Used strictly, "begging the question" means doing what?

Assuming the conclusion within the premises

Raising an obvious follow-up question

Refusing to answer a direct question

Answering a question with a question

A slippery slope argument claims what?

That one step will lead inevitably to a chain of worse ones

That two unrelated events share a cause

That an opponent has changed position

Treating two things that occur together as though one caused the other is which error?

Confusing correlation with causation

An appeal to authority is weakest in which case?

When the authority cited is outside their own field

When the authority is no longer alive

When the authority is quoted second-hand

When the authority works for a university

The "no true Scotsman" move does what?

Redefines a term mid-argument to exclude a counterexample

Substitutes a national stereotype for evidence

Appeals to an unwritten tradition

Rejects a claim because of its source

A red herring in an argument is what?

An irrelevance introduced to pull attention off the point

A conclusion stated before the evidence

An emotional appeal made in good faith

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Philosophy & Ideas Medium ⚡ 10 Questions ⏱️ ~6 Mins +100 XP

Bad Arguments and Their Names

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Most bad arguments fail in one of a small number of ways, and each way has a name worth knowing.

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~6m

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About this topic

A fallacy is not simply a claim you disagree with. It is a move in an argument that looks like support but is not, and the useful thing about the named ones is that they recur. Once you can spot a straw man, you notice it several times a week, usually in places that consider themselves careful. Two warnings come with the list. First, several named fallacies are only faults in certain contexts: attacking a person's credibility is fallacious in a debate about physics and entirely proper in cross-examination of a witness. Second, spotting a fallacy shows that a particular argument failed, not that its conclusion is false. Treating the label as a victory is itself a way of avoiding the question.

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Bad Arguments and Their Names: all 10 questions and answers

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1Attacking the person making a claim rather than the claim itself is which fallacy?
- A False dilemma
- B Ad hominem Correct
- C Straw man
- D Red herring
Answer: B. Ad hominem

Why: The Latin means "to the person". It is not always a fault, since a witness's honesty is genuinely part of what a court has to weigh.
2Misrepresenting an opponent's position so it is easier to knock down is called what?
- A A straw man Correct
- B A red herring
- C A slippery slope
- D An appeal to popularity
Answer: A. A straw man

Why: The opposite habit, restating an opponent's case in its strongest form before answering, has been nicknamed steelmanning. It tends to produce better arguments on both sides.
3Used strictly, "begging the question" means doing what?
- A Raising an obvious follow-up question
- B Refusing to answer a direct question
- C Answering a question with a question
- D Assuming the conclusion within the premises Correct
Answer: D. Assuming the conclusion within the premises

Why: The phrase is a clumsy translation of a Latin rendering of Aristotle. In ordinary speech it has drifted to mean "invites the question", which is why careful writers now avoid it entirely.
4Claiming something must be true because a great many people believe it is which fallacy?
- A Slippery slope
- B Circular definition
- C Appeal to popularity Correct
- D Appeal to authority
Answer: C. Appeal to popularity

Why: Its Latin name is argumentum ad populum. Any advertisement citing sales figures as proof of quality is running the same move.
5Presenting only two options when further ones exist is called what?
- A A hasty generalisation
- B A false dilemma Correct
- C A category error
- D An equivocation
Answer: B. A false dilemma

Why: It is also known as the either/or fallacy. It persuades because real dilemmas with only two options do genuinely occur.
6A slippery slope argument claims what?
- A That one step will lead inevitably to a chain of worse ones Correct
- B That two unrelated events share a cause
- C That a rule has no exceptions
- D That an opponent has changed position
Answer: A. That one step will lead inevitably to a chain of worse ones

Why: It becomes a legitimate argument the moment each link in the chain is defended rather than assumed. The fallacy is in the unexamined inevitability.
7Treating two things that occur together as though one caused the other is which error?
- A Equivocating on a key term
- B Appealing to tradition
- C Shifting the burden of proof
- D Confusing correlation with causation Correct
Answer: D. Confusing correlation with causation

Why: A related tag is post hoc ergo propter hoc, meaning "after this, therefore because of this". A third, hidden factor very often explains both of the things observed.
8An appeal to authority is weakest in which case?
- A When the authority is quoted second-hand
- B When the authority works for a university
- C When the authority cited is outside their own field Correct
- D When the authority is no longer alive
Answer: C. When the authority cited is outside their own field

Why: Citing genuine expertise is ordinary, reasonable evidence. The fault lies in borrowing prestige from someone with no standing on the actual question.
9The "no true Scotsman" move does what?
- A Rejects a claim because of its source
- B Redefines a term mid-argument to exclude a counterexample Correct
- C Substitutes a national stereotype for evidence
- D Appeals to an unwritten tradition
Answer: B. Redefines a term mid-argument to exclude a counterexample

Why: Antony Flew named it in the 1970s. The giveaway is a qualifier such as "true" or "real" that appears only after a counterexample has been produced.
10A red herring in an argument is what?
- A An irrelevance introduced to pull attention off the point Correct
- B A conclusion stated before the evidence
- C A claim that cannot be tested
- D An emotional appeal made in good faith
Answer: A. An irrelevance introduced to pull attention off the point

Why: The name comes from the idea of dragging a strong-smelling cured fish across a scent trail. It works because the distraction is usually interesting in its own right.

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