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Red herring fallacy real life example
Red herring fallacy real life example













In the story “The Red-Headed League,” Holmes investigates a case in which a man has been lured away from his job by an advertisement in the newspaper. One famous example of a red herring fallacy comes from the Sherlock Holmes stories by Arthur Conan Doyle. When somebody does something wrong and tries to make you feel bad about it, they don’t have to own up to their mistakes.

red herring fallacy real life example

Sound familiar? If so, chances are good you’ve been on the receiving end of this type of deflective behavior before. But unlike you, I called to let you know.” “Well, I’m sorry I had to work late too.“I’m sorry I didn’t call when I said I would, but I was busy at work.”.Let’s say your partner does something that upsets you, and instead of apologizing, they start listing all the things you have done wrong to make you feel guilty, so they don’t have to take responsibility for their actions. Here’s a classic example of a red herring that happens all too often in relationships. All because your friend didn’t want to talk about GMOs in the first place. Now you’re stuck debating whether or not organic food is worth the cost instead of whether or not GMO foods are safe. Your friend has just committed a red herring fallacy because they’ve changed the subject from GMOs to organics without addressing your argument. Rather than engaging you in a thoughtful discussion about why they believe GMO foods are safe, they start talking about how organic food is overpriced and not worth the money. You express your opinion that GMO foods are dangerous and should be banned, but one of your friends disagrees. Let’s say you’re out to dinner with friends and the topic of genetically modified foods comes up. This was politician A’s intention all along by bringing up an unrelated topic, they could change the conversation’s focus and put Politician B on the back foot. Now instead of debating gun control, they’re on the defensive about their personal beliefs on abortion. This completely throws Politician B off because they weren’t expecting the conversation to veer off into such territory. Politician A argues that guns should be banned outright, while Politician B believes there should be stricter background checks for people who want to purchase firearms.ĭuring the debate, Politician A starts talking about how Politician B’s stance on abortion is anti-woman. Here, we have two politicians arguing about what should be done about gun control in America. The first example of a red herring we’ll look at comes from the world of politics. Here are three examples of red herrings in arguments from the real world. William Cobbett popularized the term Red Herring in 1807 as a bedtime story, but people started using them in real life. By becoming familiar with this logical fallacy, you can arm yourself against being pulled into fruitless arguments by others. In this blog post, we’ll look at some examples of red herrings so you can learn to spot them when they come up in your life. If you’re ever in a discussion and you feel like the person you’re talking to is trying to distract you with topics that have nothing to do with what you’re discussing, chances are you’re being baited with a red herring. Red herrings are often used in political discourse, as well as in everyday casual conversations. Look For Information That’s Irrelevant Or Tangential.Red Herring Example From Sherlock Holmes.Red Herring Examples From The Real World.These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'red herring.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.

red herring fallacy real life example

2022 This red herring argument misses the point.

red herring fallacy real life example

Laura Jane Standley, The Atlantic, 30 Dec. 2023 In Seed Money, wealth is a red herring. 2023 Elizabeth Warren and other progressives are trying to blame rule changes made during the Trump presidency for the lack of regulatory oversight, but that is a red herring. Paul Cappiello, The Courier-Journal, 8 Mar. 2023 But this may be a bit of a red herring. David Zahniser, Los Angeles Times, 2 Apr.

red herring fallacy real life example

2023 The brief questioning of Kuehl and Hahn was ultimately somewhat of a red herring - prosecutors did not claim that Ridley-Thomas pressured his colleagues on the board to vote one way or another. 2023 The industry’s latest red herring? - David Mitchell, STAT, 17 Feb. Jessica Ferri, Los Angeles Times, 24 Apr. Recent Examples on the Web The concept of ethical consumption is a red herring.















Red herring fallacy real life example