Steelman
Fallacy fallacy
Also called argumentum ad logicam, argument from fallacy, fallacist’s fallacy, bad reasons fallacy.
Concluding a claim is false because someone argued for it badly.
What it is
Inferring that a conclusion is false because an argument offered for it contains a fallacy or is otherwise weak.
The pattern
Argument A for X is fallacious. Therefore X is false.
An example
A: “You should wear a seat belt. My uncle survived a crash because of his.”
B: “That’s anecdotal evidence! So seat belts don’t really help.”
A’s argument was weak, but the conclusion that seat belts help is strongly supported by other evidence.
Why it fails
A bad argument fails to support its conclusion, but that doesn’t make the conclusion false. True claims are often argued for badly. All you’ve learned is that this argument doesn’t establish it. Formally, it’s a case of denying the antecedent: “If the argument is sound, the conclusion is true; it isn’t sound; so the conclusion isn’t true.”
When it’s not a fallacy
Most lists skip this part. Calling a fair point a fallacy is a mistake too.
It can be fair when
- You simply point out that an argument fails, without claiming its conclusion is false.
Try one
A question from the app. The wrong answers are its usual look-alikes.
Group chat. Wren: “The book is better. All twelve people in my book club said so.” Jon: “Twelve people agreeing doesn’t make it true. That’s a headcount, not an argument.” Wren: “Okay, fine, it’s a headcount.” Jon: “Then the movie wins this one.”
What’s the flaw?
Jon is right that a headcount doesn’t show the book is better. But a weak argument for a claim doesn’t make the claim false, and it certainly doesn’t make the movie better.
A fair reply
“Fair, a headcount isn’t much, but you still haven’t said why the movie’s better.”
Often confused with
- Denying the antecedent
The fallacy fallacy is a special case of denying the antecedent, applied to arguments.
- Appeal to ignorance
Appeal to ignorance treats a lack of proof as disproof. The fallacy fallacy treats a bad proof as disproof.
Where the name comes from
The doubled name is the joke: a fallacy you can commit right after catching one. The Latin, argumentum ad logicam, means “argument to logic”: it goes after how a claim was argued, not whether it’s true. “Argument from fallacy”, “fallacist’s fallacy” and “bad reasons fallacy” all make the same point: a bad reason for a claim doesn’t make the claim false.
Sources
- Argument from fallacy, Wikipedia
In the app
Practice spotting it on arguments that sound real.
Steelman has more examples of fallacy fallacy, how to answer it in a real conversation, and practice rounds that mix it with its look-alikes, so you learn the difference, not just the name. Coming soon to iPhone and Android.
You’re on the list.
We’ll email you the day Steelman is out.
Thanks for offering to test. We’ll write before the beta with how to join.