Thread by @cerebralistic

Welcome to #FallacyFridays! Every Friday, I share a logical fallacy, why it's convincing to many of us, some examples, and a chance for you to correctly identify it.

Peep today's fallacy below. And don't hesitate to retweet this thread to let your followers in on the fun! 😁

It's important to note that there is a difference between "this begs the question" as it is used in everyday language (meaning it raises a question or point yet to be discussed) and "begging the question," the logical fallacy.

At its most basic, the fallacy of begging the question occurs when you say that a claim is true because...the claim is true. In other words you assume the very thing you're trying to prove w/o evidence.

"Well duh. That's clearly fallacious," you say confidently and whatnot.

Not so fast comrade. 😉 That prior depiction of the begging the question fallacy may have been obvious. But it doesn't always stay that way. Let's look at some examples.

Here's the claim, "Driving a car is dangerous because driving a car is dangerous." Another easy one that SCREAMS begging the question. But if I say, "Driving is dangerous because it's likely to cause harm or injury," it's not as obvious. Yet it is also begging the question.

"Driving is dangerous b/c it's likely to cause harm or injury" is a begging the question fallacy because it's another way of saying "driving is dangerous b/c driving is dangerous." If you look up the definition of "dangerous," it says "able or likely to cause harm or injury."

"Dangerous" and "likely to cause harm or injury" mean the same thing. Therefore, by concluding that driving is dangerous with the premise "it's likely to cause harm or injury," I haven't said much of anything.

By concluding that driving is dangerous with the premise "it's likely to cause harm or injury," I'm assuming that it is dangerous without providing evidence that it is dangerous. I'm begging the question.

Okay, so we see how the claim "Driving is dangerous because it is likely to cause harm or injury" follows the "it's true because it's true" pattern of reasoning that is common in begging the question fallacies.

That pattern of reasoning ("it's true because it's true") is why it is pretty common for the begging the question fallacy to be considered a type of circular reasoning.

PRO-TIP: If your premise (or reason for why something is true) is just a rewording of the claim you're trying to prove, then you're committing the "begging the question" fallacy.💡

Now let's look at less obvious depictions of the begging the question fallacy. Consider the conversation in the next tweet:

Person A: Unmarried people should abstain from sex in order to stop the spread of STDs and unwanted pregnancies.
Person B: Why?
Person A: Because we should do all that's necessary in order to prevent unwanted pregnancies & stop the spread of STDs!

It may not be as obvious as the first example in this thread, but Person A is committing a begging the question fallacy. Like, okay, doing what is necessary to prevent the spread of STDs and unwanted pregnancies is one thing.

But whether or not stopping unmarried people from having sex is one of those things is the question at hand. Person A's response to Person B was NOT evidence that showed unmarried people abstaining from sex is one of those things needed to stop STDs & unwanted pregnancy.

Just as the claim "driving is dangerous b/c it is likely to cause harm" fails to justify why driving is dangerous, Person A fails to explain why unmarried people should abstain from sex in order to stop the spread of STD and unwanted pregnancy. They're begging the question.

By not justifying why unmarried people practicing abstinence is necessary to stop STDs & unwanted pregnancy and by repeating the claim of necessity in the premise and in the conclusion, Person A was saying "it's true because it's true."

Moral of the story: in order to avoid making the fallacy of begging the question, make sure your arguments aren't just an assertion without evidence to back it up and make sure you're not just saying "it's true because it's true.

Now for some practice! In the next three tweets, I will give you a few claims. After those tweets, you will see a poll. In that poll, tell me which claim uses the "begging the question" fallacy.

A. I know for a fact that everything in Bible is true and divinely-inspired. Look at 2 Timothy 3:16 for proof. It says, "All scripture is given by the inspiration of God..." so it must be divinely-inspired and true.

B. Prayer works. Three days ago, I prayed for my aunt to be healed from her illness. This morning, I got a call that she's healed!

C. My green socks are real lucky charms. I wore them during my last two basketball games after a 5-game losing streak. And we won both games!

Which one of the above three tweets shows the "begging the question" fallacy?

https://twitter.com/cerebralistic/status/1146470402866073600?s=20