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authority, appeal to
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 Related Terms
• philosophy
• fallacy
• ad hominem

 

Definition:
Also known as argumentum ad verecundiam, an appeal to authority is an informal fallacy which involves arguing that we should accept a claim simply because of some personal feature of the individual who makes the claim.

Sometimes, such an appeal can be legitimate - but usually it is illegitimate. The appeal to authority is a mirror image of the ad hominem argument.

Also Known As: argumentum ad verecundiam

Alternate Spellings: none

Common Misspellings: none

Related Resources:

What is the Logic and the Philosophy of Language?
The two fields Logic and the Philosophy of Language are often treated separately, but they are nevertheless close enough that they are presented together here. Logic is the study of methods of reasoning and argumentation, both proper and improper. The Philosophy of Language, on the other hand, involves the study of how our language interacts with our thinking.

What is Philosophy?
What is philosophy? Is there any point in studying philosophy, or is it a useless subject? What are the different branches of philosophy - what's the difference between aestheitcs and ethics? What's the difference between metaphysics and epistemology?

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