Ad hominem facts for kids
Ad hominem is a Latin phrase. It describes a type of argument often used in rhetoric. Rhetoric is the skill of speaking well. It also means convincing others of your ideas.
In English, ad hominem means against the person. This means that when someone uses an ad hominem, they are attacking the person they are arguing with. They are not attacking what the person is saying.
The term comes from the Latin word homo, which means human. Hominem is a gender-neutral form of homo. In ancient Rome, it meant all free human beings.
An ad hominem argument can use a person's reputation, rumors, or hearsay. The goal is to change the minds of people listening. This can work better if a social network has already put a negative label on someone. Or if they have already excluded that person.
Most of the time, an ad hominem is seen as a weak argument. It is not liked in courts or in diplomacy.
However, ad hominems are not always wrong. For example, if people think someone cannot be trusted, then things they have said before can be doubted.
Contents
What an Ad Hominem Argument Looks Like
In logic, a proof starts with premises. These are basic statements. Then, it uses a few logical arguments. Finally, it reaches a conclusion.
A Normal (Valid) Proof
Here is an example of a normal, valid argument:
- All humans are mortal (meaning they will die).
- Socrates is a man (he is human).
- Therefore, Socrates is mortal.
This argument uses facts to reach a clear conclusion.
An Ad Hominem Example
Here is an example of an ad hominem argument:
- Person A thinks fishing should be illegal.
- Person A is uneducated and poor.
- Therefore, fishing should not be illegal.
In this example, the argument attacks Person A. It uses the fact that Person A is uneducated and poor. This fact has nothing to do with whether fishing should be illegal. This is why it is an ad hominem argument. It attacks the person, not their idea.
Related pages
- Fallacy for a list of other types of (false) rhetorical arguments.
Images for kids
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Aristotle (384–322 BC) was the first philosopher who distinguished arguments attacking a thesis or attacking other persons.
See also
In Spanish: Argumento ad hominem para niños
