Recognizing Fallacies/Quick Reference

This quick reference lists common logical fallacies.

Fallacies of Relevance

1. Argument from Ignorance
2. Appeal to Inappropriate Authority
3. Argument Ad Hominem (Personal attacks)
4. Appeal to Emotion
5. Appeal to Pity
6. Appeal to Force
7. Irrelevant conclusions

Fallacies of Presumption

1. Complex Question
2. False Dilemma
3. False Cause
4. Begging the Question (Circular reasoning)
5. Accident and Converse Accident (Drawing hasty conclusions)

Fallacies of Ambiguity

1. Equivocation
2. Amphiboly (Syntactic ambiguity)
3. Accent (Verbal emphasis)
4. Composition (Generalizing to the class from one instance)
5. Division (Generalizing from the whole to each of its parts)

Formal Fallacies

1. Affirming the consequent
2. Denying the antecedent