Mastering Logical Fallacies

Sponsored by The Book, "Logically Fallacious," by Bo Bennett, PhD

Lesson 31: Fallacies of Emotion


In this section, we cover five fallacies that are directly related to emotion: Appeal to Ridicule, Appeal to Pity, Appeal to Fear, Appeal to Emotion, Appeal to Desperation, and Appeal to Anger. We are both creatures of emotion and logic, and despite what some may want to believe, emotion is a very important part of our humanity. Reason alone cannot guide our actions, but emotions often get in the way. In this lesson we will discuss this important distinction.

By the end of this section, students will learn

  • how pity should not guide reason
  • emotion can be both a powerful ally and foe to reason
  • desperate times may call for desperate measures, but not irrational ones
  • how talking louder and with more anger does not make one more right
  • how powerful fear can be in clouding our ability to reason
Additional Course Resources

There is no quiz for this lesson.

Activate the "e-mail drip" feature. We will e-mail you the text of one slide per day. This is a 1-2 minute read that makes completing a course easy for the busy person who can't make the time to take the course interactively. If you select this option, you can still participate in the interactive part if you wish. E-mails will begin with the next lesson not completed.