Fallacies constitute variously twisted arguments, which might appear influential or meaningful, when, in fact, their main task is to mislead the audience. They are common both in speech and writing, and sometimes it is quite difficult to spot them. The main reason behind it varies closely among different fallacies; yet, generally it is impacted by the mirroring of the thesis or using various types of Appeals in order for the audience to empathize with it. This way, the fallacy manages to sound reliable or relatable to the person, towards whom it is directed, which affects the extent of their critical analysis of the statement.
Straw Man is one of the variations of fallacies, which serves as a replacement for an original argument. Its particular features are the resemblance to the beginning statement and often the exaggeration of it in order to shift attention from the core argument to something barely related to it. This type of fallacy does not prove anything and only creates a significant distortion (Vaughn 34). Due to the created misrepresentation of an original statement, Straw Man misleads the focus of discussion and confuses the opponent.
This fallacy can be spotted not only in political arguments or philosophical studies, but in various day-to-day situations too. For example, someone claims: “Oat milk is an excellent option for people with lactose intolerance, so it should be served in more restaurants for inclusivity”. The opponent replies: “Increased production of oat milk will significantly affect demand for regular milk and therefore farms productivity, which will destroy the current economy”. This imaginary situation can be considered as an example of Straw Man fallacy due to the misleading and irrelevant statement of the opponent in response to the original claim.
The fallacy is evident within the example above because the counter-argument does not logically contradict the original statement. While first person focuses on inclusivity towards lactose intolerant people, second person twists the discussion and brings out a completely different setting of farms and economy. This way, the opponent directs the discussion towards the different topic and makes first person argue with a distorted and misrepresented claim, which is a representation of Straw Man fallacy.
Given that there is a diversity of various fallacy types, it might be difficult to distinguish Straw Man specifically among different kinds of fallacious reasoning. Especially considering that there is a fallacy closely related to it – Appeal to the Person (Vaughn 34). Comparing these two, a prominent way to avoid confusion is to highlight the differences between them. While Straw Man misleads the opponent by distorting and exaggerating the original claim, Appeal to the Person does it by neglecting the reliability of the argument. Therefore, an effective way to differentiate Straw Man from other types of fallacies is to spot how exactly fallacious reasoning treats the original argument and what are the techniques used in order to mislead.
As a conclusion, Straw Man fallacy’s way of twisting the claim of the opponent and shifting the discussion towards a different setting is the main misleading part of it. This technique, applied consciously or not, at times might successfully distract a person from their original statement and make them argue with a different point. Although there are a variety of different types of fallacies, Straw Man can be spotted quite easily when focusing specifically on the method of obfuscation applied within the context.
Reference
Vaughn, L. (2021). Philosophy here and now: Powerful ideas in everyday life. Oxford University Press.