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The Effective Reader(Updated Edition)
By D.J. Henry
Chapter 13: Advanced Argument:
Persuasive TechniquesPowerPoint Presentation
By Gretchen Starks-Martin
St. Cloud State University, MN
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Biased Arguments
A fallacy is an error in logical thought.
Thomas Edison invented the light bulb.
(Unbiased statement) Lashonda trusts the news story because its
printed in the newspaper. (biased argument)
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What is Propaganda?
Propaganda is an act of persuasion thatsystematically spreads biased information that isdesigned to support or oppose a person, product,
cause, or organization.
Emotional appeal is the arousal of emotions togive a biased meaning or power to an idea.
Spicy foods and stress cause stomach ulcers. (unbiased
statement)
Dont buy your insurance from DealState; that outfit isa bunch of crooks. (biased argument)
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Irrelevant Arguments: Fallacies
Personal attackis the use of abusive remarks in
place of evidence for a point or argument. Also
known as an ad hominem attack, it attempts todiscredit the point by discrediting the person
making the point.
Example: Sam, a convicted felon, wants to ban
smoking in restaurants. His opponents attack hiscriminal record, not his idea: Now the
lawbreakers want to make the laws.
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Irrelevant Arguments: Fallacies
A Straw Man fallacy is a weak argument substituted for a
stronger one to make the argument easier to challenge.
It distorts, misrepresents, or falsifies an opponents
position. Attention is shifted away from a strong argument
to a weaker one.
Example:Governor Goodfeeling opposes drilling for oil in Alaska.But the U.S. is too dependent on foreign oil supplies, and the economy
would benefit from having an American supply for oil. The Governorwants to keep us dependent on foreign oil cartels.
The governors reasons for opposing drilling are not
mentioned. Instead, the writer changes the tactic to the
U.S. dependence on oil.
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Irrelevant Arguments:
Propaganda Techniques
Name-calling uses negative labels for aproduct, idea, or cause. The labels use
emotionally loaded words and use detailsthat cannot be verified.
Examples: Cristina Singer has an air ofraunchy diva in her newest album.
Even though her voice delivers a decent mix of pop, rock and soul,hervampire-in-leathercostume and wicked-witch makeup makesher act scary to watch.
People who burn the flag are traitors.
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Irrelevant Arguments:
Propaganda Techniques
Testimonials are irrelevant personal
opinions to support a product, idea, or
cause. Often a celebrity is used as aspokesperson.
Example: Famous athlete Jerome High-Jumper says, Drinkingmilk every day makes me the athlete I am.
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Irrelevant Arguments:
Propaganda Techniques
Bandwagon uses or suggests the irrelevant
detail that everyone is doing it.
Therefore, you should do it too!Example: I should be able to stay out until 3 A.M. Allthe other kids can. Im the only one who isnt allowed to
stay out late on prom night.
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Irrelevant Arguments:
Propaganda Techniques
Plain folks uses irrelevant details to build
trust based on commonly shared values. An
image is put forth to which everyday peoplecan more easily relate.
Examples:
A candidate running for office dressed in blue jeans and a plaidshirt eating a hotdog.
A woman dressed in casual clothes cooking in a kitchen where the
TV ad is trying to get you to buy their product.
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Inadequate Arguments: Fallacies
Either-orassumes that only two sides to an
issue exist. Also known as the black-and-
white fallacy, it offers a false dilemmabecause more than two options are usually
available.
Example: If you dont give to the toy drive, you dontcare about children.
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Inadequate Arguments: Fallacies
False comparison assumes that two things
are similar when they are not. This is also
known as afalse analogy.Example: Animals deserve the same legal rights ashumans.
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Inadequate Arguments: Fallacies
False cause, orPost Hoc assumes that
because events occurred around the same
time, they have a cause-and-effectrelationship.
Example: I wont hit a home run unless I wear my
special baseball cap.
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Inadequate Arguments:
Propaganda Techniques
Card stacking omits factual details in order
to misrepresent a product, idea, or cause. It
intentionally gives only part of the truth.Example: A commercial mentions that the product islow in fat, but fails to say that it is loaded with sugar and
calories.
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Inadequate Arguments:
Propaganda Techniques
Transfercreates an association between a
product, idea, or cause with a symbol or
image that has positive or negative values.Examples:
God Bless America on a product Be like Alicia Silverstone and Woody Harrelsongo vegetarian.
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Inadequate Arguments:
Propaganda Techniques
Glittering generalities offer general positive
statements that cannot be verified. It is the
opposite of name-calling. Words like truth,freedom, peace, and honorare used to
suggest positive things.
Example: A vote for candidate Anthony Vacarro is avote for honesty and integrity!
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Examining Biased Arguments
Sometimes textbooks will choose to present
biased arguments for your examination.
Often these are excerpts from other sourcesand are included for you to evaluate.
Watch for biased words in these passages.
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Chapter Review
A fallacy is an error in logical thought.
Irrelevant details draw attention away from logical thought
by ignoring the issue.
Inadequate details oversimplify the issue and do not give a
person enough information to draw a proper conclusion.
Propaganda is an act of persuasion that systematically
spreads biased information that is designed to support or
oppose a person, product, cause, or organization.
Emotional appeal is the arousal of emotions to give
meaning or power to an idea.
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Chapter Review
Begging the question is also known as circular reasoning.
Personal attack is also known as an ad hominem attack.
False cause is also known as post hoc.
False comparison is also known as false analogy.
Either-or is also known as the black-and-white fallacy.
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Practice: Complete the
Following:
Chapter Review
Applications
Review Tests
Mastery Tests
Remember to complete your scorecard for
the Review Tests in this chapter.