Wishful Thinking

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This page is part of the EvoWiki encyclopedia of fallacies. Browse: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Contents 1 Synonyms 2 Explanation 2.1 Example 3 Category 4 Subfallacies 5 Twin Fallacy 6 External Links 7 Examples in creationist arguments

Synonyms

• Moralistic fallacy
• Appeal to Hope
• Ought-Is

Explanation

Wishful Thinking means that you take your wishes for reality. That is, believing that what ought to be true is true. However, if this belief were true, our wishes would always come true. Clearly, this is not the case.

Example

1. If special creation is true, then humans are made in the image of an all-powerful creator.
2. I want to be have been made in the image of a creator.
3. Therefore, special creation is true.

This is fallacious because the listener is so pleased by the prospect of being made by a creator, in the image of a creator, that they accept special creation as true, based solely on the strong wish for it to be true.

Category

• Emotional Appeal
• Appeal to Consequences
• Red Herring
• Conceptual Fallacy

Subfallacies

• Escape to the Future
• Self-righteousness
• Word Magic

Twin Fallacy

• Is-Ought

External Links

• Fallacy Files [1]
• Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy [2]
• Wikipedia [3]
• Bruce Thompson [4]
• Global Tester [5]
• Skeptic's Dictionary [6]
• Gordon, Hanks, & Zhu [7]

Examples in creationist arguments

• Do you want to be descended from a monkey?
• Intelligent design is mainstream