At the end of this lesson, you are expected to:

defend a stand on an issue by presenting reasonable

arguments supported by properly cited factual evidences

● determine different kinds of logical fallacy

● identify factors on authenticity and validity of
evidences/information
● present reasonable arguments and factual evidences to
defend a stand
● STAND - viewpoint
● CLAIMS - these are statements that support the author’s
stand; ARGUMENT
● EVIDENCES - these are proofs to strengthen the author’s
claim
● FALLACY - an error in reasoning which weakens an
argument
● COUNTERCLAIMS – arguments opposing a stand
1. Logical fallacies are errors in reasoning that invalidates
an argument.
2. Opinions are better than facts in supporting an
argument.
3. Statistics can be used as evidence to support an
argument.
4. Evidence from expert interviews can strengthen your
stand.
5. Bandwagon occurs when someone tries to refute an
argument by attacking the character of a person
instead of attacking the ideas of the argument.
LOGICAL FALLACIES are ERRORS IN REASONING that INVALIDATE AN
ARGUMENT. As a critical thinker you have to identify and examine
fallacies and manipulative language. It is therefore important that you
know some of the common fallacies.
•Occurs when an arguer presents his/her
argument as one of only two options despite
the presence of multiple possibilities

Example:
Either you fully devote yourself to the
company or you quit.
•Occurs when something is instantly
concluded to be true just because it is not
proven to be false, and vice versa

Example:
The writer does not talk about the
connection between the victim’s killer and his
sister, so there must be none.
• Occurs when a series of increasingly superficial
and unacceptable consequences is drawn

Example:
If we ban computer shops, then students will
not be able to do research. And if they do not have
tools for research, these students will fail their
subjects.
• Occurs when two or more points are rolled into
one and the reader is expected to accept or
reject both at the same time, when one point
may be satisfactory while the other is not

Example:
“Have you stopped cheating on
exams?”
•Occurs when a threat, instead of reasoning
is used to argue

Example:
If you do not admit that evolution is not
real, we will isolate you from the group.
•Occurs when the element of pity is used
instead of logical reasoning

Example:
Please do not fire me for being absent all
month; I have a sick mother and a special child to
support.
•Occurs when unpleasant consequences of
believing something are pointed out to show
that the belief is false

Example:
You can’t believe that colonialism is bad,
because if it were, then we would not be civilized.
•Occurs when an argument is considered to
be valid because it is what the majority
thinks

Example:
Most Filipinas want to have fair skin because
they think they look beautiful. Therefore, having fair
skin must be the real standard of beauty.
• Occurs when someone tries to refute an
argument by attacking the character of a person
instead of attacking the ideas of the argument

Example:
I cannot accept your argument because, unlike
me, you were not educated at Harvard University.
•Occurs when the argument quotes an expert
who’s not qualified in the particular subject
matter

Example:
Bill Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft,
recommends the effective fabric softening properties
of Downy fabric softener.
•The authority in question is not mentioned or
named

Example:
Experts claim that eating peanuts causes
pimples.
•Occurs when a sample is not significant
enough to support a generalization about a
population

Example:
Martha, the foreigner from France is very
impolite.
French people are mean and rude.
•Occurs when a writer assumes that two
concepts that are similar in some ways are
also similar in other ways

Example:
Drugs are like massages: they make you feel
good.
•Occurs when a general rule is applied to a
situation, even when it should be an
exception

Example:
Jaywalking is not allowed, so you should not
have done that even when you were being chased
by terrorists.
•It is an informal fallacy that states: “Since
event A followed event B, event A must have
been caused by event B.”

Example:
Dina saw cat when they went home. Along the
way, they crashed into a tree. The black cat must be
the reason why they met an accident.
•Occurs when the direction between cause
and effect is reversed

Example:
Liver damage leads to alcoholism.
•Occurs when the explanation for an event is
reduced to one thing when there are other
factors which also contributed to the event

Example:
We were not able to solve the problem because
of limited time, even if all the other groups were able
to do so.
•Occurs when an argument which is
supposed to prove something concludes
something else instead
Example:
We must support the fight for gender equality
between men and women. Women have suffered
enough violence at home. Violence against women
must be stopped.
•Occurs when the position of the opposition is
twisted so that it is easier to refute

Example:
Opponent: We should relax the law governing the
allowed smoking areas in the city.
Fallacy: We should not do so, because the number
of smokers might increase.
•Any argument of the form: If A is true then B
is true; If B is true therefore A is true

Example:
If you are drinking wine, you have a problem.
Therefore, if you have a problem, you are drinking
wine.
•Any argument of the form: If A is true then B
is true; If A is not true then B is not true

Example:
If you are drinking wine, you have a problem.
Therefore, if you are not drinking wine, you do not
have a problem.
•Occurs when arguments contradict one
another

Example:
Frank is older than Jake, Jake is older than Noli and
Noli is older than Frank.
 While there is a wealth of information found in
various sources electronically or nonelectronically, you
should also keep in mind that not all of these pieces of
information are accurate, relevant, valid or credible.
Hence, it is important to evaluate sources of
information that you plan to include in your academic
writing venture.
• Relevance
• Authority
• Currency
• Contents
• Location of sources
✓How well does the source support your stand?
✓You can check the title, table of contents, summary,
introduction or headings of the text to have a sense of
its content.
✓Is the author’s name identified?
✓Is the author’s background, education or training related to
the topic?
✓If the source does not have an author, think twice before
using it.
✓Legitimate academic texts must include citations. Citations
demonstrate that the writer has thoroughly researched the
topic and is not plagiarizing the material.
✓What is the date of the publication?
✓In most fields, the data from the older publications
may no longer be valid. As much as possible, the date
of publication should be at most five years earlier.
✓Does the author have a lot of citations in his or her
text and/or bibliography or works cited section?
✓You do not want to use source that is disputable, so
make sure to verify your findings with multiple sources.
✓Where was the source published? Was it published
digitally or in print?
✓Is it a book, an academic journal or a reputable news
source as www.nytimes.com or www.economist.com?
✓Does it provide complete publication information such
as author/s, editor/s, title, date of publication and
publisher?
✓What is the URL of the website?
✓Avoid using blogs or personal homepage and wiki sites
(Wikipedia, Wiktionary, Wikiquotes)
✓If the URL includes the top-level domain .edu, then that
means that it has been published by an academic
institution such as university
✓Common URLs include .gov (government), .org
(organizations), .com (commercial sites) and .net
(network infrastructures). In academic writing, reputable
sites are those with .edu, .gov, .net and .org in URL.
• Evidence from surveys, library research and
experiments
• Evidence from informant interviews (those who have
direct experience related to the problem/issue
• Evidence from expert interviews
Aside from your claim/argument, you have to
discuss counter arguments. These are the
arguments opposing a stand.
➢C - ontains a clear proposition or statement that must
be defended
➢A - ssesses conflicting opinions or opposing views on
the issue
➢T - akes a firm stand on the issue
➢L - ists arguments in an organized manner to defend
the stand
➢C -onsider your audience/reader