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Exam #2
Ch. 3-5, Don
59
Philosophy
Undergraduate 1
10/24/2013

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Term
signifier
Definition
the phonic shape of the word
Term
signified
Definition
the conceptual image evoked by the signifier
Term
Saussure
Definition
words are arbitrarily constructed, meaning that they are constructed by society. As a result, words cannot be fully appreciated outside of the contest within which they appear
Term
words in isolation
Definition
convey little meaning, you need a subject and a predicate in order to analyze the viability of the argument
Term
denotation
Definition
the dictionary definition of a word
Term
connotation
Definition
the emotional resonance of the word, derived from past associations with the word
Term
Why is it important to understand both the denotation and the connotation of a word?
Definition
So that we may be able to communicate effectively; we won't offend anyone, able to persaude
Term
vagueness
Definition
occurs when a word is meant to setup border of inclusion and exclusion but there are borderline cases, a grey area that the definition fails to make clear
Term
ambiguity
Definition
when a word or phrase has multiple meaning and the intended meaning is unclear
Term
theoretical vagueness
Definition
wear a man's belt
Term
operational vagueness
Definition
gain 15 lbs.
Term
semantic ambiguity
Definition
when a particular word has multiple meanings and the meaning is not clear
i.e. rights, may
Term
syntactic ambiguity
Definition
when the grammatical structure of a phrase makes it ambiguous
i.e. Let's eat grandma!
Term
How does advertising use syntactic ambiguity for purposes of persausion?
Definition
i.e. Eat Fresh!
cannot say something that will neccessarily guarantee freshness, but it makes you think that the food is fresh without Subway getting in any sort of legal trouble
Term
generality
Definition
when a claim lacks detail
i.e. "What did you do over the weekend?"
"Stuff"
Term
lexical definition
Definition
the dictionary definition of a word
i.e. cruel and unusual punishment
Term
precising definition
Definition
a definition which keeps the meaning of the lexical defintion but makes it more specific
i.e. define what is cruel and what unusual
Term
stipulative definition
Definition
a definition that changes the lexical meaning of a definition
i.e. sick means cool, not an illness
Term
rhetorical definition
Definition
a stipulative definition that uses emotion to be persuasive
i.e. feminism means a group of radical women burning bras
Term
Knowledge
Definition
belief, justification (evidence), and no reason to question justification
Term
Why might we question our evidence?
Definition
Because of cognitive biases and informal fallacies
Term
Informative language
Definition
is either true or false
Term
subjective claim
Definition
depends upon opinion
Term
objective claim
Definition
the independent of opinion
Term
Directive language
Definition
directs or influences our actions
Term
Expressive language
Definition
communicates feelings and attitudes
Term
False Memory Syndrome
Definition
recalling events that never occured
Term
Rashomon Effect
Definition
radically different interpretation among witnesses of an event that did occur
i.e. this is why witnesses are not good evidence in court
Term
cognitive biases
Definition
the tendency to judge the reasons for an argument based upon how initially plausible the conclusion seems
i.e. heliocentric theory
Term
Heuristics
Definition
an unconscious structure in our mind which calculates probabilty, wildly inaccurate
Term
Availibility Heuristic
Definition
the unwarranted assumption that an event is more likely to occur becuase one thinking about it more frequently
Term
in group bias
Definition
the tendency to weigh the conclusions of "your" group more heavily than another group
Term
Fundamental Attribution Error
Definition
the tendency to create double standards between "your" group and "another" group
Term
Confirmation Bias
Definition
the tendency to search for information that confirms out assumptions
Term
Gambler's Fallacy
Definition
1. a statistical misunderstanding marked by people who try to link 2 random, unrelated events
2. unrealistic optimism is the mistake belief that "the odds do not apply to me"
Term
informal fallacy
Definition
occurs when an argument has no logical force, just psychologically persausive
Term
fallacy of relevance
Definition
technique that is persuasive, but not revelant
Term
fallacy of ambiguity
Definition
arguments that have ambiguous phrases or sloppy gramatical structure
Term
fallacy involving unwarranted assumptions
Definition
a fallacious argument that contains an assumption that is not supported by evidence
Term
personal attack
Definition
an attempt to refute an argument by attacking the character or circumstances of the person making the argument
Term
appeal to force
Definition
a threat to use force (physical, psychological, or legal) in an attempt to get another person to back down his/her position and to accept the conclusion as correct
Term
appeal to pity
Definition
an attempt to gain support for a conclusion by evoking a feeling of pity, when pity is irrelevant to the conclusion
Term
popular appeal
Definition
an appeal made to the opinion of the majority to gain support for the conclusion
Term
appeal to ignorance
Definition
an argument that something is true simply because no one has proved it false, or that something is flase just because no one has proved it true
Term
hasty generalization
Definition
a conclusion based on atypical cases
Term
straw man
Definition
the distortion or misrepresentation of an opponents's argument to make it easier to knock down or refute
Term
red herring
Definition
an argument directed toward a conclusion that is different from that posd by the original argument
Term
equivocation
Definition
an ambiguious word or phrase changes meaning during the course of the argument
Term
amphiboly
Definition
a grammatical error in the premises allows more than one conclusion to be drawn
Term
fallacy of accent
Definition
the meaning of an argument changes depending on which word or phrase is emphasized, or when passages are used out of context
Term
fallacy of division
Definition
a characteristic of an entire group is erroneously vassumed to be a characteristic of each member of that group
Term
fallacy of composition
Definition
a characteristic of a member of a group is erroneously assumed to be characteristic of the whole group
Term
begging the question
Definition
a conclusion is simply a rewording of a premise
Term
inappropriate appeal to authority
Definition
an appeal based on the testimony of an authority in a filed other than that under investigation
Term
loaded question
Definition
a question that assumes a particular another to another unasked question
Term
false dilemma
Definition
an argument unwarrantedly reduces the number of alternatives to two
Term
questionable cause
Definition
an argument that assumes without sufficient evidence that one thing is the cause of another
Term
slippery slope
Definition
an assumption that if some actions are permitted, then all actions of that type will soon be permissible
Term
naturalistic fallacy
Definition
the assumption that because something is natural, it is good or acceptable
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