Ad Hominem
The ad hominem attack is a logical fallacy associated with trying to undermine the opponent's arguments by personal attacks, through attacking their character or skill level, etc. The ad hominem attack uses an accepted fact about a person to undermine their credibility despite the lack of causal connection between the two parts of the argument.
Example of Ad Hominem
- Bill claims that this was an accident, but we know Bill to be a liar, so we can't take his word for it.
Even though Bill may be a liar, his character does not automatically make anything he says untrue. - Susan is an avid hunter, therefor she cannot possibly support gun control.
Being a hunter is used as a negative characteristic to make a conclusion which could very well be untrue. Susan could support a variety of gun control elgislation.
Short for: Argumentum Ad Hominem
Books About Logical Fallacies
A few books to help you get a real handle on logical fallacies.
