ThinkCritical.eu · Manipulation atlas
Flawed argumentsAd hominem
Attacking the person making the argument instead of the argument itself.
Instead of asking whether someone is right, people focus on who they are – their age, where they live, their education, their past or their supposed motives. That doesn't refute the argument at all.
At a parents' meeting: “What would he know about school lunches? He hasn't got children and he failed maths at school.” Not a word about the proposal itself – what the lunch costs and what's in it.
How to spot it
- The talk shifts from the proposal to the person: “he's got no right to talk”.
- Hidden motives are implied: “there's bound to be money behind it”.
- Mocking someone's looks, age, background or past.
How to check and what to do
- Go back to the point: what exactly is the person claiming, and what is their evidence?
- Ask: “If someone else had said the same thing, would it be a good argument?”
- Judge the proposal on the facts – costs, benefits, evidence.
Tip: It is worth knowing about someone's interests or conflicts of interest – as a reason to look at the evidence more carefully, not a reason to skip it.
Full explanation and exercises:
thinkcritical.eu/en/manipulation-atlas/ad-hominem