Ad Hominem (Argument to the Man) Flashcards
Attacking the person instead of his argument.
Ad Hominem
“Von Daniken’s books about ancient astronauts are worthless because he is a convicted forger and embezzler.”
Ad Hominem
Simply attempting to make the other person angry, without trying to address the argument at hand. Delaying tactic.
Needling
“Well, you’re just smarter than the rest of us.”
Dismissal by Differentness
A wink at an audience, or clowning in their general direction.
Argument by Personal Charm
Attacking an exaggerated or caricatured version of your opponent’s position.
Straw Man (Fallacy of Extension)
“evolution means a dog giving birth to a cat.”
Straw Man (Fallacy of Extension)
“Senator Jones says that we should not fund the attack submarine program. I disagree entirely. I can’t understand why he wants to leave us defenseless like that.”
Straw Man (Fallacy of Extension)
On the internet, exaggerating the opponent’s position so that a comparison can be made between the opponent and Hitler.
Straw Man (Fallacy of Extension)
“Two historians debated whether Hitler killed five million Jews or six million Jews. A Holocaust denier argued that this disagreement made his claim credible, even though his death count is 3-10 times smaller than the known minimum.
Inflation of Conflict
“The defendant in a murder trial must be found guilty, because otherwise husbands will be encouraged to murder their wives.”
Argument from Adverse Consequences (Appeal to Fear, Scare Tactics)
Using the arguments that support your position, but ignoring or somehow disallowing the arguments against.
Special Pleading (Stacking the Deck)
Assuming there are only two alternatives when in face there are more. Ex. Atheism is the only alternative to Fundamentalism.
Excluded Middle (False Dichotomy, Faulty Dilemma, Bifurcation)
The claim that whatever has not yet been proved false must be true (or vice versa).
Burden of Proof
Asking your opponent a question which does not have a snappy answer. Your opponent has a choice: he can look weak or he can look long-winded.
Argument by Question
“When are we going to give the old folks of this country the pension they deserve?”
Argument by Rhetorical Question
“Have you stopped beating your wife?”
Loaded Question
Over-simplifying. As Einstein said, everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler. Political slogans such as “Taxation is theft” fall in this category.
Reductive Fallacy (Oversimplification)
If an argument or arguer has some particular origin, the argument must be right (or wrong). The idea is that things from that origin, or that social class, have virtue or lack virtue.
Genetic Fallacy (Fallacy of Origins, Fallacy of Virtue)
If you learn the psychological reason why your opponent likes an argument, then he’s biased, so his argument must be wrong.
Psychogenetic Fallacy
Snobbery that very old (or very young) arguments are superior. Variation of the Genetic Fallacy, but has the psychological appeal of seniority and tradition (or innovation).
Argument from Age (Wisdom of the Ancients)
Ideas from elsewhere are made unwelcome. “This is the way we’ve always done it.” Innovations will upset matters. Local ways are superior, local identity is worth any cost… etc.
Not Invented Here
Arguing that evidence will someday be discovered which will (then) support your point.
Argument to the Future
Discrediting the sources used by your opponent. Variation of Ad Hominem
Poisoning the Wells
Using emotionally loaded words to sway the audience’s sentiments instead of their minds.
Argument by Emotive Language (Appeal to the People)
Getting the audience to cut you slack. Ex. Ronald Reagan “Join the winning team.”
Argument by Personal Charm
“I did not murder my mother and father with an axe ! Please don’t find me guilty. I’m suffering enough being an orphan.”
Appeal to Pity (Appeal to Sympathy, The Galileo Argument)
Threats, or even violence. On the net, the usual threat is of a lawsuit. The traditional religious threat is that one will burn in Hell.
Appeal to Force
Being loud. UPPERCASE
Argument by Vehemence
Reasoning in a circle. “We must have a death penalty to discourage violent crime.”
Begging the Question (Assuming the Answer, Tautology)
The claim that the speaker is an expert, and so should be trusted.
Argument from Authority
“I’m not a doctor, but I play one on TV.”
Argument From False Authority
“Experts agree that…”, “scientists say…” or even “they say…” This makes the information impossible to verify, and brings up the very real possibility that the arguer himself doesn’t know who the experts are. In that case, he may just be spreading a rumor.
Appeal To Anonymous Authority
“I used to believe in X.” This is simply a weak form of asserting expertise. The speaker is implying that he has learned about the subject, and now that he is better informed, he has rejected X. So perhaps he is now an authority, and this is an implied Argument From Authority.
Statement of Conversion
“I used to think that way when I was your age.” The speaker hasn’t said what is wrong with your argument: he is merely claiming that his age has made him an expert.
Statement of Conversion
Claiming that two situations are highly similar, when they aren’t. “The solar system reminds me of an atom, with planets orbiting the sun like electrons orbiting the nucleus. We know that electrons can jump from orbit to orbit; so we must look to ancient records for sightings of planets jumping from orbit to orbit also.”
Bad Analogy
There is a WWII story about a British lady who was trained in spotting German airplanes. She made a report about a certain very important type of plane. While being quizzed, she explained that she hadn’t been sure, herself, until she noticed that it had a little man in the cockpit, just like the little model airplane at the training class.
Argument From Spurious Similarity
An abstract thing is talked about as if it were concrete. “Nature abhors a vacuum.”
Reifying
Assuming that because two things happened, the first one caused the second one. Ex. “Before women got the vote, there were no nuclear weapons.” or, “Every time my brother Bill accompanies me to Fenway Park, the Red Sox are sure to lose.”
False Cause
When sales of hot chocolate go up, street crime drops. Does this correlation mean that hot chocolate prevents crime? No, it means that fewer people are on the streets when the weather is cold.
Confusing Correlation and Causation
The bigger a child’s shoe size, the better the child’s handwriting. Does having big feet make it easier to write? No, it means the child is older.
Confusing Correlation and Causation
Using as evidence a well-known wise saying, as if that is proven, or as if it has no exceptions.
Cliche Thinking
The claim, as evidence for an idea, that many people believe it, or used to believe it, or do it.
Appeal to Widespread Belief (Bandwagon Argument, Peer Pressure, Appeal to Common Practice)
Assuming that what is true of the whole is true of each constituent part. Ex. human beings are made of atoms, and human beings are conscious, so atoms must be conscious.
Fallacy of Division
