Literary Terms Katlin Lee Kourtney Quiel Sammi Zitar

Literary Terms Katlin Lee, Kourtney Quiel, Sammi Zitar, and Rebecca Worden

Red Herring Katlin Lee

Definition A Red Herring is a literary device used in argument. This is an irrelevant topic inserted in an argument to distract the audience from the main issue. These are often used in suspense novels to mislead readers, or cause them to make false assumptions. Definition paraphrased from: http: //literarydevices. net/redherring/

Example “You asked what I’ve done to counteract global warming. In my first two years in office, we’ve had lower than average temperatures. ” Example taken from: http: //www. literarydevices. com/redherring/

Your turn! Now write your own example of a Red Herring.

Faulty Analogy Sammi Zitar

Definition

Ad Hominem Rebecca Worden

Definition An Ad Hominem is an argument directed against a person rather than the position they are maintaining.

Example “How can you argue your case for vegetarianism when you are enjoying your steak? ” Example Taken: http: //literarydevices. net/ad-hominem

Your Turn! Write your own example of an Ad Hominem.

Straw Man Fallacy Kourtney Quiel

Definition A Straw Man Fallacy is when an argument is completely disregarded by misinterpreting, exaggerating or completely ignoring an argument. This allows the counter-argument to appear more reasonable.

Example After Will said that we should put more money into health and education, Warren responded by saying that he was surprised that Will hates our country so much that he wants to leave it defenceless by cutting military spending.

Your Turn! Write an example of your own Straw Man Fallacy.