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Which of the following arguments is fallacious because the major term is all pervasive and the middle term is all-inclusive?
Question



Which of the following arguments is fallacious because the major term is all pervasive and the middle term is all-inclusive?

A.

The sky-lotus is fragrant because it is a lotus.

B.

Socrates is immortal because he died long ago.

C.

Sound is eternal because it is audible.

D.

Everything is nameable because it is knowable.

Correct option is D


The fallacy in this argument arises because the major term "everything" is all-pervasive (it refers to the entirety of things) and the middle term "nameable" is all-inclusive (it implies that everything which is knowable can also be named). This type of reasoning leads to a fallacy because it assumes that just because something is knowable, it must also be nameable, which is an incorrect generalization. This is an example of a logical fallacy known as the illicit process of the major term.
Information Booster:
All-pervasive term: Refers to something that applies universally to all instances.
All-inclusive term: Involves the assumption that the middle term includes everything in its scope.
Illicit major fallacy: Occurs when the major term is incorrectly assumed to apply to all instances based on flawed reasoning.
Logical fallacies: Errors in reasoning that undermine the validity of an argument.
Additional Knowledge:
Option (a): The sky-lotus is an imaginary entity (as lotuses do not grow in the sky), making this an argument based on a false analogy, not involving all-pervasive or all-inclusive terms.
Option (b): The argument is self-contradictory because it assumes immortality for someone who has already died, which is a different type of logical error, a contradiction rather than a fallacy involving universal terms.
Option (c): The argument assumes that because sound is audible, it must be eternal, which is incorrect causality but not due to all-pervasiveness or inclusiveness.

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