is nothing inherently wrong with a word, only its intention by the user. Instead of focusing attention on 'offensive' words people use, more people should try to figure out why they are used in order to better understand the person saying them.

Free Hugs Essay

I am really happy with the topic I chose for my paper because it is something I really like and agree with. It made writing my essay easier and more enjoyable. If I could rewrite it, I would have finished the final draft in one sitting. Writing a rough draft made me feel like I could get away with not doing my best because it wouldn't be graded. Then, when I had to actually finish the paper, I felt like I had nothing good to work with in my draft and it also seemed disorganized. I think I would have been happier with the final product had I taken writing the rough draft seriously. I had some ideas written out that I was going to put in my paper as I wrote it. Some of those ideas did not end up in my final paper because I did not organize it in a way that everything would flow right. Alejandro's ideas really helped me flesh out my paper and explain certain parts better. He is probably a good writer.

Cultural Artifact

I really enjoyed the Gaga Presentation. I thought I was already a pretty open-minded person. I am in the sense that I have already realized 'normal' is a very abstract term which people try to attach a definition to even though it cannot be defined. However, I never would have thought that a music video with crazy outfits and dark scenes was trying to say something about normality. So thank you for the presentation.

The mask in phantom of the opera is a cultural artifact which shows that something is abnormal about the protagonist. At surface level, the only apparent abnormality is the fact he is wearing half of a mask on his face. However, since the 'phantom' lives at an opera house, the mask is not as weird because he is in a place where everyone is in costume. This is ironic and probably intentional by the phantom in order to be more normal. Later in the film, the audience comes to find the mask is actually covering up a deformity on a large portion of his head to include part of his face and scalp. The phantom is extremely protective of this part of himself and does not want anyone to look at it. It is the most personal and secretive aspect of himself. He calls himself a monster and ugly because his scars make him different.

This mask implies that 'normal' must include smooth skin and a full head of hair without scars. It shows how not having these must mean one is invaluable or somehow unworthy to live within society because the phantom secludes himself in tunnels under the theater. It is interesting that the mask's sole purpose is to be aesthetically pleasing. The purpose is not, however, to aid his condition by actually changing his appearance. It is an assistive device only to help others see him as more normal and for him to see himself as more normal.

From the reading by Thomson, the phantom should be categorized under the visual rhetoric of realistic. The story portrays him as normal because it shows his feelings, his hardships of unreturned love and of lonliness. Anyone could relate to these feelings, so naturally the audience begins to see him as a person like everyone else. It is not until later that his 'abnormality' is truly revealed. This is interesting because the audience is led to have feelings and empathy for this character as a normal human being and then they realize that there is something wrong with him. At this point, the audience only feels more attachment to him due to his struggles, including his lack of self worth. The author probably did this on purpose to show that the 'disabled' are people too, who are capable of giving and receiving love.

Presentations

For the english project this week, everyone had to present an object which gave insight into who they were. The purpose was to practice rhetorical listening, which encourages active thinking. Instead of being passive in thought and just observing what the object looked like, the project encouraged seeing meaning behind the object. What did it say about the person? What were they trying to impart to the rest of the class?

I learned a great deal about my classmates. Foremost, I recognized that each person has a lot more to them than what face value gives away. Each has a past, a present, and a future that helps define who they are. They have likes, dislikes, ambitions, defining character traits, and personality. Through pictures, artwork, and special talents, I became aware of all these unique qualities. I was especially impressed that many students had passions which defined their lifestyle. Some of these include serving our country, having tight bonds with family and friends, playing the violin, and enjoying music. I was also pleasantly surprised that a good portion of the class is serious about a relationship with God.

It is enjoyable to find classmates that share my interests and passions because being able to relate with others bonds people together. The origami presentation was especially amazing to me. I think I could relate most to this particular project because everything he said I could also say about myself, except that I cannot create beautiful things by folding paper. I would not have thought to use known symbols to tell people about myself. The peace crane was really cool and I appreciate that someone else values having peace at the heart of life. His star which stood for the guidance of God in his life also applies to me because I try to follow Christ's example. Last, the lily which means 'virtue' is also very impressive. I am elated to see the maturity of wanting moral standards in one's life.

Writing Without Words

Author of Writing Without Words, Elizabeth Boone, argues that writing and art can be interchangeable because both convey meaning. In other words, writing can include symbols and pictures. She backs up this argument with the example of Pre-Colonial Native Americans who recorded their thoughts with pictures instead of words. In addition, she reasons that such subjects as math, music, and science are all better expressed as symbols than as words. So, writing using just letters can be insufficient. Writing according to Boone is 'a communication of relatively specific ideas in conventional manner by means of permanent, visible marks'.

Although Boone makes good points, I have to disagree with her overall thesis that the definition of writing is too narrow. Words are limited to the definitions culture gives them and writing as the world has come to know it is simply recorded speech. It is a form of expression and often a means of communication like art, but the two are not interchangeable. Referring to Native American's cave art as writing will confuse a listener because pictures are not what people think of when thinking of writing. Instead of arguing that art and writing are the same, I would argue both are found under the same category of either a way of expression or communication. It is interesting that Native Americans used pictures in place of words because an alphabetic system had not been thought up yet. This does not make their pictures writing, though. It only means writing did not exist yet in the culture. As to math, music, science, and other areas in which symbols better express meaning than words, they are no longer writing. These subjects are only 'writing' in their 'written form'. Otherwise, they have become something different even if they can still be categorized under expression or communication.