Argument from fallacy is the

formal fallacy In philosophy, a formal fallacy, deductive fallacy, logical fallacy or non sequitur (; Latin for " tdoes not follow") is a pattern of reasoning rendered invalid by a flaw in its logical structure that can neatly be expressed in a standard logic syst ...

analyzing Analysis ( : analyses) is the process of breaking a complex topic or substance into smaller parts in order to gain a better understanding of it. The technique has been applied in the study of mathematics and logic since before Aristotle (384 ...

argument An argument is a statement or group of statements called premises intended to determine the degree of truth or acceptability of another statement called conclusion. Arguments can be studied from three main perspectives: the logical, the dialectic ...

and inferring that, since it contains a fallacy, its ''conclusion'' must be false. It is also called argument to logic (''argumentum ad logicam''), the fallacy fallacy, the fallacist's fallacy, and the bad reasons fallacy.

Form

It has the general

argument form In logic, logical form of a statement is a precisely-specified semantic version of that statement in a formal system. Informally, the logical form attempts to formalize a possibly ambiguous statement into a statement with a precise, unambiguo ...

: :If P, then Q. :P is a fallacious argument. :Therefore, Q is false. Thus, it is a special case of

denying the antecedent Denying the antecedent, sometimes also called inverse error or fallacy of the inverse, is a formal fallacy of inferring the inverse from the original statement. It is committed by reasoning in the form: :If ''P'', then ''Q''. :Therefore, if not ...

where the antecedent, rather than being a proposition that is false, is an entire argument that is fallacious. A fallacious argument, just as with a false antecedent, can still have a consequent that happens to be true. The fallacy is in concluding the consequent of a fallacious argument has to be false. That the argument is fallacious only means that the argument cannot succeed in proving its consequent.John Woods
''The death of argument: fallacies in agent based reasoning''

Springer Springer or springers may refer to: Publishers * Springer Science+Business Media, aka Springer International Publishing, a worldwide publishing group founded in 1842 in Germany formerly known as Springer-Verlag. ** Springer Nature, a multinationa ...

2004, pp. XXIII–XXV But showing how one argument in a complex thesis is fallaciously reasoned does not necessarily invalidate its conclusion if that conclusion is not dependent on the fallacy.

Examples

:Tom: All cats are animals. Ginger is an animal. Therefore, Ginger is a cat. :Ben: You have just fallaciously affirmed the consequent. You are incorrect. Therefore, Ginger is not a cat. :Tom: I speak English. Therefore, I am English. :Ben: Americans and Canadians, among others, speak English too. By assuming that speaking English and being English always go together, you have just committed the

package-deal fallacy The package-deal fallacy (also known as false conjunction) is the logical fallacy of assuming that things often grouped together by tradition or culture must always be grouped that way. False conjunction refers to misuse of the ''logical conjunct ...

. You are incorrect. Therefore, you are not English. Both of Ben's rebuttals are arguments from fallacy. Ginger may or may not be a cat, and Tom may or may not be English. The fact that Tom's argument was fallacious is not, in itself, a proof that his conclusion is false. :Joe: Ben's argument that Ginger is not a cat is fallacious. Therefore, Ginger absolutely must be a cat. That one can invoke the argument from fallacy against a position does not prove one's own position either, as this would also be an argument from fallacy, as is the case in Joe's argument.

Further

''Argumentum ad logicam'' can be used as an ''

ad hominem ''Ad hominem'' (), short for ''argumentum ad hominem'' (), refers to several types of arguments, most of which are fallacious. Typically, this term refers to a rhetorical strategy where the speaker attacks the character, motive, or some other ...

'' appeal: by impugning the opponent's

credibility Credibility comprises the objective and subjective components of the believability of a source or message. Credibility dates back to Aristotle theory of Rhetoric. Aristotle defines rhetoric as the ability to see what is possibly persuasive in ...

good faith In human interactions, good faith ( la, bona fides) is a sincere intention to be fair, open, and honest, regardless of the outcome of the interaction. Some Latin phrases have lost their literal meaning over centuries, but that is not the case ...

, it can be used to sway the audience by undermining the speaker rather than by addressing the speaker's argument.

William Lycan William G. Lycan (; born September 26, 1945) is an American philosopher and professor emeritus at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he was formerly the William Rand Kenan, Jr. Distinguished Professor. Since 2011, Lycan is also ...

identifies the fallacy fallacy as the fallacy "of imputing fallaciousness to a view with which one disagrees but without doing anything to show that the view rests on any error of reasoning". Unlike ordinary fallacy fallacies, which reason from an argument's fallaciousness to its conclusion's falsehood, the kind of argument Lycan has in mind treats another argument's fallaciousness as obvious without first demonstrating that any fallacy at all is present. Thus in some contexts it may be a form of

begging the question In classical rhetoric and logic, begging the question or assuming the conclusion (Latin: ') is an informal fallacy that occurs when an argument's premises assume the truth of the conclusion, instead of supporting it. For example: * "Green is t ...

, and it is also a special case of

ad lapidem Appeal to the stone, also known as argumentum ad lapidem, is a logical fallacy that dismisses an argument as untrue or absurd. The dismissal is made by stating or reiterating that the argument is absurd, without providing further argumentation. Thi ...

Form

Examples

Further

See also

References

Further reading