Which fallacy is committed in the following statement: “Thomas Carlyle said of…
2023
Which fallacy is committed in the following statement: “Thomas Carlyle said of Walt Whitman that he was a big poet because he came from a big country”?
Answer: A. Fallacy of Division — ConceptA fallacy is an error in reasoning: the conclusion does not follow from the stated grounds. The fallacy of division occurs when a property of a whole…
- A.
Fallacy of Division
- B.
Ad Hominem
- C.
Hasty Generalisation
- D.
Inappropriate Authority
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A
Concept
A fallacy is an error in reasoning: the conclusion does not follow from the stated grounds. The fallacy of division occurs when a property of a whole or group is assumed to belong to an individual part or member.
The test is to identify where the property is first asserted and whether it is transferred from the collective to one constituent without independent support.
Application
In the statement, being big is attributed to the country as a whole. Walt Whitman is one person from that country, and the argument transfers the country’s bigness to his poetic stature without evidence about his poetry.
Contrast
Fallacy of Division: transfers a property of a whole to one of its members.
Ad Hominem: attacks a person instead of addressing that person’s argument.
Hasty Generalisation: draws a broad rule from too few or unrepresentative cases.
Inappropriate Authority: treats a source without relevant expertise as decisive evidence.
Result
Thus, the reasoning exemplifies the fallacy of division.