Comments on: Appeal To Emotion

By: veganprimate

veganprimate — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 15:00:24 +0000

It seems to me that appeals to emotion strive to get the person to NOT be rational. For example, someone trying to talk their boss out of firing them by claiming they have an elderly parent at home that they are caring for.

But showing videos of slaughterhouse footage is informing people about what’s going on. It’s factual information that is needed to make a decision.
.-= veganprimate´s last blog ..And I’ll have fun, fun, fun til someone takes my Zuma away! =-.

By: Bea Elliott

Bea Elliott — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 02:43:53 +0000

Absolutely true. A reasoning mind is supposed to process emotions accordingly. Emotions are there for the purpose of guiding us to our values. They determine not so much how we “feel” about things, but rather what we “think” about them.

And that is the problem with the whole animal using culture… They really don’t want people to feel/think about the wrongness of it.

@tron – Bravo on your vegan syllogism!
.-= Bea Elliott´s last blog ..IF YOU LOVE SOMETHING, YOU DON’T KILL IT. =-.

By: Eccentric Vegan

Eccentric Vegan — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 20:25:50 +0000

Of course, it’s logical, tron. The people who argue against gory videos are just grasping for straws, trying to justify to themselves why they don’t behave more rationally.
I like how you’ve spelled it out clearly and precisely, though, for anyone who may doubt the OBVIOUS logic of veganism.

(BTW – my college logic professor was vegan. He was the most rational person I’ve ever met.)

By: tron

tron — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 20:12:02 +0000

I got this response once before as well. I was told I wasn’t using logic but was using a logical fallacy, an “Appeal to Emotions”. That’s when the idea of what I call the vegan syllogism began to form in my head. It goes as fallows:

Major: I am morally opposed to unnecessary suffering
Minor: Evidence proves that consumption of animal products produces unnecessary suffering.

Conclusion: I must stop using animal products if I am to be moral

The video I showed contributed to the evidence needed in the Minor premise above.
All I need from my interlocutor is for him or her to accept the Major premise in order to accept the Conclusion.
So not only is veganism logical, its logic is extremely simple. Plus, video’s aren’t appeals to emotions – they are part of a syllogism.

By: Simon

Simon — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 19:18:53 +0000

Great point! I am reminded of a passage from Eating Animals: in the section with the definitions, there are definitions of realism and sentimentalism that challenge the normal idea that appeal to emotion is "mere" sentimentalism. .-= Simon´s last blog ..Book Review: Animal Equality: Language and Liberation =-.