![]() ![]() Red herring fallacies are often used to obfuscate and derail a conversation, rather than facilitate a debate. Red herring fallacies are particularly troublesome not only because they’re fallacious, but also because they can completely stall any debate or conversation. That is why it’s extremely important to be able to point out when someone is presenting irrelevant information in their argument. However, the novel later reveals that Aringarosa is actually innocent, and other people are pulling the strings. Aringarosa’s character is meant to distract and mislead the reader so that the end reveal is more surprising (Fun fact: the Italian name “Aringarosa” translates to “red herring” in English. In debate and rhetoric, red herring fallacies occur when someone presents a piece of information that is actually irrelevant to the topic being discussed. A red herring can be a way to dodge a question, avoid talking about some point, or distract from the main issue. Politician A: “I have been working hard to make this country successful for its citizens, unlike my opponent, who favors completely open borders and mass generational immigration.” Reporter: “What steps would you take to deal with current issues involving immigration in the US?” Imagine the following conversation between a reporter and a politician: Here is a simple example of a red herring fallacy. Politician A is clearly committing a red herring fallacy. In response to a question asking about their views on immigration, A instead talks about his opponent’s stances. Even if it’s true that their opponent wants open borders and such, it is irrelevant to the topic at hand. The reporter did not ask a question about their opponent’s views on immigration. John: “Oh yeah? What about that time you didn’t show up to my birthday party?” Consider this conversation:īob: “I’m disappointed you broke your promise and didn’t help me move.” Red herring fallacies also pop up in more benign, everyday contexts. John’s statement commits the red herring fallacy. It’s a red herring because it is irrelevant to the context. John broke a promise and Bob has a legitimate grievance. Instead of addressing that, John brings up a completely different issue that is irrelevant to the current context. Red herring fallacies are often used in debate contexts to shift the topic of conversation. It is often used when one person wants to avoid a line of questioning or avoid committing to a specific position. ![]() Red herring fallacies function to derail conversations, which is why they can be so frustrating. Red herrings are not so much a matter of logic but rhetoric. In that sense, red herring fallacies are informal fallacies. As such, red herring fallacies do not really have a logical structure, which is one reason why they are fallacious. Red herrings are non-sequiturs-they do not follow from the previous premises of the argument. In one sense, all logical fallacies are a kind of red herring in that all fallacies highlight irrelevant justifications for an asserted conclusion. Fallacies occur when someone’s argument is more or less irrelevant to their conclusion. More specifically, red herrings can be considered a kind of fallacy of relevance, along with other common logical fallacies such as ad hominem or appeals to authority ( argumentum ad verecundiam). In all of these cases, fallacies of relevance work by bringing up things that are not relevant to the context or argument at hand. ![]() Red herrings are also commonly seen in conjunction with false dichotomies and slippery slope arguments. Black Lives Matter and Black-on-Black Crime False dichotomies can be a kind of red herring to obscure alternate positions or a slippery slope argument can function as a red herring by highlighting an irrelevant chain of cause and effect. “Black Lives Matter protestors claim to care about black lives, but they are hypocrites. They never say anything about the dozens of black people killed every day due to gang violence in Chicago. ![]()
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