Marita Burger writes:

“Believing without thinking…

Thinking is the hardest work in the world; and most of us will go to great lengths to avoid it (a quote from Henry Ford).   And yes, with the speeding up of everyday activities, there is not always time for real thinking anymore.

Maritza, our guest speaker, at the August Library Talk: Awarded author, academic and well-known sculptor.

Our guest speaker at a recent Library Talk, Maritza Breitenbach, explained the concepts of Critical Thinking and Logical Reasoning. What can we believe as the truth and why is it relevant to us in the era of social media, fake news, propaganda and living in a society where everybody can nowadays be an expert on anything (or in any case pretends to be!).  It is said that the internet has brought about the democratisation of knowledge. Information, once exclusive to certain groups, is now available to anybody with an internet connection.  So, although rule-based Logical Reasoning may be seen as more applicable to the legal environment, it may also become a way of thinking every day to decide what we believe and want.

What is Logical Reasoning and how important is it?

Firstly, logical reasoning happens when we wish to state an opinion, an argument, by giving a set of premises (facts) to reason towards a sound conclusion.  In this way, we use logic to work through a problem in order to find the best solution.

You can do this by using existing knowledge or making predictions. So why is it important? It so happens that people make lots of statements, in meetings, in the political arena, in the media, in our social clubs, in our own immediate family and circle of friends and foes – about ageing, about diets, about love and politics and war – and we may need to discern what to believe and what to reject. Truth should be important to all of us to understand the world around us and to live more meaningful lives.

In critical thinking, the meaning of an argument is a statement which you use to convince people that your opinion about something is correct. To do this, the statement should be substantiated by giving a set of reasons in support of the claim or opinion.

NOTE: Arguments should not be confused with explanations. An argument gives us reasons or proves that something is the case and that a claim is true or untrue. Explanations prove nothing. 

When will your reasoning be faulty?

When you use wrong or irrelevant facts, your reasoning will be regarded as faulty and therefore not valid.  The following are examples of faulty reasoning.

1. Ad hominem (aimed at the man) fallacy

This occurs when, instead of addressing the argument or position of a person, you irrelevantly attack the person. That implies you ignore the larger issue at hand and just attacks someone’s character.

2. The strawman fallacy

When you take another person’s argument or viewpoint and distort it or exaggerate it in some kind of extreme way – thereby you divert the debater’s attention to another irrelevant point instead of answering to the original question. Simply, we can say that a straw man is created in place of the original argument.

Similar to the strawman fallacy is the red herring fallacy where people use irrelevant facts or ideas, not concerning the original problem but distracts the discussion to something false.

3. The bandwagon fallacy

If one assumes something is right or wrong, only because the majority of the people believe the same, this is the bandwagon fallacy. The bandwagon fallacy makes you believe that if everyone in your group is thinking in a certain way about any situation, you should also think in that way because it would be right as the majority believing that. And sometimes, all it does is to spread misinformation. Remember, a belief’s popularity doesn’t make it true.

4. Appeal to authority fallacy

If you assume something is true and blindly follow any advice just because it is given by the person you admire the most, you might be the victim of the appeal to the authority fallacy.  This fallacy is commonly seen in advertisements. Suppose your favourite actor or actress promotes a particular brand, you may fall for the advertisement. Also, should a view or theory be motivated based on a ‘Harvard University study’, rather Google if it is in fact true – check it out!

5. Circular reasoning

This is the fallacy where the premise of the argument is the same as the conclusion. The speaker makes a claim that is already believed.

Examples:

He is a liar because he does not speak the truth.

Using logic is important because it is important to use logic.

6. Equivocation fallacy

This fallacy results from the use of a word or expression in different senses in an argument, depending on the double meaning of a word.  This may cause an argument to become invalid or misleading. It may happen intentionally or to hide the truth.

Example:

I have the right to watch the TV show “Our Planet.’

Therefore, it is right for me to watch the show.

7. False dilemma fallacy

Examples of false dilemma arguments are as follows:

If you care about the environment, vote for me.

Every nation in every region now has a decision to make. Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists. (George W. Bush, September 20, 2001)

The false dilemma fallacy is regarded as polarized thinking – all or nothing, also referred to as black or white thinking.

Being more aware of informal fallacies, may help to detect fake news, schemes that are misleading and propaganda. The standard to follow is to check whether a statement is based on:

• accurate facts

• relevant facts

• credible sources

Furthermore, it must be:

• unbiased, free from logical fallacies,

• logically consistent & strongly reasoned.

What about critical thinking?

The term critical thinking implies a critique; it identifies the intellectual capacity and the means “of judging” and of being “able to discern”.

In addition to brain games, puzzles and other cognitive exercises such as chess and card games where logic is practiced, a well-developed set of Critical Thinking Skills builds self-confidence and enables us to process information, analyse and evaluate it in an intelligent way. Instead of depending on others to think for you and even make decisions for you, there should always be room to test our own beliefs and maybe even devise new ones.

Other sources on the topic:

Breitenbach M. (2020).  Arbitrarily Speaking.  E-periodical, 3rd edition.

Gladwell, M. (2005). Blink: The Power of Thinking without Thinking. London: Penguin Group

Vaugh, L. (2008). The Power of Critical Thinking: Effective Reasoning About Ordinary and Extraordinary Claims. Second Edition. New York: Oxford University Press

Happy thinking!”