--- title: "The Terrible Twos: Power and Pitfalls of Dichotomies" description: "Dichotomies place two terms in opposition. The problem is that they’re often false. Such terms are often not mutually exclusive or exhaustive." url: "https://eliteprep.com/blog/2018/1/6/on-false-dichotomies/" image: "https://media.eliteprep.com/Elite%2BBlog%2BImage%2BDichotomies-webp-card.jpg" language: "en" datePublished: "2018-01-06T19:51:58.000Z" source: "eliteprep build" --- [Writing](https://eliteprep.com/blog/category/writing/) # The Terrible Twos: On the Power and Pitfalls of Dichotomies January 6, 2018 3 min read [Find a center](https://eliteprep.com/locations/) ![The Terrible Twos: On the Power and Pitfalls of False Dichotomies](https://eliteprep.com/media/Elite%2BBlog%2BImage%2BDichotomies-webp-w800.webp) This post is 8 years old. Test formats, deadlines and admissions policies may have changed since it was published. [See newer posts about Writing](https://eliteprep.com/blog/category/writing/) In my [last piece on the Rule of Three](https://eliteprep.com/blog/2017/12/6/the-rule-of-three/), I touched briefly on how writers use numbers to create convincing arguments or memorable images. This piece expands on *twos*—specifically, the uses and abuses of dichotomies. The East and the West. Good and evil. Black and white. Friends and enemies. Rich and poor. Body and mind. Democrats and Republicans. Dichotomies such as these place two terms in opposition. The problem with such dichotomies is that they’re often false. Such terms are often not mutually exclusive or exhaustive. That is, these terms can sometimes overlap, or we’ll find there’s a third or fourth option that such dichotomies conceal. Take, for instance, a line often adapted by politicians and comic book villains: “You’re either with us or against us.” ## **The Error of False Dichotomies** The line was invoked famously by U.S. President George W. Bush shortly after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. In an [address to a joint session of Congress and the American people](https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2001/09/20010920-8.html), Bush employed this dichotomy to stir up support for an upcoming War on Terror: > Americans should not expect one battle, but a lengthy campaign, unlike any other we have ever seen. It may include dramatic strikes, visible on TV, and covert operations, secret even in success. We will starve terrorists of funding, turn them one against another, drive them from place to place, until there is no refuge or no rest. And we will pursue nations that provide aid or safe haven to terrorism. Every nation, in every region, now has a decision to make. Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists. From this day forward, any nation that continues to harbor or support terrorism will be regarded by the United States as a hostile regime. Bush’s central point is crystal clear: “Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists.” But just what that dichotomy entails is a bit murkier. In the previous line, he explains that the U.S. “will pursue nations that provide aid or safe haven to terrorism”; the nation will treat “any nation that continues to harbor or support terrorism” as a “hostile regime.” It’s as if there are only two kinds of nations in the world: those who support U.S. war efforts on one side and nations that harbor terrorists on the other. But of course, the War in Iraq—President Bush’s principal initiative in the War on Terror—would soon have plenty of opponents around the world, almost none of which “harbor\[ed] or support\[ed] terrorism.” We might rebuke President Bush for committing a logical fallacy, but that would be a bit naïve. The complete picture is a bit more complex. ## **The Power of False Dichotomies** When read closely, President Bush’s speech seems to conflate all nations opposed to U.S. war efforts with nations that harbor terrorists. While that’s a false equivalency, it creates a powerful rhetorical effect. The power—and problem—of “you’re either with us or against us” is that, like all dichotomies, it organizes a problem into two neat categories that equip us with the mental armature for immediate action. It’s difficult work to unpack [what really differentiates the East and the West](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/nov/09/western-civilisation-appiah-reith-lecture) (or which nations belong to each category), to determine where an individual or an action belongs on the spectrum of “good” and “evil,” or what’s the best course of action for all nations following a large-scale