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SAT Essay Logical Fallacies

Subjects : sat, english, writing-skills
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. Statements that are intentionally vague so that the audience may supply its own interpretations






2. 'To the people' appeal to the prejudices of the audience - or claiming that (or a majority) supports your opinion






3. Information the writer asserts as being the result of an event






4. Appeal to the reader's emotions






5. Concealing the author's true intent - belief - or attitude towards an issue






6. Cause and Effect: Assuming that an incident that precedes another is the cause of the second incident






7. Obscuring or denying the complexity of an issue






8. Reasoning in which a conclusion is reached by stating a general principle and then applying that principle to a specific case






9. 'Against the man' attacking the person or group to which you are opposed rather than addressing the issue






10. Reasoning by Debate: In an argument - this is an attack on the person rather than on the opponent's ideas. It comes from the Latin meaning 'against the man.'






11. Two comparable issues or ideas are judged by different criteria






12. 'it does not follow' drawing a conclusion or making a transition that is not a logical result of the facts






13. Cause and Effect: claim than an event with more than one cause has only one cause






14. Reasoning by Debate: When a writer argues against a claim that nobody actually holds or is universally considered weak. Setting up a straw man diverts attention from the real issues.






15. Generalization: Assumes that members of a group must have a characteristic because one or more of its members has that characteristic.






16. A fallacy that assumes that taking a first step will lead to subsequent steps that cannot be prevented






17. Drawing conclusions based on insufficient or unrepresentative evidence; using all instances when only some apply






18. When a writer uses the same term in two different senses in an argument. i.e. People choose what laws they obey. The Law of Gravity is a law. I choose to disobey the law of gravity.






19. Generalization: an argument that ignores all unfavorable evidence






20. Appeal to reason






21. Logical reasoning that establishes specific facts or contentions leading to a general conclusion






22. Ambiguity or multiplicity of interpretations of a repeated word or phrase






23. Fallacy that asserts that given two positions - there exists a compromise between them which must be correct.






24. Prejudging an individual based on ideas one has about the group the individual belongs to






25. Citing an expert on one subject as expert on another






26. Reasoning by Debate: A fallacy that forces listeners to choose between two alternatives when more than two alternatives exist






27. Writer encourages readers to accept a conclusion without any support






28. How similar or how different are the cases being compared? How many point of comparison is the arguer using?






29. Condemning an argument because of where it began - how it began - or who began it






30. Analogy or comparison that is not logically consistent






31. How large is the sample size? How representative is the sample?






32. Any diversion intended to distract attention from the main issue






33. Information that can be objectively proven as true






34. Cause and Effect: A fallacy that assumes that because two variables are correlated (happen at the same time) that one must have caused the other






35. Generalization: Assumes that an individual must have a characteristic because the group to which he or she belongs supposedly has that characteristic






36. Does the evidence prove the point being argued? Is this authority an expert on this particular topic?






37. Common knowledge or beliefs readers accept as true






38. Everybody knows fallacy. Asserts that some idea is common knowledge - so it must be true.






39. Is there a reasonable connection between the cause and the effect? Is that connection explained? Are there other possible causes that have not been considered?






40. Have all reasonable alternatives been considered/eliminated? Does this author attack the other views in a fair way?






41. Information based on personal interpretation of facts






42. Cause and Effect: 'What if' fallacy. Argues that everything would be different if one variable was different. Example: 'If the Nazis had won WWII - we'd all be speaking German!'






43. Information that is an interpretation of numerical data






44. Stating the only two interpretations of actions are alternatives - ignoring any compromise or moderate course






45. Reasoning by Proof: the evidence offered does not really support the claim. Non Sequitur (It does not follow)






46. 'To the authority' appeal based on the authority of a source






47. Appeal to the the pity - sympathy or 'misery' of the audience






48. Reasoning by Proof: absence of evidence is not evidence; he didn't say that... so it must be false






49. Trying to prove one idea with another idea that is too similar to the first idea






50. 'After this therefore because of this' implying that because on event follows another - the first caused the second