Fallacy
Affirming the Consequent
Also known as: Converse Error
- Category
- Fallacy
- Main group
- Formal Fallacy
- Subgroup
- Deductive Fallacy
- Difficulty
- medium (2/3)
- Argumentation order
- 1. Argument
Description
A false conclusion that arises as follows:
The statement
"If A, then B"
is affirmed and the following conclusion is drawn:
"If B, then A".
Example
"If it rains, the street is wet.
The street is wet, therefore it rained."
- Limitations
Related to the Inversion Error – both stem from confusing logical implication with logical equivalence.
If the condition is the only possible cause of the consequence, the conclusion may happen to hold in a particular case – as a form of proof it remains invalid.
- See also
Non Sequitur
- Opposite
Deduction