You guys might enjoythe "Logical Fallcies" paper for class I'm taking

by lv4fer 4 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  lv4fer

  I wrote this paper for my Logic class at University of Phoenix. We had to pick 3 logical fallacies explain and give examples. Show where an organization or business uses them. Would you guys grade my paper! I had to keep it under 1200 words.
  
  
  Jehovah’s Witnesses use fallacious reasoning to argue and debate the tenets of their faith. A Jehovah’s Witness who has tried to convince them that their religion is the true one have at one time or another approached most people. The Witnesses mislead many because people do not scrutinize the arguments that they use and do not carefully think things through. Another reason it is helpful to understand the reasoning they use, is so that a person can be better equipped to expose this illogical thinking to the Witness in order to free them from this religious cult. They employ many logical fallacies and I have chosen three that are most commonly used.
  
  One way they mislead people is by attacking the person. In using this fallacy, they say something negative about the person rather than by arguing against what the person is saying. They will use this type of fallacy when they want to discredit a statement made by someone that other people believe to be true or in fact has been proven to be true, is wrong because it goes against what Jehovah’s Witnesses believe. If they can discredit the person saying it, then the statement cannot be true. If a person used information from a book that was written by a reliable source to prove a point, a typical reply would be “Maybe that book you quoted makes a good case, but I heard the author is a drunk."(Campbell, 2004), obviously, you cannot believe anything that author says because he is a drunk. In their publications, they use this fallacy quite frequently to discredit other religions by saying the religion is bad because look at this person who belongs to it therefore anything that organization does or says is wrong.
  
  The red herring is a fallacy that draws attention away from the central issue at hand. The Jehovah’s Witness use this when debating with someone. If you can shift the focus of the debate, you do not have to debate the issue at hand. A person may ask them, how can you be so sure that you have the true religion? A typical reply would be something like; the bible says, “By your fruits you will recognize them” (NIV, 1995). We all know that Christendom’s preachers are known for their extravagant and immoral lifestyles so it is obvious that they are not Jehovah’s people. This statement says nothing to prove why they think they have the true religion; all it does is divert one’s attention to Christendom’s preachers and their shortcomings. They are taught to use this fallacy in their ministry school. Their ministry school teaches how to convert other people to their religion. They are told that if the householder brings up an opposing point and it is difficult to convince them, divert their attention to something that is easier, perhaps they will not realize you skirted the issue.
  
  “The Slippery Slope also might well be called the "Appeal to Fear." It shows a proposition to be unacceptable by first stating that acceptance of the proposition will lead to an unacceptable result, and then stating that the unacceptable result will in turn lead to an even more unacceptable result.”(Johnson, 2000) Jehovah’s Witnesses do not believe that you can be saved by merely believing in Jesus Christ. “Modern Christendom, according to the Watchtower Society, believes that a simple statement of faith in Jesus Christ earns salvation and allows the individual to spend the remainder of his or her life in libertine indulgence”. (Barker, 2000) It would be typical for them to make a statement like, “so a person could be a murderer, but as long as they believe in Jesus they will be saved”. They have a very all or nothing attitude. They think everything they believe is the absolute truth and from God, if you challenge anything they say they immediately go into defense mode and they are trained for this.
  
  If you have spent any time, speaking with a Jehovah’s Witness you may have found it to be extremely frustrating. You can prove your point to them with a seemingly overwhelming amount of evidence, but they do not budge. There are a few reasons for this. One reason is if you show them something that seems logical but goes against what they believe, they close their eyes in a figurative sense. It is like going to a scary movie and when a scary part comes, you close your eyes, you know what is going on but you close your eyes and it goes away. It is the same with them. Unless you understand that being a Jehovah’s Witness is not only what they believe, but also that it consumes their entire life. “Most people have a handful of beliefs that are "cast in stone". Jehovah's Witnesses, on the other hand, have an entire thought-system that is inextricably intertwined with their daily lives. It is set up in such a way that if you remove one brick from the edifice, the entire building may tumble. They are well aware of this danger, and thus they cannot allow any of their beliefs to be discussed dispassionately. They have a vested interest in proving to one and all (and especially to themselves) that everything they believe is The Truth (or as close to The Truth as it is humanly possible to know).”(Campbell, 2004) If a person shows them they are wrong and they vocalize their disbelief of any of the doctrines to anyone in their church they will be disfellowshipped, and this means loosing any contact with their friends and family members that are in that church.
  
  When you are a Jehovah’s Witness, you have to give up thinking logically. They are told that everything printed in their literature is from God and that the people that write it are spirit directed. Therefore, if a person says anything against what they believe, that person is a tool that Satan is using to pull them away from the “Truth”, or Jehovah’s Organization. They are not allowed to think for themselves. Independent thinking is strongly discouraged. This would leave a person questioning what he or she has been told and then they may leave. This is how they retain their members, fear.
  
