Write a short note on read the following arguments carefully. Identify the formal fallacy committed by each and give suitable justifications to support your answer : All dogs are mammals. All dogs are friends of humans. Therefore, all friends of humans are mammals.
Write a short note on read the following arguments carefully. Identify the formal fallacy committed by each and give suitable justifications to support your answer : All dogs are mammals. All dogs are friends of humans. Therefore, all friends of humans are mammals.
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Identifying the Formal Fallacy:
The argument presented commits the formal fallacy known as the Fallacy of the Undistributed Middle.
Explanation of the Fallacy:
The Fallacy of the Undistributed Middle occurs when the middle term in a categorical syllogism (the term that appears in both premises but not in the conclusion) is undistributed. In other words, the fallacy arises when the relationship between the subject and predicate terms is not properly established across all instances of the middle term.
Analysis of the Argument:
Justification:
In the given argument, the middle term "dogs" is undistributed because it appears only once in the premises. While both premises state that all dogs are mammals and all dogs are friends of humans, they do not establish any direct relationship between friends of humans and mammals.
Therefore, the conclusion that "all friends of humans are mammals" is not logically supported by the premises. The argument fails to establish a valid connection between the subject term "friends of humans" and the predicate term "mammals" through the middle term "dogs." The fallacy lies in assuming that because all dogs are mammals and all dogs are friends of humans, therefore all friends of humans must be mammals. However, there is no direct logical connection between being a friend of humans and being a mammal, and hence, this argument commits the Fallacy of the Undistributed Middle.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, the argument provided commits the formal fallacy of the Undistributed Middle. This fallacy occurs when the middle term in a categorical syllogism is undistributed, leading to an invalid conclusion. In this case, the argument fails to establish a valid logical connection between the subject and predicate terms through the middle term, resulting in an invalid inference.