Persuasion and Logical Fallacies

When you consider a writer's purpose, it is helpful to remember the acronym PIE: a writer wants to persuade, inform, and/or entertain.

In a persuasive essay, writers will include a mixture of opinion (a thesis is an arguable statement of opinion) and fact (evidence which can be tested or validated). Sometimes writers present a statement of opinion as a fact. Sometimes they draw conclusions that are not reasonable or logical. In this module, you will explore different kinds of logical fallacies and their application to contemporary issues.

Essential Questions

• What are logical fallacies?
• How can you improve your own arguments?