Logically Fallacious
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Strawman Fallacy - Logically Fallacious
Substituting a person’s actual position or argument with a distorted, exaggerated, or misrepresented version of the position of the argument.
Eli5 what is a strawman argument?
It's called a "strawman" because a dummy made of straw is easy to knock over. And metaphorically, that's what you're doing with a "strawman argument": you're not attacking the position, you're creating a weak replica of the position that's easier to beat. One simple example of this would be: A. You argue that our country should spend less on the military. B. I counter that you want to abolish 100% of military spending. You want our country to be weak, our people to be helpless and the fate of the world left to dictators and thugs. Now, maybe that is what you think. It's not what you said. The reason I'm acting like you said that is that it's a much more extreme view—and one that you're probably going to find a lot more difficult to defend. Thus, I've made a strawman argument. More on reddit.com
What makes strawman a fallacy?
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Is Strawman always invalid?
Strawman signals a weak reasoning pattern. Even if the conclusion is true, the path to it is unreliable and should be rebuilt with sound support.
fallacyguide.com
fallacyguide.com › home › relevance fallacies › strawman
Strawman Fallacy: Definition, Examples & How to Fix It
Where does Strawman commonly appear?
You will find it in everyday debates, opinion columns, marketing claims, and quick social posts—anywhere speed or emotion encourages shortcuts.
fallacyguide.com
fallacyguide.com › home › relevance fallacies › strawman
Strawman Fallacy: Definition, Examples & How to Fix It
Can Strawman ever be reasonable?
It can feel persuasive, but it remains logically weak. A careful version should replace the fallacious step with evidence or valid structure.
fallacyguide.com
fallacyguide.com › home › relevance fallacies › strawman
Strawman Fallacy: Definition, Examples & How to Fix It
Videos
07:00
Straw Man Fallacy Explained - YouTube
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Straw Man vs Slippery Slope Fallacy explained with examples - YouTube
01:39
The "Straw Man" Fallacy Explained in 90 Seconds - YouTube
00:57
Straw Man Fallacy - How to Spot It - YouTube
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Straw Man Fallacy Example - YouTube
form of argument and an informal fallacy based on giving the impression of refuting an opponent's argument, while actually refuting an argument that was not presented by that opponent
Factsheet
Named after straw man
Named after straw man
Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Straw_man
Straw man - Wikipedia
1 month ago - A straw man fallacy (sometimes written as strawman) is the informal fallacy of refuting an argument different from the one actually under discussion, while not recognizing or acknowledging the distinction. One who engages in this fallacy is said to be "attacking a straw man".
Logical Fallacy
logical-fallacy.com › articles › strawman
Strawman argument - Definition and Examples - Logical Fallacy
November 30, 2024 - In the realm of debate, a strawman argument involves distorting or oversimplifying an opponent’s views, position, or argument, creating a distorted or false version of the original stance. The debater then proceeds to attack this misrepresented view, which is far more vulnerable than the actual argument.
Logical Fallacies
logicalfallacies.org › strawman.html
Strawman - Definition & Examples | LF
Overall, the Strawman fallacy is a logical fallacy that involves misrepresenting an opponent’s position in order to make it easier to attack. This type of fallacy is dangerous because it can lead to false conclusions and misrepresentations.
Reddit
reddit.com › r/explainlikeimfive › eli5 what is a strawman argument?
r/explainlikeimfive on Reddit: Eli5 what is a strawman argument?
August 19, 2024 -
I hear this phrase a lot, and I have no idea what it mean
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It's called a "strawman" because a dummy made of straw is easy to knock over. And metaphorically, that's what you're doing with a "strawman argument": you're not attacking the position, you're creating a weak replica of the position that's easier to beat. One simple example of this would be: A. You argue that our country should spend less on the military. B. I counter that you want to abolish 100% of military spending. You want our country to be weak, our people to be helpless and the fate of the world left to dictators and thugs. Now, maybe that is what you think. It's not what you said. The reason I'm acting like you said that is that it's a much more extreme view—and one that you're probably going to find a lot more difficult to defend. Thus, I've made a strawman argument.
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You distort or exaggerate what the other person is saying, and then you prove the distorted version wrong or argue against the distorted version. "I don't want to vote." "So you hate democracy?" "Would you like to take advantage of this discount?" "No thanks." "What's the matter, don't you like to save money? Do you usually throw money away like this?" You create a strawman / scarecrow version of the opponent, and then you "fight" the strawman (much easier to "win").
Effectiviology
effectiviology.com › straw-man-arguments-recognize-counter-use
Strawman Arguments: What They Are and How to Counter Them – Effectiviology
Overall, since a strawman argument is fallacious because it distorts the stance that it argues against, the correct way to counter it, from a purely logical perspective, is to point out this distortion.
Reddit
reddit.com › r/askphilosophy › what makes strawman a fallacy?
r/askphilosophy on Reddit: What makes strawman a fallacy?
August 31, 2025 -
I'm genuinely struggling to identify what's the exact property of fallaciousness on the strawman fallacy. It's said to be an informal fallacy, and "informal fallacy" is defined as "a type of incorrect argument in informal language". I don't see how strawman even is an argument in the first place, rather than just a [dishonest] rhetorical approach or simply the misrepresentation of an external claim.
I don't see anybody commenting on this, so there must be something wrong with my interpretation. What am I missing or doing wrong?
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Strawmanning is something that you do when you answer to someone else's position. By Strawmanning them, though, you're actually not answering to them, and therefore not reaching the conclusion you wanted to establish (ie the falsity of their position)
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As you mention, “the strawman fallacy” is an informal fallacy, which means it isn’t necessary a failure of logical form (strawman arguments can be valid in a strict logical sense) but is a failure of reasoning. The point being that, by misrepresenting someone else’s point of view, and using that misrepresentation as a premise in your own argument, you are not persuasively engaging with the other’s person’s point of view. Informal fallacies are quite a broad church, but as I said, if you think of them more as failures of reasoning and persuasiveness rather than logical form, it makes more sense.
Whole Reason
wholereason.com › 2021 › 06 › logical-fallacies-stickman-strawman-steelman.html
Logical Fallacies: Stickman, Strawman, Steelman - Whole Reason
January 11, 2025 - The stick man is a reductionist representation of your or their argument where the argument is drastically reduced, and often, important clarifications are left out. As an opponent, you may do this to make the opponent’s arguments look weak, underdeveloped, or vulnerable to your attacks on their “unrefined and simplistic” ideas, which is a type of strawman attack.