name calling
{{Short description|Directing insulting or demeaning labels}}
Name-calling is a form of argument in which insulting or demeaning labels are directed at an individual or group. This phenomenon is studied by a variety of academic disciplines such as anthropology, child psychology, and political science. It is also studied in rhetoric and a variety of other disciplines.
In politics and public opinion
Politicians sometimes resort to name-calling during political campaigns or public events with the intentions of gaining advantage over, or defending themselves from, an opponent or critic. Often such name-calling takes the form of labelling an opponent as an unreliable and untrustworthy source, such as use of the term "flip-flopper".
Common misconceptions
Gratuitous verbal abuse or "name-calling" is not on its own an example of the abusive argumentum ad hominem logical fallacy.{{cite web |url=http://plover.net/~bonds/adhominem.html |title=The Ad Hominem Fallacy Fallacy |publisher=Plover.net |access-date=2013-07-27 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130814151153/http://plover.net/~bonds/adhominem.html |archive-date=2013-08-14 }}{{cite web|url=http://www.fallacyfiles.org/adhomine.html |title=Logical Fallacy: Argumentum ad Hominem |publisher=Fallacyfiles.org |access-date=2013-07-27}}[http://theautonomist.com/iindv/articles_stand/perm/fallacies.php#adhom Ad hominem fallacy], Logical Fallacies, Formal and Informal, Independent Individualist.{{cite web |url=http://www.drury.edu/ess/Logic/Informal/AdHominem.html |title=AdHominem |publisher=Drury.edu |access-date=2013-07-27 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130818042110/http://www.drury.edu/ess/Logic/Informal/AdHominem.html |archive-date=2013-08-18 }}{{cite web|url=http://www.logicalfallacies.info/relevance/ad-hominem/ |title=Logical Fallacies» Ad Hominem (Personal Attack) |publisher=Logicalfallacies.info |access-date=2013-07-27}} The fallacy occurs only if personal attacks are employed to devalue a speaker's argument by attacking the speaker; personal insults in the middle of an otherwise sound argument are not fallacious ad hominem attacks.
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Bullying}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Name-Calling}}