Reductio ad Hitlerum
refutation of a view by comparing it to the Nazi Party From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Reductio ad Hitlerum, also known as playing the Hitler card, is a logical fallacy described by Leo Strauss, a philosopher, in 1951.[1][2] It happens when someone compares their opponent's view with Hitler or something that he did.[3]
It is a form of ad hominem, distracting from the argument by criticizing the opponent. It works because in the modern world, people think of Nazism as a bad thing.[4]
During the 2016 US Presidential Election, Republican candidate Donald J. Trump has been repeatedly compared to Hitler by commentators and comedians.[5][6]
An example is as follows:
- Person 1 suggests that X is true.
- Person 2 says that Hitler said that too, and so X is not true.
As person 2 has criticized the opponent as opposed to the argument by comparing them to Hitler without giving any reasons as to why X is not true, they have committed reductio ad Hitlerum.
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