international catastrophe. Dichotomies make quick work of these complex questions by giving us just two options. Often, as in the case of President Bush’s speech, dichotomies draw their rhetorical power from the fact that one of the options seems so unattractive or immoral we’re left thinking that there is only one real choice. Dichotomies often present two options while espousing only one. For these reasons, dichotomies, while often false, are rhetorically powerful. They reduce complex issues into two simple and easily defined paths. The uncertainties and contradictions of life become transformed into the simplicity of a true-or-false quiz. ![Smiling man with dark hair in a gray blazer and checked shirt against a cream background](https://media.eliteprep.com/LA_Stephen_P_2017_1-4.webp) *__Stephen P.__ is a writer and teacher based in Los Angeles. He has taught literature and writing courses at several universities and has taught writing and reading at Elite Prep Los Angeles since 2010.* ## **Learn more about Elite's programs...** ![SAT Prep at Elite](https://media.eliteprep.com/SAT-Prep.webp) ![Silhouette of a student studying at a laptop by a window, with the words "AP Prep" across the image](https://media.eliteprep.com/AP-Prep.webp) ![Small Group GPA Management at Elite](https://media.eliteprep.com/Small%2BGroup%2BGPA%2BManagement.webp) ![Individual Tutoring at Elite](https://media.eliteprep.com/Individual%2BTutoring.webp) ![Students seated at a classroom table with pencils and paper, overlaid with the words "ACT Prep"](https://media.eliteprep.com/ACT-Prep.webp) ![Row of upright books with the text "SAT Subject Test Prep" across a red banner](https://media.eliteprep.com/SAT-Subject-Test-Prep.webp) ![Paper garlands of stars and flowers strung above a stairwell, with the banner text "Elite Jr. Courses".](https://media.eliteprep.com/Elite-Jr-Courses.webp) ![Microphone in front of a blurred auditorium audience, with the banner text "Speech & Debate"](https://media.eliteprep.com/Speech-and-Debate.webp) [Back to top](https://eliteprep.com/blog/2018/1/6/on-false-dichotomies/#top) ## More on This Topic [All posts in Writing](https://eliteprep.com/blog/category/writing/) ![Understanding Arguments: The Rule of Three](https://media.eliteprep.com/Elite%2BBlog%2BImage%2BRule%2Bof%2BThree-webp-w400.webp) [Writing](https://eliteprep.com/blog/category/writing/) ### [Understanding Arguments: The Rule of Three](https://eliteprep.com/blog/2017/12/6/the-rule-of-three/) You may have encountered this writing principle in the Declaration of Independence, fairy tales, novels, or even Aristotle’s Rhetoric. December 4, 2017 ![Title card reading "The Problem and Appeal of the Slippery Slope" over a green-tinted photo of a neoclassical columned memorial building.](https://media.eliteprep.com/Elite%2BBlog%2BImage%2BSlippery%2BSlope-webp-w400.webp) [Writing](https://eliteprep.com/blog/category/writing/) ### [The Problem and Appeal of the Slippery Slope](https://eliteprep.com/blog/2018/3/26/the-problem-and-appeal-of-the-slippery-slope/) For nearly as long as I can remember, I have heard media pundits, teachers, and peers mention the slippery slope by name—not as a logical fallacy… March 29, 2018 Stephen P. ![Students at a table under an orange wash, with text: "Can I use "I" and "me" in an academic essay?"](https://media.eliteprep.com/Elite%2BBlog%2BImage%2BI%2Band%2BMe-webp-w400.webp) [Writing](https://eliteprep.com/blog/category/writing/) [Grammar](https://eliteprep.com/blog/category/grammar/) ### [Can I Use “I” and “Me” in an Academic Essay?](https://eliteprep.com/blog/2018/3/12/i-and-me-in-academic-essay/) Typically, this question stems from a student’s experience with a high school or middle school teacher who advised, even commanded, students to never… March 12, 2018 Stephen P. ![The Do's and Don'ts of Emailing College Admissions Counselors and Professors](https://media.eliteprep.com/Elite%2BBlog%2BImage%2BEmail-webp-w400.webp) [Writing](https://eliteprep.com/blog/category/writing/) ### [The Do’s and Don’ts of Emailing College Admissions Officers and Professors](https://eliteprep.com/blog/2018/4/17/emailing-college-admissions-officials/) As communication technologies change, so too does digital etiquette. There are ever-evolving, unspoken rules, for instance… April 17, 2018 Stephen P. ## Ready to Discuss Your Options? Each Elite Prep center sets its own class schedule and hours. Find the center nearest you and contact its staff for current schedules. [Find a center](https://eliteprep.com/locations/) [Browse programs](https://eliteprep.com/programs/)