Day 84 Fallacies

William Darling Mckay

“But the question of fallacies is a big one, and all we need bear in mind now is, that popular cries, whether in the school or the country, very often rest upon fallacies or false judgments. So, we must look all round the notions we take up.”

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“Our will must deliver us from the intellectual and moral fallacies of which the air is full.”
 
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“The only safeguard against fallacies which undermine the strength of the nation morally and economically is a liberal education which affords a wide field for reflection and comparison and abundant data upon which to found sound judgments.”

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“We must be able to answer the arguments in the air, not so much by counter reasons as by exposing the fallacies in such arguments and proving on our own part the opposite position.”
 
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But they (children) must follow arguments and detect fallacies for themselves. Reason like the other powers of the mind, requires material to work upon whether embalmed in history and literature, or afloat with the news of a strike or uprising. It is madness to let children face a debatable world with only, say, a mathematical preparation. If our business were to train their power of reasoning, such a training would no doubt be of service; but the power is there already, and only wants material to work upon.

This caution must be borne in mind. Reason, like all other properties of a person, is subject to habit and works upon the material it is accustomed to handle."

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“Once we are convinced of the fallibility of our own reason, we are able to detect the fallacies in the reasoning of our opponents and are not liable to be carried away by every wind of doctrine. Every mother knows how intensely reasonable a child is and how difficult it is to answer his quite logical and foolishly wrong conclusions. So we need not be deterred from dealing with serious matters with these young neophytes, but only as the occasion occurs….”
 
 
 
 
Examen: “Show how our Lord's condemnation of fallacies proves that opinions are judged upon moral grounds.” How is a liberal education necessary to a full human life? Do I “look all around the notions I take up?”

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But the question: Charlotte M. Mason, Ourselves, 4:185 Bk.I.
Our will must: Mason, 4:172 Bk.II.
The only safeguard: Charlotte M. Mason,  Towards a Philosophy of Education, 6:56.
We must be able: 6:144.
But they must: 6:147.
Once we are convinced: 6:150.
Show how our Lord’s: Mason, Ourselves, 4:235 Bk.II.

​Day 84 Fallacies meditation/100 days copyright Laurie Bestvater 2025