1. Non Sequiturs
Non Sequiturs means "it does not follow" in Latin. A non sequitur is when someone makes a conclusion that does not logically follow from the given premises. There are many comics that give good examples of non sequiturs.
In the comic, the fast food industry makes a non sequitur about the bubonic plague. The premises were probably something like:
1. There was no trans fat in the diet of people during the bubonic plague.
2. There is no bubonic plague now.
Therefore lack of trans fat caused the bubonic plague.
In reality, with this reasoning anything could have caused the bubonic plague.
2. False and Vague Premises
In the case of false and vague premises, a conclusion may logically come from the premises. However, the premises are either false or vague, making the conclusion still untrue. One example of false or vague premises can be found in some stereotypes. For example:
1. All hockey players are stupid.
2. Alex is a hockey player.
Alex is stupid.
While the conclusion logically follows that Alex would be stupid, the idea that all hockey players are stupid not only is wrong but doesn't make sense. Out of all the people that ever played hockey, at least one must be somewhat intelligent.
3. Ad Hominem
Ad Hominem means "against the person" in Latin. One uses an Ad Hominem when a person attacks a personal quality that is irrelevant to the argument of another person involved in the argument. An example of an Ad Hominem can be found in everyday life. For example:
Billy: Hey, Joe!Sorry, but I don't agree with your English paper. I really think that in "Much Ado
About Nothing" one of the main themes is listening to other's criticism of yourself, not just falling in love.
Joe: Yeah? Well John told me that you dropped the game winning pass in the football game Friday. Way to go you idiot!
In this case, Billy, while Billy is trying to talk to Joe about how he doesn't agree with his English paper, Joe simply tries to insult Billy and completely avoids the argument all together.
4. Begging the Question
Begging the question is also known as circular reasoning. With this mistake, the person assumes that his point is true in order to prove that the same point is true. There are many examples of begging the question:
This arguement suggests that children have past life memories, and then concludes that children must therefore have past lives. The person arguing is supporting A with B, and then B with A.
5. Red Herrrings
If a person uses a red herrring, they use an inflammatory word in order to distract others from the real argument at hand. For example:
In this argument, the person intentionally moves away from doctor-assisted suicide by bringing up another topic, abortion.