Lesson5 Love Is a Fallacy

1、Love is a Fallacy,Lesson Five,Teaching Contents,Special Terms in Logic Introduction to the Text Organizational Pattern Detailed Study of the Text Style Appreciation The Chief Attraction of the Story Language Features,Logical fallacy: An argument in logic presents evidence in support of some thesis o

2、r conclusion Argument: a statement which is offered as an evidence or a proof. An argument consists of two major elements 1. conclusion: the thesis argued for 2. premises: a previous statement serving as a basis for an argument. Conclusion is to be drawn/inferred from premises.,Special Terms in Logi

3、c,Back,Fallacy: false reasoning, as in an argument a weakness and lack of logic or good sense in an argument or piece of reasoning Usually, an argument is correct (deductively valid) if the premises can provide enough conclusive evidence for the conclusion. An argument that fails to be conclusively

4、deduced is invalid; it is said to be fallacious.,Special Terms in Logic,Back,Three types of fallacy: 1. material fallacy (fallacies of presumption): in its material content through a misstatement of the facts. 2. verbal fallacy (fallacies of ambiguity): in its wording through an incorrect use of ter

5、ms. 3. formal fallacy (logical fallacy): in its structure through the use of an improper process of inference.,Special Terms in Logic,Back,The fallacies in the text belong to the first type: material fallacies. Some of the important fallacies in this category include: 1. Dicto Simpliciter: the falla

6、cy of accident is committed by an argument that applies a general rule to a particular case in which some special circumstances make the rule inapplicable,Special Terms in Logic,Back,1. Dicto Simplicter “Everyone wants to get married someday.” The example starts a logical train of thought with an as

7、sumption that is false. Not “everyone” wants to get married.,Examples of Fallacy,Back,The fallacies in the text belong to the first type: material fallacies. Some of the important fallacies in this category include: 2. The fallacy of “Hasty Generalization”: The converse fallacy of accident argues im

8、properly from a special case to a general rule.,Special Terms in Logic,Back,2. The fallacy of “Hasty Generalization” “Mr Wangs handwriting is terrible. Mr. Hus handwriting is also terrible and you know how terrible mens handwriting is .” It applies a special case to general rule. The fact that certa

9、in persons handwriting is bad doesnt imply that all mens handwriting is bad.,Examples of Fallacy,Back,The fallacies in the text belong to the first type: material fallacies. Some of the important fallacies in this category include: 3.The fallacy of irrelevant conclusion: It is committed when the con

10、clusion changes the point that is at issue in the premises. Special cases of irrelevant conclusion are presented by the so-called fallacies of relevance. These include:,Special Terms in Logic,Back,a) the argument ad hominem (speaking “against the man” rather to the issue, or the fallacy of “poisonin

11、g the well” mentioned in the text) in which the premises may only make a personal attack on a person who holds some thesis, instead of offering grounds showing why what he says is false; b) the argument misericordiam (an appeal to “pity”), as when an trial lawyer, rather than arguing for his clients

12、 innocence, tries to move the jury to sympathy for him.,Special Terms in Logic,Back,a) Ad Hominem (“speaking against the person”, “poisoning the well” in the text) “Ms. Bauer is a terrible English teacher. She always wears blue jeans.” Instead of point out faults in Ms. Bauvers teaching technique, i

13、t calls attention to things about a teacher as a person that are unrelated to her teaching performance.,Examples of Fallacy,Back,b) Misericordiam (an appeal to pity) “Look at this fourteen-year-old child whos run away from home to hide her shame pregnant, unwashed, friendless. penniless, at the merc

14、y of our social service agencies. Can you till claim that sex should be taught in the classroom?” In this shifty approach to argumentation, the writer gives tear jerking descriptions of the cruel opponents victims in order to arouse sympathy from the reader.,Examples of Fallacy,Back,The fallacies in

15、 the text belong to the first type: material fallacies. Some of the important fallacies in this category include: 4. The fallacy of circular argument: It occurs when the premises presume, openly or covertly, the very conclusion that is to be demonstrated.,Special Terms in Logic,Back,Circular Reasoni

16、ng (begging the question) “Juan is an impressive speaker because he always touches his listeners deeply.” This problem occurs when the writer tries to support a claim by restating it in different words. You can tell this example is circular by considering this “Why is Juan an impressive speaker?” “B

