Dicto Simpliciter is an argument based on an unqualified generalization (Liskovich 10). Some things, for example, may be termed as good whereas, they are only good under certain circumstances. In the story “love is a fallacy” an example is given about exercise. Exercise is good everybody should exercise. On the contrary, not everyone should exercise. Exercise may be a bad idea for people with delicate health conditions such as heart problems. Hence, in making the conclusion it is best to conclude that exercise is good for most people. Deducing the conclusion in an entirely general case would lead to one committing the fallacy of dicto simpliciter.
Hasty generalization is another fallacy talked about by Polly’s suitor. In this fallacy, as the name suggests, a conclusion is arrived at based on very few samples. The fallacy is committed when one makes a conclusion about a certain population due to very few instances encountered with the population at hand. Petey’s friend also talked of the fallacy of post hoc. The fallacy is committed when one makes a conclusion on certain events being connected, whereas, in real life situation it is not possible. For example, making a conclusion that a certain person is the cause of an event occurring since every time that she is around, the same always happens.
The next fallacy that he did talk of was the contradictory fallacy. This is the fallacy committed where the premises and the conclusion, just as the name suggests, contradict each other. The fallacy of ad misericordiam is committed when one, rather than talking of what is required so as to attain certain credit, seeks to seek sympathy so as to have the same.
False analogy is the comparison of one to another person who is rather more successful, but wish to be at the same rank as this more successful fellow. It cannot be the case since one of the two is more knowledgeable and well up. The hypothesis contrary to the fact is a fallacy committed when one makes a conclusion that if something that influenced the occurrence of another had not happened, and then the latter would not have occurred. The poisoning the well fallacy is as the name suggests, committed when one makes it hard for another person to undertake a set task due to them making the latter seem incompetent.
The fallacies the narrator taught Polly became his ruin. He helped his friend out but in the long run had nothing to show for it. Despite him thinking, or rather concluding that since he had made her more intelligent in terms of logic then she would go steady with him, this was not the case.
Works cited
Liskovich T. Love is a fallacy. Dartmouth Undergraduate Journal of Philosophy, 26(1), 2008. Print.
