AD BACULUM ►THREAT – PROMISE
AD CONSEQUENTIAM Arg.
The Latin term consequentia refers to [1]:
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- What follows, in space or time, with or without a causal link.
- The logical consequence: per consequentias means “it follows that” (Gaffiot, Consequentia) [2]
In the first sense, an argument ad consequentiam refers to something that happened temporally after a referential event, in order to suggest a causal link between the factual consequentia and the referential event.
For example, a large sum of money was stolen from Paul. The investigator notes that after the date of the robbery, James, a friend of Paul’s, began spending large sums of money, despite no change in his income. The investigator uses an argument based on « what happened after (the theft) » to suspect James of the crime, see circumstances.
In the second sense, an argument ad consequentiam is an argument based on causal or logico-semantic consequences. With this meaning, the label ad consequentiam covers all appeals to consequences, whether positive or negative, based on an effect-to-cause relation:
— The pragmatic argument appealing to positive consequences is an ad consequentiam argument.
— In the same way, appeals to absurdity are a form of refutative appeal to consequences that are considered absurd:
a) From a logical point of view they lead to a contradiction.
b) From a psychological or moral point of view they are undesirable.
c) They are contrary to the pragmatic interests and values of the speaker. ;
The ad consequentiam argument is currently used to hypothesize the existence of a causal link between two existing facts, see causality; effect-to-cause.
The following is an example of a wishful thinking: « God must exist because if he does not, then many people are praying for nothing!« . This pathetic argument deduces the necessity of something from the fact that its nonexistence would have annoying consequences for some.
[1] Walton (1999) traces the “Historical Origins of Argument Ad Consequentiam”.
[2] « Again, [the Stoics] hold that the universe is governed by divine will; it is a city or state of which both men and gods are members, and each one of us is a part of this universe; from which it is a natural consequence that [= ex quo natura consequi ut] we should prefer the common advantage to our own. »
Cicero, De Finibus, Bk 3) https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cicero/de_Finibus/home.html
[2] Wikipedia, Argumentum ad consequentiam (in French)