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FALLACY: WEAK/FALSE ANALOGY

EXAMPLES of FALSE ANALOGY

WHAT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING TO REMEMBER?

i. Employees are like nails. Just as nails must be hit in the head in order to make them work, so must employees. (Explanation: Comparing employees with nails is totally illogical as both of them do not share any common features.)

ii.Government is like business, so just as business must be sensitive primarily to the bottom line, so also must government. (Explanation: The objectives of government and business are completely different, so they will probably have to meet different criteria.)

iii. Students should be allowed to look at their textbooks during examinations. After all, surgeons have X-rays to guide them during an operation; lawyers have briefs to guide them during a trial; carpenters have blueprints to guide them when they are building a house. Why, then, shouldn't students be allowed to look at their textbooks during an examination?

(Explanation: Doctors, lawyers, and other professionals are not giving their examinations to check how much they have learned whereas the students are. The situations are altogether different and comparing these makes for a false analogy.)

(More examples can be found at http://fos.iloveindia.com/false-analogy-examples.html)

Of course, comparing is a great method to convey your message effectively but it is very important to consider whether the comparisons make sense or not. Improper comparisons can spoil the content of your message or totally discard the idea you put forward.

How to Avoid False Analogy

  • Tip #1: Identify what properties are important to the claim you're making, and see whether the two things you're comparing both share those properties
  • Tip #2: Show that the two objects are different in a way which will affect whether they both have that property.

FALSE ANALOGY

What is a Weak/False Analogy?

False Analogy: Mercedes Commercial

Definition:

In an analogy, two objects/events, A and B, are shown to be similar. Thus it is argued that since A has property P, B must have property P as well. An analogy fails when the two objects, A and B, are different in a way which affects whether they both have property P.

(onegoodmove.org)

BY: Brandon Conner, Elizabeth Cross, Ethan Concepcion, Brian Lambert, and Miranda Barnard

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