The two - extremes fallacy (false dilemma)

 

    The two-extremes fallacy is at work in this statement by Lenin, the great Marxist leader:”You cannot eliminate one basic assumption, one substantial part of this philosophy of Marxism (it is as if it were a block of steel), without falling into the arms of bourgeois-reactionary falsehood.” In other words, if we don’t agree 100 percent with every premise of Marxism, we must be placed at the opposite end of the political- economic spectrum – for Lenin, “bourgeois-reactionary falsehood.” If we are not entirely with him, we must be against him; those are the only possibilities open to us. Of course, this is a logical fallacy; in real life there are any number of political questions one can maintain between the two extremes of Marxism and capitalism.

     Sentor Yakalot uses the two –extremes fallacy in the same way as Lenin when he tells his audience that “in this world a man’s either for private enterprise or he’s for socialism.”

       One of the most famous examples of the two –extremes fallacy in recent history is the slogan, “America: Love it or leave it.” With its implicit suggestion that we either accept everything just as it is in America today without complaint- or just get out. Again, it should be obvious that there is a whole range of action and belief between those two extremes.

     Don’t be duped; stop and ask, “Are those really the only two options I can choose from? Are there other alternatives not mentioned that deserve consideration?”

 

12. Card stacking

 

  Some questions are so multifaceted and complex that no one can make an intelligent decision about them without considering a wide variety of evidence. One selection of facts could make us feel one way and another selection could make us feel just the opposite. Card stacking is a device of propaganda, which selects only the facts that support the propagandist’s point of view, and ignores all the others. For example, a candidate could be made to look like a legislative dynamo if you say, “Representative McNerd introduced more new bills than any other member of the Congress,” and neglect to mention that most of them were so preposterous that they were laughed off the floor.

The best protection against card stacking is to take the “Yes, but…”attitude. This device of propaganda is not untrue, but then again it is not the whole truth. So ask yourself, “Is the person leaving something out that I should know about? Is there some other information that should be brought to bear on this question?”

 

Testimonial

 

The testimonial device consists in having some loved or respected person give a statement of support (testimonial) for a given product or idea. The problem is that the person being quoted may not be an expert in the field; in fact, he may know nothing at all about it. Using the name of a man who is skilled and famous in one field to give a testimonial for something in another field is unfair and unreasonable.

When celebrities endorse a political candidate, they may not be making money by doing so, but we should still question whether they are in any better position to judge than we ourselves. Too often we are willing to let others we like or respect make our decisions for us, while we follow along acquiescently. And this is the purpose of testimonial – to get us to agree and accept without stopping to think. Be sure to ask, - “Is there any reason to believe that this person (or organization or whatever) has any more knowledge or information than I do on this subject? What does the idea amount to on its own merits, without the benefit of testimonial?”

If we are to be led, let us not be led blindly, but critically, intelligently, with our eyes open. If we are to continue to be a government “by the people”, let us become informed about the methods and purposes of propaganda, so we can be the masters, not the slaves of our destiny.

                   (Donna Woolfolk Cross. Politics, Propaganda and Doublespeak)

 

 

Task5:

 

Put five questions on the text. Ask your classmates.

Task 6:

 

Give answers to the following questions

 

1. What associations do we have when we hear the comments “Oh, that’s just propaganda”?

2. What causes can propaganda be put to work for?

3. How did Joseph Goebbels define his work?

4. What does “name – calling” consist of?

5. How does the author explain “glittering generalities”?

6. What is a “red herring” and why do people use this technique?

7. How do you understand “plain-folks appeal”? Is it the same as “I am one of you” tactics?

8. What explanation does Cross give to “argumentum ad populum”?

9. How about “argumentum ad homminem”?

10. How does “transfer” device work?

11. What is the essence of “bandwagon”?

12. How does Cross define “faulty cause and effect”?

13. Which is a famous example of a “false analogy”?

14. How do you understand “begging the question”/

15. Which example illustrates “the two- extreme fallacy”?

16. Which is the essence of “card – stacking” and which is the best protection against it?

17. How do you understand the “testimonial” device?

18. What, according to Cross, is the most common propaganda trick?

 

 

Task7:

The key word from the text is “propaganda.” Use the collocations in the contexts of your own.

 

Propaganda – information, frequently exaggerated or false information, which is spread by political groups in order to influence the public; usually used to show disapproval.

 

Synonyms: promotion; indoctrination: inculcation.

 

Collocations:

Government propaganda    broadcast propaganda

Official propaganda            propaganda campaign

Party propaganda                propaganda war

State propaganda                propaganda department

Political propaganda           propaganda machine

Religious propaganda          propaganda film

Revolutionary propaganda  propaganda weapon

Socialist propaganda           propaganda purposes

Enemy propaganda             propaganda about

Hostile propaganda             propaganda against

War propaganda

 

Task 8:

 

Give a 5-minute summery of the text.

 

Task9:

 

Discussion points:

 

1. What is propaganda? Who uses propaganda? Why is it used?

2. Which are the main sources of propaganda in your country?

3. Do you think it is necessary for people in a democratic society to be informed about methods and practices of propaganda? Why?

4. In America you can often see slogans like “Proud to be American.” Do you think this is propaganda? Why?

 

 

Task10:

 

 Debates

 

Prepare a speech on the issue:” mass – media should be free of propaganda.” Give arguments “for” and “against.”

 

Task11:

 

To be able to understand the propaganda mechanism you need to be able to generate one.

 Write a propagandistic letter to the newspaper on any hot political issue.

 

Unit VIII.

                                Doublespeak

 

 

Task1:

 

Think if you know anything about Doublespeak. If not, what do you think it may mean?

 

Task2:

 

Here are two typical examples of doublespeak.

Read them and give your comments on them. Express your attitude.

 

1. The planes do not crash – they just have uncontrolled contact with the ground.

2.  President Reagon was not nearly dying – he was in a non-decision- making - form.

 

Task 3:

 

William Lutz, one of the researchers on Doublespeak, characterizes it as “a

language, which  pretends to communicate but doesn’t, language which

makes the bad seem good, the negative appear positive, the unpleasant

attractive, or at least tolerable.”

 

Do you agree? Why? Why not?

 

Task 4;

 

Read the text “The World of Doublespeak” by William Lutz.

 Do the tasks that follow.