Genetic fallacy
Encyclopedia
The genetic fallacy is a fallacy of irrelevance
where a conclusion is suggested based solely on something or someone's origin rather than its current meaning or context. This overlooks any difference to be found in the present situation, typically transferring the positive or negative esteem from the earlier context.
The fallacy therefore fails to assess the claim on its merit. The first criterion of a good argument is that the premises must have bearing on the truth or falsity of the claim in question. Genetic accounts of an issue may be true, and they may help illuminate the reasons why the issue has assumed its present form, but they are irrelevant to its merits.
According to the Oxford Companion to Philosophy, the term originates in Morris Raphael Cohen
and Ernest Nagel
's book Logic and Scientific Method.
by T. Edward Damer, Third Edition p. 36:
From With Good Reason: An Introduction to Informal Fallacies by S. Morris Engel, Fifth Edition, pg. 196:
A commonly occurring example of this style of reasoning can be called the 'etymological fallacy
'. This presents arguments based on the supposed real meaning of certain words, where that 'real' meaning is in fact what the word meant centuries ago, or what its root word (in Latin, Greek etc.) meant. A popular tactic, it is easily shown to be fallacious and misleading. Thus:
This is not merely a non-sequitur
. It reflects that fact that the first speaker simply accepts the contemporary meaning of 'arrive', whereas the second recalls the Latin
origin: 'ripa' meaning 'shore' (c.f. also the words 'river' and 'Riviera'), whereby the English word 'arrive' contains within it the idea of disembarkation.
Ignoratio elenchi
Ignoratio elenchi is the informal fallacy of presenting an argument that may in itself be valid, but does not address the issue in question...
where a conclusion is suggested based solely on something or someone's origin rather than its current meaning or context. This overlooks any difference to be found in the present situation, typically transferring the positive or negative esteem from the earlier context.
The fallacy therefore fails to assess the claim on its merit. The first criterion of a good argument is that the premises must have bearing on the truth or falsity of the claim in question. Genetic accounts of an issue may be true, and they may help illuminate the reasons why the issue has assumed its present form, but they are irrelevant to its merits.
According to the Oxford Companion to Philosophy, the term originates in Morris Raphael Cohen
Morris Raphael Cohen
Morris Raphael Cohen was an American philosopher, lawyer and legal scholar who united pragmatism with logical positivism and linguistic analysis. He was father to Felix S. Cohen....
and Ernest Nagel
Ernest Nagel
Ernest Nagel was a Czech-American philosopher of science. Along with Rudolf Carnap, Hans Reichenbach, and Carl Hempel, he is sometimes seen as one of the major figures of the logical positivist movement....
's book Logic and Scientific Method.
Examples
From Attacking Faulty ReasoningAttacking Faulty Reasoning
Attacking Faulty Reasoning is a textbook on logical fallacies by T. Edward Damer that has been used for many years in a number of college courses on logic, critical thinking, argumentation, and philosophy. It explains 60 of the most commonly committed logical fallacies. Each of the fallacies is...
by T. Edward Damer, Third Edition p. 36:
From With Good Reason: An Introduction to Informal Fallacies by S. Morris Engel, Fifth Edition, pg. 196:
A commonly occurring example of this style of reasoning can be called the 'etymological fallacy
Etymological fallacy
The etymological fallacy is a genetic fallacy that holds, erroneously, that the historical meaning of a word or phrase is necessarily similar to its actual present-day meaning. This is a linguistic misconception, mistakenly identifying a word's current semantic field with its etymology...
'. This presents arguments based on the supposed real meaning of certain words, where that 'real' meaning is in fact what the word meant centuries ago, or what its root word (in Latin, Greek etc.) meant. A popular tactic, it is easily shown to be fallacious and misleading. Thus:
This is not merely a non-sequitur
Non sequitur (logic)
Non sequitur , in formal logic, is an argument in which its conclusion does not follow from its premises. In a non sequitur, the conclusion could be either true or false, but the argument is fallacious because there is a disconnection between the premise and the conclusion. All formal fallacies...
. It reflects that fact that the first speaker simply accepts the contemporary meaning of 'arrive', whereas the second recalls the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
origin: 'ripa' meaning 'shore' (c.f. also the words 'river' and 'Riviera'), whereby the English word 'arrive' contains within it the idea of disembarkation.