Since we have been studying fallacies and what affect they have in writing, I thought it would be interesting to look at fallacies in one of my favorite TV shows, The Big Bang Theory. To start, a fallacy is an argument that uses poor reasoning, with many fallacies ending up being false. Heading back to The Big Bang Theory the show mainly revolves around the antics of Sheldon Cooper and his friends, I noticed that there are a few fallacies in this sitcom. One was in an episode where Sheldon and his friends return home after living in the Arctic for three months. Sheldon's very religious mother believed that it was the prayers from her church group that brought him back safe. this demonstrates a false cause fallacy, as she believed that the prayers brought him back. Another fallacy that is used a lot in the Big Bang Theory is reductio ad absurdum. It may be unknown to a lot of people, but it is where someone uses another persons argument and extended it to extreme proportions in order to insult the person. This is used a lot against Sheldon by his friends, as he tends to overthink every single detail.
As demonstrated, Reductio ad Absurdum can be useful in the right situations. Basically, its like using sarcasm against someone or something, exaggerating stuff to insult it. This type of fallacy is used a lot in TV shows mainly to blow things out of proportion and give the audience a good laugh.
Fallacies are a very interesting device in writing. When I was initially introduced to this concept, it didn't make a whole lot of sense and it left me confused. However, once we began to look closely at different types of fallacies, I finally understood its meaning and I enjoy them very much. I really look forward to exploring them more in English.
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