1. 1. Chapter 13 Fallacies of Vagueness
2. 2. Vague = imprecise Unclear due to lack of precision WokinghamLibraries CC0 Public Domain
3. 3. Vague = imprecise Unclear due to lack of precision WokinghamLibraries CC0 Public Domain
4. 4. Vague = imprecise Unclear due to lack of precision Imprecise WokinghamLibraries CC0 Public Domain
5. 5. The man is bald. Not vague. He is clearly bald. Helpaeatcontu CC0 Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported
6. 6. The man is not bald.Not vague. He is clearly NOT bald. Airwolfhound Flicker
7. 7. The man is bald. He is neither clearly bald nor clearly not bald. This is a borderline case. ben-the-geek Flicker
8. 8. Fallacies of Vagueness: Exploit borderline cases in the use of imprecise language like bald Borderline Case Clear Clear ben-the-geek Flicker Airwolfhound FlickerHelpaeatcontu CC0 Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported
9. 9. Vague Language is common Borderline CaseClear Clear Fast Big Rich Long Heavy Easy Slow Small Poor Short Light Hard
10. 10. Four Fallacies of Vagueness 1. Argument from the Heaps Simon A. Eugster GNU Free Documentation License
11. 11. Four Fallacies of Vagueness 2. Conceptual Slippery Slope @CanStock Photo
12. 12. Four Fallacies of Vagueness 3. Fairness Slippery Slope Crimfants Flicker CC BY-SA 2.0
13. 13. Four Fallacies of Vagueness 4. Causal Slippery Slope GNU Free Documentation License OpenIcons : CC0 Public Domain
14. 14. 1. Argument from the Heaps Simon A. Eugster GNU Free Documentation License
15. 15. Argument from the Heaps eap of sand by adding one grain to an amount that i Ivan Aleksic Flicker
16. 16. Argument from the Heap a heap of sand by adding one grain to an amount th Peter Craven Sand Stockpiles CC BY 2.0
17. 17. Argument from the Heap eap of sand by adding one grain to an amount that i
18. 18. Argument from the Heap 1) For any number, n, if someone with n dollars is not rich, then someone with n + 1 dollars is not rich. 2) Someone with only one dollar is not rich. 3) If someone with only one dollar is not rich, then someone with only two dollars is not rich. 4) Someone with only two dollars is not rich. (1, 2) and so on 999,999,999) Some one with one hundred million dollars is not rich (1, 999,999,998).
19. 19. 2. Conceptual Slippery Slope @CanStock Photo
20. 20. Conceptual Slippery Slope pposite end of a conceptual spectrum do not differ i @CanStock Photo
21. 21. Conceptual Slippery Slope 1) We should not draw a distinction between things that are not significantly different. 2) If A is not significantly different from B, and B is not significantly different from C, then A is not significantly different from C. Depends upon the following principles:
22. 22. Conceptual Slippery Slope ferent than a blastocyst, which is not much different @CanStock Photo
23. 23. 3. Fairness Slippery Slope Crimfants Flicker CC BY-SA 2.0
24. 24. Fairness Slippery Slope ogic: Drawing a line between similar cases is unfair binu kumar Flicker
25. 25. Fairness Slippery Slope Argues that drawing a line between similar cases is unfair. Yet we have to draw the line somewhere.Pass Fail 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 6059
26. 26. Fairness Slippery Slope Yetwe have to draw the line somewhere.
27. 27. 4. Causal Slippery Slope OpenIcons : CC0 Public Domain
28. 28. 4. Causal Slippery Slope Logic: If A happens, that will lead to D, which is pure evil, so we cant allow A.
29. 29. 4. Causal Slippery Slope 1. If gay marriage is legalized, then polygamy will be legalized. 2. If polygamy is legalized, then incest will be legalized. 3. If incest is legalized, then bestiality will be legalized. 4. If we legalize bestiality we are all going to hell. 5. We cannot legalize gay marriage. (1-4) OpenIcons : CC0 Public Domain
30. 30. 4. Causal Slippery Slope This is usuallythough not alwaysa fallacious argument. 1. Are the effects really bad? 2. Are the effects likely to occur? 3. Do the dangers outweigh the benefits? OpenIcons : CC0 Public Domain
31. 31. What is a fallacy of vagueness? WokinghamLibraries CC0 Public Domain
32. 32. What is a fallacy of vagueness? Imprecise WokinghamLibraries CC0 Public Domain
33. 33. What is an Argument from the Heaps? Ivan Aleksic Flicker
34. 34. Argument from the Heaps: Making a small change does not add up to a qualitative difference. E.g., adding a grain of sand to an amount that is not a heap, will not make it a heap. Ivan Aleksic Flicker
35. 35. What is a Conceptual Slippery Slope? @CanStock Photo
36. 36. Conceptual Slippery Slope: Things that are at opposite ends of a conceptual spectrum are the same. E.g., A is not much different than B, which is not much different than C, which is not much different than D, which is not much different than E, so A is the same as E. @CanStock Photo
37. 37. Heaps or Slippery Slope? Brutus has a full bowl of food. Even if he eats a piece of his food, it will still be full, so his bowl of food will never be empty. Argument from Heaps Conceptual Slippery SlopeNeither. Ivan Aleksic Flicker Sh4rp_i Dog Food 2 Flicker @CanStock Photo
38. 38. Good! It is an Argument from the Heaps! Ivan Aleksic Flicker
39. 39. Argument from the Heaps: If its not empty, taking away one piece of food wont make it empty! Ivan Aleksic Flicker
40. 40. What is a Fairness Slippery Slope? Crimfants Flicker CC BY-SA 2.0
41. 41. Fairness Slippery Slope: w an arbitrary line to differentiate two things that are binu kumar Flicker
42. 42. What is a Causal Slippery Slope? OpenIcons : CC0 Public Domain
43. 43. 4. Causal Slippery Slope If we allow X to happen, it will cause something bad to happen, which will cause something worse to happen, which will cause something evil to happen, so we cant allow X to happen. OpenIcons : CC0 Public Domain
44. 44. Heaps or Slippery Slope? Claire finished eating thirty minutes ago and I finished twenty-six minutes ago. Its almost the same. Why cant I swim now, too? Fairness Slippery Slope Causal Slippery Slope Neither. binu kumar Flicker OpenIcons : CC0 Public Domain Michael Williams WikiMedia Commons
45. 45. Yes! Its a Fairness Slippery Slope. Crimfants Flicker CC BY-SA 2.0
46. 46. A Fairness Slippery Slope argues that drawing an arbitrary line between two similar things is unfair. Crimfants Flicker CC BY-SA 2.0