In this post, I will be talking about The Beatles. If you do not know who The Beatles are, they are a rock band that became very popular in the 60's. I have done research about The Beatles several times for past essays (because I love writing essays about them ^_^) and I clearly understand why they became very famous. Songs written by The Beatles were loved by many people. It reached to the point where trends were created, and people, especially teens, were greatly influenced. A name was also made to acknowledge this period of time which is now known as The British Invasion, which was the uprising of certain bands. In addition, The Beatles also wiped off the tears of most Americans who were devastated over John F. Kennedy's assassination. They have made more impacts towards society but I'm only gonna point out those so that I can get the general idea across.
Now that I have explained what makes The Beatles a big deal to most people, I'll move on to the Fallacy I'll be talking about.
According to Critical Thinking, it shows a sample on what "Mistaking the person (group) for the claim" is. It says, "(Almost) anything that ____ says about ____ is (probably) false." In other words, if a certain person was to make a claim about something, people would less likely believe that person for certain circumstances.
For example, I was eavesdropping (I know it's bad D:), and one of my friends said, "The Beatles is the only 'real' music out there. All that rapping stuff is not 'real' music." Following that, a friend of him replied and said, "Yes, I 100% agree. Anyone who disagrees doesn't know what real music is." In a way, I can understand because The Beatles has made a huge impact in history. However, I disagree with them because there isn't really a way to define 'real' music. I think their claims were not thought of carefully. In other words, their bias-ness determined that The Beatles is "real" music and that rapping is not.
This is where a Fallacy comes in. In addition to that conversation, another person replied and said, "I do not think rap music is so bad, and that The Beatles is the only good music out there." However, the two other guys disagreed and said, "You do not have respect for The Beatles. You're a hater," and ended the conversation there. In this case, these two guys are falling for the "Mistaking the person (or group) for the claim" Fallacy. I'm gonna assume this third guy wasn't a very huge fan of The Beatles. According to this Fallacy, these two guys reacted to this non-Beatles fan (the person in the fallacy) by disagreeing with him or in other words, technically saying that he was wrong all because he wasn't a fan of The Beatles.
I think if the third guy was a Beatles fan and the other two knew, they would react very differently and actually consider listening to what he has to say. The reason why the third guy did not really have a chance to talk was because the other two assumed that he had no knowledge of The Beatles and was in no position to say that. However, if the third guy did have knowledge of The Beatles, the two guys may curiously ask, "Really?" In that case, the third guy will have a chance to explain why he said what he said.
In conclusion (and to clear things up, I know it sounds confusing!), the third guy (non-Beatles fan) suffered in the two other guy's Fallacy. Because he was a non-Beatles fan, they thought it would be right to assume that his claim (that rap music is not bad and there are more good music besides The Beatles) was wrong or false. In contrast, he would probably not suffer in their Fallacy if he was a Beatles fan because they would know that he's making that claim out of thought rather than just being bias, or being a non-Beatles fan. They would most likely listen to him because saying that is like making a claim against something you favor. In this case, he made a claim against something that he didn't favor. Therefore, they assumed that he was wrong to say those things. They assumed that his statement was false.
- Pink Bean
I have to agree with a lot of points you made in your example. The Beatles made a huge impact on society and culture during the British invasion. The conversation you described had many details which I like because I think having more details helps me understand the example a lot more. I have heard this kind of argument before, this fallacy. It is easy for people to say you do not understand or know something just because you do not like it. “Knowing” what real music is definitely not something you can define. Your last paragraph was really well thought out and explained. Great job!
ReplyDeleteI like your example here. I also have heard arguments like this regularly and it is basically a matter of ignorance. These two people are being rather closed minded and decided that since they are in love with the beatles, anyone who isn't has an invalid opinion. However, you can't make an argument out of being closed minded. That is why this is a fallacy. It's a matter of opinion over facts. The person who was arguing their opinion on the beatles had a better argument because they didn't shut down the beatles, but said there are other groups that are good as well. Anyways, great post! It was very detailed and fun to read ;P
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