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Analogy A systematic comparison of one phenomenon with another, and carrying the inference that if they are similar some respects, they will probably be similar in others; a proposed relation, correspondence, or parallel.
Analogies can be used to describe, to explain, or to argue something.
Analogical reasoning In the relatively-recent past when teachers presented the concept of an atom to students, atoms were commonly portrayed as very tiny solar systems or at least models were shown to classes having this appearance, or when someone describes the human heart he or she may liken it to, for example, a mechanical pump. We see a person behaving in a peculiar, disturbed manner which reminds us of cousin Ron, and speculate that they too may have Alzheimer’s disease.
If we are experiencing difficulty with, say, a mathematics problem, the instructor might refer us to a different – though implicitly-relatable proposition – which we have previously successfully solved, in an effort to explain how the current conundrum can be worked out.
Suppose we choose to attend some entertainment such as a play or a film principally on the basis of a recommendation of a friend, we may do so because we see our tastes (those of this friend and our own) in movies – what we like and dislike – as being similar so that we will most likely enjoy the same picture that they did. Or we muse over buying a newly-published thriller, say the latest book by novelist John Grisham, after having found several of the author’s earlier works – The Firm, The Client, etc. – engrossing, and reason that there’s a good chance the most recent offering is worth our reading.
An example of superimposing an analogical structure is using The Hook, Arrow, and Anchor on the three parts of Aristotle's discourse:
An argument from or by analogy involves a method of argument in which similarities between one state of affairs and another or between two (non-identical) things are used as a basis for an inference about other believed similarities or a persuasive argument of the type that X is like Y, so what is true for Y, is also true for X. A strength of analogies is that they vividly illustrate ideas, but suffer from the problem that it is often not clear or certain as to the scope of the comparison – we are invited to look for similarities (while possibly overlooking differences), but cannot always tell where to stop. This has the drawback that an analogy may be unreasonably persuasive and suggest an impression of clarity or ‘understanding’ about the claim or subject which is illusory. No analogy can ever be “perfect” – all conceptual divisions and ideas about the characteristics of things are human-made creations and simplifications. They are convenient and frequently-useful cognitive devices which actors overlay on the environmental and sensory-information landscape. Whether we are drawing a parallel concerning a damaged computer and a damaged psyche or between Time and a river we must be alert to error and false impressions, and be careful not to allow substantial differences between the two things to be obscured by some small seemingly-striking similarities, or (probably somewhat less likely) to permit genuine likenesses to be blocked out by a few glaring disparities.
A false analogy occurs when there are too few similarities between the two things being compared (or the similarities specified do not have the requisite relevance) to bear out the inference or there are sufficient differences to undermine the inference taken. In sum: a false analogy seeks to compare two things which are not alike in significant respects or have critical points of difference. For example, the contribution of a civilian advisor to the Defence Dept. when a military operation is being considered which appears to carry a high risk of non-combatant casualties: “Well, you can’t make an omelette without breaking a few eggs”.
Some other examples:
”How can you tell your children not to take money from others when the magazine you work for accepts subscriptions from members of the public all the time!”
or
”We must force unbelievers to accept our faith for their own good, just the way we’d protect a delirious person from falling out of a fourth-floor window!” Cf. metaphor and simile.
(see also: allegory, innuendo, dilemma, irony, sarcasm, definition, language)
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analogy, definition: ‘analogy’, analogical argument, argument by analogy, argument from analogy, false analogy |