RLogical Fallacy

Appeal to Emotion

Description

Appeal to Emotion replaces proof with feeling: fear, pity, anger, and pride are asked to rule where evidence should rule.

Why This Works

It works because passion is swift and analysis is slow. In heated moments, people accept force of feeling as force of argument.

Example 1

“If you cared about families, you would support this now,” offered in place of policy evidence.

Example 2

A dramatic anecdote is used to dismiss broad statistical findings without engaging them.