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  • What is Appeal to Ignorance  (Argumentum ad Ignorantiam)?

  • The Appeal to Ignorance is a logical fallacy that  

  • occurs when a conclusion is drawn  based on the absence of evidence,  

  • rather than the presence of evidence. This  fallacy suggests that a claim is true because  

  • it has not been proven false or that a claim  is false because it has not been proven true.

  • It's problematic because the lack of  evidence is not a valid indicator of  

  • truth. In many cases, evidence may be undiscovered  or unobtainable, making such arguments baseless.

  • Everyday Example:

  • Imagine someone arguing that a certain  celebrity must be a good person because no  

  • scandals or negative stories have been reported  about them. This is an appeal to ignorance,  

  • as it assumes the individual's virtue based  on the absence of negative evidence. It fails  

  • to consider that lack of public scandal  does not inherently equate to proof of  

  • good character. Such an argument  overlooks other possibilities,  

  • like effective public relations management  or simply a lack of public scrutiny.

What is Appeal to Ignorance  (Argumentum ad Ignorantiam)?

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