17、ecause he touches his listeners deeply.?” “Why are Juans listeners touched so deeply?” “Because he is an impressive speaker.” impressive = touching someone deeply,Examples of Fallacy,Back,The fallacies in the text belong to the first type: material fallacies. Some of the important fallacies in this

18、category include: 5.The fallacy of false cause: It dislocates the cause of one phenomenon in another that is only seemingly related. The most common version of this fallacy, called post hoc ergo propter hoc, mistakes temporal sequence for causal connectionas when a misfortune is attributed to a “mal

19、ign(有害的) event”, like the dropping of a mirror.,Special Terms in Logic,Back,Post hoc ergo propter hoc (after this; therefore; because of this) “The last five times that Ive worn my white pants, something depressing has happened. Im not going to wear those pants again!” This fallacy assumes that if e

20、vent Y happened after event X, then X must be the cause of Y.,Examples of Fallacy,Back,The fallacies in the text belong to the first type: material fallacies. Some of the important fallacies in this category include: 6.The fallacy of many questions consists in demanding or giving a single answer to

21、a question when this answer could either be divided or refused altogether, because a mistaken presupposition (假定) is involved. Example: “Do you like the twins” “Neither yes nor no; but Ann yes and Mary no.”,Special Terms in Logic,Back,The fallacies in the text belong to the first type: material fall

22、acies. Some of the important fallacies in this category include: 7.The fallacy of non sequitur: It occurs when there is not even a deceptively plausible appearance of valid reasoning, because there is a virtually complete lack of connection between the given premises and the conclusion drawn from th

23、em.,Special Terms in Logic,Back,Non Sequitur “Students who take earth science instead of physics are lazy. Susie took earth science instead of physics. Susie should be kicked out of school” If the first statement is correct, then you could conclude that Susie is lazy. But theres nothing in that line

24、 of reasoning that says lazy students should be kicked out of school. The conclusion doesnt follow.,Examples of Fallacy,Back,Introduction to the Text,About the Story “Love is a Fallacy” is taken from Max Shulmans The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, 1951. The narrator of the story is Dobie. It is about a

25、 law student who tries to marry the girl after suitable re-education, but hes been too clever for his own good.,Back,Introduction to the Text,About the Story This text is a piece of narrative writing, a story. The narrator of the story, Dobie Gillis, a freshman in a law school, is the hero or protag

26、onist. He struggles against two antagonists: Petey Burch, his roommate whose girlfriend he plans to steal; and Polly Espy, the girl he intends to marry after suitable re-education. The climax of the story is reached in paragraphs147 to150 when Polly refuses to go steady with the narrator because she

27、 had already promised to go steady with Petey Burch.,Back,Introduction to the Text,The denouement follows rapidly and ends on a very ironic tone. The raccoon coat which he gave to Petey Burch for the privilege of dating his girl, the raccoon coat which the narrator disliked and abhorred, was the ins

28、trument of his undoing. Polly Espy promised to go steady with Petey Burch because he owned a raccoon coat, a coat that all fashionable people on campus were wearing. The main theme of the story, however, is stated by the writer in the title of the story: “Love is a fallacy”,Back,Introduction to the

29、Text (1),The whole story is a piece of light, humorous satire. The writer is satirizing or making fun of a smug, self-conceited freshman in a law school. The freshman is made the narrator of the story who goes on smugly boasting and singing praises of himself at every conceivable opportunity.,Back,I

30、ntroduction to the Text (1),From the very beginning (para.4), he begins to heap on(大加颂扬) himself all the beautiful words of praise he can think of cool, logical, keen, calculating, perspicacious, acute, astute, powerful, precise and penetrating. This exaggerated self-praise and the profuse use of si

31、miles and metaphors help to make the satire humorous.,Introduction to the Text (2),At the same time the narrator takes every opportunity to downgrade Petey Burch. For example, he calls him: “dumb, nothing upstairs, unstable, impressionable and a faddist.”(para.5),Back,Introduction to the Text (3),An

