Advanced Textual Analysis

C1 Lesson 2: Logical Fallacies

Goal: Identify flaws in reasoning (fallacies) to evaluate the strength of an argument.

Fallacy ហេតុផលមិនត្រឹមត្រូវ (Flaw in logic)

Premise សម្មតិកម្ម (Basis of argument)

Valid ត្រឹមត្រូវ/មានហេតុផល (Logically sound)

Biased លំអៀង (Unfair preference)

Watch out for these "Red Flags" 🚩 in any text you read.

Ad Hominem

Attacking the person instead of their argument.

"Don't listen to his economic plan; he dresses poorly!"

Straw Man

Exaggerating or distorting an opponent's argument to make it easier to attack.

"He wants to reduce military spending? He must hate our country!"

False Dilemma

Presenting only two options when more exist (Black or White).

"You either support this law completely, or you support criminals."

Bandwagon

Assuming something is true because many people believe it.

"Everyone is buying this crypto, so it must be safe."

Read the statement and tap "Analyze" to reveal the fallacy.

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"We must ban all video games immediately. If we don't, civilization will collapse and everyone will become violent criminals within a year."

Fallacy: Slippery Slope. The author claims a small event (games) will lead to an extreme, unlikely disaster without evidence.

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"Dr. Smith suggests we eat more vegetables. But Dr. Smith is overweight, so why should we listen to him?"

Fallacy: Ad Hominem. The speaker attacks Dr. Smith's appearance/weight rather than the validity of his advice about vegetables.

Statement: "Either we cut salaries, or the company goes bankrupt tomorrow. There is no other way."

1. Which fallacy is this? False Dilemma (Only 2 choices offered) Ad Hominem

Statement: "Senator Jones says we should fund public schools. I disagree; he clearly wants to raise our taxes until we are all poor!"

2. Which fallacy is this? Straw Man (Distorting the opponent's view) Bandwagon