fallacies review

ad hominem

Latin for "against the man." When a writer personally attacks his or her opponents instead of their arguments.

ad populum

this fallacy occurs when evidence boils down to "everyone is doing it, so it must be a good thing to do"

appeal to false authority

This fallacy occurs when someone who has no expertise to speak on an issue is cited as an authority. A TV star, for instance, is not a medical expert, even though pharmaceutical advertisements often use celebrity endorsements.

straw man

A fallacy that occurs when a speaker chooses a deliberately poor or oversimplified example in order to ridicule or refute an idea

red herring

When a speaker skips to a new and irrelevant topic in order to avoid the topic of discussion.

appeal to pity

An argument that involves an irrelevant or highly exaggerated appeal to pity or sympathy

tu quoque

A type of ad hominem argument in which a person turns a charge back on the accuser