• Both are faulty generalizations. • Sentence 1. The sentence moves from some
Americans to a conclusion drawn on all Americans. This is a problem of overgeneralization.
• 2.On TV, I saw George Bush signing documents with his left hand. I saw Ronald Reagan signing documents with his left hand. I saw Bill Clinton signing documents with his left hand during his recent trip to China. Clearly, all American presidents are left-handed.
• The importance of a sentence in a paragraph corresponds closely to its level of generality: the more important a statement is in a paragraph, the higher its level of generality.
• Questions
• 1. Underline the generalization in each group.
• Group 1: The mass media are often badly used.
• Group 2: Television has bad effects on people.