Preview

Fallacy

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1044 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Fallacy
Erik Razal
Professor Dougherty
English 1C
05 June 2015 The Weakness in Fallacies Fallacies are land minds hidden beneath a flatbed of language. They appear hidden to the eye that lacks the knowledge about them. Most go by undetected and cloaked. We experience them everyday and a lot of them go through our heads because we are unaware of them. Depending on how elaborate the fallacy is, it can potentially sway people to a certain decision, either mundane or crucial. Identifying fallacies are important because you can develop the ability to break down arguments, to see weak and strong points about the arguments and even advertisements to see if what they are promoting is valid. There are plenty of fallacies embedded within Camille Paglia’s article, On Date Rape, in which she argues about how it is somehow also the victims fault as well as the accusers fault for which the rape occurred. She unleashes a passionate argument about the topic; unfortunately, fallacies rear their ugly head and expose weak points throughout the argument. Paglia’s use of fallacies namely appeal to authority, hasty generalization and red herring present weaknesses embedded in the argument, which therefore weakens the integrity of the argument as a whole.
In the very first paragraph of the article, the author carelessly demonstrates the appeal to authority fallacy, which consequently weakens the integrity of the argument. In the text the author paints a picture of her past by describing how strict it was for woman living under college jurisdiction. It is in this passion of angst where she states the fallacy, “My generation was the one that broke these rules. We said, “We want freedom—no more double standard!””(WLTC 152). The author tries to claim that it was her generation that sparked the movement for female rights and highlighted gender inequalities even though woman rights movement dates back many years before the sixties. Alongside this, the author is not an expert in woman’s rights

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    The women’s movement has been a long fought battle this assignment helps bring just how long it has been. Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony wrote “The Seneca Falls Declaration”. This document was much like the “Declaration of Independence” in which it listed multiple grievances against the government. This was the beginning of the movement and was slow going until 1966. In 1966 Betty Friedan wrote “The National Organization for Women’s Statement of Purpose”. These two documents hold a lot in common but when comparing the two you can see that in the years between them things have changed. This change may be small but is evident when compared. Some examples are in “The Seneca Falls Declaration” women in that time frame could not attend…

    • 256 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Rawlinson, woman, have been fighting for equal rights and equal pay since the beginning of time. Furthermore, Rawlinson and other women pioneers opened the door for women’s rights. Men would still be dominating the workforce if Title VII Civil Rights Act of 1964 defunct. The Supreme Court decisions illustrate the diminishing of this paternalistic bromide and cognitive achievements of equality for women under the law. There’s an old saying “women belong in the kitchen.” Women now have a degree of freedom and power. Women have been signaled handily raising boys to become…

    • 559 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Fallacies serve an important role in persuasion, such as in the two documentaries arguing their views on fracking. An effective argument must have the strength to contradict the claims of the opponent in a non-aggressive but assertive manner. Unfortunately, fallacies can also be used in an overbearing manner that disenchants the viewer. Without logical fallacies in its various forms, persuasion would become a futile and rudimentary…

    • 747 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Watergate Hotel Case

    • 2329 Words
    • 10 Pages

    The women's movement of the 60s and 70s is often referred to as the second wave of feminism to emphasize the fact that the women’s movement dates back to at least the 1840s and that the first wave was during the 1920s with the fight for women to have the right to vote. The civil rights movement inspired many women to challenge the traditional roles they had been placed into and to fight for equality. Betty Friedan, author of The Feminine Mystique, helped to create NOW, the National Organization for Women. NOW attacked stereotypes of women and praised more balance of roles in marriage. Its main goals were to get the ERA, the Equal Rights Amendment, passed and to protect reproductive rights. Unfortunately, the ERA was met with opposition and fell three states short of becoming a constitutional amendment. The women’s movement had numerous lasting effects, specifically through the Equal Credit Opportunity Act and the Roe v. Wade…

    • 2329 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    American women from the late 19th Century through the 1970’s fought through discrimination, racism, and sexism. Women struggled to be acknowledged and given the same rights as men. Slowly, through out each century, women’s political, social and legal issues improved, but with challenges. In this essay, I will discuss some of the significant changes that women overcame.…

    • 1263 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Fallacy: A Misconception

    • 445 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Fallacy is a misconception resulting from incorrect reasoning. Even though we pay careful attention to our arguments and supports; we tend sometimes to commit mistakes. However, through critical thinking we could diminish faulty arguments. There are numerous significant topics to critical thinking. One aspect of these particular topics is the ‘fallacy’. In order to be a critical thinker, one should be able to recognize and avoid logical fallacies whenever possible. Discussed throughout this essay are three fallacious statements from the TV Patrol. The fallacies to be cited and explained are Ad Hominem, Red Herring and Hasty Generalization.…

    • 445 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    In American history, women have had a profound role. Whether it was the lack of freedom or the excessiveness of their decisions, women have shaped what America has become and what it will continue to grow into. Daphne Spain explains in her article entitled “Women’s Rights and Gendered Spaces in 1970s Boston,” how “During the 1970s feminists in Boston declared their rights to their own bodies by establishing women's health clinics and domestic violence shelters. In doing so, they wrote a modern chapter in the distinguished history about how women have shaped the city. Almost one hundred years earlier, in 1877, the Women's Educational and Industrial Union opened on Boylston Street as a center to promote women's intellectual and economic independence.' Elite and middle-class women of the era also sought a role in urban politics. (Spain, 1)” This seems ironic due to current politics, but aside from that, there have been women’s rights movements for centuries to protect. However, as…