  Jehovah’s Witnesses have always been known for their door-to-door preaching. They are trained very well for it during their many weekly meetings that they must attend. They are fully convinced in what they believe and their salvation depends on telling everyone else, that is why they preach door-to-door zealously. Having experienced this religious cult personally, I have experienced first hand how easy it is to fall prey to their teachings. That is why it is so important for people to use good critical thinking skills when listening to one of them. In this way, a person can spot their logical fallacies in order to prevent being deceived by them, perhaps they can help the Jehovah’s Witness and open their eyes to the real “truth”.
• 

  ithinkisee

  This first part is not about the content of the paper ... just a writing suggestion.

  A great writing tip I learned was to look for any occasions where you may use the word "that", and see if you can re-work the sentence to exclude "that". It often makes for more straightforward writing. Most occasions where people use "that" are not needed. Some places where I noticed this was:

  "divert their attention to something that is easier"
  
  suggested change"divert their attention to something easier"

  A Jehovah’s Witness who has tried to convince them that their religion is the true one have at one time or another approached most people. The Witnesses mislead many because people do not scrutinize the arguments that they use and do not carefully think things through.
  
  suggested changeA Jehovah’s Witness who has tried to convince them their religion is the true one have at one time or another approached most people. The Witnesses mislead many because people do not scrutinize the arguments they use and do not carefully think things through.

  If a person used information from a book that was written by a reliable source to prove a point, a typical reply would be ...
  
  suggested changeIf a person used information from a book written by a reliable source to prove a point, a typical reply would be ...

  A person may ask them, how can you be so sure that you have the true religion?
  
  suggested change
  
  A person may ask them, how can you be so sure you have the true religion?

  Jehovah’s Witnesses do not believe that you can be saved by merely believing in Jesus Christ.
  
  suggested changeJehovah’s Witnesses do not believe you can be saved by merely believing in Jesus Christ.

  =========================

  Anyways, you get the idea. There are others in your paper still. And there are others "that" don't need to be changed.

  Hopefully you can see where "that" is overused. It is a geek-like pet peeve of mine. After I write something I actually go through it looking for all occurences of "that" (and a couple other words). Limiting unecessary words makes for more poignant and powerful writing, IMO. After you remove all the "that's", go back andn re-read it. You will likely find the writing sound much more to the point.

  As far as the content of that paper ... spot on! Good work!

  It was a logic class at a local community college that actually opened my eyes to the logical fallacies the Society uses in their writings. Of course, I was still trying to be a JW at the time.

  Hmmmm .... why is it they don't want kids to go to college?

  -ithinkisee
• 

  gumby

  
  Nice job. Boy did they give you a subject you could dig your teeth into eh?

  I saw a few wordings I would have changed .....but I'm an illerate bastard, so pay me no mind.

  obviously, you cannot believe anything that author says because he is a drunk. In their publications, they use this fallacy quite frequently to discredit other religions by saying the religion is bad because look at this person who belongs to it therefore anything that organization does or says is wrong.

  I would not have said 'it's impossible for a drunk to tell the truth' and would have said..." can we trust the writings of someone writing while in a drunken state'?.........eg; (see Joseph Rutherfords history)

  Actually the witnesses point more to the religion rather than the individual church member when discrediting them....such as saying, " christendoms entire history has been filled with bloodshed". Or...."Christendom is guilty of spiritual adultry by allowing gays within her churches".

  By using the word "christendom" instead of pointing to individual members.....they can paint the entire group as bad.

  K, I'll let someone else grade the next paragraph cuz I ain't had enough caffeine yet.

  Gumby
• 

  AuldSoul

  lv4fer,

  Good job! I don't know how closely grammar will be criticized, but your ideas are communicated clearly. Offered below are some suggestions. Please don't take it as criticism.

  Jehovah’s Witnesses use fallacious reasoning to argue and debate the tenets of their faith. A Jehovah’s Witness who has tried to convince them that their religion is the true one have at one time or another approached most people. At one time or another most people are approached by Jehovah's Witnesses who attempt to convince individuals that their religion is the only true one. The Witnesses mislead many because people who do not scrutinize their arguments that they use and do not carefully think things through. Another reason It is helpful to understand the reasoning they use, is so that a person can be better equipped to expose this illogical thinking to the any Witness they encounter in order to free them from this religious cult. They Witnesses employ many logical fallacies and I have chosen three that are most commonly used.
  
