Straw Vulcan: Difference between revisions

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This is, of course, a [[Broken Aesop]]. Fiction often [[You Fail Logic Forever|gets the concept of logic wrong]] in a number of ways.

The most common mistake is to assume that logic and emotion are [[False Dichotomy|somehow naturally opposed and that employing one means you can't have the other]]. Excluding emotion doesn't make your reasoning logical, however, and it certainly doesn't cause your answer to be automatically true. Likewise, an emotional response doesn't preclude logical thinking -- [[Insane Troll Logic|although it may prevent you from thinking in the first place]] ~~-- and~~ if an emotional plan is successful, that doesn't make logic somehow wrong.

The most common mistake is to assume that logic and emotion are [[False Dichotomy|somehow naturally opposed and that employing one means you can't have the other]]. Excluding emotion doesn't make your reasoning logical, however, and it certainly doesn't cause your answer to be automatically true. Likewise, an emotional response doesn't preclude logical thinking -- [[Insane Troll Logic|although it may prevent you from thinking in the first place]]—and if an emotional plan is successful, that doesn't make logic somehow wrong.

Because the author is more concerned with setting up their straw man than in handling logic correctly, they will often misuse and distort the concept to create contrived examples where what they're calling "logic" doesn't work. Common situations include:

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* A Straw Vulcan will have to consider everything about the problem in full detail even in time-critical situations, while the emotional person will make the snap decisions necessary in this sort of situation. This will demonstrate how the "logical" Straw Vulcan is useless under pressure and therefore inferior to the emotional protagonist. Which would make a point, if the author didn't forget to mention that ''consistently'' good decision making needs training just like problem solving does, and at very least enough of background to understand the situation in question correctly in the first place.

* There's also the case where the emotional person suggests a course that shouldn't work, period, but the Straw Vulcan's ideas all involve some aspect that the "non-logical" character find objectionable. So Straw Vulcan is outvoted, they go with the dumb emotional plan, and lo, it works... due to sheer dumb luck. This is then lauded as a victory for emotion, when in fact it's a victory for the [[Million-to-One Chance]] principle.

* The [[Straw Vulcan]] will often commit the [[Fallacy Fallacy]], dismissing a conclusion simply because it was based on invalid logic or on emotion. While the fact that an argument contains a fallacy is grounds for dismissing an argument, it does not prove that the conclusion is wrong.

* The '''Straw Vulcan''' will often commit the [[Fallacy Fallacy]], dismissing a conclusion simply because it was based on invalid logic or on emotion. While the fact that an argument contains a fallacy is grounds for dismissing an argument, it does not prove that the conclusion is wrong.

A Straw Vulcan (much like [[Star Trek]] Vulcan) often quickly slips from stating adherence to "logic" as opinion or personal principle to an obvious obsession or phobia. In which case the whole picture makes more sense (noticeably disturbed people are not considered best decision-makers or planners for a reason that generally they, indeed, aren't), but invalidates the mental experiment for purpose of making any other point.

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== Comic Books ==

* In ''[[Logicomix]]'', Ferge is totally honest and devoted to truth & logic. Sadly, this devotion combined with [[Ignorant of Their Own Ignorance]] leads to [[Black and White Insanity]] in the form of a [[Straw Vulcan]] despise for women and jews. On the whole, this make him a [[Troubled Sympathetic Bigot]] who is desperately trying to do the right thing.

* In ''[[Logicomix]]'', Ferge is totally honest and devoted to truth & logic. Sadly, this devotion combined with [[Ignorant of Their Own Ignorance]] leads to [[Black and White Insanity]] in the form of a Straw Vulcan despise for women and jews. On the whole, this make him a [[Troubled Sympathetic Bigot]] who is desperately trying to do the right thing.

* One of Brainiac 5's roles in the [[Legion of Super-Heroes]] is to be a Straw Vulcan for the more emotional superheroes, like Dream Girl and Bouncing Boy.

