← Back to all fallacies

Stolen Concept Fallacy


Stolen Concept Fallacy




Description: Requiring the truth of the something that you are simultaneously trying to disprove.


Logical Form:


Person 1 is attempting to disprove X.
X is required to disprove X.


Example #1:


Reason and logic are not always reliable, so we should not count on it to help us find truth.


Explanation: Here we are using reason to disprove the validity of reason, which is unreasonable -- reasonably speaking.


Example #2:


Science cannot be trusted.  It is a big conspiracy to cover up the truth of the Bible and the creation story.  Besides, I saw fossils in the creation museum with humans and dinosaurs together, which proves science is wrong!


Explanation: Geology is a branch of science.  Using science (examining fossils through the science of geology) to disprove science is absurd, a contradiction and, therefore, a fallacy in reasoning.


Exception: Intentional irony.


Fun Fact: The nofallacies fallacy is the belief that fallacies don't exist (not really).




References: {apa}



Peikoff, L. (1993). Objectivism: The Philosophy of Ayn Rand. Penguin.


{/apa}


Questions about this fallacy? Ask our community!
Book

Want the full book?

Get the complete guide to logical fallacies by Bo Bennett.

Buy the Book