  One way they mislead people is by attacking the person. In using this fallacy, they say something negative about the person rather than by arguing against what the person is saying. They will use this type of fallacy when they want to discredit a statement made by someone that other people believe to be true or one that has in fact been proven to be true. is wrong because it goes against what Jehovah’s Witnesses believe. They seem to reason, if they can discredit the person saying it, then the statement cannot be true. If a person used counters with information from a book that was written by a reliable source to prove a point, a typical reply would be, “Maybe that book you quoted makes a good case, but I heard the author is a drunk." (Campbell, 2004). Obviously, you cannot believe anything that author says because he is a drunk. In their publications, they use this fallacy quite frequently to discredit other religions by saying the religion is bad because look at this of the actions of persons who belongs to it therefore anything that organization does or says is wrong.
  
  The red herring is a fallacy that draws attention away from the central issue at hand. The Jehovah’s Witness use this when debating with someone. If you can shift the focus of the debate, you do not have to debate the issue at hand. A person may ask them, "How can you be so sure that you have the true religion?" A typical reply would be something like, "The bible says, 'By your fruits you will recognize them.' (NIV, 1995). We all know that Christendom’s preachers are known for their extravagant and immoral lifestyles so it is obvious that they are not Jehovah’s people." This statement says nothing to prove why they think they have the true religion; all it does is divert one’s attention to Christendom’s preachers and their shortcomings. They are taught to use this fallacy in their ministry school. Their ministry school teaches how to convert other people to their religion. They are told that if the householder brings up an opposing point and it is difficult to convince them, divert their attention to something that is easier, perhaps they will not realize you skirted the issue.
  
  “The Slippery Slope also might well be called the 'Appeal to Fear.' It shows a proposition to be unacceptable by first stating that acceptance of the proposition will lead to an unacceptable result, and then stating that the unacceptable result will in turn lead to an even more unacceptable result.” (Johnson, 2000). Jehovah’s Witnesses do not believe that you can be saved by merely believing in Jesus Christ. “Modern Christendom, according to the Watchtower Society, believes that a simple statement of faith in Jesus Christ earns salvation and allows the individual to spend the remainder of his or her life in libertine indulgence”. (Barker, 2000). It would be typical for them to make a statement like, “So a person could be a murderer, but as long as they believe in Jesus they will be saved?” From this, they could further assert that anyone who claims to be "saved" could be a murderer. They have a very all or nothing attitude. They think everything they believe is the absolute truth and from God, if you challenge anything they say they immediately go into defense mode and they are trained for this. (<-- while true, it seemed to be a brief emotional rant against Witnesses instead of adding to the point of this paper.)
  
  If you have spent any time, speaking with a Jehovah’s Witness you may have found it to be the experience extremely frustrating. You can prove your point to them with a seemingly overwhelming amount of evidence, but they do not budge. There are a few reasons for this. One reason is, if you show them something that seems logical but goes against what they believe, they close their eyes in a figurative sense. It is like going to a scary movie and when a scary part comes, you close your eyes, you know what is going on but you close your eyes and it goes away. It is the same with them. Unless you understand that being a Jehovah’s Witness is not only what they believe, but also that it consumes their entire life. “Most people have a handful of beliefs that are 'cast in stone'. Jehovah's Witnesses, on the other hand, have an entire thought-system that is inextricably intertwined with their daily lives. It is set up in such a way that if you remove one brick from the edifice, the entire building may tumble. They are well aware of this danger, and thus they cannot allow any of their beliefs to be discussed dispassionately. They have a vested interest in proving to one and all (and especially to themselves) that everything they believe is The Truth (or as close to The Truth as it is humanly possible to know).” (Campbell, 2004). If a person shows them they are wrong and they vocalize their disbelief of any of the doctrines to anyone in their church they will may be disfellowshipped, and this means loosing any contact with their friends and family members that are in that church.
  
  When you are a Jehovah’s Witness, you have to give up thinking logically. They are told that everything printed in their literature is from God and that the people that write it are spirit directed. Therefore, if a person says anything against what they believe, that person is a tool that Satan is using to pull them away from the “Truth”, or Jehovah’s Organization. They are not allowed to think for themselves. Independent thinking is strongly discouraged. This would leave a person questioning what he or she has been told and then they may leave. They retain their members through fear of expulsion or divine judgment This is how they retain their members, fear.
  
  Jehovah’s Witnesses have always been known for their door-to-door preaching. They are trained very well for it during their many weekly meetings that they must attend. They are fully convinced in of what they believe and their salvation depends on telling everyone else, that is why they preach door-to-door zealously. Having experienced this religious cult personally, I have experienced first hand how easy it is to fall prey to their teachings. That is why it is so important for people to use good critical thinking skills when listening to one of them. In this way, a person can spot their logical fallacies in order to prevent being deceived by them. Then, perhaps they can help the Jehovah’s Witness and open their eyes to the real “truth”.

  Respectfully,
  AuldSoul
• 

  rebel8

  Here's an interesting site on logical fallacies. http://www.csun.edu/~dgw61315/fallacies.html