Non sequitur (logic) facts for kids

Non sequitur means "does not follow." It is a type of logical fallacy: a bad argument that makes no sense.

A non sequitur argument takes something that people accept is true, and says that because this is true, the conclusion is right. The problem is that the conclusion has nothing to do with the premise (original statement that people agree on).

Usually, this argument seems convincing on the surface. However, consider the following example:

Knowledge is power, so stupid people can never have power.

This is wrong because 1) stupid people can still know things, just not have good ideas or use their knowledge well, and 2) knowledge is not the only source of power. This argument tries use a statement that people agree with as bad support for a new idea that is not the logical conclusion of the statement.

See also

In Spanish: Non sequitur (lógica) para niños