    • 1474 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The American movement for women’s liberation and rights was undoubtedly the most progressive in the decades that followed the Second World War. The second wave of feminism that ensued in the 1960s and 70s redirected the goals and ambitions in the fight for gender equality in many aspects. This new wave of liberal reform allowed women to break free from the domestic sphere from the conservative restraints of the 1950s, which have traditionally limited a women’s access to the same political, economic, and educational rights as men. While the fight for women’s equality started to make real headway post World War II, the fight for women’s rights has existed long before then. This can be seen in the Antebellum reforms or the first wave of feminism from the early 19th century to the early 20th century.…

    • 839 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    To Kill a Mockingbird

    • 920 Words
    • 4 Pages

    A world where women didn’t receive equal pay for the same work, couldn’t apply to the same colleges, or have equal job opportunities as a man, or even serve in the military (except in nursing positions) is an idea completely unthinkable to many citizens of the United States today. Although a society where these restrictions are customary is immoral and oppressive, before the 1930s, it was widely accepted. In the late 1920s and early 1930s many women began to make a strong effort to gain rights in The United States of America. Because of the efforts of these women, during the 1930s women began to receive more rights. This trend continued as women’s roles in society became greater and more important over time and up to this day. The women who stood up for their rights in the 1930s have significantly affected the rights and responsibilities that women have in modern times in the United States. The rights that women had in the 1930s are shown in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird by the prejudices and expectations of women in Maycomb, Alabama.…

    • 920 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    talks about how rape cannot be tolerated in a society and how feminism has put young…

    • 571 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In other words, the actions or lifestyle choices of certain individuals put them at a higher risk of becoming a victim. They are regarded as people who failed to properly omit the potential dangers of their actions or they chose to ignore the substantial risks involved in certain situations. Behavior such as, wearing promiscuous clothing, going to bars unescorted, acting coquettishly and accepting rides from men they hardly know are precarious actions that can put a person at risk (Karmen, 2014). Additionally, in instances of date rape, a miscommunication between the two parties can result in a failure of making the victims true intentions known. For example, because of the mixed signals being sent from his date after a night of drinking alcohol, his perception was that she wanted to engage in sexual relations, but in reality she did not; however, she did object strongly enough to stop him. This example illustrates the victim blaming view of the individual engaging in a high-risk activity and failing to fully understand the situation she was getting herself into. Consequently, the acceptance of a victim blaming mentality leads to many problems. Not only does it shift some of the blame to the victim, but it also reduces the offender’s accountability for their actions. Furthermore, the prevention of rape is shifted away from the aggressors, the police, the culture and…

    • 874 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Fallacy Ad Hominem

    • 1703 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Somebody says criminal is bad people. Is it true? If it is true, this could be a form of fallacy. Fallacy is a misconception leads to unreasonable argument or disbelief in people's ideas. It happens with us everyday. Fallacy has many types and I want to refer to one of them: Ad Hominem. It is a judgment about people's appearance than the validity of their ideas, abilities, or work……We usually see this fallacy in our life like politic, demonstration, even in our working environment. For example: politicians use others personal lives in debate to disqualify their opponents' arguments or use races to deny people's right to work or bosses use their experiences to judge their employees' work progress……So we need to understand how Ad Hominem fallacy is used and how to avoid them.…

    • 1703 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Women Rights Movement has a long history. All forms of women discrimination have been done and it still carries on today. Such as the right to make our own decisions with whether it’s abortion. We still haven’t officially had the right to show leadership or ownership. Women still suffer from verbal abuse, physical abuse, and sexual harassment. Throughout the past century the Women’s Rights Movement has made advancements towards women’s equality politically, women will eventually achieve an equal social status in our country. (thesis)…

    • 480 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In a certain time between the 1950s and 1960s women didn't even have the right to vote, and although the achievements and advancement that many women's rights campaigns have realized, women in the era prior to the 1990s were viewed only from the female side ignoring their intellectual and cultural sides, "Article 45, for instance considered her just as a thing or an object. Furthermore, she was sentenced to a permanent incapacity whatever her age and position were". Moreover, in a society in which men have the privilege to rule, it was impossible to recognize women's humanity, and the stereotypes of inferiority and incapacity had been taking control of all social practices.…

    • 601 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The civil rights movement was the beginning of all the change to come in society. Although it was not without fight, the civil rights movement assured the rights of African Americans and gave them equal opportunities and the basic privileges and rights as U.S. citizens. The women’s movement took cues from this time to make much needed changes in the lives of women. They sought to make societal changes in all aspects such as social, political, and economic. In 1960, a woman’s reality was limited in almost all aspects. They had been expected to follow one unquestionable path, which was to marry early, start a family quickly and devote their lives to being a homemaker. They had been legally binded to their husbands in return of “head and master…

    • 1081 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays