Lesson 34: Burden of Proof

Spot the Faulty Logic #

“I believe there’s a dragon living under my bed. You can’t prove there isn’t, so I’m right!”

Discussion: Talk with your teacher about this example. Whose job is it to prove this claim?

How/Why It’s Often Used #

It’s often easier to ask someone to disprove your claim than to prove it yourself. This fallacy appears when someone makes a claim and, instead of providing evidence, challenges others to prove them wrong. It shifts the work of supporting an argument onto others.

This is especially common with claims that are hard or impossible to disprove (like claims about invisible things, untestable events, or vague predictions). If you can’t disprove it, they claim that means it’s true.

Burden of Proof in Action #

Did you spot the faulty logic? #

The person claiming a dragon exists should provide evidence for the dragon, not demand that others prove it doesn’t exist. We can’t disprove every possible claim - we’d spend forever disproving unicorns, fairies, and infinite other possibilities.

Second Example #

“You can’t prove that my lucky rock doesn’t give me good luck. So it does give me good luck!”

The Flaw #

The inability to disprove a claim doesn’t prove it. The person claiming the rock brings luck should show evidence of its effectiveness, not just point to the lack of disproof.