Difference between revisions of "Ad hominem"
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(people who insult you are all liars, you might think) |
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It casts doubt on what a person is saying because of (imputed) flaws in the person which are unrelated to the matter at hand. | It casts doubt on what a person is saying because of (imputed) flaws in the person which are unrelated to the matter at hand. | ||
| − | + | For example, the statement 'Richard Wagner was an opera composer much admired by the Nazis' might be considered an ad hominem attack on Wagner's music. It is true, and in some contexts might be a relevant comment. But if someone says it in order to suggest that Wagner was a bad composer, it's an ad hominem attack, because whether some bad people liked his music is not a relevant comment on the quality of his music. | |
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[[Category:Logical fallacy]] | [[Category:Logical fallacy]] | ||
Revision as of 10:47, April 4, 2007
Ad hominem means "against the man", rather than against what the man is saying. This Latin phrase describes one of the oldest known logical fallacies.
It casts doubt on what a person is saying because of (imputed) flaws in the person which are unrelated to the matter at hand.
For example, the statement 'Richard Wagner was an opera composer much admired by the Nazis' might be considered an ad hominem attack on Wagner's music. It is true, and in some contexts might be a relevant comment. But if someone says it in order to suggest that Wagner was a bad composer, it's an ad hominem attack, because whether some bad people liked his music is not a relevant comment on the quality of his music.