(Kim Kardashian’s wardrobe choice has nothing to do with the speaker’s colleague’s work situation.) How to Avoid Committing the Red Herring Fallacy “I know you’re upset about what happened at work, but have you seen what Kim Kardashian was wearing yesterday?” (The fact that wealthy people pay most of the taxes in this country is irrelevant to whether or not taxes should be raised.) “I don’t think we should raise taxes on the wealthy because they already pay most of the taxes in this country.” Here are some more examples of statements that commit the red herring fallacy: extraterrestrial life has nothing to do with whether or not humans should colonize Mars, so this is clearly a red herring fallacy. Your opponent brings up the fact that, according to a recent study, one-third of Americans believe that extraterrestrial life exists. This diversionary tactic can be difficult to spot, but there are some telltale signs that you can look for.įor example, imagine you’re debating whether or not humans should colonize Mars. In the same way, a red herring fallacy derails a conversation by introducing an irrelevant topic. The strong smell of the fish would distract the dogs from their prey, leading them astray. The name “red herring” comes from the practice of using smoked herring as a training tool for hunting dogs. It can be difficult to spot because it appears to be relevant at first glance. This fallacious argument is often used in political debates and in courtrooms. It’s a logical fallacy that occurs when someone introduces an irrelevant topic to the conversation in order to divert attention away from the original issue. The red herring fallacy is a type of false dilemma. If you’re ever in an argument and you notice that the other person is using a fallacy of relevance, be sure to point it out so that you can focus on the evidence instead. Fallacies of relevance are often used in arguments to distract from the actual evidence, or to try and make the other person look bad instead of focusing on the argument itself. However, just because something is persuasive doesn’t mean that it’s true. This is because even if the person I’m debating with is an idiot, that doesn’t mean that they’re wrong about the shape of the earth.įallacies of relevance are often used in arguments because they can be persuasive. For example, if I were debating with someone about whether or not the earth is round, and I said “Well you’re an idiot so you must be wrong” then I would be committing a fallacy of relevance. This is because even though the moon may be round, that doesn’t have anything to do with the shape of the earth.Īnother example of a fallacy of relevance is when someone uses personal attacks instead of actual evidence to try and disprove someone else’s argument. For example, if I were trying to prove that the earth is flat, and I said “Well everyone knows that the moon is round, and since the moon orbits around the earth, that must mean that the earth is also round” then I would be using a fallacy of relevance. Fallacies of relevance are when someone uses information that is not related to the topic to try and prove their point.
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