* Oddly enough, [[Averted Trope]] in the ''[[Transformers]]'' comics with regard to Shockwave. Shockwave is a cold, calculating Decepticon warrior who embraces pure logic... but his definition of logic ''is'', in fact correct - "the course of action with the highest possibility of victory." In the old Marvel Transformers comics, he once ceded leadership of the Decepticons to Megatron, convinced that Megatron's logic was superior.

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**** "Human? Did I leave my spots at home?" "All that Vulcan intelligence, and he doesn't even know what a hew-mon looks like."

** In one episode of ''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation|The Next Generation]]'', Troi beats Data at chess. She then explains to him that chess isn't just a game of logic, but also intuition. As the Nitpicker's Guide puts it, "Try playing 'intuitive' chess against a computer and you'll lose in no time flat" (and then suggests that perhaps she had his [[Difficulty Level]] set to "below novice"). Shown for laughs in [http://xkcd.com/232/ xkcd 232].

** In early episodes of both ''The Original Series'' and ''The Next Generation'', humans who have uploaded their minds into android bodies discover that they have lost some ineffable, illogical, ''human'' quality in the transfer. Despairing at this loss, they choose to terminate their ~~existence -- a~~ strangely emotional reaction for [[Tin Man|beings which now supposedly have none]].

** In early episodes of both ''The Original Series'' and ''The Next Generation'', humans who have uploaded their minds into android bodies discover that they have lost some ineffable, illogical, ''human'' quality in the transfer. Despairing at this loss, they choose to terminate their existence—a strangely emotional reaction for [[Tin Man|beings which now supposedly have none]].

*** Ironically, this is referenced and deconstructed by ''Data'', of all people, in an episode of ''The Next Generation''; a scientist wants to disassemble him and dump his memory into a computer so he could study him and learn how to create more like him, and Data refuses, fully believing in that same ineffable quality to memory and believing he, himself would lose it in the transfer, despite ''himself being an android''. In an attempt to explain this, he compares it to how learning how to play poker from a book isn't the same as actually playing the game, in person, implying that the "ineffable quality" being lost is the personal importance and significance of those experiences, the context which makes the event special for that individual, ~~which -- when~~ read out of that context as a mere descriptive text ~~readout -- cannot~~ be fully understood or ~~appreciated -- an~~ actually logical argument when you think about it.

*** Ironically, this is referenced and deconstructed by ''Data'', of all people, in an episode of ''The Next Generation''; a scientist wants to disassemble him and dump his memory into a computer so he could study him and learn how to create more like him, and Data refuses, fully believing in that same ineffable quality to memory and believing he, himself would lose it in the transfer, despite ''himself being an android''. In an attempt to explain this, he compares it to how learning how to play poker from a book isn't the same as actually playing the game, in person, implying that the "ineffable quality" being lost is the personal importance and significance of those experiences, the context which makes the event special for that individual, which—when read out of that context as a mere descriptive text readout—cannot be fully understood or appreciated—an actually logical argument when you think about it.

**** Also, it isn't that Data thinks the ineffable quality cannot be duplicated, but he believes Bruce Maddox doesn't possess sufficient understanding of Data's construction to fully replicate it. Data encourages Maddox at the end of the episode to continue his research.

** The ''[[Star Trek: The Animated Series|Animated Series]]'' episode "The Magicks of Megas-Tu" neatly subverts or perhaps averts this. In a parallel universe where magic works, McCoy scoffs at Spock's attempt to perform a magical ritual. His reply? "It must work, Doctor. It is ''logical'' -- here."

** Tuvok on ''[[Star Trek: Voyager|Voyager]]'' often acted as a [[Straw Vulcan]].

** Tuvok on ''[[Star Trek: Voyager|Voyager]]'' often acted as a Straw Vulcan.

*** Played with in this dialogue (when captured):

{{quote|'''Tuvok:''' Resistance is illogical.

