Just a quick fix on my last blog about logical fallacies, I wanted to correctly cite the source for the last web page I used.
Work Cited
Oly. "Logic 101 – a Nifty Link « Oly's Random Rants and Ravings." Oly's Random Rants and Ravings. Oly's Random Rants and Ravings, 23` Oct. 2011. Web. 16 Nov. 2011. .
As well as this cite, I have recently found a hilarious ad online that I believe, and apparently so does the owner of this clip, is a ad populum fallacy. It is for Fed-Ex and attracts others to their product by saying everyone makes a commercial this way. Please watch:
Hey blogging world! The Scott Odorico here again to talk to you about my next prompt, which is the wonderful world of logical fallacies. For those who do not know what these are (just like I was), a logical fallacy is an incorrect argument or reasoning in attempt to persuade someone in an argument. These are very common devices, and there is a range of them! So many of them in fact, that it would take almost this entire page up if I wrote them all down. I'm just kidding of course, there are not that many (that I know of at least), but here are some key ones that I may discuss later on: slippery slope, ad hominem, straw man, and false dichotomy. These logical fallacies are so common that most of do not even recognize them due to how often they appear in everyday life!
When I think of logical fallacies, I instantly think about those ridiculous politicians (yes, those of both parties) who go above and beyond on trying to make an argument in their favor. These politicians often use straw man, or ad hominem fallacies which somehow always, always, always ends up in attacking the other politician (what a surprise, right?). The straw man fallacy is characterized as misrepresenting an opponents argument in an effort to make one's own argument much more attractive. The ad hominem fallacy can be defined as attacking a person making an argument rather that discussing the argument. One pretty good example of the ad hominem fallacy is between Barack Obama and Sarah Palin, when they exchange attacks on the issue of nuclear war. Here it is for your viewing pleasure:
Here there is some attacking going on between these two politicians that obviously results in some false claims. Another more humorous, and fake example of an ad hominem fallacy is one of Steven Colbert, on his show on Comedy Central, called The Colbert Report. Although it is not exactly real, it stresses the idea of logical fallacies, nonetheless. Here is a clip from Steven Colbert's The Colbert Report:
Steven Colbert's comedic brilliance really makes this video tolerable, and gets the viewer away from the fact that an actual politician is saying something like this about another politician, on national television!
Another large logical fallacy in our country is the false dichotomy fallacy. This fallacy, which is defined as simplifying an argument so that there are only two choices or outcomes to choose from, appears often in commercials to make a decision easier for the viewer. One video I found is a great in depth look at false dichotomies and shows some good examples of ones in our country today. Here is the video for your viewing pleasure:
This man has some wonderful insight on the world of false dichotomies.
The final fallacy I would like to talk about today is the slippery slope fallacy. This fallacy, which is characterized as assuming that event X will set off a chain reaction of events resulting in dire conditions, is often in everyday talk and communications. Most of us, at some point in our life time, have probably said the phrase, "Oh, you're on a slippery slope, buddy!" And if you have said this, you used a logical fallacy! Woo Hoo! NO! Not "woo hoo" at all. To be a successful speaker and a successful arguer, one must try to stay away from logical fallacies.
Finally, if you are looking for some more logical fallacy fun, visit this blog post I found online, it is very amusing (especially the video).
Video 1: Chen, Andy (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ebT1Oo6yDMI&feature=related)
Video 2: Comedy Central, The Colbert Report (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQ24HdCPN9E)
Video 3: Shanedk (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-fZ_jHMwFE)
Link 1: (http://randomrantsandravings.wordpress.com/2011/10/13/logic-101-a-nifty-link/)
Well some of us know what ethos, pathos, and logos mean, but I sure didn't when they were first introduced to me. Ethos, in short, is the appeal to character or to an individual, pathos is the appeal to emotion (you, know really sad or really happy), and logos is the appeal to logic and reason (facts). These three terms came easily to me because, well, all writing I think has one of these three uses in them and can at times be easy to spot out.
When I first hear ethos, or the appeal to character, I instantly think of presidential campaign commercials. These, to me anyway, seem like the epitome of ethos usage in a type of writing. The main idea of these commercials are simply to impress a viewer and make him or her like you! Some commercials you see about elections can be pretty serious, but I know I have seen some just ridiculous commercials that are almost completely false. I don't believe this one is real, but proves my point nonetheless.
Pathos, although not the most important use in my eyes, is important and can help your writing nonetheless! This can be an important part of writing persuasive papers, and in my case (for my writing class-shout out to my teachers) proposal writing. Many common people like me and you readers are suckers for a sob story, which many advertisements take advantage of. I actually theorized about this that if you can make something sad, and soppy, a woman (or a man) will like it and will be interested in it, but that theory is still in the works of experiment... and was only thought about during 45 minutes in a class period. But anyway, when thinking about sad and soppy stories trying to convince an audience of something, nothing rings my bell better than the classic animal cruelty commercials.
Well, that clip sure spoke to my heart. Now I will have to push through these last paragraphs sobbing inside.
Now on to the last term of the day: Logos. In my mind, the usage of logos is clearly the most important term here. No one can say facts are lying and any fact given has to be played into consideration when thinking about the situation at hand. Now what is the first thing I think of when logos is at hand...
Well that's something different... silly Scooter. But what I do think of when logos is on my mind is this one funny commercial I have seen recently that uses logos, in a sarcastic way, to prove its point. It's a Worx Energy commercial and is pretty funny. Here it is...
Now I looked up some quotes using these three terms, and the best one I found was using pathos and by actor John C. Reilly and must be about (and I'm just guessing here) a new TV show he his producing.
This is real human drama, we're not creating some amusement park ride for the summer. Even though the movie is really exciting to watch, it's got a real pathos behind it. John C. Reilly
If some of my viewers had trouble viewing videos, and the Stu's Song in particular. I am reposting the video here for all viewers that couldn't see it, because, well, it is just a spectacular song.
