Chapter 15, Fallacies of Relevance Video Solutions, Cengage Advantage Books: Understanding Arguments: An Introduction to Informal Logic

Problem 1

For each of the following arguments, indicate whether it involves (1) an ad hominem denier against a speaker's claim or argument, (2) an ad hominem silencer against a person's right to speak, (3) an ad hominem dismisser against someone's trustworthiness, or (4) none of these. Explain your answer. Be sure to focus on what is explicitly said and not on what might be conversationally implied in each example.
Example: Sure, Sara says she saw me cheat in the game, but Sara's stupid, so you shouldn't pay any attention to her.
Answer: This is an ad hominem dismisser, since the point is that Sara is unreliable. The speaker does not deny what Sara says or that she has a right to say it.
1. Sure, Sadie says she saw me cheat, but it was very dark, and her vision is horrible, so she must have seen something else and thought it was me cheating.
2. Sure, Sam says he saw me cheat, but the only reason he says it is that he wants to win the game. He's a real jerk.
3. Sure, Steve says she saw me cheat, but he wasn't even playing the game. It's not his place to accuse those of us who were playing.
4. Sure, Sybill says she saw me cheat, but I didn't even take the exam, so I couldn't have cheated on it.
5. Sure, Sally says she saw me cheat, but she accuses everyone, and she's almost always wrong, so you should know that she is wrong this time, too.

Bernabe Montoya

Numerade Educator

Problem 2

Explain the point of each of the following remarks. Indicate whether each remark involves an ad hominem silencer, dismisser, denier, or none of these. Then say whether the argument provides an adequate justification for its conclusion, and why or why not.
1. The American Tobacco Company has argued for years that smoking is not really unhealthy, but what would you expect the company to say? It would take the same position regardless of any evidence, so I can't trust them.
2. The Joint Chiefs of Staff argue that the U.S. government needs to increase its military budget, but an opponent responds, "Well, of course, they will want as much money as they can get for their departments. They always ask for more money even though most of the time they don't really need it. So this time, again, they probably don't need it."
3. After Congress passes a military draft during a war, an opponent says, "If members of Congress were eligible for the draft, they would not vote for it. So we must not really need a draft."
4. Of course, the party in power is opposed to term limits. That's just because they want to stay in power.
5. The main opposition to tax reductions comes from people who depend on government programs funded by taxes, so they can hardly be impartial, but only those who are impartial should be allowed to speak on such a crucial issue for our whole country.
6. The main support for tax reductions comes from people who pay taxes, so their views can't be a reliable indicator of what the best policy is.
7. Very few citizens have studied the entire tax code, and nobody understands the effect of taxes on the economy, so we have little reason to believe them when they say that present tax policies will destroy the economy.
8. An economist cites recent trends in sales of raw materials as evidence of an upturn in the economy, and then a critic, who doubts the economist's prediction, responds, "If you're so smart, why ain't you rich?"
9. As a criticism of pro-choice activists, Ronald Reagan said, "I've noticed that everybody who is for abortion has already been born."
10. Attacking male opponents of abortion, a feminist claims, "Most opponents of abortion are men."
11. When a member of a fraternity argued for co-ed houses in place of fraternities, a critic responded, "When he quits his fraternity in protest and joins a co-ed house, then he will earn the right to criticize us."
12. When Fred argues at a fraternity meeting that his house should admit women, another member announces, "Let me remind you all that Fred held exactly the opposite position last year."
13. Let he who is without sin among you cast the first stone. (John 8:7)

Check back soon!

Problem 3

Answer the five questions in the text about each of the following appeals to authority, and then decide whether each appeal to authority is legitimate or fallacious.
1. The surgeon general says that smoking is hazardous to your health, so it is.
2. The surgeon general says that abortion is immoral, so it is.
3. Michael Jordan says that Air Jordan sneakers are springier, so they must be springier.
4. This must be a great movie, because the billboard says that Time magazine called it "terrific."
5. My friend Joe says that this new movie is hilarious, so it must be worth watching.
6. Ben and Jerry's ice cream must be the best, because Fat Fred eats more ice cream than anyone else I know, and he says that Ben and Jerry's is the best.
7. There must be life on other planets, because many great scientists are looking for it, so they must think it is there.
8. Lefty Lopez must be the best pitcher of the year, because he won the Cy Young Award (awarded by the Baseball Writers Association to the best pitcher of the year).
9. Vanna must be the most beautiful woman in America, because she won the Miss America contest.
10. There were 250,000 protesters at the rally, because its organizers gave that figure.
11. There were 25,000 protesters at the rally, because its opponents said so.
12. True Christians ought to give away all their money, because the Bible says, "Blessed are the poor."

Check back soon!

Problem 4

For each of the following arguments, indicate whether it is an appeal to popular opinion, an appeal to tradition, or an appeal to emotion. (The argument might fit into more than one of these categories. If so, explain why.) Then determine whether it is fallacious, and why.
1. For centuries throughout Europe, women were burned for being witches, so there must have been lots of witches.
2. There must be life on other planets, because most people think there is. Just read a few tabloids.
3. Most people who live in the United States think that it is the greatest country ever, so it must be.
4. There are more Buddhists than followers of any other religion, so there must be more truth in Buddhism.
5. Incest must be immoral, because people all over the world for many centuries have seen it as immoral.
6. The Golden Rule is accepted in almost every system of ethics both in the past and in the present, so there is probably something to it.
7. Chris must not be guilty, because twelve jurors, who saw all the evidence, agreed on a verdict of not guilty.
8. "Polls show an overwhelming majority of the American people want a lot less immigration or even an immigration moratorium.... These are persistent results over time. Most of the people cannot be wrong all of the time!" (from an advertisement placed by Federation for American Immigration Reform, Atlantic Monthly [June 1995], 67).

Check back soon!