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{{quote|'''Sulu:''' Mr. Tuvok, if you're going to remain on my ship, you're going to have learn how to appreciate a joke. And don't tell me Vulcans don't have a sense of humor, because I know better.}}

* ''[[Star Trek: Enterprise]]''. Over the course of four years T'Pol undergoes a [[Mind Rape]] that brings up traumatic memories of losing her emotional control in a jazz nightclub, remembers repressed memories of a line-of-duty killing (that also led to a loss of emotional control), suffers from Pa'nar Syndrome that degrades her neural pathways (leading to loss of emotional control), becomes addicted to Trellium-D (which causes loss of emotional control), and is infected by a microbe that makes her undergo a premature ''pon farr'' (leading to loss of emotional control and clothing). It seems that the writers believed that the only way T'Pol's character could develop was to take away the characteristics that made her different from humans.

** While T'Pol is probably the queen of all ~~[[Straw Vulcan|~~Straw Vulcans]], she's also [[The Strawman Strikes Back|often proved completely right]] for [[Idiot Plot|all of the wrong reasons]].

** While T'Pol is probably the queen of all Straw Vulcans, she's also [[The Strawman Strikes Back|often proved completely right]] for [[Idiot Plot|all of the wrong reasons]].

** That said, there was also an episode where the crew met an offshoot culture of Vulcans who ate meat and believed that emotion in moderation was not harmful in the slightest; as long as you had control over your emotions, there was no reason you couldn't allow yourself to feel and express that emotion. They were sort of an exploration of what would happen if you had Vulcans who weren't straw.

** One of the plans for the fifth season ([[What Could Have Been|had there been one]]), was to reveal that T'Pol's father was a Romulan spy, which would go a long way towards explaining her [[Straw Vulcan]] tendencies in the earlier seasons.

** One of the plans for the fifth season ([[What Could Have Been|had there been one]]), was to reveal that T'Pol's father was a Romulan spy, which would go a long way towards explaining her Straw Vulcan tendencies in the earlier seasons.

* Although widely used and occasionally subverted or lampshaded in ''Star Trek,'' as noted in the many examples above, the trope is notably averted in the ''Star Trek: The Next Generation'' episode "Redemption II". In an operation involving a large number of ships and not enough captains to go around, a number of senior officers, including Data, are given command of various ships. Data's first officer repeatedly questions Data's orders and the fitness of an android to command a ship, until Data (seemingly) angrily tells him, "Mr. Hobson! You will carry out my orders or I will relieve you of duty!" Data correctly realizes that the emotional response ''is'' the logical one, necessary in order to motivate Hobson.

* ''[[Farscape]]'' takes delight in simultaneously subverting and playing this trope straight whenever a protagonist's crazy plan ''works'' despite the logical objections of others, but also leads to lasting consequences which ''always'' come back to bite them in the arse. Characters will continually point out this trend, but usually concede to the fact that they're screwed either way and really don't have a choice.

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** The effect of this trope on the viewer was made visible with the "new" Cybermen in "Doomsday": when the Cybermen propose an alliance with the Daleks, they claim to bring "elegance" of design to the table, and manage a subtle dig about the lack of it in the Dalek physical form. As noted above, logic is about how to ''achieve'' goals, not about what those goals are, so there's nothing illogical about the Cybermen prizing "elegance", as they pursue it in a logical fashion. This did not stop a number of fans from shouting "That's not ''logical''!" about the exchange. In fact, "Elegance is good. Cybermen are elegant. Therefore, making more Cybermen makes more elegance, and, by extension, more goodness" is actually a ''far more logical'' motive for their actions than the traditional Cyberman strategy of "Survival is good. Therefore let's send ''our entire race'' off on incredibly risky invasions of Earth following pretty much the same strategy that has failed and led us to near extinction several times already" used repeatedly through the classic series.

*** The 20th century British physicist Paul Dirac would doubtless have had some very stern words to say in response to the suggestion of logic and elegance being mutually exclusive.

*** Just after the Cybermen have boasted of elegance, we see the procedure they go through to fire their built-in weapons. The Dalek's simple point-and-exterminate is far more ~~elegant -- and~~ effective.

*** Just after the Cybermen have boasted of elegance, we see the procedure they go through to fire their built-in weapons. The Dalek's simple point-and-exterminate is far more elegant—and effective.

**** Although as far as logic goes, both sides would be a lot better off spending less time shouting "Delete"/"Exterminate" and [[Just Shoot Him|just shooting already]].

