Can an analogy prove ANYTHING?

Can an analogy prove ANYTHING?

Argument by analogy is a special type of inductive reasoning where you try to show that one thing is like another thing. Here is an example:
1. Cats are like humans in many ways.
2. Humans need love.
Therefore, cats need love.

This is inductive reasoning because it begins with similarities we know about and tries to suggest another similarity based on them. But the conclusion is not guaranteed by the first two steps. It could be that, although cats are like human beings in many ways, love is one way in which they are different. There are three criteria, or standards, for judging an argument by analogy.

First, how relevant are the known simi- larities? We see that cats often play with their kittens just like human mothers play with their babies. This is relevant since play involves touching, just as love involves touching. Trees, in contrast, don't play or love, as far as we know. They can't touch one another on purpose.

Second, how strong are the similarities? Cats are aware of their surroundings, but are they self-aware the way humans are? They can't recognize themselves in the mirror. Gorillas, who can recognize themselves in the mirror, might be more similar to a human than a cat.

Third, how many similarities are there and how varied are they? Cats care for their young the way humans do. Cats are playful like humans. Cats are warm-blooded. How many more similarities can you think of? Are they within a limited range of qualities or do they span across a wide range?

Seventeenth-century theologian WILLIAM PALEY used an analogy to argue for the existence of God. Suppose you are hiking in the wilderness and find a watch on the ground. It couldn't be there randomly like the rest of the wilderness. Someone must have dropped it. Likewise, when we look at the universe, we see our blue-green world alone among bare, rocky planets.

Earth can't be there randomly, like the rest of outer space. Someone must have put it there. We can summarize Paley's argument as follows:
1.A watch in the wilderness is like our world in the universe.
2. A watch was designed by a designer.
Therefore, our world was designed by a designer.

Nineteenth-century biologist CHARLES DARWIN used an analogy to argue for his theory of evolution. Suppose you are pigeon breeder who wants to produce a superstrong pigeon.How would you accomplish this? You would mate your strongest female pigeon with your strongest male pigeon. When they had babies, you would again mate the strongest female with the strongest male. You would do this over and over again. Each generation would become a little bit stronger. Over time, you would produce your super pigeon. Darwin hypothesized that nature works the same way:
1. Nature is like a pigeon breeder.
2. A pigeon breeder creates pigeons with new traits by mating animals with those traits.
Therefore, nature creates
animals with new traits by mating animals with those traits.

THINK ON IT!

1. Write an argument by analogy that concludes playing a video game is good for you because it is like creating a work of art.
2. Write an argument by analogy that concludes video
games are bad for you because playing them is like eating candy.
3. Write an argument by analogy that concludes playing video games is like eating because it matters what kind of game you play and how much you play.
4. Write your own argument by analogy about video games.