Fallacy names are useful for the same reason any term or technical vocab are useful.
‘But notice how you could’ve just you meant the quantity 1+1+1+1 without yelling “four” first! In fact, that’s how all ‘numbers’ work. If someone is actually using a quantity, you can just give that quantity directly without being a mathematician and finding a pat little name for all of their quantities used.′
Fallacy names are great for chunking something already understood. The problem is that most people who appeal to them don’t understand them, and therefore mis-use them. If they spoke in descriptive phrases rather than in jargon, there would be less of an illusion of transparency and people would be more likely to notice that there are discrepancies in usage.
For instance, most people don’t understand that not all personal attacks are ad hominem fallacies. The quotation encourages that particular mistake, inadvertently. So it indirectly provides evidence for its own thesis.
If you’re assuming that they won’t be punished if they convinced the other person, then that’s true. That would be a conflict of interest and hint at them starting with the bottom line.
If you don’t assume that, then it sounds like ad hominem combined with circular logic. Them being a murderer doesn’t mean their argument is wrong. In fact, since they’re living the conclusion, it’s evidence that they actually believe it, and thus that it’s write. Furthermore, them being a murderer is only bad if you already accept the conclusion that it’s not OK to kill the other person and take their stuff.
You can’t say that whenever they are a murderer or not has no relation to the argument they’re making, while you can say that for the face being ugly, though.
I voted your comment up because I agree that the vocabulary is useful for both the person committing the fallacy and (I think this is overlooked) for the person recognizing the fallacy.
However, I think the point of the original quote is probably that when someone points out a fallacy they are probably felling angry and want to insult their interlocutor.
Fallacy names are useful for the same reason any term or technical vocab are useful.
‘But notice how you could’ve just you meant the quantity 1+1+1+1 without yelling “four” first! In fact, that’s how all ‘numbers’ work. If someone is actually using a quantity, you can just give that quantity directly without being a mathematician and finding a pat little name for all of their quantities used.′
Fallacy names are great for chunking something already understood. The problem is that most people who appeal to them don’t understand them, and therefore mis-use them. If they spoke in descriptive phrases rather than in jargon, there would be less of an illusion of transparency and people would be more likely to notice that there are discrepancies in usage.
For instance, most people don’t understand that not all personal attacks are ad hominem fallacies. The quotation encourages that particular mistake, inadvertently. So it indirectly provides evidence for its own thesis.
Yeah, suppose someone argued instead that it should be OK to kill the other person and take their stuff. And were a convicted murderer.
If you’re assuming that they won’t be punished if they convinced the other person, then that’s true. That would be a conflict of interest and hint at them starting with the bottom line.
If you don’t assume that, then it sounds like ad hominem combined with circular logic. Them being a murderer doesn’t mean their argument is wrong. In fact, since they’re living the conclusion, it’s evidence that they actually believe it, and thus that it’s write. Furthermore, them being a murderer is only bad if you already accept the conclusion that it’s not OK to kill the other person and take their stuff.
You can’t say that whenever they are a murderer or not has no relation to the argument they’re making, while you can say that for the face being ugly, though.
I voted your comment up because I agree that the vocabulary is useful for both the person committing the fallacy and (I think this is overlooked) for the person recognizing the fallacy.
However, I think the point of the original quote is probably that when someone points out a fallacy they are probably felling angry and want to insult their interlocutor.