Begging the question: Encyclopedia II - Begging the question - Related Fallacies

Begging the question - Related Fallacies

Begging the question is related to the Fallacy of Circular Reasoning. The distinction between the two concepts is as follows: Circular Reasoning is the basing of two conclusions each upon the other (or possibly with more intermediate steps). That is, if you follow a chain of arguments, one of the conclusions is presumed by an earlier conclusion. Begging the question can occur within one argument and consequent conclusion. In the strictest sense, Begging the question occurs if and only if the conclusion is implicitly or explicitly a component of an immediate premise. It is usually accepted, though, to use the term begging the question in place of circular argument.

An example of a circular argument is as follows:

• A majority of people voted that Democracy is the most effective form of determining how effective something is.
• Therefore Democracy is the most effective form of determining how effective something is.

Begging the question is also related to the Fallacy of many questions—a fallacy of technique that results from presenting evidence in support of a conclusion that is less likely to be accepted than merely asserting the conclusion.

A specific form of this is reducing an assertion to an instance of a more general assertion which is no more known to be true than the more specific assertion:

• Every intentional act of killing a human being is morally wrong.
• The death penalty is an intentional act of killing a human being.
• Therefore the death penalty is wrong.

If the first premise is accepted as an axiom within some moral system or code, this reasoning is a cogent argument against the death penalty. If not, it is in fact a weaker argument than a mere assertion that the death penalty is wrong, since the first premise is stronger than the conclusion.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Related Fallacies", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki