Ad hominem—short for
argumentum ad hominem (Latin:
“argument against the man”)—is a fallacy committed when
one attacks the character of an opponent, as opposed to truth of
their evidence or validity of their argument. The ad hominem
fallacy can take several forms, most commonly:
Abusive attacks, in which one
belittles the character of someone, rather than addressing their
evidence, for example:
Attorney: “Mr. Smith's testimony
should not be trusted. He is a burglar, and as we all know, burglars
are all dishonest.”
Tu quoque (Latin “you
also”), in which one refutes the argument of an opponent based on
the fact that they have acted inconsistently or made inconsistent
claims in the past, for example:
Parent (to child): “You shouldn't
smoke cigarettes, they're bad for your health.”
Child: “Why should I listen to what
you say, you smoked when you were my age!”
The parent may be a hypocrite, but that
doesn't make their argument any less sound!
Guilt by association, in which
one attacks an opponent by associating them with another person or
group who happens to hold the same opinion, for example:
Person: “I believe socialized medicine is superior to privatized medicine for X and Y reasons.”
Talk Show Host: “You know, Nazi
Germany also believed in socialized medicine. Anyone who supports
socialized medicine must be a Nazi, so therefore you must be a Nazi.”
Circumstantial, in which the
attacker calls into question the reliability of someone's claims
because they may be predisposed to hold a certain opinion, for
example:
Woman: “I support the right of a
woman to have an abortion for X and Y reasons.”
Politician: “Of course you would be
pro-choice; after all, you are a woman.”
Sometimes, if there is a clear conflict
of interest it is completely valid to question the reliability of
someone's statement; however, that does not automatically make their
argument invalid.
Ad hominem arguments are used
when people do not have sufficient evidence to back up their own
claims or refute their opponent's claims, and so they resort to
attacking the arguer's character instead. It is a result of lazy
thinking, and is often used to manipulate the emotions of people and
sway their opinion—particularly among those who do not recognize
it as a fallacy. The best way to avoid using ad hominems
is through careful preparation and gathering of information, so you can refute your
opponents arguments without resorting to unfair and fallacious
attacks against their character. And remember: no matter how mean or
hypocritical a person may be, their character has no bearing on the validity of
their argument—what matters is the truth of the evidence they provide and
the logical strength of their argument!
Sorry for the ad nauseam explanation :)
Sorry for the ad nauseam explanation :)
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