Chapter Two: Good Reasoning Review Applying Ethics: A Text with Readings (10 th ed.) Julie C. Van Camp, Jeffrey Olen, Vincent Barry Cengage Learning/Wadsworth

What is the purpose of an argument? To show that the conclusion is true OR To show that it is reasonable to accept the conclusion as true

Deductive arguments What is a deductive argument? – An argument that claims to follow truth- preserving rules What is a truth-preserving rule? – If the first two statements (premises) are true, the conclusion will be true

Inductive Arguments What is an inductive argument? – An argument in which supporting statements, or evidence, aim to show that it is reasonable to accept that the conclusion is true What is a good inductive argument? – A warranted argument

Fallacies What is a fallacy? – an unreliable means of arguing, one that does not provide good reason for accepting the argument’s conclusion What is a formal fallacy? – Use of invalid deductive rules What is an informal fallacy? – Unreliable strategies that people tend to use

Informal Fallacies What is an Ad Hominem Argument? – An attack on the opponent rather than the opponent’s argument What is a Faulty Analogy? – Misuse of argument by analogy (an argument that two things alike in some respects must be alike in other respects) What is Questionable Authority? – Supporting a conclusion by relying on the judgment of someone who is not a reliable authority

More informal fallacies What is begging the question? – Assuming a premise you want to prove What is equivocation? – Implicit reliance on two different meanings of the same word to reach a conclusion What is hand waving? – Claiming something is true (or false) because everyone knows it

More informal fallacies What is hasty generalization? – Reaching a general conclusion form a sample that is biased or too small What is appeal to ignorance? – Arguing that a claim is true (or false) because we have no evidence proving otherwise What is Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc? – “after this, therefore because of this” – Claiming that one thing is caused by another because it follows the other

More informal fallacies What is a red herring? – An irrelevant issue introduced to distract attention from the issue at hand What is a slippery slope? – Assuming an action will inevitably lead to an unwanted outcome as a result of the small steps that inevitably will follow What is a straw man? – A distortion of an opponent’s actual position to make it easier to attach