* In ''[[Super Sentai]]'', [[The Hero]] is almost always a loudmouth with more adrenaline than brains (similar to the ''[[Digimon]]'' franchise's [[Goggles Do Nothing|goggle-wearer]]). In an episode of ''Magiranger'' in which [[The Hero]] and his mentor switch roles, the very [[Family-Unfriendly Aesop]] was to not waste your time thinking, and just [[Screaming Warrior|charge in yelling]] as [[The Hero]] does. [[Right Makes Might]], and thinking only gets in the way.

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** Speaking of ''[[Bones]]'', {{spoiler|Zack's decision to work for a cannibalistic serial killer because "his logic is unassailable".}} Really? Even accepting all his premises, where exactly does eating people and making a skeleton from their remains fit in to this plan?

*** Which is why Bones managed to take Gormogon's logic apart in thirty seconds.

* ''[[Stargate SG-1]]''; the hyper-logical Asgard, on the verge of defeat in their war against the Replicators, come to Earth seeking ideas from a more primitive, more savage race. Immediately averted by Jack saying "You're actually saying you need someone dumber than you are?" Carter, as it turns out, is indeed dumb enough to win that battle. The fact that the Asgard, practically alone among [[Sufficiently Advanced Alien~~|Sufficiently Advanced Aliens~~]], are able to acknowledge they are not perfect and, more importantly, humanity and Earth in particular actually have something to contribute is one reason they are such great guys.

* ''[[Stargate SG-1]]''; the hyper-logical Asgard, on the verge of defeat in their war against the Replicators, come to Earth seeking ideas from a more primitive, more savage race. Immediately averted by Jack saying "You're actually saying you need someone dumber than you are?" Carter, as it turns out, is indeed dumb enough to win that battle. The fact that the Asgard, practically alone among [[Sufficiently Advanced Alien]]s, are able to acknowledge they are not perfect and, more importantly, humanity and Earth in particular actually have something to contribute is one reason they are such great guys.

** Of course, the Asgard's main reason for coming is that they are so advanced they have trouble coming up with low-tech solutions (for example, launching pieces of metal at a high speed using a small explosive to deal with targets that have shielding against energy weapons) or solutions to problem their technology can't solve. Which makes sense, as similar things happen IRL. People living in the 21st century would often not think (or even be aware) of several tricks and trades used centuries prior - and not think of using such tricks when they might again be useful (see the [[Real Life]] section of [[Rock Beats Laser]] for example).

* Averted in an episode of ''[[Stargate Atlantis]]''; there's a Ticking [[Time Bomb]] scenario, and one of a daunting number of identical circuits will save the day. Since there's no penalty for guessing, [[The Smart Guy]] is methodically trying each one, but there won't be time for ''all'' of them, so a more empathic, intuitive type tells him to start trying them at random. Smart Guy, quite sensibly, points out that that would mean a chance of trying some of them twice, thus wasting precious seconds.

** Played straight in the first meeting with the Genii. While infiltrating a Wraith Hiveship, Teyla discovers some human prisoners. She becomes emotionally moved and stays behind (with one of the Genii) to free them... except that the success of the mission crucially depends on the Wraith not realizing that it ever took place. After pointing this out to Teyla and being subsequently ignored, the Genii, as the Straw Vulcan of the day, "logically" shoots down the prisoner with his ''unsilenced'' firearm. This, of course, instantly alerts the Wraith; the Genii is shot and paralyzed just after, and Teyla leaves him to die, despite the fact that he's an old friend of hers and the show typically operates on a [[No One Gets Left Behind]] premise. But hey, that's the price you pay for being logical and trying to avoid the deaths of many of your people.

** It's hard to say whether the Genii are meant to be [[~~Jerkass|jerkasses~~]] or Jerkass Straw Vulcans. While they may be said to be overly pragmatic (they do believe in the importance of the Genii people and society over individuals, to rather harsh, but somewhat justified means and ends), they aren't paragons of wisdom, nor are ever said to be logical.

