Persuasive Vocabulary

Rhetorical Fallacies

Logical Fallacy Logical Fallacy are ideas or thoughts that lead to wrong conclusions.

Leading Question Leading question a question worded to suggest the desired response (e.g., What do you think of the horrible effects of socialism?)

Incorrect Premise Incorrect premise a faulty idea that is used as the foundation of an argument

False Assumption False assumption flawed ideas that emerge when a reader pieces information together solely by inference and fails to consider other possible interpretations

Non-sequitur Is conclusion that doesn’t really follow from a fact or idea. Those sneakers cost $250. Wearing them will make me a better person

Emotional Fallacies Try to evoke negative feelings, especially fear and prjudice.

Distortion

Caricature Caricature a distortion of characteristics or defects of a person or thing, either in a picture or in words

Loaded Term Loaded term a term or phrase that has strong emotional overtones and which is meant to evoke strongly positive (or negative) reactions beyond the specific meaning (e.g., tax relief instead of tax cut, or death tax instead of estate tax, idiotic or stupid instead of incorrect)

Bias Bias an unfair preference for or dislike of something

Factual Claim claims that can be proven with data, observations and reliable sources. Example: A huge rock from space struck the gulf coast 65 millions years ago”. You can prove this claim by studying the geology of the region.

Commonplace Assertion Is a statement many people assume to be true but which may or may not be so. Examples: millions of years ago, dinosaur ruled the earth.

Opinion States a belief, feeling, or value