-One “Fallacious” Assignment-
The Task:
You will develop a persuasive speech using at least three logical fallacies. Below, I’ve defined a topic for you and divvied up the fallacies that you will use in your speech. If used skillfully, these logical fallacies should sound fairly convincing but, in reality, not stand up to tests of logic.
What else must you concern yourself with? Remember the principles of Rhetoric that we’ve already considered: Ethos, Pathos and Logos. Remember the rhetorical triangle—speaker, subject and audience. Your speech could be read but will be far more powerful if it isn’t. That is to say, you need to really deliver if you hope to convince. I will use the Six Traits Oral Rubric to grade this.
What I expect for the grade:
You must supply a typed, double-spaced copy of your speech for everyone in the class and for me.
Your actual speech may be no longer than three minutes.
You r speech must utilize all three logical fallacies
Your speech must include footnotes that correspond to the fallacy you are using and the effect that you hope it has.
Your explanation of how you are using the fallacy must last no longer than one minute.
The Logical Fallacies:
A) Fallacy of Emotive Language
B) Fallacy of Composition
C) Fallacy of Division
D) Fallacy of Vicious Abstraction
E) Argumentum Ad Misericordium (The Appeal to Pity)
F) Argumentum Ad Verecundiam (The Appeal to Prestige)
G) Argumentum Ad Baculum (The Appeal to Force)
H) Argumentum Ad Hominem (Appeal to Personal Ridicule)
I) Argumentum Ad Populum (Appeal to the Masses)
J) False Cause (Post Hoc)
K) Non Sequitur (It Does Not Follow)
L) Petitio Principii (Begging the Question)
M) Tu QuoQue (You Yourself Do It)
N) Fallacy of Misplaced Authority
O) False Analogy
P) Pathetic Fallacy (Anthropomorphism)
The Speech Topics and Fallacies To Be Used. Your speech:
1) convinces mom/dad that you should be able to go out Saturday night despite recently earning an F for the quarter in AP
Lang and Comp. A, C, E
2) convinces a group of middle school kids not to smoke. B, D, F
3) convinces your boyfriend/girlfriend to give you another chance, even though he or she just caught you cheating. G, I, K
4) convinces a disturbingly calm person on a roof not to jump. H, J, L
5) convinces your parents to buy you a $2000 Gucci handbag. M, O, A
6) convinces your little brother/sister, cousin, neighbor (younger person) to give back the hat, T-shirt, I-pod, mobile phone,
etc. that you are convinced he/she stole. N, P, B
7) convinces your friends that partying tonight is unhealthy and that maybe you should do something else instead. C, F, I
8) convinces mom/dad that it is better for you to not go to college but rather get married and start a family right now. D, G, J
9) convinces mom or dad you should be allowed to travel with friends (and no adult supervision) to Goa for one week. E, H, K
10) convinces your friends to steal something just for the fun of it. L, O, B
11) convinces a university admissions officer to admit you into the university despite three letters in your file that say that you
cheated three times and lit part of the high school on fire. A, H, N
12) convinces your Australian friends that New Zealand is the greatest country on earth. I, J, L
13) convinces your friends that the Jonas Brothers are the greatest contribution to the world of art in the last fifty years. E, K, P
14) convinces Deputy Principal Niehart that dress codes are for losers. B, F, O
15) convinces a cannibal not to eat you. D, I, N
16) convinces a talking horse that humans are better than horses. A, F, L
17) convinces your friends that eating animals is wrong, that they should stop now. C, G, P
18) convinces this class that you’ve been abducted by aliens. A, I, O
19) convinces Dr. Clark that there is no such thing as “Great Literature.” G, M, N