Alkan Health Science Business Technology College

Worksheet to: Critical Thinking

Instructor: Degwale Gebeyehu

Department of Governance and Development Studies, Bahir Dar University

Year: 2021GC

Part 1: short answer

A. Identify the fallacy committed or say ‘no fallacy’ if the argument is good.
1. According to Mister Alexander who is a famous Artist, the political economy of Africa is not
good. Hence, we can say that Africa’s political economy is bad. Unqulified authority
2. Football club A is a strong team. This being the case, each player in the team is strong. ከጥቅል
ወደ ንጥል division
3. Most politicians of democratic countries are not corrupt. Alexandro is a politician in a
democratic country. Hence, Alexandro is not corrupt. ምናልባት አዎ ?
4. Dear Policeman, please don’t take my driving license. I am the only person responsible to my
family. My wife doesn’t have a job, and I have 4 children. If you take my licence in case of
you found me guilty, I will not work and the family as a whole will strive. For sure I’m not
guilty. የማሳዘን ህፀፅ
5. Wow! You know, Abebe is honest politician. Because, he dressed groom and have many
friends.
6. This book must me a nice book. Many people are waiting to buy it. Bandwagon
7. For sure, there is no Satan. Who can prove its existence??? Ignorance?
8. Please don’t advise me to be honest in tax paying. I know you were in prison of tax evasion.
You too /to que que
9. I don’t care about what MP Abiy says about the prosperity party. Doesn’t he know that there
is many youth waiting for job in our city? It is these youth who creates mess and crime to the
people of our city.
10. OMG! This day is not a good day for me! I remember last month that there was the same
direction of the wind that I am looking today, and I score poor grade in Logic. No causa pro
causa
11. I know Sosina is honest. Because, if don’t believe her as such, she can’t accept my love
request. መፅሐፍ ቅዱስ/ ቁርዓን በዓለም ላይ ላይ ብቸኛ ታማኝ መፅሀፍ ነው ምክንያቱም እንደዚያ
ተብሎ ስለተጻፈበት
12. Any law can be repealed by the legislative authority. But the law of gravity is a law.
Therefore, the law of gravity can be repealed by the legislative authority. Accident
13. Our engineering school teaches told us how to build a house in three years. Fallcy of language
( )
14. Mr. Markos signed a contract that reads, ‘‘In exchange for painting my house, I promise to
pay Asenafi $5000 and give him my new Cadillac only if he finishes the job by May 1.’’
Therefore, since Asenafi did not finish until May 10, it follows that he gets neither the $5000
nor the Cadillac. Fallcy of language ( )
15. Every sentence in this paragraph is well written. Therefore, the paragraph is well written.
Fallacy of composition
16. My dear Fikerit, I love you with all my heart and I want to marry you. Without you I cannot
live. Therefore, let us join our hearts or I am going to die.

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 17. “Entity Y has attributes a, b, c and d. Entity Z has attributes a, b, c. Therefore, entity Z has
an attribute d also.”
18. “I have freedom of constitutionally guaranteed. Therefore, I can perform any activities within
my class in front of students.” accident

Part II: true/false questions

1. In case of formal fallacy, the structure of the argument can be valid but not the content. F
2. Equivocation fallacy is committed when the arguer committed in valid argument due to
ambiguous statement. F
3. Informal fallacies are less mischievous compared to formal fallacies. F
4. In case of weak induction fallacies, the premises provided are irrelevant to the conclusion
draw. F
5. The term fallacies refer to logical error in reasoning or the defect in arguments. T
6. In the appeal to force, the arguer only physically attacks the well-being of listener. F
7. In the direct variety of the appeal to the people, the arguer attempts to create a kind of mob
mentality . T
8. The argumentum ad hominem always involves two arguers. T
9. In the straw man fallacy, an arguer often distorts another person’s argument by making it look
more extreme than it really is. T
10. In the red herring fallacy, the arguer attempts to lead the reader or listener off the track.
11. The effect of begging the question is to hide the fact that a premise may not be true.
12. The correct way of responding to a complex question is to divide the question into its
component questions and answer each separately.
13. False dichotomy always involves an ‘‘either . . . or . . .’’ statement, at least implicitly.
14. The fallacy of suppressed evidence overlooks an important piece of evidences or
premises that outweigh the presented evidence and entails a different conclusion.
15. The fallacy of amphiboly usually involves the ambiguous use of a single word.
16. Arguments from composition are always fallacious.
17. The fallacy of division always proceeds from parts to whole.
18. Equivocation and amphiboly are classified as fallacies of ambiguity.
19. “Either men are superior to women or women are superior to men. Men are not superior to
women. Hence, women are superior to men.” This argument commits a fallacy of false cause.
20. Fallacies of weak induction occurred in typical inductive form of argumentation.
21. Whenever I wear green socks my logic grade goes up. That is way I save my green socks to
wear only on the days of the test. This argument commits the fallacy of false cause.
22. Murder is morally wrong. So, active euthanasia is morally wrong. This argument commits the
fallacy of begging the question. Beging other question
23. When the fallacy contains tricky and confusing expressions for the purpose of concealing the
wrong assumption stated in the premises is called fallacies of relevance. false
24. Complex questions are not fallacious because they did not attempt to tricky or confusing the
respondent into admitting she or he does not want to admit. F

