Here’s an interesting brain-teaser for you…
1. No cat has 9 tails
2. One cat has one tail more than no cat
3. Therefore, One cat has 10 tails
Is Conclusion 3 right or wrong? Of course, cats may have 9 lives but they certainly do not have 9 tails. Now, what is wrong? Premise 1 and 2 seem to be correct - how can it lead to a wrong conclusion? Congratulations, if you could detect the error (baloney) in Premise 2! If you can’t, don’t be discouraged because all you need is some baloney detectors called “semantics”.
Answer: Conclusion 3 is fallacious or wrong because the term “no cat” has undergone a subtle change of meaning. The same word has two totally different meanings. In the normal sense, “no cat” means a negation of cats in Premise 1. But in Premise 2, the meaning has changed into a positive entity called, “No Cat”.
1. No cat has 9 tails
2. One cat has one tail more than no cat
3. Therefore, One cat has 10 tails
Is Conclusion 3 right or wrong? Of course, cats may have 9 lives but they certainly do not have 9 tails. Now, what is wrong? Premise 1 and 2 seem to be correct - how can it lead to a wrong conclusion? Congratulations, if you could detect the error (baloney) in Premise 2! If you can’t, don’t be discouraged because all you need is some baloney detectors called “semantics”.
Answer: Conclusion 3 is fallacious or wrong because the term “no cat” has undergone a subtle change of meaning. The same word has two totally different meanings. In the normal sense, “no cat” means a negation of cats in Premise 1. But in Premise 2, the meaning has changed into a positive entity called, “No Cat”.
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