32、d as for Polly Espy, she is “a beautiful dumb girl”, who would smarten up under his guidance. In order to smarten her up, the narrator decides to give her a course in logic. He teaches her how to recognize the common fallacies of logic. He succeeds too well because the whole thing backfires on him w

33、hen Polly refutes all his arguments as logical fallacies before finally rejecting him.,Introduction to the Text,In desperation the narrator argues that “the things you learn in school dont have anything to do in life” (para.145) The appeal does not move Polly because she does not reject him on logic

34、al grounds. She rejects him because he does not own a raccoon coat as Petey Burch does. At the end of the story, the reader feels the narrator has got what he deserved. He has been too clever for his own good.,Back,Introduction to the Text,About the Title The title of the story is humorous and well-

35、chosen. It has two meanings:,Back,1. When “fallacy” is taken in its ordinary sense, the title means: There is a deceptive or delusive quality about love. 2. When “fallacy” is taken as a specific term in logic, the title means: Love cannot be deduced from a set of given premises.,Introduction to the

36、Text,About the Title Perhaps Max Shulman wants the reader, after reading the story, to conclude that “love” is an error, a deception and an emotion that does not follow the principles of logic. But the writer, through this story has succeeded perhaps unwittingly(无意地) in revealing what love may somet

37、imes mean in the affluent society. Girls do not want brilliant, gifted or educated husbands, but want husbands who are rich and wealthy enough to provide all the things necessary in life home, clothes, cars, etc.,Back,Organizational Pattern,Section I (Paras.1-3): the authors note. 1. The authors ide

38、a about this story. 2. The authors idea about the purpose of this story.,Back,Organizational Pattern,Section II (Paras.4-59): the bargain between the author and his roommate over the exchange of the girl. 1. (para.4) introduction of the narrator: protagonist 2. (paras.5-21) introduction of the first

39、 antagonist: Petey Burch. He downgrades his roommate, who has nothing upstairs. 3. (paras.22-27) introduction of the second antagonist: Polly Espy,Back,Organizational Pattern,Section II (Paras.4-59): the bargain between the law student and his roommate over the exchange of the girl. 4. (paras. 28-40

40、) sounding out(探听；探询) the relationship between Petey and Polly. 5. (paras.40-59) unethical(不道德的) transaction over Polly The author gives the raccoon coat the roommate wants, and his roommate gives his girl friend in return. They have a kind of deal.,Back,Organizational Pattern,Section III (Paras.60-

41、124): the teaching of 8 logical fallacies 1. (para.60-61) a survey, first date with the girl, first impression of the girl. He tries to find out how stupid she is. 2. (paras.62-74) the teaching of Dicto Simpliciter 3. (paras.75-79) the teaching of Hasty Generalization 4. (paras.80-85) the teaching o

42、f Post Hoc 5. (paras.86-96) the teaching of Contradictory Premises,Back,Organizational Pattern,Section III (Paras.60-124): the teaching of 8 logical fallacies 6. (paras.97-98) Interposition. He wants to give the girl back. 7. (paras.99-104) the teaching of Misericordiam 8. (paras.105-108) the teachi

43、ng of False Analogy 9. (paras.109-114) the teaching of Hypothesis Contrary to Fact 10. (paras.115-124) the teaching of Poisoning the Well,Back,Organizational Pattern,Section IV (Paras. 125-154): the ending of the story: backfiring of all the arguments The girl learns her lessons too well. She uses a

44、ll the logical fallacies to fight back her teacher. Pay attention to his change of emotions: 1. favoring her with a smile 2. chuckled with amusement 3. chuckled with somewhat less amusement 4. forcing a smile/ ground my teeth 5. croaked, dashed perspiration from my brow 6. bellowing like a bull,Back

45、,Detailed Study of the Text,Charles Lamb, as merry and enterprising a fellow as you will meet in a month of Sundays, unfettered the informal essay with his memorable Old China and Dreams Children. (Para.1) Charles Lamb (1775-1834): English essayist, was born in London and brought up within the preci

46、ncts of the ancient law courts. He is now best known for his “Essays of Elia” (1823-1833). He collaborated with his sister Mary in adapting Shakespeares plays into stories for children. His famous works include “Tales from Shakespeare” and “Specimens of English Dramatic Poets”. He did much in revivi