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 Part III. Matching Items
Match items in column “B” with items in column “A”
Column “A”
Column “B”
1. Appeal to force
A. Leads audience off track
2. Begging the question
B. Argumentum ad baculum
3. Red herring
C. Multiple questions are concealed in a single
4. Appeal to pity
question
5. Unqualified authority
D. Argumentum ad misericordiam
6. Appeal to the people
E. Argumentum ad hominem
7. Post hoc fallacy
F. Circular reason
8. Suppressed evidence
G. Conclusion depends on unlikely chain reaction
9. Hasty generalization
H. Event X precedes event Y. Therefore, event Y is
10. Appeal to ignorance
the result of event X.
11. Weak analogy
I. Conclusion depends on defective analogy
12. Slippery slope
J. If event X precedes Y, then X does not cause
13. False Dichotomy
event Y.
14. Non causa pro Causa fallacy
K. Conclusion is drawn from a too small sample
15. Complex question
L. Arguer arouses mob mentality
M. Omits important evidence
N. Witness not trustworthy
O. Argumentum ad ignoratiam
P. Either … or …fallacy

Chapter 6:
Part 1: short answer
1. Write a proposition in which its letter name is “O”_________________________.

2. Fill the blank space by writing “same” or “different”

a. Proposition A and I are the ___________ in quality and __________in quantity.

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 b. Proposition E and O are the ___________ in quality and __________in quantity.

c. Proposition A and E are the ___________in quality and __________in quantity.

3. Write the correct letter name and standard form on the given empty space.

Standard Form Letter Name

No S are P. a._________

b.______________ I: c._______

Some S are not P. d._________

e._____________ A: f ______.

4. Determine whether the following immediate inference is valid or invalid by using Venn
diagram.
a. All birds are winged creatures.
Therefore, it is false that some birds are winged creatures.

b. Some animals are striped.

Therefore, it is false that no animals are striped.

Fill the following blank space.

Given Statement New Statement by Conversion

1. ___________________. All animals are dogs.

E: No plants are animals. 2. _________________.

3. ___________________. Some pets are cats.

O: Some people are not men. 4. _________________.

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Part II. Multiple Choices Items

Choose the correct answer from the given alternatives under each item

1. A term that refers about class of things is called:

A. Proposition C. Category

B. Copula D. Quantifier

2. One of the following is a feature of categorical propositions:

A. Express the relation of two classes.

B. Contain quantifiers and copulas

C. Contain exactly two terms.

D. All the above

3. The correct arrangement of the mood of the standard of categorical proposition is

A. Quantifier, subject term, copula, predicate term

B. Subject term, quantifier, copula, predicate term

C. Copula, subject term, quantifier, predicate term

D. Predicate term, copula, quantifier, subject term

4. In the proposition “All Hawassa University student are clever”, the quantifier is:

A. Hawassa C. Are

B. All D. Students

5. From the Boolean standpoint, which one is a valid argument?

A. Some S are P. Therefore, it is true that some S are not P.

B. No S are P. Therefore, it is true that some S are P.

C. All S are P. Therefore, it is false that some S are not P.

D. Some S are P. Therefore, it is false that all S are P.

6. From Aristotelian square of opposition stand points:

A. The proposition “All S are P” has sub-contrary relations.

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 B. The proposition “No S are P” has no subaltern relations.

C. The proposition “Some S are P” has sub-contrary relations.

D. The proposition “Some S are not P” has no subaltern relations

7. The obverse for the proposition” No A are B” is:-

A. No A are non-B C. All A are non-B

B. No B are non-A D. No B are A

8. In the proposition “Some children are not innocent.” The distributed term is :

A. Innocent C. Children

B. Some D. Both children and innocent

9. The quality and quantity of the above proposition in question 10 respectively is :

A. Particular, negative C. Universal, negative

B. Positive, particular D. Negative, particular

10. The sub-alternation of the proposition “All scientists are mathematicians is:

A. Some scientists are mathematicians.

B. No scientists are mathematicians.

C. All scientists are not mathematicians

D. Some scientists are not mathematicians.

11. Which of the following is not the standard form of Categorical proposition?
A. All S are not P.  B. No S are P C. Some S are P. D. Some S are not
P E. none

Part III: ‘‘True’’ or ‘‘False’’ item

If the statement is correct, say true, if not, say false

1. The proposition “All S are not P” is not a standard form of categorical proposition.

2. Proposition A and I are the same in quantity.

3. According to the rule of sub alternation opposition, the truth value of proposition A has the
same truth value with the proposition O.

4. The proposition “Some A are B”, its sub-contrary is “Some A are not B.”

5. Illicit contradictory relation is not committed usually in categorical syllogism

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Part 3: short answer

A. given ‘All term negative predicates are distributed’, find

1. Quantifier ________________________________________________
2. Quality ____________________________________________________
3. Quantity __________________________________________________
4. Copula ______________________________________________________
5. Subject term ____________________________________________
6. Predicate term ____________________________________________
7. Distributed term ____________________________________________
8. Undistributed term ____________________________________________
9. Contradictory relation __________________________________________
10. Contrary relation ____________________________________
11. Sub-contrary __________________________________________
12. Sub-alternation _____________________________________
13. Conversion _____________________________
14. Obversion ____________________________
15. Contraposition ______________________________
16. Letter name _________________________________

B. Answer the following

1. What is the difference between formal & informal fallacies?
2. What are the four categories of informal fallacies? How they are created?
3. What is the difference between equivocation and amphiboly?
4. What is false dichotomy fallacy?
5. Discuss the characteristics of critical thinkers as well as uncritical thinkers?
6. Discuss the principles of good argument?
7. List the principles of critical thinking?