** It's hard to say whether the Genii are meant to be [[jerkass]]es or Jerkass Straw Vulcans. While they may be said to be overly pragmatic (they do believe in the importance of the Genii people and society over individuals, to rather harsh, but somewhat justified means and ends), they aren't paragons of wisdom, nor are ever said to be logical.

* Parodied by ''[[The Colbert Report]],'' where [[Stephen Colbert]]'s character often sets up the "liberal elite" as a [[Straw Vulcan]]. In case you've been living under a rock and don't know this already, we aren't supposed to agree with Colbert's character; the character himself is the real Stephen's [[Strawman Political]].

* Parodied by ''[[The Colbert Report]],'' where [[Stephen Colbert]]'s character often sets up the "liberal elite" as a Straw Vulcan. In case you've been living under a rock and don't know this already, we aren't supposed to agree with Colbert's character; the character himself is the real Stephen's [[Strawman Political]].

* Nick Stokes of ''[[CSI]]'' can make his co-workers look like ~~[[Straw Vulcan|~~Straw Vulcans]] as he is generally more concerned than his co-workers with establishing rapport with the victim's family and keeping the human dynamics of a case in mind. He's not a better CSI per se because of this but he's more suited to the parts of the job the police academy doesn't train you for; giving reassurance to the victim's family and reaching out to reluctant witnesses.

* Nick Stokes of ''[[CSI]]'' can make his co-workers look like Straw Vulcans as he is generally more concerned than his co-workers with establishing rapport with the victim's family and keeping the human dynamics of a case in mind. He's not a better CSI per se because of this but he's more suited to the parts of the job the police academy doesn't train you for; giving reassurance to the victim's family and reaching out to reluctant witnesses.

* The Professor from ''[[Gilligan's Island]]'' although it's more "imagination is better than logic." Honestly, after all the stuff that goes on on that island you'd think the Professor would EVENTUALLY realize that science isn't going to work there.

** Then again, you would think he would come to the logical solution to keep Gilligan far from any experiment or device he is building. By force, if necessary.

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* Tech-Priests in ''[[Warhammer 40000]]''.

** To be fair, most characters in the lore think they are straight up nuts and their methods of fixing stuff are not so much logical as they are religious doctrines. The rite of pressing the "on" rune is a common one. It involves much prayer and chanting.

* A variation of this can happen to Alchemicals in ''[[Exalted]]'' ~~-- as~~ they grow into cities, install Exemplar charms, or go long periods without human interaction, they accumulate Clarity. The sourcebook for Alchemicals goes out of its way to point out that this means they focus on efficiency and do not become needlessly cruel.

* A variation of this can happen to Alchemicals in ''[[Exalted]]''—as they grow into cities, install Exemplar charms, or go long periods without human interaction, they accumulate Clarity. The sourcebook for Alchemicals goes out of its way to point out that this means they focus on efficiency and do not become needlessly cruel.

** [[Subverted Trope|On the other hand]], most can become aware of this and are usually willing to at least listen to their more emotional advisers.

* In ''[[Genius: The Transgression]]'', we have Atomists, the [[Well-Intentioned Extremist|Lemurian]] technocrats. They believe every problem can be solved with technology... including social ones. When you combine this with their literal insanity it has [[The Computer Is Your Friend|predictable]] [[Dystopia|results]].

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== Web Comics ==

* [http://www.angryflower.com/whichb.html This] episode of ''[[Bob the Angry Flower]]'' exhibits typical straw logic. Meanwhile acting ''extremely'' emotional. "Stop trying to control me!" indeed.

* Parodied in ''[[Fans]]!'', where one of the [[Big Bad]]'s plots was to go back in time and insert more instances of this trope into ~~fiction -- thus~~ making all of humanity stupider as a whole.

* Parodied in ''[[Fans]]!'', where one of the [[Big Bad]]'s plots was to go back in time and insert more instances of this trope into fiction—thus making all of humanity stupider as a whole.

* ''[[Shortpacked]]'' parodies an instance of this from ''[[G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra]]'' in [http://www.shortpacked.com/index.php?id=980 this strip].

** Willis labeled the strip "Is this something already covered by [[TV Tropes]]? I haven't checked yet." in his update blog.