47、ng the popularity of Elizabethan drama and established his reputation as a critic.,Back,Detailed Study of the Text,Charles Lamb, as merry and enterprising a fellow as you will meet in a month of Sundays, unfettered the informal essay with his memorable Old China and Dreams Children. (Para.1) Charles

48、 Lamb (1775-1834): English essayist, was born in London and brought up within the precincts of the ancient law courts. His works include several childrens books as well as the famous “Tales from Shakespeare” and “Specimens of English Dramatic Poets”. He did much in reviving the popularity of Elizabe

49、than drama and established his reputation as a critic.,Back,Detailed Study of the Text,Charles Lamb, as merry and enterprising a fellow as you will meet in a month of Sundays, unfettered the informal essay with his memorable Old China and Dreams Children. (Para.1) enterprising: ad. having or showing

50、 enterprise 有事业心的；有胆量的；富于创业精神的 Its very enterprising of them to try and start up a business like that.,Back,asas: a correlative construction used to indicate the equality or sameness of two things. He is as strong as an ox.,month of Sundays: (colloquial) long time,Detailed Study of the Text,Charles

51、Lamb, as merry and enterprising a fellow as you will meet in a month of Sundays, unfettered the informal essay with his memorable Old China and Dreams Children. (Para.1),Back,unfettered: ad. (fml. or lit.) free from control; not tied by several rules The new city developed quickly, unfettered by the

52、 usual planning regulations. Old China and Dreams Children: Title of two essays written by Charles Lamb.,Detailed Study of the Text,Charles Lamb, as merry and enterprising a fellow as you will meet in a month of Sundays, unfettered the informal essay with his memorable Old China and Dreams Children.

53、 (Para.1),Back,unfettered the informal essay with: Metaphor. Charles Lamb, a merry and enterprising fellow, with his essays Old China and Dreams Children, set free (loosened the chains that bound) the informal essay. Charles Lamb is a very merry and enterprising person. Youll meet such a person only

54、 after a long time. He wrote the essays, Old China and Dreams Children, which set free the informal essay.,Detailed Study of the Text,Charles Lamb, as merry and enterprising a fellow as you will meet in a month of Sundays, unfettered the informal essay with his memorable Old China and Dreams Childre

55、n. (Para.1),Back,译文： 查尔斯兰姆是一个世所罕见的性情欢快、富有进取心的人，他那笔下的散文古瓷器和梦中的孩子无拘无束、自由奔放。,Detailed Study of the Text,There follows an informal essay that ventures even beyond Lambs frontier. (Para.1),Back,Metaphor, comparing the limitations set by Lamb to a frontier. The informal essay that follows here is freer th

56、an the one Charles Lamb wrote.,Detailed Study of the Text,Indeed, “informal” may not be quite the right word to describe this essay; “limp” or “flaccid” or possibly “spongy” are perhaps more appropriate. (Para.1) limp: ad. drooping; lacking firmness 无力的；易弯的 I like lettuce to be crisp, not limp and s

57、oggy. 我喜欢莴苣是脆的，不喜欢软而湿乎乎的。 flaccid: ad. soft and weak; flabby spongy: ad. like a sponge; soft and porous,Back,Detailed Study of the Text,Indeed, “informal” may not be quite the right word to describe this essay; “limp” or “flaccid” or possibly “spongy” are perhaps more appropriate. (Para.1) specific

58、characteristics of his writing (essay). He is joking , not serious It would perhaps be more correct to call this essay a limp, flaccid or a spongy essay.,Back,Detailed Study of the Text,Vague though its category, it is without doubt an essay. (Para.2) Inversion to emphasize “vague”. Though its categ

59、ory is vague/hard to define.,Back,Detailed Study of the Text,Could Carlyle do more? Could Ruskin? (Para.2) Carlyle: Thomas Carlyle (1795-1881), English author, Scottish writer He influenced social thinking about the new industrial working class through his essay “Chartism” and his book “The Present

60、and the Past”. He is best known for his epic history of “The French Revolution” (1837) and his lectures “On Heroes and Hero-Workshop” (1841),Back,Detailed Study of the Text,Could Carlyle do more? Could Ruskin? (Para.2) He produced “Sartor Resartus” (1833-34), the book in which he first developed his